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/ 26 February 2004

The wall must fall

At first glance, Israel’s planned 700km wall and fence on its Eastern flank seems defensible, as it will undoubtedly reduce suicide bombings on Israeli territory. Under closer scrutiny, it emerges as a gross injustice that is justifiably condemned in much of the world, and even by some Israelis.

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/ 26 February 2004

Iran’s youth face growing disillusionment

They slice through traffic on their motorbikes, racing each other at breakneck speed with one hand holding a cellphone. They listen to heavy metal, read Günter Grass and admire Tom Cruise. They don’t go to the mosque the way their parents did and they have given up on politics. A third of Iran’s 65-million people are aged between 15 and 30,

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/ 26 February 2004

Russian-style Harrods for Red Square

It is enough to make Lenin turn in his mausoleum, where he lies only metres away across Red Square. A Moscow businessman has bought a large stake in GUM, the legendary Soviet-era retail store in Red Square opposite the Kremlin, and plans to turn the symbol of Communist Party privileges into a supermarket.

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/ 26 February 2004

The marks of ‘surface learning’

”When I recently read law at the University of Cape Town (UCT) as a ”mature student”, I was struck by the widespread deference to authority, the all-pervasive atmosphere of rote learning, and the almost exclusive assessment by examination.” Rob Turrell comments.

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/ 26 February 2004

Speaking of our seat of government …

They say the wheels of Parliament turn slowly. Obviously no one told anyone in the hallowed halls of the resignation of Andrew Feinstein, the African National Congress MP who resigned as co-chairperson of Scopa as political pressure came to bear in the arms deal scandal way back in 2001. He is still listed as the member for the Sea Point constituency office.