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/ 26 October 2004
Voters in Botswana go to the polls this week to elect a new parliament and local government. The diamond-rich nation will become the first to test a new electoral code of conduct adopted by the Southern African Development Community in August. In many respects, however, this will simply be a dress rehearsal for the tougher challenges that the code is certain to face in the months ahead.
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/ 26 October 2004
The old man’s rough brown hands clutch a pile of purple animal entrails that steam in the morning chill. As he staggers away, one of the young Somali slaughterers waves a dagger, and explains: "It’s all he can afford. We are all poor here. But he is the poorest. The old one has no money for good food." The election of an interim president is cause for optimism, but Somalia’s dispossessed have nothing to return to.
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/ 26 October 2004
The wealth gap between white households and Hispanic and African-American families in the United States has widened significantly, with the last recession inflicting a heavy toll on minority households. An analysis of US census data by the Pew Hispanic Centre revealed that the 2001 economic downturn deepened a legacy of economic discrimination, with Hispanics and African-Americans harder hit and taking longer to recover.
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/ 26 October 2004
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, is in danger of assassination at the hands of Jewish extremists, according to Shimon Peres, the leader of the country’s Labour Party. The atmosphere in Israel was similar to the political turmoil of 1995 when Yitzhak Rabin, then prime minister, was murdered by a religious nationalist, he said.
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/ 26 October 2004
Lake Victoria has long been a name to conjure with. The world’s second-largest fresh water lake, it stretches out endlessly — rippled by the breeze that characteristically blows over the lake. Up to 30 million people live along Victoria’s 3Â 500-kilometre shoreline, which is shared by Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania. But alarm bells are being sounded about the effect their activities are having on the lake.
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/ 26 October 2004
The 2004 formula-one season was a case of one red car beating another red car as Michael Schumacher and Ferrari ran their rivals ragged. In capturing 13 of the 18 grands prix, Schumacher surpassed even his highest standards to waltz off with his seventh world title with four legs of the season to go.
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/ 26 October 2004
We’re coming up to the time of Samhein, All Hallows’ Eve, or just plain Halloween to you: October 31. Therefore, you need a big pumpkin, a sharp knife (no, don’t get the wrong idea) and a couple of hours to settle in, get comfy and make yourself the mother of all cool-looking Jack O’Lanterns, to put in your window to freak out the neighbours. Ian Fraser has some tricks and treats in his goodie bag this week.
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/ 26 October 2004
Skipper Stephen Fleming marked his record-breaking Test appearance on Tuesday with a solid unbeaten 87 that put New Zealand in command on the first day of the second cricket Test against Bangladesh. At tea, New Zealand was 234 for two with Fleming sharing an unbroken third-wicket stand of 173 with Scott Styris.
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/ 26 October 2004
The prosecutor has declined to proceed with a charge of intimidation against Albert Mokoena, former acting head of the South African Football Association (Safa), Johannesburg police said on Tuesday. The acting president of Safa, Reuben Mahlalela, announced Mokoena’s resignation on Monday.
Safa CEO quits
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/ 26 October 2004
A senior Greek prosecutor on Tuesday postponed announcing the results of a two-month investigation into disgraced Greek sprinters Kostas Kenteris and Katerina Thanou. The pair withdrew from the Athens Olympics after missing a doping test and being involved in a suspicious motorcycle accident.