What exactly is South Africa doing in its new, state-of-the-art Antarctic research base? Lesley Cowling reports PICTURES of Antarctica show a pristine wonderland: stunning white snow and poster- blue seas, penguins in their zoot suits, the wildest cleanest place on earth. But it’s also the coldest, windiest place on earth. In winter there’s no light, […]

Iden Wetherell in Harare PRESIDENT Robert Mugabe this week led a high-powered team to London to drum up investment in Zimbabwe’s faltering economy. Government sources in Harare have been upbeat about the interest shown by British companies. But it remains to be seen whether this will translate into money and jobs. Investment is vital to […]

Stuart Hess and Mungo Soggot finally got to see the report that caused all the trouble THE dossier which prompted a government inquiry into rugby and this week’s high court battle between rugby supremo Louis Luyt and Sports Minister Steve Tshwete contains little more than press clippings and court papers. Documents handed to Tshwete by […]

Gustav Thiel A RASTAFARIAN is taking the Law Society of Cape Town to court over its refusal to allow him to qualify as a lawyer because he has a criminal record for cannabis possession. The Law Society says it cannot allow Garreth Prince, who completed his legal studies at the University of the Western Cape […]

ancestral land Caitlin Davies in Maun A NEW initiative by the Botswana government to remove Bushmen from their ancestral lands in the Central Kalahari Game Reserve – to make way for tourism and mining – has backfired, with hundreds of Bushmen agreeing to accept cash in return for moving, but then changing their minds. “People […]

Need computer information in a readable form? Try these PCReview books, writes BARBARA LUDMAN THE boffins who write the Mail & Guardian’s PCReview supplement have now turned out an entertaining series of guides to the computer age. First up is Irwin Manoim’s Buying the Right Computer (R49,95); next comes Mish Middelmann’s The Lowdown on Windows […]

A fund set up to encourage banks to finance housing in high-risk areas has not been used, reports Mungo Soggot THE government agency set up to entice banks into lending money for housing in high-risk areas has concentrated on areas where it admits there is no risk. In its two years of existence, the Mortgage […]

Aliens are arrested and imprisoned without consideration for their rights, reports Marion Edmunds RAPHAEL MAVUDZI was not the first visitor to South Africa from north of the border to fail to have his papers in order. Nor was he the first to be arrested for that failure, under the Aliens Control Act, and thrown into […]

Was Finance Week publisher David Gleason a hired gun? Mungo Soggot reports THE feud between Times Media Limited and former employee David Gleason exploded into the public domain this week, as TML’s Business Day newspaper published long- rumoured allegations about Gleason’s ethical behaviour. The newspaper on Wednesday published a carefully worded but wounding article alleging […]

Glynis O’Hara THE Independent Broadcasting Authority’s (IBA) seven new radio licences announced this week are set to breathe life and diversity into the airwaves. Allowing for specialist and group interests, they avoided adding yet more pop music stations to that over-tired parade. The three FM stations in Gauteng went to Classic FM (classical music and […]