Virgin is in town and keen to foster partnerships with local companies, writes Madeleine Wackernagel ‘NOW that we can afford to fly here,” quipped Richard Branson, head of Virgin Atlantic, in an apparent side-swipe at the prevailing duopoly, “many more investments will follow.” First off is a Virgin Megastore; a site has been earmarked and […]

Jane Badham THE travel brochures show you pictures of the big five, stretches of pristine beaches, luxury hotels and smiling faces. The picture of peace and harmony, but allow me to paint the real picture … We have long known that we are living in the most violent country (with the exception of Bosnia) in […]

Marion Edmunds SOUTH AFRICAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION journalists, along with about 250 of their colleagues from around the world, were holed up in a compound in Libya this week, unsure when they would be allowed to leave the country to return to their homes. According to Current Affairs Executive Producer Freek Robinson, a producer, Kotie van […]

Jan Bergman believes he is the best boxer in South Africa. This weekend he has a chance to prove his boast correct BOXING: Gavin Evans THERE’S a kind of prickly arrogance about Jan Bergman which comes across as alternatively endearing or plain irritating, depending on your vantage point. He’s a man who “knows” he’s the […]

Yunus Momoniat CITIZEN AND SUBJECT: CONTEMPORARY AFRICA AND THE LEGACY OF LATE COLONIALISM by Mahmood Mamdani (James Currey/Fountain/David Philip, R79,95) – UGANDAN academic Mahmood Mamdani, who worked in South Africa for a time, has written a wide-ranging and highly theoretical book which attempts to discern a pattern in the process of colonialism in Africa. He […]

The widespread strike in Zimbabwe may be over, but the country’s troubles aren’t, reports Julius Zava ALTHOUGH Zimbabwe’s strike by civil servants has been suspended, the threat of renewed labour unrest continues. The strikers have given the government until September 27 to address problems Plain English which lead to their strike which lasted nearly four […]

Information is power and the Central Statistical Service is determined to put it to better use than the old government, reports Aspasia Karras IN a paper presented in August for the Institute for Advanced Social Research at the University of the Witwatersand, Deborah Possel focused on the relationship between counting and controlling. She argued that […]

Delays in implementing Angola’s peace accords were highlighted at Unita’s third congress in Bailundo last month, reports John Liebenberg THE town of Bailundo, set in the , farmlands of central Huambo, has always played a significant role in Angolan history. Once home to the Ovimbundu kings, famous for leading a 1902 rebellion against Portuguese rule, […]

Marion Edmunds WHILE Pagad is baying for quick justice from blood- stained streets, the police at head office are scrabbling for money to buy a fingerprinting system which would remove one of the key blockages in the criminal justice system. The purchase of an automated fingerprint system Afis would speed up police investigations and court […]

Minister of Welfare and Population Development Geraldine Fraser-Moleketi responds to a recent M&G article AS in other parts of the world, the issue of whether to provide social assistance to permanent residents has come to the fore in South Africa. The article entitled “No pensions for permanent residents” by Marion Edmunds (August 16 to 22) […]