A black commercial farmer in the Free State claims to have been sabotaged by some of his white counterparts, writes Ann Eveleth The vultures started descending on Isaac Khumalo’s Vredefort farm soon after he took the plunge into commercial agriculture in December 1995. Thirty-one-year-old Khumalo, the Free State vice-chair of the Emerging Red Meat Producers […]
Lauren Shantall On show in Cape Town Absolut Vodka is conquering new territory, pith helmet firmly in place. The boozy struggle for Africa has begun, as the companys marketing machine seeks the next slick promo in its infinite series of witty takes on that bountiful bottle. Weve had Absolut Stockholm, Absolut Vienna, Absolut London, Absolut […]
Andrew Muchineripi World Cup Humility has never been a strong point of Philippe Troussier and so it proved again this week in the beautiful French city of Bordeaux as Bafana Bafana bowed out of the World Cup. Perhaps capitulated would be a better word. France proved generous hosts by defeating Denmark in the final round […]
Neil Manthorp in Cambridge Cricket The arrangement of storms and lulls, peaks and troughs has been clever so far on tour, by and large. Cambridge is a lovely city and the combined universities provide talented but not fierce opposition. Most importantly, Cambridge provides the perfect opportunity to allow the ripples and tremors from the Lords […]
Angella Johnson Pity Philippe Troussier. The Frenchman with the poor interpersonal skills has emerged as the national scapegoat for Bafana Bafana’s less- than-sparkling performance in the World Cup. The charges: that as a foreigner he lacks any real understanding of the way football is played in this country; and that he deliberately sabotaged the first […]
Phillip Kakaza Puffing cigarettes, gulping tots of whisky and uttering words of wisdom in preparation for some smooth, mellow music to be rendered by a four-piece band called Basadi was the order of a chilly evening at Kippies. But the waiting was rather too long in a gloomy venue that breathes cold air up your […]
Tony Twine A tailpiece to a news bulletin a few years ago reported that a young child had lost his first milk tooth and had been instructed on how to liquidate his asset via the tooth fairy market. Much to his delight, the tooth disappeared overnight, to be replaced by a shining R5 coin it […]
Chris McGreal Nigeria’s new military leader, General Abdulsalam Abubakar, appears close to releasing the imprisoned presidential election winner, Moshood Abiola, after the two men held talks ostensibly aimed at agreeing on conditions for the restoration of civilian rule. But opposition sources say the army is pressing Abiola to renounce his claim to the presidency and […]
Sechaba ka’Nkosi The central committee of the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) believes the federation has been sidelined politically and has little say in major policy decisions taken by the African National Congress. At a meeting in Johannesburg this week, Cosatu leaders carefully avoided a public showdown with the government and senior ANC […]
Swapna Prabhakaran Archibald Jacob Gumede, journalist, lawyer and veteran freedom fighter, passed away after a long battle with illness in Durban last Sunday. It was Father’s Day and he died surrounded by his children and grandchildren. His passing was peaceful – appropriate for a man known as “Archie, the gentle giant”. Gumede played no small […]