Kenyan civil society activist Edward Oyugi says Africa’s relations with the developed world amount to the continent holding out a begging bowl. But, African leaders insist they have a partnership with wealthy nations. The claim came under discussion again this week during a meeting of the powerful Group of Eight.
Springbok captain John Smit was full of praise for coach Jake White after the Boks’ stunning 31-17 win over the Irish on Saturday. Ireland had came to South Africa on the back of impressive displays at the Rugby World Cup and Six Nations, but it was the Springboks who prevailed, to go one point up in the two-match series.
World champion Michael Schumacher looks set for a battle with his BAR-Honda rivals in Sunday’s Canadian Grand Prix after he and Takuma Sato finished fastest in the two practice sessions on Friday. Schumacher set the fastest time of the day for Ferrari, but he dropped to third in the second hour.
Staff at the troubled National Development Agency have written a new letter of protest to its board to complain about ongoing chaos at the organisation. Minister of Social Development Zola Skweyiya instituted a probe eight months ago into mismanagement, fraud and corruption in the agency.
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An overnight coup attempt in the Democratic Republic of Congo was ”a freak incident,” says South Africa’s Provincial and local Government Minister Sydney Mufamadi. He says a military delegation from the DRC is to meet the South African National Defence Force to discuss training and security sector reforms.
That was a week that was. Not quite up there with winning the bid for the 2010 Soccer World Cup and unleashing the vuvuzela on a bunch of uptight Fifa suits, but one of those New South African weeks nevertheless. Mike van Graan looks back at E.T.’s release, the Olympic torch in the Mother City and Harry Potter.
You wait a century for a recording of every word of Ulysses and then 54 CDs of James Joyce’s masterpiece come along at once, reports Maev Kennedy from London.
MOVIE OF THE WEEK: The second part of Kill Bill, Quentin Tarantino’s pulp-guignol shocker, is destined to see Uma Thurman fully assume the mantle of warrior queen and martial-arts mom, writes Peter Bradshaw. Once again, Tarantino has seen off the imitators, detractors and condescenders.