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/ 21 May 2007

Wits end season on a high

Wits beat a determined Orlando Pirates 3-2 in their fast-flowing, final game of the Premier Soccer League season played at Bidvest Stadium on Sunday afternoon. The teams were level at 1-1 at the break. Clever Boys striker Kenwyn Manuel scored in the 14th minute with a rocket-like shot in front of the few supporters who braved the chilly, windy weather.

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/ 21 May 2007

Cry me a river: SA battles alien fish

Predatory imported fish including trout, bass and carp are crowding out many local species in one of the few places in the world still rich in biodiversity. Introduced in the 18th century and popular with both local and foreign anglers, these fish form an integral part of a burgeoning recreational fishing industry.

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/ 21 May 2007

Lewis’s year earnings up 23%

South African furniture retailer Lewis’s full-year normalised headline earnings per share rose 23% to 654,4 cents, the company said on Monday. The retailer said merchandise sales for the year to end-March were up 15,4% at R1,8-billion, with normalised operating profit 18% higher at R859,9-million.

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/ 21 May 2007

Oasis drops case against Judge Desai

Oasis Group Holdings has dropped its case against Judge Siraj Desai and has offered to pay his costs, the company said at the weekend. The company had charged Desai with defamation in connection with remarks the judge allegedly made at a public meeting held to discuss a property development.

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/ 20 May 2007

Shaik plagiarised doctorate, says report

Chippy Shaik has for four years laid claim to a bogus doctorate that he and a cabal of internationally acclaimed South African professors fraudulently concocted, the Sunday Times reported. An extensive investigation by the newspaper found that Shaik’s 2003 PhD in mechanical engineering from the then-University of Natal was plagiarised.

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/ 20 May 2007

Big chill hits SA

Widespread frost is expected over the central interior and Highveld of Gauteng from Tuesday until Thursday morning, the South African Weather Service said on Sunday. Very cold conditions were expected to persist over the central interior until Wednesday.

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/ 20 May 2007

Tough times for Mbeki

Business mogul Tokyo Sexwale’s decision to enter the African National Congress (ANC) presidential succession race has dealt a heavy blow to President Thabo Mbeki’s chances of securing a third term as party president, the Sunday Times reported. It said several senior ANC leaders close to Mbeki have decided to throw their weight behind Sexwale’s bid.

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/ 20 May 2007

Muir: ‘We made too many mistakes’

Sharks coach Dick Muir refused to blame a missed conversion for his side’s 20-19 defeat by the Bulls in the Super 14 final in Durban on Saturday. Wing Frans Steyn, who had celebrated his 20th birthday during the week, missed the conversion to Albert ven den Bergh’s try that would have given the Sharks an unassailable eight-point lead with only 80 seconds remaining.

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/ 20 May 2007

Benoni avoid relegation blues

A rabbit’s foot has long been deemed to be a lucky charm. But faced by the ominous threat of relegation before their final Premier Soccer League game of the season against Golden Arrows at Durban’s King Zwelithini Stadium on Saturday afternoon, Benoni Premier United were not taking any chances.

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/ 20 May 2007

Leopards, Santos share the spoils

Black Leopards and Santos played to a two-all draw in a season-ending Premier Soccer League game played at Thohyandou Stadium on Saturday. The half-time score was 1-1. Leopards dominated from the start and Solly Masango capitalised on a lapse in the Santos defence to open the scoring in the fourth minute with a low shot.

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/ 19 May 2007

Goniwe to get new ANC hearing

Former African National Congress (ANC) chief whip Mbulelo Goniwe will receive a new disciplinary hearing for alleged sexual misconduct after the previous process was found to have been procedurally flawed, the party said on Saturday. In December, Goniwe was found guilty of bringing the organisation into disrepute after allegations that he sexually harassed a woman.

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/ 19 May 2007

Bulls snatch last-gasp try to bag Super 14

Springbok wing Bryan Habana scored a try two minutes into injury time to lead the Bulls to a thrilling win over the Sharks for their first Super 14 title. Bulls flyhalf Derick Hougaard added the conversion from next to the uprights to spoil the party for the 54 000 home fans who turned out to witness the first all-South African Super 14 final.

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/ 19 May 2007

Pregnant SA women set world record

Over 1 000 pregnant women in South Africa set a new world record on Saturday for the largest gathering of women due to give birth — and there were no early arrivals. ”We were a little bit concerned having all these pregnant women under one roof, but we are happy that none of them went into labour,” said organiser Projeni Pather.

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/ 19 May 2007

Fidentia assets auctioned

About 300 people are vying for vehicles, printing and office equipment on offer in Cape Town on Saturday in the first auction of assets of financial-services company Fidentia Holdings. ”There is no place for anybody to sit,” said an Auction Alliance employee, speaking on condition of anonymity.

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/ 19 May 2007

Warning of severe weather in Western Cape

Residents of the western parts of the Western and Northern Cape provinces have been warned to brace for severe weather on Saturday, Cape Town’s disaster management said. Very cold, wet and windy conditions were expected on Saturday, would spread to the entire Western and Northern Cape on Sunday and persist until Monday, said a spokesperson on Friday.

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/ 19 May 2007

Consumer boycott hits Khutsong

Khutsong residents are embarking on an indefinite consumer boycott starting on Saturday, the South African Broadcasting Corporation reported. The Merafong Demarcation Forum said the boycott was aimed at intensifying the defiance campaign against the incorporation of Khutsong into the North West from Gauteng.

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/ 19 May 2007

All eyes on Super 14 final

Saturday is one of the biggest days in South African rugby history. Whether it goes to Pretoria or Durban, South Africa is guaranteed to hold the Super 14 title for a year when the Bulls and Sharks face up in the final at the Absa Stadium in Durban. The final will square up two of the strongest and most consistent teams in this year’s edition of the Super 14.

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/ 19 May 2007

Bafana coach recuperating at Jo’burg clinic

Bafana Bafana coach Carlos Alberto Parreira has been admitted to a Johannesburg clinic complaining of fever and inflamed ribs. ”I am feeling much better now, and the doctor is confident I will go home this weekend,” said Parreira on Friday. On May 1 this year, the Fifa World Cup-winning coach fractured his right rib during a fall in his home country of Brazil.

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/ 18 May 2007

Tunisian doctors to assist South Africa

Tunisian doctors are coming to South Africa to alleviate a local staff shortage, the Ministry of Health said on Friday. KwaZulu-Natal, the Eastern Cape and Northern Cape and Mpumalanga are expected to benefit, said spokesperson Sibani Mngadi. H said it was a short-term measure that would give the department time to train more staff and improve its ability to retain them.

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/ 18 May 2007

Giant public-service strike looms for SA

In an unprecedented move, all the public-service sector unions will take joint labour action to force the government to improve a wage-increase offer. Following a meeting on Friday, all 19 unions, including Congress of South African Trade Unions and independent labour-caucus unions, decided on joint labour action.

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/ 18 May 2007

Male circumcision ‘no silver bullet’ against Aids

Male circumcision should not be seen as a ”silver bullet” in fighting HIV infection, University of Cape Town researchers said in a paper published in the latest issue of the South African Medical Journal. The evidence for the preventive benefit of male circumcision is ”rather modest”, humanities student Alex Myers and co-author, public health professor Jonny Myers, said.

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/ 18 May 2007

Khutsong women protest against demarcation

More than 500 woman from the Khutsong Women’s Forum marched to the local police station on Friday to call on the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) to intervene in the ongoing unrest in Khutsong. Spokesperson for the forum Pearl Khanyile said they had asked SAHRC chairperson Jody Kollapen to accept the memorandum.

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/ 18 May 2007

Zoo abuzz over albino newborn

In what could possibly be a world first, an albino blue duiker was recently born at the Johannesburg Zoo. Staff are still trying to confirm whether it is the first of its kind, said zoo spokesperson Senzo Ngcobo on Friday. Born on May 9, the duiker has yet to be named by the zoo, which has welcomed suggestions from the public.