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/ 20 May 1999

TUNISIANS IN BRIBE SCANDAL

THE Tunisian football officials arrested in Zambia at the weekend for allegedly trying to bribe a referee were charged with corruption on Tuesday. Club Sportif Sfaxien vice-president Yaiche Fakary and committee member Bouset Fadhi had their passports confiscated and must report to the anti-corruption commission in the central town of Ndola twice a week. The […]

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/ 20 May 1999

SUN IN LAS VEGAS

SUN International Hotels annouced on Tuesday that it is to buy the Desert Inn hotel and casino in Las Vegas from Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide for $275-million. The complex has 715 rooms, an 18-hole golf course and 32 acres of undeveloped land. Starwood owns the Sheraton and Westin hotel chains.

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/ 20 May 1999

SECOND TOLL OPENS

THE second of five toll gates on the multi-billion rand Maputo Development Corridor was opened on Tuesday. Trans-African Concessions (Trac) CEO Trevor Jackson said that the company has implemented a comprehensive incident management system along most of the route. He said the system integrated the services of Trac patrol vehicles, local emergency services, and protection […]

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/ 20 May 1999

REFINERY FIRE OUT

IVORIAN and French firemen finally on Tuesday extinguished a fire which has been raging in an oil depot since last week in the capital Abidjan. Abidjan residents were surprised by the fire outbreak last Thursday afternoon by at the depot of Cote d’Ivoire’s Security Petrol Stock, located at the Vridi Industrial zone, where 30000 metric […]

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/ 20 May 1999

TENDULKAR ATTENDS FATHER’S FUNERAL

INDIAN cricket star Sachin Tendulkar on Thursday attended the funeral here of his father, whose death forced the batsman to return home from the World Cup in Britain. Ramesh Tendulkar, 66, who died of heart attack on Tuesday, was cremated Thursday in a private ceremony. His son immediately flew home to Bombay, missing India’s match […]

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/ 20 May 1999

JAPAN TO REBUILD MOZAMBICAN PORT

THE Japanese government is to finance the modernisation of Mozambique’s biggest fishing port in the capital Maputo, official sources announced on Wednesday. The national director of fishing, Herminio Tembe, told Radio Mozambique that Japan is donating about four million US dollars for the rehabilitation of the port. The donation comes as the government is striving […]

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/ 20 May 1999

BOIPATONG HEARING DELAYED

THE Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s amnesty committee hearing into the 1992 Boipatong massacre was thrown into disarray on Wednesday when a woman who was sexually assaulted in the attack queried the manner of her cross-examination and refused to answer questions. Attorney Rian Strydom fell foul of the committee as he questioned Molete about her sister’s […]

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/ 20 May 1999

Erwin belts to boost SA-Libya trade

MICHAEL METELITS, Johannesburg | Thursday 1.30pm. JUST one and a half months after the Libyan sanctions were suspended following the handover of the Lockerbie bombing suspects, Trade and Industry Minister Alec Erwin will lead a ministerial delegation to the mineral rich country in pursuit of closer economic ties. Both state oil company Soekor and private […]

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/ 20 May 1999

ANC REJECT TV TIME

THE African National Congress on Wednesday reacted with anger to an announcement by the Independent Broadcasting Authority allocating times for political party election broadcasts. The broadcasts — prepared by political parties to inform voters of their policies — will be run unedited between May 19 and 31. The ANC was allocated the most broadcast time […]

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/ 20 May 1999

ARMY WORMS INVADE

ARMY worms have invaded parts of east and central Africa, threatening food security in the region. Reports in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi say the worms, also known as moth caterpillars, have destroyed 6000 hectares of crops in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi since lastmonth. Governments in the five countries have urged farmers to […]

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/ 20 May 1999

GHANA TO HOST QUALIFIERS

GHANA will host the Zone 3 qualifying competition for the All-Africa Games from July 10-18. Winners at this stage will go on to the finals held in Johannesburg from September 10-19. Fixtures: July 10 – Burkina Faso v Ghana, Liberia v Nigeria July 12 – Burkina Faso v Liberia, Cote d’Ivoire v Nigeria July 14 […]

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/ 19 May 1999

TENDULKAR HEADS HOME

SACHIN Tendulkar has flown back to India from the cricket World Cup following the death of his father but team officials said on Wednesday they were confident he will rejoin the team. Brijesh Patel from the Indian squad said: “He was in a state of shock. Our thoughts are with him and his family.” He […]

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/ 19 May 1999

UN SETS W SAHARA PLEBISCITE

THE United Nations has set July 31 2000 as the date for a referendum on the future of Western Sahara, according to a UN report released on Tuesday. The referendum to decide the future of the former Spanish colony annexed by Morocco in 1975 will cap a year of identification and appeal processes approved by […]

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/ 19 May 1999

QUEEN ELIZABETH II TO VISIT

PRESIDENT Nelson Mandela has invited Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II to visit South Africa in November, the foreign ministry said on Tuesday. The visit is set to start on November 9 and precede the Commonwealth heads of government meeting due to take place in Durban from November 12 to 15, the ministry said. The queen, who […]

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/ 19 May 1999

JUBILEE 2000 IN NIGERIA

THE director of Jubilee 2000, a British-based coalition of non-governmental organisations campaigning to cancel the unpayable debt of the world’s poorest countries, on Monday began a five-day study visit to Nigeria. Ann Pettifor is expected to meet Nigeria’s president-elect Olusegun Obasanjo to raise questions about Britain’s recent offer of debt relief for Nigeria. British Chancellor […]

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/ 19 May 1999

MBEKI CONGRATULATES BARAK

DEPUTY President Thabo Mbeki on Tuesday congratulated the Israeli Labour Party leader Ehud Barak on his election as Israeli Premier. Barak replaces Benjamin Netanyahu of the Likud Party. Mbeki said he believed the peace process between Israelis and Palestinians would now move rapidly forward in a spirit consistent with the principles for which former Premier […]

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/ 19 May 1999

IEC SCRAPS 428 CANDIDATES

THE Independent Electoral Commission announced on Tuesday that it has scrapped a total of 428 candidates from its final list for the elections. Deputy chief electoral officer Norman du Plessis said that some candidates lost their place on the lists because they failed to sign the relevant documents accepting their nomination, while on other applications […]

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/ 19 May 1999

JOB FUND NEARS R10m

CONTRIBUTIONS to the job creation fund by business, workers and government are nearing R10-million, National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa president Mtutuzeli Tom said on Monday. Tom was speaking after receiving a cheque for R193887 — one day’s salary from 3500 workers — from Daimler-Chrysler at East London in the Eastern Cape. The country’s […]

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/ 19 May 1999

NAM GOVT SPURNS AIDS OFFER

THE Namibian health ministry has refused to participate in a $100-million Aids prevention programme funded by a multinational pharmaceutical company, according to news reports. The programme, “Secure The Future: Care and Support for Women and Children With Aids”, aims to expand medical research focusing on women and children and to improve community outreach over the […]

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/ 19 May 1999

ASEC ADVANCE, DESPITE LOSS

ONE West African giant advanced and another fell by the wayside in African club championship second-round, second-leg matches this weekend. Champions League holders Asec lost 2-1 in Algeria to Al-Harrach, but were comfortable winners on aggregate having triumphed 4-0 in Cote d’Ivoire two weeks ago. The Asec bank balance swelled by $150000 for reaching the […]

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/ 19 May 1999

TUTU FINED

TREVOR TUTU was on Monday fined R10000 or an alternative 18 months in jail for reckless driving. The Johannesburg Magistrate’s Court conditionally suspended a fifth of the fine — which in full is equal to Trevor Tutu’s monthly salary — or six months of the jail sentence. Tutu’s conviction stems from a four-car pile-up in […]

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/ 19 May 1999

UNREST IN BURKINA FASO

AN opposition member of the Burkina Faso parliament and a human rights leader were arrested on Monday following new riots over the murder of a journalist, Security Minister Colonel Djibril Bassole said. Hermann Yameogo, son of the country’s first president Maurice Yameogo when it was known as Upper Volta, will be charged with organising the […]

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/ 19 May 1999

SA DOMINATES PLAYER OF THE YEAR

THREE South Africans are on PricewaterhouseCoopers International Test Player of the Year for cricket. Allan Donald tops bowlers, along with Shaun Pollock, and Jacques Kallis has made it in as a batsman and bowler. Other high-profile players on the list include struggling WEst Indian captain Brian Lara, Australian Steve Waugh, and India’s Sachin Tendulkar. Lara […]

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/ 19 May 1999

POLICE WARN ON Y2K FRAUD

POLICE on Tuesday warned people against scams in which fraudsters exploit Y2K fears to transfer bank account holders’ money into their own accounts. Police spokesman Faizel Abdul-Kader said the scam operators pose as bank workers and persuade people to transfer their money into these accounts in order to protect it while the banks secure their […]

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/ 19 May 1999

CATS WIN SAVES MARKGRAAFF

THE Cats’ dramatic win over the Stormers on Saturday not only restored some of the side’s respectability, but may have extended the career of embattled coach Andre Markgraaff. Markgraaff has been under pressure throughout the Super 12 campaign, and has been attacked in the press for tactics and style. Markgraaff claimed the articles in the […]

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/ 19 May 1999

MALAWI POLL DATE FRIDAY

MALAWIAN President Bakili Muluzi and the speaker of the National Assembly, Rodwell Munyenyembe, have agreed to convene an emergency meeting of parliament on Friday to decide on the new date for Malawi’s general elections, in keeping with a court order issued on Sunday. The deputy clerk of parliament, Fahad Assani, said in an interview that […]

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/ 19 May 1999

YELTSIN ENDS THE LIBYA FREEZE

RUSSIAN President Boris Yeltsin formally authorised the resumption of diplomatic and economic ties between Russia and Libya on Monday. The Russian decision follows the United Nations Security Council vote to lift international sanctions imposed on Libya. The end of UN sanctions came into effect when Libya handed over two suspects to the UN on April […]

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/ 19 May 1999

BULLS LOOK FOR NEW CEO

THE Blue Bulls Rugby Union will look for a new chief executive following their disappointing display in this year’s Super 12 competition. The Bulls’ management is undertaking “a process of strategic planning”, including shifts at the CEO level. An agreement with Dr John Williams to retain the post until July 31 1999 is due to […]

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/ 19 May 1999

CUSTOMARY MARRIAGES VALIDATED

A RECENT change in customary marriage law will marriages to enable more women to buy property independently of their husbands, the Estate Agency Affairs Board said on Tuesday. The amended law will remove the minority status of women with respect to proerty ownership under customary law. In a statement the board said the Recognition of […]

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/ 19 May 1999

UNITA NAMES ITS ARMS ROUTES

THE Angolan Unita rebel movement says it receives all its military equipment through the Angolan harbours of Luanda and Lobito. The announcement was made by Unita secretary general Paulo Gato, who emphasised all the war materials enter Angola through airports and ports. He also criticised the United Nations sanctions against his organisation, saying Unita considers […]

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/ 19 May 1999

GOVT SLOWS CELL PHONE BID

THE government has yet to announce the conditions for the awarding of the third cell-phone licence less than four weeks before the deadline for submission of applications for the third cell-phone licence. Sake reports that regulations sent by the South African Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (Satra) to the department of communication, have not yet arrived on […]

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/ 19 May 1999

JESSE HEADING FOR AFRICA

UNITED States President Bill Clinton is sending Labor Secretary Alexis Herman and rights activist Jesse Jackson as special envoys to the upcoming African/African-American summit in Ghana, the White House announced on Monday. Herman and Jackson will head a 33-member presidential mission to the summit, to be held May 17 – 21 in Accra, Ghana. The […]