analysis Raymond Suttner Many commentators have said one should not be surprised that the African National Congress wishes to form some form of cooperation agreement or alliance with the New National Party. Some see this as confirmation of a “truism” that even freedom fighters, once they get involved in “normal” politics, are prepared to bed […]

I was not surprised when I was watching e-tv and I heard a quote from President Thabo Mbeki saying those who are sceptical or don’t believe the arms deal investigation results are those who believe that blacks are corrupt. I want to say unequivocally that I fiercely oppose what Mbeki has said. Fortunately, I happen […]

The new chairperson of the South African Human Rights Commission (HRC), Shirley Mabusela, kept her head down on the government’s HIV/Aids stance this week and stood by the HRC’s decision to stay out of next week’s court challenge to official policy on anti-retroviral drugs, writes Bongani Majola. This is likely to disappoint Aids activists, who […]

Chiefs take on Cosmos in the Coke Cup final this weekend Ntuthuko Maphumulo With R1-million the difference between winning and losing the Coca-Cola Cup final, coming second will never be the same again. The winners get R2-million while the runners-up pocket a still-hefty R1-million. Jomo Cosmos and Chiefs will be meeting in their third cup […]

Chairman: Theatre Managements of SA Dear Mr Lindberg, … Since you are now a man of the arts, I was hoping you would be interested in producing my latest one-act play. The curtain goes up to reveal a young man sitting on a chair. He is naked apart from a long, black coat and military […]

Your proposal for a one act play is presumably satirical, as I am reluctant to believe that you are sufficiently depressed about the human condition to want to charge the public good money for the drama you describe! Anyway, there are not many literate audiences around any more! Not up here anyway … Meanwhile we […]

Decades after writing her now-legendary work Fatima Dike is still asking: “Why were my ancestors so stupid?” Guy Willoughby ‘Our grasp of the past is so unbalanced: black experience has been separated for so long from white that we don’t understand why we each do the things that we do. I wrote Kreli in 1976 […]

A group of 32 South African actors have shaken up the staid Brits with the vigour of their show Paul Tilsley One minute to seven and the entire cast of the musical Umoja stand squeezed between costume rails and props in the cramped backstage area of London’s Shaftesbury Theatre. It is the first night of […]

The Springboks take the world’s biggest pack into their crucial game at Twickenham Andy Capostagno in London It is a melancholy fact that, while South Africa have lost only seven times to England in 95 years, five of those defeats have come since the end of isolation 10 years ago. If, as the bookmakers are […]

Grande Jete will attempt to become the second Cape-trained horse in three weeks to win a major feature in Gauteng when he lines up for the R2-million grade 1 Summer Cup over 2 000m at Turffontein on Saturday. Last season’s Cape Derby winner has assumed the mantle of race favourite after the scratching of Badger’s […]