Opposition political groups and civil society movements in Zimbabwe have started consultations to form a united front to support a single candidate in the 2008 presidential election, 23 months ahead of the crucial poll — along the lines of Kenya’s National Rainbow Coalition, which brought President Mwai Kibaki to power in 2002.
Jacob Zuma’s lawyers will do well to satisfy the judge that they were justified in not calling Zuma’s attorney, Michael Hulley, to the witness stand, when they deliver their closing arguments in the Zuma rape trial next week. In its closing submissions the prosecution asked Judge Willem van der Merwe to infer that Zuma’s defence case would have been damaged had Hulley taken the stand.
”For the strike, neh, we need money, of course. You see, you’re supposed to strike but it’s wrong [for strikers] to fight people like us. What’s your family going to eat? Nothing.” The Mail & Guardian‘s interview with Johannesburg security guard Roger highlights a paradox — many non-strikers appear to support the goals of the countrywide labour action by security guards, citing the dangers of the job and poor pay.
More people have died in connection with the security guard strike than any other since 1994, prompting one prominent Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) leader to suggest that Cosatu’s South African Transport and Allied Workers Union (Satawu) should consider calling off industrial action.
The government has once again dashed Khutsong residents’ hopes that the controversial legislation on cross-border municipalities will be reversed, leading them to vent their frustrations on newly elected councillors. Violence resurfaced in Khutsong recently after the inauguration of the mayor and the new council.
The Oil for Food programme may become a focus of the Donen Commission of Inquiry, which starts public hearings on May 8.
Both the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) and the National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) — principal providers of scarce funds to the film industry — turned down the Oscar-winning movie Tsotsi several times when approached by its producers, the Mail & Guardian has learned.
West Indies and Zimbabwe enter their seven-match limited-overs international series that begins on Saturday and Sunday at the Antigua Recreation Ground with plenty to prove to themselves and the rest of the world. West Indies are eighth on the official ICC limited-overs international rankings and will be looking to transform their fortunes.
The Simon Wiesenthal centre on Thursday called on Germany to ban the Iranian President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, from attending the World Cup, describing his possible presence at the tournament as ”mind-boggling”. Allowing him in would be tantamount to endorsing the 1936 Olympic games hosted by Hitler, the centre said.
Fears were growing over the stability of Chechnya on Thursday after it emerged that security forces loyal to the Prime Minister, Ramzan Kadyrov, had fought a gun battle with the bodyguards of the pro-Russian President, Alu Alkhanov. Two men were reportedly killed in the clash at the presidential administration, sparking fears of a broader power struggle.