What kind of radio and TV shows would education bureaucrats design? We’re about to find out. Barbara Ludman reports on a new plan A GRANDIOSE scheme to revolutionise educational broadcasting is in the final planning stage. Details are being fine-tuned in a multi- million-rand “partnership arrangement” between the national Department of Education and the SABC. […]

Does the SABC have the right to decide what is or isn’t savoury advertising? Jacquie Golding- Duffy reports on “code orange” Before the launch of the new South African Broadcasting Corporation in February, the corporation was banning what they thought to be unsavoury advertisements. A month after the launch, the SABC continues to censor. Prior […]

Philippa Garson More people are employed in the security industry than there are policemen, and peace monitors have asked Safety and Security Minister Sydney Mufamadi to investigate links between private security companies and crime. The flourishing security industry is wide open to political or criminal abuse and must be investigated and regulated as a matter […]

Ann Eveleth Police have been accused of physically torturing a community activist and his relatives in northern KwaZulu-Natal with rubber tubes and electric shocks. The activist, Kevin Kunene, was hospitalised with internal injuries and a burst eardrum. Kunene is founding chairman of the KwaMbonambi Environmental Group. He says his injuries were caused by policemen from […]

After their acrimonious TV debate, legal academic Dennis Davis and Human Rights Commission head Barney Pityana had a rapprochement in the parking lot, reports Justin Pearce Dennis Davis has withdrawn his call for Barney Pityana to resign as head of the Human Rights Commission. This was one outcome of a rapprochement between the two men […]

Philippa Garson LAWYERS are baffled at how Winnie Madikizela- Mandela’s legal team handled the divorce, which ended so suddenly, with her defeated and empty-handed. A successful challenge to the divorce judgment in the Constitutional Court is seen as unlikely. Madikizela-Mandela must now rely on the “goodness of heart” of President Nelson Mandela, who has offered […]

Justin Pearce Among the ornaments crowding every shelf in Johanna Claasens’s living room in Welkom is a mug with the inscription “Harmony Gold Mine – — 5 000 accident-free shifts”. It was given to her by a friend after Harmony’s worst accident ever — the Merriespruit mudslide in February 1994, which killed 17 people, including […]

Julian Drew PAULO GUERRA of Portugal was the second European home in last year’s world 10 000m final in Gothenburg, finishing eighth, one place behind Germany’s Stephane Franke. Ahead of them were the might of Ethiopia, Kenya and Morocco, the untouchables of world middle distance running. But for Guerra the world championships and track racing […]

Last week’s Budget allocated R43-million to the president and his two deputies. Rehana Rossouw examines how it will be spent PRESIDENT Nelson Mandela’s office will spend R21-million this year, Executive Deputy President Thabo Mbeki R9-million and Deputy President FW de Klerk R12-million. This pays for the smooth running of their offices and households: all three […]

THEATRE: David le Page AT any time, it’s possible to pick out buzzwords pervading public debate and the media’s reporting of it. Words like ”struggle”, ”regime” and ”political correctness”, have now been joined by ”accountability”, ”transparency” and, of course, ”gravy train”. Unfortunately, if one thing remains in one’s mind after seeing Nape’a Motana’s The Honeymoon […]