The trial of the four people accused of murdering theatre personality Taliep Petersen has been adjourned to Friday to allow the state to prepare for a battle over the admissibility of confessions. On trial are Petersen’s wife, Najwa, and three men she allegedly hired to carry out the December 2006 execution-style slaying.
Stormers flanker Schalk Burger is a greater threat than ever to the Stormers’ Super 14 opponents, says Jerry Collins, star loose forward of the Hurricanes. The tough All Black, who will oppose the Springbok star at Newlands on Saturday, has been impressed by the way Burger and Luke Watson combine, reports RugbyHeaven website.
If governments take on private-sector debt created during the subprime crisis, the poor will be hardest hit, economist Iraj Abedian said in Cape Town on Tuesday. ”Heaven help us if it happens in developing countries,” he told a discussion on the global economic meltdown.
Photographs of Taliep Petersen’s bloody corpse made him sick to his stomach, the man who claims he arranged the killing told the Cape High Court on Tuesday. Fahiem Hendricks, who has been warned as an accomplice, was on the stand for the second day in the trial of Taliep’s wife, Najwa, and three others.
The Cape High Court on Tuesday dismissed an application for the acquittal of a 13-year-old youth who allegedly purchased petrol with which a woman was doused and set alight during an argument about a missing cellphone. The boy and three others are alleged to have set alight the woman at a drug den near Cape Town last year.
The Erasmus commission is facing three new urgent interdicts to put its activities in Cape Town on hold, prompting commission chairperson Judge Nathan Erasmus to adjourn proceedings on Tuesday afternoon. The interdicts are expected to be heard in the Cape High Court on Wednesday morning.
Murder accused Najwa Petersen is going to testify in her own defence, her advocate, Klaus von Lieres und Wilkau, said on Tuesday. The revelation came during his cross-examination of Fahiem Hendricks, who says he arranged hit men at Najwa’s request to kill her entertainer husband, Taliep.
Two 19th-century rhino horns stolen from a South African museum could be deadly if sold as a popular aphrodisiac because they are drenched in poison, a museum official said on Monday. The ”priceless” horns were snatched from a display at the historic mammal gallery in Cape Town on Saturday evening, said Jatti Bredekamp, chief executive of Iziko Museums.
Erasmus commission chairperson Judge Nathan Erasmus on Monday dismissed an application by the City of Cape Town for the commission’s suspension. The commission was set up by Western Cape Premier Ebrahim Rasool last year to probe the city’s own investigation of renegade councillor Badih Chaaban.
Murder accused Najwa Petersen not only hired hit men to kill her husband, Taliep, she even arranged to let them into the family home to do the deed, the Cape High Court heard on Monday. Fahiem Hendricks, who is in witness protection, was testifying in the trial of Najwa and three men charged with Taliep’s execution-style shooting.
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) says it is to take up the issue of racial transformation in cricket following the Proteas’ loss to India last week. ”The white wonder boys are not as invincible as they would have us believe,” the federation said in a statement issued from its Western Cape office.
A witness on Monday told the Cape High court that murder accused Najwa Petersen asked him to find someone to carry out a ”hit”. Fahiem Hendricks, who is in witness protection, was testifying in the trial of Petersen and three alleged hit men who are charged with the murder of her entertainer husband, Taliep.
Parliamentarians cannot remain silent about Zimbabwe, a case of ”democracy gone wrong”, National Assembly Speaker Baleka Mbete said in Cape Town on Sunday at the opening of the 118th Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) meeting. In his speech, President Thabo Mbeki congratulated the IPU for its stance on gender equality in government.
The Stormers ran out comfortable 34-22 winners over the Cheetahs in a Super 14 fixture at Newlands on Saturday. A great kick-off by Stormers flyhalf Peter Grant set up the platform for the team’s opening try in the second minute. Grant’s kick went into touch 5m from the Cheetahs’ try line.
Western Province (WP) retained their unbeaten record by the skin of their teeth when they were held to a 23-23 draw by Griquas in a Vodacom Cup match at Newlands on Saturday. Griquas unsettled WP with their speedy playing patterns at the outset and it came as no surprise when they scored a try in the seventh minute.
Jomo Cosmos denied Santos maximum points as they held them to a 1-1 draw at the Athlone Stadium on Friday night. Cosmos looked bright early on, in particular down their right wing, where Bongi Macala and Siza Dlamini had a couple of chances. Then another move down the right saw Bamuza Sono release Macala with a long ball.
Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi on Friday accused President Thabo Mbeki’s government of deliberately seeking to emasculate the African National Congress. A new style of political leadership is required, he told the National Union of Metalworkers in the Eastern Cape.
Murdered theatre personality Taliep Petersen considered divorcing his wife, Najwa, but was worried about what people would think of him, his younger brother, Igsaan, told the Cape High Court on Friday. Igsaan was the third witness in the trial of Najwa and three alleged hit men, who have pleaded not guilty to Taliep’s execution-style shooting.
The use of the word ”boesman” (bushman) by newspaper Die Burger is not derogatory hate speech, the Equality Court ruled in Cape Town on Friday. Kobus Faasen, an academic who says he is a descendant of the Khoisan people, had claimed the newspaper’s use of the word in several articles was ”contaminated with racism”.
Taliep Petersen’s death looked ”suspect” from the start, his younger brother, Igsaan, told the Cape High Court on Friday. Igsaan was the third witness to be called in the trial of Taliep’s wife, Najwa, and three alleged hit men, who are accused of murdering him on the night of December 16 2006.
The final eight teams that will vie for the R1-million prize for winning the 2008 Vodacom Cup will be confirmed after this weekend’s final round of league matches. Though Griquas and Western Province are certain of their places in the quarterfinals, at least eight teams remain in contention for the six remaining play-off spots.
A detective told the Cape High Court on Thursday that he became suspicious of murder accused Najwa Petersen after hearing her sobbing account on the night of her husband’s Taliep’s death. The officer was the second witness called in the trial of Petersen and the three men she allegedly hired to carry out the execution-style shooting.
Deputy Safety and Security Minister Susan Shabangu must be fired for her comments that police should shoot and kill criminals, the Democratic Alliance (DA) said on Thursday. ”Minister of Safety and Security Charles Nqakula has no choice but to fire her with immediate effect,” DA spokesperson Dianne Kohler-Barnard said.
The British and Irish Lions are to play 10 matches on their tour of South Africa next year, including three Tests against the world champions, the Springboks, organisers said on Thursday. The Tests against the Boks will take place on June 20 in Durban, June 27 in Pretoria and July 4 in Johannesburg.
Efforts to push legislation through Parliament to disband the Scorpions are falling behind schedule, the deputy president’s office said on Thursday. ”It’s mainly because of consultation … which has taken much longer than was thought,” said Thabang Chiloane, spokesperson for Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka.
Murder accused Najwa Petersen on Thursday returned to her Cape Town home for the first time since her arrest early last year. But her every move was watched by a ring of heavily armed police. She was taken to the Athlone house under police guard for an on-the-spot inspection by Cape High Court Judge Siraj Desai and his two assessors.
After a decade of optimism and growth, many South African cities now face new challenges compared with competing international locations, Cape Town mayor Helen Zille said on Wednesday. These include perceptions of instability and uncertainty, growing urban poverty, increased crime, conflict and corruption, she told the United Nations.
Theatre personality Taliep Petersen and his wife, Najwa, who has pleaded not guilty to murdering him, were a loving couple, the Cape High Court was told on Wednesday. However, at the time of his death they were sleeping in separate bedrooms, and he was talking about ”getting another place”.
South Africa should use its powerful position on the United Nations Security Council to put the Zimbabwean election saga on the international body’s agenda, Democratic Alliance leader Helen Zille said on Wednesday. Zille, who is currently in New York, said in a statement she would meet South Africa’s ambassador to the United Nations.
Najwa Petersen on Wednesday formally pleaded not guilty to the murder of her entertainer husband, Taliep. Taliep was shot in the couple’s Athlone, Cape Town, home in December 2006; his wife is standing trial in the Cape High Court along with three men the state claims she hired to carry out the killing.
South Africa’s conservation areas are facing ”real and urgent” threats, and first world countries must do more to help, Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism Marthinus van Schalkwyk said on Wednesday. As a result of climate change, the Kruger National Park could experience more intense rainfall interspersed with longer dry spells, he said.
A new World Bank and International Monetary Fund report warns that most countries in Africa will not meet most of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) due by 2015. While there has been strong growth in many countries in sub-Saharan Africa, the region is still likely to fall short of the first goal of halving extreme poverty by 2015.