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/ 11 September 2006

Super TB ‘now endemic’ in KZN

Extreme drug resistant tuberculosis (XDR-TB) has become endemic in KwaZulu-Natal, media reports said on Monday. Dr Tony Moll, principal medical officer at the Church of Scotland hospital in Tugela Ferry, said doctors in his area had been identifying new XDR-TB patients every month since January last year.

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/ 11 September 2006

Ex-Boks block sale of boot-camp film

Fearing for their modesty, a group of former South African rugby internationals have won a court order banning the sale of a film showing them at the infamous military style ”Kamp Staaldraad”. The Springbok rugby team endured a stint at the controversial camp as preparation for the 2003 World Cup.

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/ 11 September 2006

Leon: SA keeping bad company

South Africa’s choice of forging close ties with Iran is sending "a clear message to the world" that it has chosen the wrong friends, official opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) leader Tony Leon said on Monday. Leon charged that it "is entirely unclear what national or international interest our diplomatic engagement with Iran is serving".

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/ 11 September 2006

Woman in court for hoax hijacking

A woman arrested for claiming that hijackers took her daughter and her vehicle in Johannesburg will appear in the Booysens Magistrate’s court on Tuesday, police said. ”Police still have to gather more information before going to court,” said Captain Cheryl Engelbrecht.

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/ 11 September 2006

Taxman takes aim at top earners

The South African Revenue Service (Sars) is to focus on South Africa’s richest 500 people to ensure those at the top of tax ladder pay their dues, a media report said on Monday. It quoted Sars Commissioner Pravin Gordhan as saying: ”A disturbing number of high-profile business people have not paid tax at all.”

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/ 10 September 2006

Manto denies being sidelined

Health minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang has dismissed reports that she has been sidelined by the Cabinet, the South African Broadcasting Corporation reported on Sunday. This comes after the inter-ministerial committee on HIV/Aids was enlarged and Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka appointed as spokesperson.

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/ 9 September 2006

Boks surge to 24-16 win

A powerful surge by the Springboks in the second half guaranteed them a 24-16 victory over Australia in their Tri-Nations encounter at Ellis Park on Saturday. After a subdued and slow start to the game with the teams deadlocked at three-all at the break, tries from Fourie du Preez and Breyton Paulse and a snap drop from Andre Pretorius ensured the Boks victory.

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/ 9 September 2006

Boks plan to keep winning

South Africa rugby captain John Smit says the pressure to beat Australia on Saturday is greater than it was before they upended New Zealand last weekend to end a five-Test losing streak. The last match in the Tri-Nations will not change the placings, with the All Blacks having retained the title last month.

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/ 8 September 2006

Vodacom prevails in dropped-call case

An attempt to get cellular operator Vodacom to pay for dropped calls was dismissed in the Johannesburg High Court on Friday. ”We lost … I stuck behind my guns, now I have to move away. The consumer must just carry on paying,” said Jason Blacklock, whose company Cell Check was attempting to recover R18 200 for Hilti SA.

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/ 8 September 2006

Smit: We mustn’t let momentum slide

The Springboks have downplayed suggestions that Australia will walk into Ellis Park on Saturday as the underdogs for the last match of the Tri-Nations. With the Wallabies coming off a three-week rest and the Springboks in high spirits after their win over New Zealand last Saturday, Springbok captain John Smit said the pressure is on his team to repeat last weekend’s heroics.

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/ 8 September 2006

Prisons dept reveals plan for Aids drugs

The Department of Correctional Services filed an affidavit in the Durban High Court on Friday, detailing how it plans to speed up providing anti-retroviral treatment at Durban’s Westville prison. The department was criticised in August 31 Judge Chris Nicholson, who said the government’s failure to abide by court orders posed a ”grave constitutional crisis”.

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/ 8 September 2006

DA: Police stations won’t release crime statistics

At least 95% of police stations around the country refuse to release crime statistics to the public, the Democratic Alliance (DA) said on Friday. A DA survey conducted in six major centres around the country on Thursday found that 39 out of 41 stations visited (95%) refused to release crime statistics, citing the moratorium imposed on the release of such information.

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/ 8 September 2006

Cosatu: Govt needs to intensify Aids fight

The Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) will demand an intensification of the government’s national mobilisation plan against HIV/Aids at its coming national congress. ”Cosatu has over and over again expressed concern at the lack of clear leadership,” spokesperson Patrick Craven said in a statement issued on Friday.

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/ 8 September 2006

Aids criticism: Manto hits back

South Africa’s controversial minister of health hit back on Friday at criticism of her unorthodox views on Aids and stuck to views that traditional medicine can treat Aids. More than 80 international scientists joined a campaign this week by a leading South African Aids lobby group urging President Thabo Mbeki to fire Minister of Health Manto Tshabalala-Msimang.

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/ 8 September 2006

Call-centre operator Dialogue to list on AltX

South Africa’s largest privately owned independent call-centre operator, Dialogue Group, expects to raise R51-million via a pre-listing private placement of 51-million shares at R1 a share, the group said on Friday. The JSE has granted Dialogue Holdings a listing for a maximum of 210-million ordinary shares on the Alternative Exchange (AltX).

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/ 8 September 2006

Cops swoop on perlemoen smugglers

Gauteng detectives have confiscated R2-million-worth of perlemoen (abalone) in sting operations around the province, police said on Friday. ”The abalone was seized at Mondeor, Crystal Park and Lyttelton,” said Superintendent Lungelo Dlamini of the national police commissioner’s office.

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/ 8 September 2006

Gregan hopes Aussies will end poor away record

Australian captain George Gregan is hopeful the team’s extended preparations in Johannesburg will help end their poor away record in the Tri-Nations when they play South Africa on Saturday. Australia have not won an away match in the competition since 2001 and are without a victory at the high-altitude Ellis Park since 1963.

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/ 8 September 2006

R3,5m spent on Mbeki house security

The South African government has spent R3,5-million on security measures in President Thabo Mbeki’s retirement home, under construction in the up-market Johannesburg suburb of Houghton, the government said on Friday. Public Works Minister Thoko Didiza confirmed the amount spent in response to calls by the Democratic Alliance to say how much taxpayers’ money was being used for the R22-million residence.

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/ 8 September 2006

SACC, SACP support textile limits

The South African Council of Churches (SACC) and the South African Communist Party (SACP) on Friday came out in support of the government’s efforts to limit Chinese clothing and textile imports. The SACC has commended government’s plans to introduce new quotas while the SACP said the deal would save jobs.

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/ 8 September 2006

Buthelezi lashes behaviour of Zuma supporters

The recent verbal attacks on President Thabo Mbeki by supporters of former deputy president Jacob Zuma are despicable, says Inkatha Freedom Party leader Mangosuthu Buthelezi. ”In my book, such behaviour is neither consonant with our African tradition, nor concordant with the culture of respect and deference to our leaders and institutions which one associates with the Zulu nation.

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/ 8 September 2006

Jo’burg power restored ‘on a gradual basis’

Following power cuts in the morning, 85% of electricity was restored to the north-western suburbs of Johannesburg by 9am on Friday, City Power said. ”We’re continuing to restore power on a gradual basis,” said spokesperson Louis Pieterse. Areas affected by the outages included Rosebank, Linden, Northcliff, Parkhurst, Greenside and Hyde Park.

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/ 8 September 2006

SACP: Clothing retailers only after money

The South African Communist Party (SACP) on Friday came out in support of the Congress of South African Trade Unions, the Federation of Unions of South Africa and the National Congress of Trade Unions in their backing of the clothing and textile deal between the South African government and the People’s Republic of China.

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/ 8 September 2006

SA football and the Gang of Three

Senior individuals in local football are trying to sabotage plans to rebuild the national team and the public profile of the South African Football Association (Safa) through an elaborate strategy that would ultimately undermine the work of newly appointed Bafana Bafana coach Carlos Alberto Parreira, and force him out of his job not long after he assumes his duties next February.