An eminent South African historian believes he has stumbled on Jack the Ripper. Charles van Onselen said at first he wasn’t sure he wanted to publicise the conclusions he drew when he noticed parallels in the century-old, unsolved Jack the Ripper case and the background of Joseph Silver, a feared international criminal who terrorised women in Johannesburg.
Right-wing former interior minister Nicolas Sarkozy and Socialist Ségolène Royal meet face to face on Wednesday for a television debate that could decide Sunday’s French presidential election. The two-hour encounter will be screened simultaneously by France’s two biggest television channels from 9pm local time.
Satirist Pieter-Dirk Uys has entered the controversy surrounding stadiums for the Soccer World Cup in 2010, suggesting just one fewer stadium would allow for the perfection of the female condom, ”so billions of women around the world have the capacity to protect themselves”.
One of South Africa’s largest short-term insurers has advised homeowners to check the quality and installation of their security gates, as those sold in stores may not provide the impenetrable protection consumers are seeking. Often the steel used in the manufacture of an off-the-shelf security gate is not of the correct quality or weight.
The JSE retained its strong tone at midday on Wednesday, boosted by firmer performances on overseas markets while Kumba Iron Ore soared following the upgrade of its target price by Merrill Lynch. At 12.01pm, the all-share index was up 0,50%. Resources gained 0,77%, the platinum-mining index climbed 2,11%, but the gold-mining index gave up 0,37%.
Zimbabwean police have brutally beaten hundreds of activists and ordinary people in recent months after a crackdown on dissent by President Robert Mugabe’s government, a rights group said on Wednesday. Human Rights Watch said police had been randomly arresting and beating up Zimbabweans they accuse of supporting the opposition Movement for Democratic Change.
All Black winger Sitiveni Sivivatu has been found guilty of serious misconduct by the New Zealand Rugby Union over an assault on his wife. Sivivatu was discharged without conviction by a New Zealand court over the assault last month after pleading guilty, with the judge saying the publicity surrounding the case was sufficient penalty.
Welcome to the United Nations climate talks, where days of frustration, political point-scoring, long hours and sheer exhaustion guarantee a memorable meeting, if not always much progress. And if you’re the last one standing, you’re the winner. This process is agreement by exhaustion,” a senior delegate at UN climate talks in Bangkok said this week.
Focusing solely on AC Milan’s Brazilian playmaker Kaka could prove fatal, said Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson on the eve of their Champions League semifinal second-leg clash. United lead the clash 3-2 after a thrilling encounter at Old Trafford, but Ferguson was at pains to point out the Italian side possessed dangers other than Kaka.
The concept of opposition has yet to take root in South Africa 13 years after the birth of multiracial democracy, says the outgoing leader of the main opposition Democratic Alliance. Tony Leon’s main task in eight years as official opposition leader was ”to get the very concept itself accepted on the stony soil of South African ground”.