John Grobler The South West African People’s Organisation (Swapo) leadership is expected to propose amending the Namibian Constitution this month to give President Sam Nujoma a third term of office. The Constitution restricts the president to two terms, but at the Swapo extraordinary congress, set to take place at the end of August, party stalwarts […]
Richmond There tends to be a false assumption that firm or tough government is conservative government and, as such, inimical to the liberal principles enshrined in our Bill of Rights. For that reason, perhaps, those who take pride in the foundations of the new South Africa contained in our Constitution would see a declaration of […]
Roger Cohen in Abuja `Look, the human rights here in Nigeria are terrible,” Theodore Luttwak says, “but the opportunities are just fantastic … where else in the world do you have so much money?” Good question. Abuja, Nigeria’s capital- under-construction, is full of the whiff of oil money, and not just at the exclusive golf […]
Chris Roper `They’re good enough to make it internationally”. Yeah, right. How many times have you heard that ill-fated mantra pronounced over local bands? And nothing ever happens, especially if you’re situated in that genre known disparagingly as whiteboy rock, but which includes a couple of women and the odd black person. The reasons for […]
Marthali Brand : Spending it United States President Bill Clinton is still regretting the day he told the world he never inhaled. But if he had been speaking about cigars, he would not only have avoided embarrassment, he’d have won points for doing the right thing. Not inhaling is one of the golden rules of […]
Jeremy Dowson : Venues in Cape Town On paper, the Drum Caf certainly has a whole lot going for it. Established six months ago as a bar-cum-caf that provides a forum for percussion lessons and performances, the venue would seem to be riding the storm of the pre-millennial cultural zeitgeist – the one which dictates […]
Howard Barrell : Over a Barrel What is one of the cleverest people in South Africa doing indulging so assiduously one of the vainest? Why has Deputy President Thabo Mbeki taken to bowing and scraping before Mangosuthu Buthelezi, Inkatha Freedom Party leader and minister of home affairs? Why has Mbeki been calling him Shenge, offering […]
Mail & Guardian reporter Job-seeking graduates tempted to put a “willing to do anything legal for cash” ad in the classifieds, take heart: the Mail & Guardian graduate recruitment fair will make sure your expensive education takes you further than waiting tables. The fair, to be held at Cape Town’s Good Hope Centre from August […]
Chris Gordon in Luanda and Howard Barrell in Cape Town Angola’s return to arms, which appeared inevitable this week, could spill into neighbouring territories and destabilise the entire Southern African region. In the line of fire are Zambia, which the Unita rebel movement continues to use as a rear supply base and which is bracing […]
Ferial Haffajee and Stuart Hess You can teach an old dog new tricks, as a legion of former apartheid spies, torturers and key dirty-tricks operatives are showing. Many are the frontmen of business’s push into Africa and are leaders in the private security industry, which is worth billions of rands. A former general, for example, […]