King Mswati III on Tuesday postponed the opening of Parliament in this tiny Southern African nation without explanation. No new date was announced. Mswati, Africa’s last absolute monarch, had been expected to preside over the opening session on Friday and address the nation on government plans for the year ahead.
In the beginning, back in 1996, it was SixDegrees. Last year it was Friendster. Last week it was Orkut. Next week it could be Flickr. These websites, and dozens more, are designed to build networks of friends, and they are currently at the forefront of the trendiest internet development: social networking. These sites are spreading like a rash through the internet, but are they sustainable?
Computers like things precise: on or off, one or zero, yes or no. The real world is rarely precise or exact; information is partial and uncertain and people make judgement calls. Artificial intelligence (AI) is about making computers act more like humans and you might be surprised at how many places it is showing up — from cameras and fridges to spam filters and Microsoft’s forthcoming BizTalk Server 2004.
A virtual blitz of worms is descending on the internet, report antivirus software vendors. In the past four days, six new variants of the mass-mailing Bagle worm and two new variants of the Netsky worm have been spotted. One of the new Netsky variants, Netsky.D, is described as the worst new worm to emerge since Friday.
A memorandum of understanding outlining cooperation around black economic empowerment and unity among the business community was signed between Eskom and the National Federated Chamber of Commerce and Industries (Nafcoc) in Johannesburg on Wednesday.
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Prisoners sentenced without the option of a fine will also be allowed to vote in the general election in April, the Constitutional Court ruled on Wednesday. The court heard last month that an amendment to the Electoral Act promulgated in 2003 violated two constitutional rights of prisoners: the right to vote and the right to equality.
Special Report: Elections 2004
Sanlam, South Africa’s second-largest financial services group, is expected to report basically unchanged pro-forma headline earnings per share based on a long-term rate of return when the company announces its results for the year to the end of December 2003 on Thursday.
Four retailers at the Johannesburg International Airport were served with notices on Tuesday for contravening labour laws, the Labour Department said. Spokesperson Snuki Zikalala said the labour inspectors had slapped Medicine Chain, Natting, Fournos and Kuai with a total of 10 subpoenas after a raid at the airport on Monday.
The United States on Tuesday said it was widening an existing sanctions regime against Zimbabwe to include seven government-related businesses. The enhanced US sanctions ban any transactions with the seven black-listed groups.
Prince Harry, third in line to the British throne, will spend his third week during a private visit to Africa building fences and planting trees at a rural orphanage in the small mountain kingdom of Lesotho, a royal spokesperson said on Wednesday.