Justin Arenstein WHEN election authorities in Mpumalanga announced that they had lost the trucks transporting ballot papers to more than 50 polling stations in the former KwaNdebele, it sounded like one of the more amusing episodes of the local elections. But when the ballot papers had still not arrived 12 hours after polls were supposed […]

Millions of enthusiastic voters turned out for the poll this week, but many were met with errors on the voters’ roll which prevented them from voting, writes Gaye Davis A NEW era of local government dawned for South Africa this week as millions of voters flocked to the polls, defying predictions that apathy would keep […]

Gaye Davis CHRIS Ngcobo’s past experience of local government elections was as a Soweto activist, organising people to boycott them. So it was an historic moment when he cast his vote in Diepkloof this week. But the poll meant more to Ngcobo than making his mark on a ballot paper. As national manager of the […]

Louise Asmal THE BLACK DIASPORA by Ronald Segal (Faber & Faber, R135) THIS extraordinary compendium attempts to compress within less than 500 pages not only a description of the trade in human beings from Africa to the colonies of the various European powers, but also an account of the fate of their descendants up to […]

Mail and Guardian reporter The Mail & Guardian has opened South Africa’s first recruitment service on the Internet. Called work@za, the service is housed at the World Wide Web site of the Electronic Mail & Guardian. It lists a variety of current jobs available in South Africa, and on-line users can apply for many of […]

International players have given coaching clinics in Soweto before, but English cricketers actually playing at the township’s stadium is far more Cricket: Jon Swift PERHAPS some of the real significance of an international team playing cricket in Soweto will not strike the England players quite as dramatically as it will those of us who proudly […]

Certain vehicles will be cut from the Mercedes Benz range, reports Karen Harverson Mercedes Benz of South Africa, in keeping with local motor industry sentiment to cut production of low volume models, will no longer manufacture all Mercedes Benz ranges but stick to the C-class model and limited production of the E-class. Production of the […]

Cry, the Beloved Country is beautiful to the point of kitsch — but it doesn’t seem to have benefited from 50 years’ hindsight, writes JUSTIN PEARCE Our own dear Y-fronted South African flag appears at the bottom of the ethno-abstract poster for Cry, the Beloved Country. This may seem odd considering that the film is […]

Trade unionist Gwede Mantashe speaks to Karen Harverson about his appointment to the Samancor For the first time in South Africa’ s turbulent management-worker relationship, a trade unionist has been appointed to the board of directors of a major listed company. Ferro alloy producer Samancor has appointed 45- year old Gwede Mantashe, assistant general secretary […]

Karen Harverson South Africa does not have the luxury of time to plan for the transformation of its economy. All players at national, sectoral, company and community level need to co-operate in a joint strategy to achieve this second miracle. “There is no alternative open to South Africa except to seek a meaningful social partnership. […]