Racism and prejudice Andile Mngxitama sets out to express his horror at the ruling on the Forum of Black Journalists by the Human Rights Commission, which ‘has to be the most eloquent and devastating testimony that our Constitution does hold fundamental anti-black sentimentsâ€. How does he come to such a conclusion? He asserts that the […]
Ike’s Books and Collectables still has stalwart supporters among bibliophiles, writes Niren Tolsi.
A 36-year old man, accused of murdering eleven KwaZulu-Natal women and dumping their bodies in sugarcane fields, will be tried in the Ramsgate High Court. Thozamile Taki and his alleged accomplice Hlengiwe Nene appeared briefly in the Umzinto Magistrate’s Court on Friday, where Magistrate Giel van Aarde ordered that they be held in custody until the trial starts on November 17.
Conventional wisdom has it that this weekend’s Soweto Derby will be the worst since the PSL was founded. For the first time in years both Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates are having their worst seasons simultaneously. Chiefs are ninth on the log, two places higher than their rivals from across the Orlando railway line.
It is estimated that 5,6-million South Africans are infected with HIV/Aids in 2008, said the Actuarial Society of South Africa (ASSA) on Tuesday. The HIV prevalence rates from the ASSA 2003 model are ” roughly consistent” with the national prevalence survey conducted by the Human Sciences Research Council.
Five sectors of employment have the highest risks when it comes to workplace health and safety, a labour executive said in Vryheid on Tuesday. KwaZulu-Natal Labour Department’s acting provincial executive manager Edward Khambula said the iron and steel, construction, agriculture, food, drink and beverage sectors had the highest number of accidents in South Africa.
An investigation into two northern KwaZulu-Natal men who were caught monitoring police radio frequencies has been launched, police said on Tuesday. Police spokesperson Captain Charmaine Struwig said the pair were caught on Newcastle Road in Ladysmith on Monday night but had not yet been arrested.
When was the last time you heard from Gauteng Premier Mbhazima Shilowa, Free State Premier Beatrice Marshoff, Northern Cape’s Dipuo Peters or even KwaZulu-Natal’s S’bu Ndebele? I reckon not lately. It may be true that some, such as Marshoff and Peters, have always had a low public profile anyway. But Shilowa and Ndebele?
A widely held misconception in South Africa is that the denial of bail is intended as a punishment. Continued imprisonment following on a decision to refuse bail is also not a penalty or sentence, and nor is the granting or denial of bail supposed to be a judgment on the extent of guilt of the accused
There was a need for a ”new South African” who embodied everything that was morally good, President Thabo Mbeki said on Sunday. He was addressing several thousand people at the national Freedom Day celebrations at a blustery Turfhall Stadium in Cape Town.
South Africa faces a new threat 14 years after the first democratic election, Democratic Alliance leader Helen Zille said on Saturday. She was addressing a large crowd at the KwaZulu-Natal Freedom Day celebrations in Molweni, outside Durban. ”The threat is a ruling party that believes it is more important than the Constitution. It is a party that believes it will rule until Jesus comes,” said Zille.
The Education Department is considering reopening teacher training colleges, says Education Minister Naledi Pandor. In a written reply to a question in Parliament by Desiree van der Walt of the Democratic Alliance, Pandor said the department is investigating options for expanding the provision of teacher education.
Fraud convict Schabir Shaik is still a patient at Durban’s Inkosi Albert Luthuli Hospital, KwaZulu-Natal’s health department said on Wednesday. Spokesperson Sibonela Msomi said that media reports stating Shaik was back in prison were incorrect. ”He is still being treated at hospital and we don’t know when he will be discharged,” said Msomi.
Cold and stormy weather that hit the Eastern Cape on the weekend has claimed three lives so far, police said on Monday. Two men apparently died from the cold near Mthatha on Sunday, while a woman was killed in a storm in the province’s Ngcobo area. By Monday afternoon, snow that had been falling over the province overnight was beginning to clear up.
South African employers have short-changed the country’s intellectually impaired by employing only workers with physical disabilities and not intellectual ones. An oversight in the Employment Equity Act groups the intellectually impaired with citizens with other disabilities for job opportunities. Employers tend to opt for the physically disabled over the intellectually disabled.
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Soweto is internationally recognised as a home for all South Africans, African National Congress president Jacob Zuma said on Saturday. ”I’m really happy to celebrate my birthday in Soweto,” he said. Zuma arrived just after 1pm in Klipspruit.
The death toll in an accident involving a truck and a taxi in KwaZulu-Natal’s Colenso area has risen to 12, police and transport officials said on Friday. An official of the provincial emergency services said 18 people had been inside the taxi and that six had survived. Three were in a serious condition in hospital.
The KwaZulu-Natal health department has lodged a complaint against the Scorpions following search-and-seizure raids and alleged leaks to local media, a departmental spokesperson said on Thursday. Scorpions spokesperson Tlali Tlali said he was not immediately aware of the complaint.
KwaZulu-Natal residential property values are feeling the corrosive effects of rising interest rates and the nine-month-old National Credit Act, though certain areas are thriving, according to data released on Thursday. Figures for the first quarter of the year confirm a slowdown in actual sales and a marked decrease in house-price growth.
The belated resurrection of Mamelodi Sundowns continued at Loftus Stadium on Wednesday night as the defending Absa Premiership champions sauntered to a comfortable 2-0 victory over never-say-die, relegation-threatened Thanda Royal Zulu. The opening goal in the 31st minute was the result of a dazzling solo effort by the unpredictable Lerato Chabangu.
The South African Police Service’s explosives unit confirmed on Wednesday that an uncleared Chinese vessel docked at the outer anchorage of Durban harbour was carrying arms. Leonard Hadebe, head of Durban customs, said: ”We have confirmed that the shipment was headed for Zimbabwe.”
Wintry weather conditions are expected to appear this weekend, the South African Weather Service said on Wednesday. ”The first outbreak of cold weather this year will occur from Saturday, taking more effect on Sunday,” said forecaster Puseletso Mofokeng. He said rain-free conditions were expected until Friday.
The African National Congress (ANC) backs the call for police to use lethal force should their lives or those of the public be in imminent danger, party president Jacob Zuma said on Wednesday. Addressing a Chambers of Commerce and Industry of South Africa conference, Zuma said: ”In this war against crime, we reiterate that our laws must bite.
African National Congress president Jacob Zuma criticism of the closure of teacher training colleges in the mid-1990s received backing from the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) on Tuesday. An IFP education spokesperson urged Education Minister Naledi Pandor ”to urgently consider the reopening of teacher training colleges”.
It afflicted Kaizer Chiefs and, for some time this season, it looked as though Mamelodi Sundowns were poised to be struck down as well by what has been called the curse of the top-eight competition. But currently out of the top eight, Sundowns have no intention to fall foul of the curse.
South African broadcast journalist Mark Klusener, who was arrested for allegedly operating a pirate radio station, was released from house arrest in Jerusalem on Tuesday. Rafique Gangat, a spokesperson for radio station Ram FM where Klusener is the news director, said: ”The house arrest of the staff was lifted at 10.01am today [Tuesday]. But certain restrictions remain.”
Five men robbed the Scottsville KFC fast-food outlet in KwaZulu-Natal just after the power was scheduled to be turned off, Midlands police said on Sunday. It is alleged the men entered the premises on Friday at about 7.30pm under the pretence of being customers, said Inspector Joey Jeevan.
The informal motor mechanic industry is big in most townships and it comprises specialists in different mechanical areas. These include panelbeaters, electricians, welders, gearbox fitters, engineers, wheel alignment and diff adjusters. Most of these specialists operate on street corners and in backyards and employ several helpers each.
African National Congress (ANC) president Jacob Zuma celebrated his 66th birthday on Saturday. Unlike Zuma’s birthday last year, when 1Â 000 people attended a lavish affair at Durban’s International Convention Centre, no major events have been planned for his 66th birthday.
A Metrorail passenger train derailed early on Saturday morning at Durban’s Merebank railway station, injuring 135 people — 21 of them seriously. The Umlazi-bound train derailed at 6.30am. While none of the carriages overturned, a steel support of the overhead electric power cables buckled on to the second of the train’s six coaches.
Deputy Safety and Security Minister Susan Shabangu’s controversial ”shoot to kill” comment has received African National Congress president Jacob Zuma’s backing. He was speaking at the KwaZulu-Natal Institute of Local Government and Traditional Leadership’s fund-raising gala dinner on Friday night
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African National Congress president Jacob Zuma on Friday said that the issue of bail for those accused of rape and murder needs to be debated. Speaking at the launch of the KwaZulu-Natal Institute of Local Government and Traditional Leadership Fundraising Summit, Zuma said: ”I don’t think we have debated the issue.”