Dan Wylie takes a look at some recent volumes of South African poetry In the hand, Jeremy Gordin’s Pomegranates for My Son (Random House) feels solid, the font unpretentious on a cover of warm amber whose texture is at once rough and even. Ditto for the contents. These poems are generous as a bear hug, […]
What are your options in the cellular market? David le Page takes a look As the winter chills descend, the thought of warming your ear and adjacent cerebellum with microwaves can become attractive, and you’re considering leaping afresh, or for the first time, into the cellular market. It’s a good time to do it. Pressures […]
Crack cocaine is one of the most popular drugs in the Cape Peninsula. Marianne Merten reports Crack cocaine, or “rock” as it is known on the street, is fast becoming the drug of choice in the Cape Peninsula, according to researchers, addicts and drug counsellors, but the South African Narcotics Bureau (Sanab) regards it as […]
With only two ministers expected to retain their positions, speculation about the look of the new Cabinet is growing, writes Howard Barrell Speculation is increasing in political circles over the composition of Thabo Mbeki’s first Cabinet after the elections on June 2. Most attention is focused on who will become deputy president and who will […]
Matthew Krouse Down the tube Election time is bringing out the best of what local television producers have to offer, allowing for some boundary-breaking exercises. Suddenly there’s a dearth of new programmes to watch, not all of them studio interrogations of the parties that will ultimately represent folks who decide to make their mark on […]
LESS than a week before a ceasefire is to begin in Sierra Leone, rebels launched two attacks near the eastern city of Kenema, the pro-government Ecomog intervention force said on Thursday. Ecomog spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Chris Olukolade said the first attack occurred on Wednesday at Mano Junction, just north of Kenema, 240km east of the capital, […]
Mail & Guardian reporter The state has dismally failed South African women who are raped, according to a new study. Coming at a time when the lobby seeking to protect the interests of rape victims has become more vocal, the research shows that the number of people convicted for rape, as a proportion of rape […]
opportunities lost Bob Mattes Clear-sailing? Open-field running? Steaming towards a two-thirds majority? Mixed though they may be, all these metaphors apply to the situation the African National Congress now finds itself in. How did it get here? As recently as eight months ago, the ANC enjoyed the support of only a half of all voters, […]
provinces Ian Clayton Plans by the African Natonal Congress to downgrade provincial governments in favour of stronger municipalities will result in a constitutional fight that the party is bound to lose unless it has a clean sweap of Parliament and provincial legislatures in the June 2 election. Even then, it will take a major rethink […]
There’s no need to worry about global warming, argues Dennis Avery. History shows it will lead to great benefits `Climate extremes would trigger meteorological chaos – raging hurricanes such as we have never seen, capable of killing millions of people; uncommonly long, record-breaking heat waves; and profound drought that could drive Africa and the entire […]
It can’t be easy for Newcastle United coach Ruud Gullit to talk confidently about his team’s chances against Manchester United in the FA Cup final, but he makes a good attempt. Paul Wilson reports Ruud Gullit was at Wembley for last year’s FA Cup final as a TV pundit, employing his formidable insights and famously […]
Corruption and crime have dominated the election debates up to now. But there are other critical issues that are germane to how South Africans will vote on June 2. These are just three. Education The African National Congress has always been strong on education policy. It brought to office an ambitious vision for a radically […]
There’s room for improvement at the South African Music Awards. Peter Makurube has some suggestions On May 13 the South African music industry took time off at the Sun City Superbowl to pat itself on the back. Unlike the cultural boycott busting days, the audience was at least representative of the country’s population. The who’s […]
Nicole Turner There were a lot of firsts when Interdesign ’99 Water kicked off simultaneously in Mexico, Australia and South Africa in April this year. Industrial design experts from around the world had gathered to brainstorm about water, which all those participating agreed was life itself. Although this was the 32nd Interdesign conference since 1972, […]
Ivor Powell More than 20 senior leaders of the Inkatha Freedom Party in KwaZulu-Natal have secretly defected to the African National Congress before the June election. A top ANC leader in the province told the Mail & Guardian that at least six of the turncoats are members of the KwaZulu-Natal legislature. The group also includes […]
Anthony Minnaar >From 1994 to 1998, an average of 240 police members were murdered every year – almost one a day, a total of nearly 1 200 in four years. This is one of the highest figures in the world. Only China, and to a lesser extent Russia, approach this annual figure. The United States […]
SEVEN people, including a 10-year-old Pefferville girl, were injured during a stampede at the Ziphunzana stadium in Duncan village in the Eastern Cape where Deputy President Thabo Mbeki addressed a rally on Thursday. The stampede reportedly happened as the crowd surged into the stadium. African National Congress’ East London/King William’s Town regional secretary Sindisile Maclean […]
Intel’s next chips will be too clever for today’s programs. Jack Schofield reports on a scheme to help rewrite the way we work The PC industry is preparing a great leap forward that will more than double the power of computers. The problem is that there is hardly any software to exploit the extra capability. […]
CD of the week Shaun de Waal Koyaanisqatsi was Philip Glass’s first foray into movie soundtracks, a genre that is arguably the best showcase of his talents. It originally came out in the days before CDs, so it was considerably abbreviated, though it still became a big seller. Now Nonesuch has rereleased the soundtrack in […]
Cameron Duodu:LETTER FROM THE NORTH You’ve got to be either a very brave man or a foolish one to make predictions about Nigeria. I shall prove to you in a minute that this statement is a paradox – the point is not that Nigeria cannot be predictable, but that you, the predictor, will predict it […]
Rian Malan’s article on Boipatong, “A question of spin”, in the South African Institute of Race Relations publication, Frontiers of Freedom, is a piece of research long on detail and counter-conspiracy and short on substance and context. Malan has clearly spent a lot of time trying to make sense of the myriad versions and contradictions […]
recovery Marianne Merten Garry has been clean for 18 months. He survived crack addiction. “It brings people to their knees quicker than anything else. You lose weight. You can’t sleep. I often sat in my room high on crack, highly emotional, wanting to cry. I couldn’t. It leaves you hollow.” Garry came to Cape Town […]
Don’t let the nickname deceive you. Jacques Kallis might just be the world’s best all- rounder, writes Kevin Mitchell Some say he is the finest all-rounder in the world. His team-mates call him Dozy. Meanwhile, Jacques Kallis gets on with a career that has gone through good and bad times in four short seasons and […]
Jack Schofield Netwatch Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace is taking over the Net. It’s not the official site that’s the problem but a supporting cast of sites for fans who will queue for up to two weeks to see it. You can get your daily dose of Star Wars at or or try […]
The greater the risk, the more he revels in the challenge. Adam Sweeting profiles Formula One’s ambitious mastermind, Bernie Ecclestone Such is Bernie Ecclestone’s reputation as the shadowy mastermind behind Formula One, that it is tempting to think he personally orchestrated the chaos of the season’s opening event in Melbourne. “You couldn’t have wished for […]
South Africa overcame some dubious umpiring decisions to crush the Sri Lankans on Wednesday, but an in-form England could be a different proposition. Neil Manthorpe reports Neil Manthorp Cricket For the first time in three weeks, South Africa discovered what it means to be favourites. It means you have to be a lot better, and […]
Wally Mbhele A wide rift has developed between the African National Congress’s candidate for Free State premier, Winkie Direko, and the province’s ANC provincial executive committee, which could lead to another political fiasco in the province. Within a week of her name being placed at the top of the ANC’s provincial list, Direko stunned Free […]
DEON POTGIETER, Johannesburg | Thursday 6.40pm. THREE world boxing titles involving South African boxers will be up for grabs at the Carousel next Saturday. Lindi Memani will be making the first defence of his World Boxing Union’s Mini Flyweight world title against lanky Fillipino, Dennis Sabsal. “He’s much taller than me,” said Memani. “But I’ll […]
British newspapers have been `leaked’ damaging documents in what appears to be an elaborate plot to smear President Nelson Mandela, write Martin Welz and Mungo Soggot Several British newspapers have been probing a story that President Nelson Mandela accepted a kickback as part of a Nigerian oil deal. The allegations appear to be part of […]
UGANDA’S central bank on Thursday froze the operations of the Co-operative Bank Limited and placed it under statutory management after it ran into severe cash flow problems. The bank is insolvent to the tune of $2,1-million central bank governor Nyonyintono Kikonyogo said. The bank’s closure follows last month country’s collapse of the giant Greenland Bank […]
Cathy Jenkins:A SECOND LOOK `Let me ask you, Reverend [Musa] Zondi, who should be prosecuted for stockpiling weapons and who should not? If we want the country to be governable, as the Inkatha Freedom Party says it wants to do, who do you think should be prosecuted whenever they transgress the law?” Tim Modise, interviewing […]
Evidence wa ka Ngobeni Three student leaders at the University of Venda (Univen) may face criminal charges after it emerged they stole tens of thousands of rands from student coffers. The three student representative council (SRC) officials have been suspended from the organisation pending investigations into abuse of office and fraud. Univen’s SRC representative confirmed […]