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/ 11 February 2005
She was treated like a movie star wherever she went. Her face launched a thousand front pages. Europe’s leaders fell over themselves to welcome her. Her speech in Paris was the hottest ticket in town and her fleeting appearances in capital after capital merely enhanced the perception of glamour and power. In a few breathless days, United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice became the Bette Davis of diplomacy.
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/ 11 February 2005
Saudi Arabia, one of the world’s most traditional absolute monarchies, took a tentative step towards democracy on Thursday when male citizens went to the polls in the first municipal elections the country has witnessed for 40 years. Candidates have splashed out money on advertising and laid on feasts for potential voters, but the authorities’ ”progressive step” has left reformers disappointed.
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/ 10 February 2005
Last week, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) took the toughest decision we’ve ever had to in our five-year history: the national council voted to lift the suspension on participating in elections and entered the race under protest. Making tough choices is part and parcel of politics, but it did not come without soul-searching, writes MDC secretary general Welshman Ncube.
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/ 10 February 2005
How to boost South Africa’s economic growth and reduce its unemployment rate are just two of the issues opposition parties are hoping to hear President Thabo Mbeki pronounce on in his State of the Nation address on Friday. They would also like clear plans for tackling the country’s Aids pandemic, eradicating poverty, improving social service delivery and dealing with Zimbabwe.
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/ 10 February 2005
Hours after militants launched a mortar barrage at Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas ordered his security forces on Thursday to act against extremists who are threatening a fragile truce with Israel.
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/ 10 February 2005
Minister of Finance Trevor Manuel’s support for the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) proposal to sell gold reserves is ”worrisome”, the National Union of Mineworkers said on Thursday. The union also said it supports Minister of Minerals and Energy Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka’s opposition to the proposal.
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/ 10 February 2005
A police officer probing alleged sex crimes against Pretoria advocate pair Cezanne Visser and Dirk Prinsloo was accused on Thursday of having a grudge against Prinsloo after he laid a complaint against her. Piet Coetzee, for Prinsloo, told the court his client had laid a complaint against Superintendent Daleen du Plessis long before his arrest.
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/ 10 February 2005
The African National Congress on Thursday stated the party’s unqualified opposition to corruption in all it forms, but refused to bow to pressure for public scrutiny of who its private funders are. The Institute for Democracy in South Africa is seeking to compel the ANC and other parties to open their books for public scrutiny.
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/ 10 February 2005
Thirty youths from President Robert Mugabe’s ruling Zanu-PF were denied bail on Thursday following their weekend arrest in Zimbabwe for beating up opposition supporters and stabbing a police officer. The young Zanu-PF members commandeered cars from local residents and attacked opposition supporters.