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Playing soccer, often clandestinely and using rolled-up rags for balls, raised the spirits of South African political activists jailed on Robben Island over three decades ago. Now the former prisoners’ experiences will give hope to millions in a new movie.
A joint working group under the chairpersonship of President Thabo Mbeki has concluded that the targets set by the Growth and Development Summit four years ago have been 90% fulfilled. A figure of 4,2% is outstanding and 5,8% could be described as work in progress. The group met at the Union Buildings on Tuesday.
Strong anti-government sentiment was evident at a housing protest outside Parliament’s main gate in Cape Town on Tuesday. Residents of the city’s problem-ridden N2 Gateway housing project had marched on the institution to bring their grievances about high rentals and poor construction to the attention of Housing Minister Lindiwe Sisulu.
The Department of Home Affairs on Tuesday rejected the Democratic Alliance’s (DA) call for the government to set up refugee camps for Zimbabweans fleeing their country. Cleo Mosana, spokesperson for Home Affairs Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, accused the official opposition party of exploiting the Zimbabwean situation for publicity.
Most South African women prefer their men hairless, at least when it comes to body hair, according to a survey released on Tuesday by Dutch shaving product manufacturer Royal Philips Electronics. The Philips Bodygroom Survey also found over half of the men who had taken part ”admitted to attempting to trim, shave or wax” their body hair.
The National Prosecution Authority’s decision to prosecute apartheid-era minister of law and order Adriaan Vlok must not be seen as a witch-hunt, the South African Human Rights Commission said on Tuesday. Vlok, former police chief Johann van der Merwe and three former high-ranking police officers will appear in court for attempted murder next month.
Communities affected by the building of another runway at OR Tambo International Airport outside Johannesburg are to be kept fully informed about progress, according to Transport Minister Jeff Radebe. The aim, he said in reply to a written parliamentary question on Tuesday, is to allay fears and misconceptions.
Matric pupils at about 50 schools in the Western Cape are yet to write their mid-year exams because of the recent teachers’ strike, provincial education minister Cameron Dugmore said on Monday. ”Although various schools have been affected differently by the recent public-service strike, I am most concerned about matric learners,” he said.
The way affirmative action is being implemented in South Africa is to be discussed between President Thabo Mbeki and the main opposition party in Parliament, the Democratic Alliance (DA). Anchen Dreyer, who speaks for the DA on labour issues, said on Monday that when the president answered a parliamentary question last month, he agreed to meet them for such discussions.
Allegations that German vitamin salesperson Matthias Rath is practising as a doctor in South Africa are a ”lie”, his lawyers said on Friday. A lawyer from the firm representing Rath, Zolile Gajana, said in a statement issued on Friday he wanted to respond to ”defamatory statements” made by the Democratic Alliance (DA) about Rath.
Democratic Alliance leader Helen Zille has accused the government of again washing its hands of responsibility and abetting Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe’s ”survival programme”. Writing in her weekly newsletter on the DA website on Friday, Zille also urged increased international pressure on Mugabe.
The Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) says it cannot take action against German vitamin salesman Matthias Rath. This follows a complaint by the Democratic Alliance complaint on Thursday that Rath had reopened offices in Cape Town offering products promising the natural control of HIV/Aids.
Najwa Petersen was refused bail by the Cape Town Regional Court on Thursday because her history of suicide attempts showed she was a danger to herself. She is to go on trial in February with Abdoer Emjedi, Waheed Hassen and Jefferson Snyders, charged with the murder of Petersen’s husband, internationally known entertainer Taliep.
The Institute for Democracy in South Africa (Idasa) on Thursday recommitted itself to working for democracy throughout Africa. On the anniversary of the Dakar conference, the organisation is celebrating 20 years of democracy-building by affirming its commitment to work not only in South Africa, but in other parts of Africa.
South Africa remains one of only two countries in the world to offer life policies for people with HIV/Aids, the Life Offices’ Association (LOA) said on Wednesday. Three of South Africa’s biggest life-insurance companies were the first to introduce life policies for people with HIV/Aids in 2001, with The Netherlands following suit only last year, a statement said.
The state on Wednesday urged the Wynberg Regional Court to refuse bail for slain entertainer Taliep Petersen’s widow, Najwa, as well as for one of the three co-accused in the murder, Abdoer Emjedi. Najwa’s own family handed to the court a petition in which the community demanded she remain in custody.
The Democratic Alliance has asked Justice Minister Brigitte Mabandla what she is doing to resolve the issue of Judge John Hlophe. The DA said it had noted with great concern Hlophe’s continued ”obvious contempt” for judicial process, spokesperson Tertius Delport said in a statement.
The R5,3-million insurance policy on Taliep Petersen’s life, to which first his widow Najwa and later his minor daughter were beneficiaries, has not yet been paid. This was revealed in the Wynberg Regional Court in Cape Town on Tuesday. The court heard a bail application by Najwa and one of her three co-accused in Taliep’s murder.
Metal and engineering industry unions have rejected an offer employers put on the table on Tuesday afternoon, said Solidarity. Solidarity spokesperson Jaco Kleynhans said that after unions rejected the increased offer, employers held their own caucus meeting. Unions and employers were expected to meet back at the negotiation table on Tuesday evening.
The Cape Flats community would be outraged if Taliep Petersen’s widow, Najwa, and her alleged accomplices in Petersen’s murder were released on bail, the Wynberg Regional Court heard on Tuesday. Najwa and co-accused Abdoer Emjedi have launched a bail application before magistrate Robert Henney, acting Regional Court president in the Western Cape.
Numerous metal and engineering employers have concluded agreements with unions that entail additional increases for skilled employees, Solidarity announced on Tuesday. Cape Gate has offered a 15% increase for artisans and 20% for technicians while Barloworld has offered a 10% increase plus a R1 500 skills allowance.
Western Cape African National Congress (ANC) provincial secretary Mcebisi Skwatsha on Tuesday accused the Paarl town council, led by the Democratic Alliance and Independent Democrats, of organising a witch-hunt against duly appointed council officials. He was responding to reports that the council had suspended municipal manager Sidima Kabanyane.
Orania chairperson Carel Boshoff’s wife, Anna, died on July 10 at the age of 75, the family said. "Tannie Anna, as she was known, was a community person par excellence, and will be remembered for the countless initiatives aimed at maintaining and reclaiming the Afrikaner’s freedom," the family said in a statement.
Metal and engineering industry strike action could be over on Tuesday if talks succeed, both unions and employers said on Tuesday morning. Talks between unions and the Steel and Engineering Industry Federation of South Africa resumed at 10am in Johannesburg on Tuesday.
A Congress of Democratic Taxi Associations (Codeta) driver has been shot dead in Khayelitsha in the sixth taxi-related killing in less than a month. The murder of a 24-year-old Codeta-affiliated driver, who may not be named as his next of kin have not been informed, follows the murders of five Cape Amalgamated Taxi Association drivers in the past three weeks.
The importance of the Proudly South African campaign is undisputed, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said about the troubled organisation on Monday. Last month the Proudly South African campaign denied media reports that the DTI had withdrawn its support.
Safety and Security Minister Charles Nqakula will look into Democratic Alliance (DA) allegations about problems in the restructured specialised family violence, child abuse and sexual offences (FCS) units and take corrective steps if necessary. Nqakula’s spokesperson, Hangwani Mulaudzi, said on Monday that, previously, the FCS units were based in area offices.
The Social Development Department on Friday defended provisions in the Children’s Act giving access to contraceptives to children as young as 12. The department said it was concerned about ”misinterpretation” of the Act, certain sections of which came into effect last Sunday.
South Africans have every reason to be concerned about the latest crime-trends report, says Democratic Alliance (DA) leader Helen Zille. ”There can be no doubt, however much government’s office-bearers try to play them down, that the statistics portray a society in which crime is endemic, violent and unrelenting,” she said on Friday on the DA’s website.
An alleged burglar who abandoned a bail application, then changed his mind and reapplied, only to abandon it again, on Thursday decided he wanted bail after all when he appeared in a Cape Town court. Moegamat Lucas (21) had officials exasperated when he made his ninth appearance in the magistrate’s court.
Three groups of hikers, including foreign tourists, have been mugged while walking above Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden, the Table Mountain National Park confirmed on Thursday. Two Dutch hikers, three Australians and two South Africans were robbed in separate incidents of cash, cellphones and jewellery.
Western Cape police declined to comment on Thursday on contradictory news reports that the suspected killers of two-year-old Sonja Brown were about to be arrested, and that an autopsy showed she was not murdered. The reports were carried earlier in the day by a Cape Town newspaper and a local radio station.