Staff Reporter

Rehana Rossouw MINERAL and Energy Affairs Minister Pik Botha this week blamed the Strategic Fuel Fund (SSF) for allowing a “rust bucket” tanker — which spilled 66.5 tons of crude oil into the sensitive Saldanha Bay area — to slip through safety controls. The spill, some of which seeped into the Langebaan lagoon reserve, fulfilled […]

The supreme court this week heard the heart-wrenching case of a mother suing her gynaecologist for allowing her extremely ill baby to be born. Pat Sidley and Annicia Reddiar report ‘THEY placed Alexandra on my tummy after the birth. Then a sister grabbed her and quickly took her to the furthest side of the room. […]

Local-content rules will help the industry, writes IBA chair Peter de Klerk in a response to the M&G THE new local-content rules for television are designed to build a South African TV-programme-making industry —so that South Africans can see and hear themselves on our TV screens, and to create jobs in a key industry of […]

Philippa Garson ROSEMARY MANGOPE, daughter-in-law of former Bophuthatswana president Lucas Mangope, still reaps the benefits of her former job as executive director of the Mabana Cultural Centre in Mmabatho, even though she left the centre when she fled the homeland 18 months ago. After the homeland uprising, which toppled her father-in-law, she was suspended from […]

The sentencing of 18-year-old schoolboy Uwer Rayner Campher to four years’ jail without the option of a fine, just a few hours after his arrest, has been described by Lawyers for Human Rights as “absurd”. “Bizarre”, “asinine” and “idiotic” are just a few other adjectives which spring to mind. Campher was caught dealing in LSD […]

FINE ART: Ruth Sack SONGS and Monuments by Bongi Dhlomo is an exhibition of drawings, paintings and assemblages in which the central, recurring image is of an African headrest, standing alone and without context — as, of course, they now do in museums. Some of these paintings make it easy to think of headrests as […]

Turfloop University closed early this week amid student strife. Philippa Garson asks what has gone wrong WHEN Njabulo Ndebele took up his position as vice-chancellor of the University of the North over two years ago, he was glowing with optimism about the institution’s future, believing not only in its “tremendous potential”, but wanting “to be […]

The troubled Limpopo River area is in trouble again — this time from the effects of herbicides used by contractors employed by the SADF, writes Stephanie Dippenaar ILLEGAL and dangerous herbicides — used by South African Defence Force contractors to control 70km of sisal fence along the Zimbabwe border — have contaminated farmers’ crops and […]

The IBA has made its report: now the lobbying begins, reports Neil Bierbaum Fierce lobbying is expected in response to the Independent Broadcasting Authority’s report on television. Prospective commercial broadcasters want the licensing of a commercial television channel to happen sooner, while the SABC will lobby to retain its third channel. But even if prospective […]

Neil Bierbaum A NUMBER of radio stations — some of them leaders in the field — have had a decrease in audience figures, according to research just released by the All Media and Product Survey (Amps). The Amps survey is conducted twice a year by the South African Advertising Research Foundation (Saarf) and provides in-depth […]

Rehana Rossouw THERE’S a new way of describing women who challenge male domination at Safety and Security headquarters in Pretoria: the women are told they are “doing a The Zelda being referred to is Zelda Holtzman, a thirtysomething from Cape Town who in June became the highest-ranking black woman in South African police She was […]

Concerns have been raised that German funding is being used for IFP paramilitary purposes, report Paul Stober, Marion Edmonds, Eddie Koch and Ann Eveleth Evidence has emerged that the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) plans to rebuild its paramilitary and intelligence capabilities — using German funds earmarked for development — ahead of a possible showdown with […]

M&G Reporter ONLY three of the country’s nine premiers passed the Mail & Guardian’s second Government Efficiency Test. The newspaper investigated whether the premiers care enough about ordinary citizens to answer their letters. After six weeks, responses to a citizen’s letter had been received only from Gauteng’s Tokyo Sexwale, the Northern Cape’s Manne Dipico and […]

THE Attorney General of KwaZulu-Natal, Tim McNally, is suing the Mail & Guardian for R250 000 over reports published last month detailing criticism of his handling of investigations into hit squad activities. McNally, charging that the reports “cut at the very heart of his reputation and dignity”, has demanded publication of a “complete, unconditional and […]

Exciting Currie Cup matches cannot disguise the unhappiness of players at their treatment by Sarfu RUGBY: Jon Swift THIS season’s Currie Cup has proved, in many instances, to be a memorable one. Matches have been hard-fought and no one side can truly be said to be running away from the opposition. On paper, the season […]

Paul Wilkes JOHN PAUL II, who survived an assassination attempt 13 years ago, the removal of a tumour the size of an orange two years ago and who suffered two bad falls within a year, still has his faith intact. But no longer can his iron will command a weakening body to do its bidding. […]

Craig Hedderwick ARTS ALIVE this year has a particularly lively dance component — a 24-day celebration and exploration of the diverse styles of South African dance, to be held at the Dance Factory in Newtown. More than 300 performers will present a feast of contemporary, African and jazz dance. The entire spectrum of dance culture […]

Our continuing series of extracts from Parliamentary Whip, the publication of Idasa’s Parliamentary Information and Monitoring Service (Pims), the most comprehensive Parliament-watching team Christelle Terreblanche and Richard Calland THE African National Congress last week rejected reports that Parliament was in crisis while, off the record, MPs and chairpersons of committees continued to relate frustrations over […]

FINE ART: Hazel Friedman USING mild terminology to describe Moshekwa Langa’s debut solo exhibition at the Market’s Rembrandt van Rijn Gallery would be tantamount to defining a tidal wave as a ripple. Here’s this newcomer from KwaNdebele, barely out of his high- school blazer — he recently matriculated from the Waldorf School — who is […]

What must South Africa do to attract — and keep — Japanese investment? Karen Harverson reports The Southern African region will almost certainly get Japanese investment in the future, but it needs to learn from the experiences of Asian countries which have attracted the bulk of Japanese investment and continue to attract it. Speaking at […]

Fruit and vegetables, masks and cloth are just some of the props called into play at the African Puppet Theatre Festival. DAVID LE PAGE reports LUNCH-HOUR traffic crowds the streets in Rosebank, Johannesburg. An unusually hot sun beats down. At the junction of Oxford and Glenhove roads, two photographers and several traffic officers wait. The […]

Ruth Sack SCHOOL outings to the museum … Does this conjure up dark images of well- meaning but remote guides leading footsore trails of children? If so, you must be a bit of a museum-piece yourself. Because things have been changing. At the Johannesburg Art Gallery, education officer Dammon Rice is developing a programme in […]

SOCCER: Lungile Madywabe ‘IF ever there was a good player in our second and third divisions, one of the big teams would have snatched him long ago, and he would be playing there before being considered for the national team,” says Clive Barker, the South African national soccer coach. This view would unquestionably be true […]

‘As German chancellor I do not have any intention of interfering in the internal affairs of this country,” said Helmut Kohl in Johannesburg this week. On the first visit to South Africa by a German chancellor, Kohl was at pains to avoid political controversy, concentrating on trade and economic co-operation between the two countries. But, […]

At least debate about this country’s media can take place now without fear of government clampdown. No longer do editors have to respond to every government criticism by warning of the dangers of action which might inhibit press freedom. Even if Deputy President Thabo Mbeki had such activity in mind when he criticised the media […]

The huge fine imposed on Kobus Wiese has highlighted the problems associated with rugby becoming a pay for play sport RUGBY: Jon Swift THERE are any number of issues which remain unresolved following the massive R50 000 fine slapped on Kobus Wiese as rugby sets sail into the new and largely uncharted waters of professionalism. […]

CINEMA: Justin Pearce IT was a genius who cast Arnold Schwarzenegger as an android in Terminator II. No longer did apologists have to make excuses about the man’s perpetually stony countenance — androids don’t express emotion, after all, so all Arnie had to do was to say “hasta la vista, baby” in a talking-clock monotone […]

Hazel Friedman WINIFRED BROUCKAERT still carries the scars and bruises of a brutal attack more than six months ago. But more agonising than her injuries is the knowledge that the man who allegedly robbed and stabbed her in the face — leaving her partially blind and close to death — is a police officer still […]

Meshack Mabogoane reports on the political and racial issues that have arisen as the African Bank closes its doors The closure of the African Bank (AB), pioneering black financial institution, has sparked off racial emotions, political heat and personal anguish. The AB has been more than just a business venture; its symbolic value — reflected […]

The first official papal visit to South Africa spells the end of the era of ‘Roomse gevaar’, reports Pat Sidley SOMEWHERE in the Free State is a garage owner who will be wondering if the Vatican will spend a penny in his toilets this weekend. It happened in 1988, when the pope landed unexpectedly at […]

Philippa Garson WHAT would we do without the Sanlam babies? Most would agree that=20 the entertainment value of seeing children playing adults is greater than= that of seeing adults play themselves. Certainly Sanlam, churning out one baby ad after another, believes in the= success of using children to market adult products. Alternatively, using=20 adults to […]

RUGBY: Jon Swift WEARING a crown is one of the most uncomfortable and unwieldy=20 burdens given to sporting champions. Certainly, this proved the case for=20 South Africa at Ellis Park last Saturday. Even the 40-11 final scoreline=20 against the 14 Welshmen who remained on the field at the final whistle=20 didn=D5t quite re-gild the tarnish […]