David Macfarlane One in two South African adults cannot read or write, but the government continues to allocate dismally low resources to this national scourge and to adult education generally. Basic education for adults is being increasingly sidelined in government priorities, a major conference last week in Johannesburg repeatedly heard. One of the country’s largest […]

The parallels between Israel and the South Africa of PW Botha grow daily more striking. Since besieged Israeli voters installed militarist Ariel Sharon as leader, security considerations have replaced politics, violence and counter-violence have spiralled out of control, state assassination has been sanctioned, whole communities are punished for individual crimes, voices of reason are systematically […]

analysis Nicholas Taitz and John Kuhn The South African government’s policy against providing free anti-retroviral drugs to people living with HIV/Aids may amount to a crime against humanity. The legal concept of “crimes against humanity” was introduced after World War II to hold Nazi leaders accountable for their crimes in the Holocaust. At the Nuremberg […]

Drew Forrest The government has responded to the Bredell land invasion earlier this year in a crucial policy shift on shelter provision that will favour urban provinces and accelerate the release of land to urban shack-dwellers. The new approach is essentially a revival of former housing minister Joe Slovo’s incremental housing policy, as an alternative […]

John Young “The days of going into games maybe 10 years ago without a game-plan are gone,” Shaun Pollock told SA Sports Illustrated in September. The curriculum of the national academy obviously does not include South Africa’s 1952/53 tour of Australia. If it did, Pollock would know that one of the biggest cricketing upsets of […]

But if next year’s World Cup in Korea/Japan is a flop, the Fifa president has scapegoats David Lacey Beaming benignly, Sepp Blatter approached the task with the air of a Swiss waiter in charge of the sweet trolley. The customers might get indigestion, but he was not going to drop the profiteroles. Nothing fazed our […]

analysis Khadija Magardie The “a-hoppin’ on my camel versus just cruisin’ in my Daimler” problem has always been a dilemma of sorts in the Muslim world. Understandably so, considering the difficulties of marrying centuries of tradition with being a citizen of the 21st century. But few instances of what Ali Mazrui called “having the wristwatch […]

Khadija Magardie The South African Law Commission’s (SALC) project committee has approved its discussion document and proposed draft Bill on Islamic marriages. The paper, which will be released for public comment, makes provision for the recognition of marriages contracted in terms of Muslim religious law. In addition, it regulates the proprietary consequences of such marriages, […]

Miles Keylock 0932, Main Road, Green Point. On Sunday December 9 groove on down at a night of swinging funk with Breakfast Included, who are joined by Melanie Scholtz on vocals. Shows start at 7pm and finish about 10pm. There is no cover charge and great food specials are available. Details and bookings:Tel: 434 6306. […]

David Macfarlane Thousands of schoolchildren look set to start their school year in January without textbooks but provincial education departments are refusing to admit this. And although budgeted expenditure on textbooks and stationery for the coming year is R1,1-billion an increase of about 15% questions are being raised about how much of this will actually […]