ELEVEN people were killed when two ferries sank in Benin’s Lake Nokoue early on Wednesday, state radio reported. It said four people were rescued and were hospitalised, but it gave no indication of how many people were on board the ferries. The radio attributed the accidents to heavy rains that had lashed the region since […]
Time was when REM, and the band_s singer Michael Stipe in particular, were the last people you_d think of as shiny or happy. Today, after a period of regrouping, they_re more content with life and music than ever Sean O_Hagan There was a time when Michael Stipe would get offended if you called him a […]
Jaspreet Kindra The ruling African National Congress’s alliance partners the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) and the South African Communist Party are unlikely to field a candidate against President Thabo Mbeki next year. “Unless the current leadership continues down the self-destructive path,” adds a senior alliance leader referring to Minister of Safety and […]
Aids is the new struggle. Yet again civil society is mobilising to fill the vacuum left by government. Once more the private sector is stirring, recognising that the present situation is unsustainable. Many Aids activists are old hands who learnt their craft in the era of apartheid. But where once they fought an immoral and […]
ZIMBABWE?S government has created a climate of intimidation against journalists in the country that must end, a panel of international press rights groups said Thursday. In presenting their findings, members of the delegation said their meeting with Information Minister Jonathan Moyo produced little hope for change. “Mister Moyo, in my opinion, saw nothing wrong with […]
The government could find itself in court again for its failure to supply promised anti-retroviral drugs Paul Kirk The government is likely to face a new legal battle after temporarily halting the use of a drug, nevirapine, that prevents mother-to-child infection Last year the national Department of Health promised to begin widespread trials of the […]
M&G reporter The Dolphinarium at Seaworld on the Durban beachfront is very popular with pre-school and primary school children. The pool arena is a site of excitement, as the kids cheer and shout at the performing aquatic mammals. Judy Mann-Lang, Seaworld education manager, says the intelligence displayed by the dolphins is the magnet that attracts […]
Steven Friedman worm’s eye view Right now, this is not an easy neighbourhood for democrats with short memories and long expectations. Events in several of the region’s states have seemed to make optimism about democracy here bizarre and yet we may look back on this period as one in which, for the first time, democrats […]
Pule waga Mabe ‘Through positive and creative campaigns, you are showing that when you mobilised for militant action against apartheid education, you did not see this as an end itself. When you refused to succumb to apartheid’s jackboot, it is because you knew you had a role not only in eradicating racist education, but also […]
Martin Gillingham athletics The preparations of more than 30 South African athletes for this year_s world championships have been plunged into crisis following allegations of corruption and financial mismanagement against senior Athletics South Africa (ASA) officials, which prompted the postponement of the team announcement. The announcement, which was to have included the launch of the […]