The `African renaissance’ will be a central pillar of Thabo Mbeki’s presidency, writes Ferial Haffajee `The rich king of Timbuktu … keeps a magnificent and well-furnished court … Here are great store of doctors, judges, priests and other learned men …” This was Moorish writer Leo Africanus writing in the 16th century and quoted by […]
invasion Swapna Prabhakaran Some political allies of the African National Congress have remained strangely silent in the wake of the destruction of Maseru that resulted from South Africa’s military intervention in Lesotho last week. While the ANC’s highest organs have supported the intervention, its alliance partners appeared unable to draft a quick response. Human rights […]
The Congolese war is rehabilitating previously unpopular heads of state, while muddying the reputations of the popular and virtuous, writes Gregory Mthembu-Salter War in the Democratic Republic of Congo is having curious consequences. There are the unholy alliances, like Congolese President Laurent-Desir Kabila’s courting of the same Rwandan Hutu interahamwe militia that his troops helped […]
Evidence wa ka Ngobeni Black students at Rand Afrikaans University (RAU) in Johannesburg are being subjected to vicious assaults and humiliating harassment by white students. Black students also say some “no go” areas for them at the university include white residences at the university. A document handed to black students early this year by university […]
Roger Southall Right to Reply It is precisely because of the deep respect which is widely accorded to the Mail & Guardian’s reportage that one simply has to object in the strongest possible terms to the criminally ignorant and politically irresponsible coverage of the Lesotho election by your reporter William Boot. His constant, uncritical repetition […]
Belinda Beresford Soon Christmas decorations will be out in the shopping malls heralding the advance of the festive season – and for many the much-needed end-of-year bonuses. But ignore retailers’ attempts to whip up the annual Christmas spending frenzy. The best present you can buy is for yourself: use any extra money to pay off […]
Dan Jellinek Have you ever stayed up all night on the Internet? Do you live to go online? Is your partner threatening divorce? Internet addiction affects around one in 10 regular Internet users, reports what is claimed to be one of the most extensive reviews of the field. The paper, by Janet Morahan-Martin, psychology professor […]
cricket season Andy Capostagno Cricket It may have escaped your attention, given the number of series and tournaments going on around the world, but the cricket season begins this week. The national side have just returned from a gold medal performance at the Commonwealth Games, of course, and not long before that they were ending […]
Richard Nelsson Spending It During the Eighties a bulging Filofax was the symbol of the successful and upwardly mobile; for the Nineties the “must have” is an electronic organiser. But these “personal digital assistants” (PDAs) are much more than just hi-tech versions of their leather-bound antecedents. The latest models have not only the capacity to […]
Lesotho rebel soldiers this week invited reporter Sechaba ka’Nkosi to view their secret camps Rebel soldiers of the Lesotho Defence Force (LDF), who ignored this week’s ultimatum to report back to their bases, claim a large quantity of arms are in their hands at safe houses around the capital Maseru and in surrounding villages. The […]