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/ 12 March 2004

Congo govt forces, rebels in firefight

Government forces killed seven rebels south of the capital in a rare firefight this week, a government spokesperson said. The rebels, loyal to renegade Pastor Frederic Bitsangou, were killed on Tuesday near Kinkala, 70km south of Brazzaville, spokesperson Alain Akouala said late on Thursday.

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/ 12 March 2004

Pimping the American dream

I can just see it. Hordes of Americans and Japanese following tour-guide tannies with their empowerment-coloured brollies pointing out ”This is where Charlize was born.” ”This is where Charlize went to school.” ”This is where Charlize ate her first samoosa.” But it’s not only Benoni that’s going bananas, observes Mike van Graan.

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/ 12 March 2004

The problem with David

Michelangelo’s statue David may be clean in time for his 500th birthday this year, but experts are concerned that his left ankle may not be strong enough to keep him standing forever. A Bologna University team has begun analysing tiny cracks in the marble masterpiece since restoration work began on the statue last September. Sophie Arie reports from Florence.

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/ 12 March 2004

Study finds shellshocked child soldiers

Former child soldiers suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder, the ailment once known among World War I troops as ”shell shock”, according to a study published on Saturday. Several hundred youngsters who had been abducted by the brutal Ugandan rebel group the Lord’s Resistance’s Army were interviewed for the study.

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/ 12 March 2004

The cruel sea

"After a somewhat slow start, in which author Stephen Taylor explores the backgrounds of the crew and passengers, his narrative sweeps one away like a rip tide". Maureen Brady reviews <i>The Caliban Shore: The Fate of the Grosvenor Castaways</i>,

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/ 12 March 2004

Slaves to love

"When I first read about the Khoi man Claas Blank and his 1735 affair with fellow Robben Island prisoner Rijkhaart Jacobsz, a sailor from Amsterdam, I knew I wanted to make a film about it." Filmmaker Jack Lewis writes about his role in the making of <i>Proteus</i>, an international co-production.