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/ 19 October 2004
The fourth state witness in the Boeremag treason trial will not be able to maintain his anonymity after the judge refused an application to keep his identity a secret on Tuesday. Pretoria High Court Judge Eben Jordaan said the witness, Deon Crous, had not proved the existence of exceptional circumstances to warrant such an order, which would limit the freedom of the press.
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/ 19 October 2004
Deputy President Jacob Zuma gently chided the religious on Tuesday for not doing enough to challenge the portrayal of violence and sex in the media. ”There is something wrong in society if religious people are afraid to challenge things,” said Zuma, delivering the inaugural Desmond Tutu Peace Lecture.
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/ 19 October 2004
The four convicted murderers of the Van der Merwe family, two of whom were also convicted of rape, were sentenced to life imprisonment in the Circuit High Court in Secunda, Mpumalanga, on Tuesday. The men were also sentenced for other crimes, amounting to 240 years’ imprisonment — but the sentences will run concurrently.
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/ 19 October 2004
South African joint venture brandhouse, newly formed between Diageo, Heineken and Namibia Breweries, is notching up success in the local spirit-cooler sector through the recent launch of two South African-designed brand innovations — Smirnoff Triple Spin and Archers Aqua.
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/ 19 October 2004
While global gross domestic product (GDP) growth is at its highest in 30 years, heightened geo-political risks and the high oil price remain substantial concerns that could derail the current economic stability, Stanlib economist Kevin Lings cautioned on Tuesday.
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/ 19 October 2004
Eritrea on Monday accused the Sudanese leadership of plotting to assassinate Eritrean President Isaias Afeworki, raising the stakes in a months-long series of charges and counter-charges. Khartoum ”continues to step up its attempts to disrupt peace and stability in Eritrea”, Eritrean Information Minister Ali Abdu Ahmed said.
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/ 19 October 2004
The South African Department of Foreign Affairs confirmed on Tuesday that 14 South African fishermen had been arrested overnight in Zimbabwe and then released. Reports from Zimbabwe said 26 white campers were arrested at a government-run camp site after failing to pay camping fees in foreign currency.
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/ 19 October 2004
India’s most wanted fugitive, Koose Muniswamy Veerappan, accused of more than 100 murders and on the run for decades, has been shot dead after driving into a police trap, officials said on Tuesday. The death of Veerappan, known for his trademark handlebar moustache and said to be around 60 years old, brings to a close the longest manhunt in Indian police history.
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/ 19 October 2004
The death toll from suicide car bombings in Iraq continued to rise on Monday with at least 13 people killed in Baghdad and Mosul in the last two days, as the United States and Iraqi army siege of Fallujah continued unabated. A car bomb detonated on a bridge in the northern city of Mosul on Sunday morning, killing five Iraqis and wounding 15 others, the US military said.
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/ 19 October 2004
Qatar is set to substitute robots for jockeys in camel races, a favourite sport in the oil-rich Gulf region that has faced widespread criticism over the use of child jockeys from the Indian subcontinent. But the sport’s supremo in Doha insists the plan to use ”robot jockeys” within the coming year is not in response to protests by human rights groups.