Antony Barnett, James Meikle and John Vidal A zoologist has found evidence that genes used to modify crops can jump the species barrier and cause bacteria to mutate. A four-year study by Professor Hans- Hinrich Kaatz found that the alien gene used to modify oilseed rape had transferred to bacteria living in the guts of […]
Jubie Matlou and Evidence wa ka Ngobeni A showdown is looming between the government and the Congress of South African Students (Cosas) over the role of the student organisation in the disruption of education in schools. The government is considering a relook at the role of Cosas in the proper running and governance of schools […]
Robert Kirby CHANNELVISION It would seem that with the arrival in its boardrooms of the Rembrandt group, e.tv has had a welcome injection of hard cash. It would seem also that, like the unexpected benefice of a wealthy relative’s will, all the delicious lolly is being spent like there’s no tomorrow. The first signs of […]
lottery cash Barry Streek More than 8E000 NGOs have been registered in terms of the Non-profit Organisations Act, Minister of Welfare and Population Development Zola Skweyiya has disclosed. This is far short of his own department’s estimate of between 45E000 and 80E000 non- profit organisations (NPOs) in South Africa, but it is a significant achievement […]
Andy Capostagno RUGBY It is now time to acknowledge that all of us have been guilty of damning the Super 12 champions of the past three years with faint praise. The Crusaders entered all three finals as rank outsiders and then beat the Blues (20-13), the Highlanders (24-19) and now the Brumbies (20-19). By which […]
Zanu-PF land-grab policy Jaspreet Kindra African National Congress secretary general Kgalema Motlanthe this week endorsed Zanu-PF’s stand on land appropriation, denying the ruling Zimbabwean party was manipulating the issue for electoral purposes. Motlanthe said in an interview the situation in Zimbabwe had suffered from “misrepresentation of facts” by the media, claiming press reports had inflated […]
Luvuyo Kakaza World-famous singer Miriam Makeba’s career has reached a new exuberant pitch with her latest release, Homeland (Putumayo). Recorded in South Africa, it features a range of local talents: Themba Mkhize (keyboards), Louis Mhlanga and Mauritz Lotz (guitar), Prince Lengoasa (trumpet), Barney Rachabane (alto saxophone), Kwazi Shange (drums), Mandla Zikalala (bass guitar) McCoy Mrubata […]
debutants Liam Botham (22, just signed to play on the wing for Newcastle): After a lengthy debate with his cricketing legend dad Ian over whether to play for England or Wales (where, until last month, he was turning out for champions Cardiff), he turned out for England A during the Six Nations and scored tries […]
Grant Shimmin OLYMPICS I’m not too sure where or how the phrase “nothing ventured, nothing gained” originated, but if I met someone now who’d somehow never heard that well-worn saying before, I could probably go some way to convincing him that it was coined for Colleen Orsmond and Helen Fleming. It could well have been […]
Jaspreet Kindra The African National Congress has spoken out against the building of a “black bourgeoisie” – contradicting the stance taken by President Thabo Mbeki on the issue. The shift in the party’s stance is spelled out in one of its discussion documents for the ANC general council in Port Elizabeth next month. The party […]
The latest Helderberg ‘exposures’ have sucked familiar roaches, and some new ones, out of the woodwork Robert Kirby Conspiracy theories are always constructed in reverse. First there’s the foregone conclusion. Once this is stated, suitable facts are rapidly gathered in support of it. Reams of other facts are left out lest these conflict with the […]
The third annual Pietersburg-Polokwane Book and Film Fair was a sell-out Stephen Gray The recent Pietersburg-Polokwane Book and Film Fair was enjoyable beyond the sheer pleasure of its buzz of success. Crocodiles of children scuttling for seats … crowds bursting through glass doors … elbows at the lavish catering … book sales being made. Peaceful […]
Angus Begg Born – October 4 1918, died – April 4 1994, Gregg Simons was one of the Riemvasmakers trucked in 1970, against his will, from his home in the northern Cape to the red and rocky hills of Damaraland in the former South West Africa. As far as family graveyards go, his resting place […]
The major world city of Amsterdam offers visitors more than just its renowned red- light district, it also the home of jenever and the tulip Angus Begg St Annen Straat, Amsterdam. A moment’s eye contact with the dark, flabby and scantily-clad woman in the window makes me feel like the small boy who was caught […]
Riaan Wolmarans LIFESTYLE ‘Two Amstels, a double Archers and lemonade and a Coke, please.” You repeat your order twice, and the bartender scurries off. About five minutes later you have two Castles, Coke in a dirty glass and half the lemonade on the bar counter. Sound familiar? This is exactly what you won’t find at […]
David Le Paige Reserve Bank governor Tito Mboweni and Minister of Finance Trevor Manuel seemed to be at odds with each other last weekend, making apparently contradictory pronouncements about inflation targeting. “I’m very serious and determined to make my mark in bringing inflation rates down. It’s absolutely critical,” said Mboweni. He said the inflation target […]
David Gough in Nairobi On Wednesday the Ethiopian prime minister declared his country’s two-year border war with Eritrea over, saying that Ethiopia had recaptured all the disputed land which Eritrea occupied by force in May 1998. Meles Zenawi was quoted on Ethiopian state television as saying: “The war against Eritrea has been accomplished in victory.” […]
Glenda Daniels The Johannesburg Bar, one of the city’s oldest institutions, is on the verge of moving its permanent headquarters to Sandton following a steady exodus of advocates from the city centre. A circular drafted by the Bar council is doing the rounds asking advocates to indicate whether they’re staying or leaving, with most lawyers […]
This year’s Durban Designers Collection has scooped some of the hottest talent from around the country Claire Bezuidenhout When 16 gospel singers dressed in white PVC kimonos ignite the construction site of the Gateway Shoppertainment Mall in Umhlanga on Friday night, the audience is bound to get a taste of new wave “performance fashion”. Suzy […]
Matthew Krouse Say what you like about the programme of the National Arts Festival this year: lament that it’s not brimming with overseas acts, like last year – the 25th birthday bash – or moan about the state of the indigenous performing arts. Whatever one may feel about the festival, it’s providing a bunch of […]
Andrew Muchineripi SOCCER The goal was pure Sundowns. Calculated midfield passing, a sudden change of direction and pace, a quality cross and substitute Papi Mbele was in front of his marker like a flash to provide the clinical finish. It arrived after 67 minutes on a crisp, cool midweek evening at Loftus Stadium in Pretoria, […]
Glenda Daniels A FIGHTING UNION: AN ORAL HISTORY OF THE SOUTH AFRICAN RAILWAY AND HARBOURS WORKERS’ UNION by Margaret Kiloh and Archie Sibeko, (Ravan Press) This book is the only historical record of the South African Railway and Harbour Workers’ Union’s (Sarhwu) battles since it was formed in 1936. It provides a factual account, detailing […]
David Macfarlane and Glenda Daniels The University of the Witwatersrand faces a massive showdown today as its council for the first time considers the most substantial objections by workers, the student movement and some academics to restructuring. At the same time, the Mail & Guardian has been told by a senior academic, Wits management is […]
Belinda Beresford Punching way above its weight, the agricultural sector in South Africa manages to have a disproportionate effect on the country’s growth figures. If it hadn’t been for the near 18% fall in agriculture’s contribution, the gross domestic figures for the first quarter of this year would have been a reasonable 1,9%, instead of […]
Glenda Daniels If the newly formed Millennium Council, a bilateral between labour and business, modelled on the successful Irish model, works, it would be great for South Africa. Now all we need is the economic growth that followed the formation of the Irish counterpart. The Irish bilateral, where social dialogue between business and labour yielded […]
Nicky Blumenfeld In attempting to secure a record-company deal, an increasing number of artists in South Africa invest their own time and money, in the hope that their demo will be heard and their efforts acknowledged. Just more than a year ago as a radio presenter I received one of these self- made initiatives, put […]
Nawaal Deane SOCCER Bafana Bafana jetted off from Europe to the United States for the Four Nations Nike Cup Tournament starting in Washington on Saturday. The four countries competing will be South Africa, the United States, Mexico and the Republic of Ireland. South Africa will open their US tour against the US on June 2 […]
Luvuyo Kakaza CD OFTHEWEEK Miriam Makeba’s latest release, Homeland (Putumayo), lives up to its epic name. It pays tribute to Makeba – affectionately known as Mama Afrika – a living legend of African music. It also showcases a collaboration of African sounds, cultures and beats. It cannot be compared to any of Makeba’s past albums. […]
Heather Hogan A Dutch Reformed minister’s son was sentenced to life imprisonment in the Johannesburg High Court this week for the hijack and murder of the bodyguard of Joe Nhlanhla, the former minister of intelligence. Pule Mokoena (26) appeared in court along with three other men, all of whom were facing charges of murder, robbery […]
There’s more to India for a South African traveller than just Mahatma Gandhi and cricket Lauren Shantall ‘Hello! What country?” So goes the “getting-to-know-you” mantra in India. You’ll hear it often enough if you decide to slake a Western thirst with the clichd promise of the East. Luckily for the South African tourist, this typical […]
bitter past Andrew Feinstein On January 22 1943 my mother and her parents received, at their home in Nazi- occupied Vienna, a letter from her 84- year-old grandfather. It read in part: “My dearest children. I have received your letter and thank you for your best wishes on my journey, to which I am not […]
Themba Khoza, who died on Sunday, was at the centre of some of the most brutal killings in living memory Ivor Powell When Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) firebrand Themba Khoza died of Aids- related illnesses on Sunday, so did many of the secrets of one of the darkest chapters in South Africa’s recent past. Khoza […]