Tabla de contenidos para 2021-05-17 en Mercury

SPEAR, the only regionally specialised Reit on the JSE focused on Western Cape property, saw its distributable income per share fall 19.94 percent to 73.38 cents in the year to end-February, 2021. The distribution per share fell 35.95 percent to 58.70c. The final dividend per share was down 37.56 percent to 29.36c, and the payout pay-out ratio was 80 percent of distributable income a share, versus 100 percent payout in the prior period. The group, which owns 32 industrial-, retail-, commercial- and hospitality-focused properties, collected 7.79 percent of billings versus the billings as measured as at April 30, 2021. Net asset value fell by 5.57 percent to 1 153c per share. Portfolio occupancy stood at 93.84 percent, and was 100 percent for the Western Cape properties. The…

Kerry Vermeulen Medical expenses are taking an increasingly bigger chunk of our budgets, with private medical cover being an unavoidable expense for most. However, you can claim certain of these medical costs from the tax collector, offering some relief. Here’s how to maximise your tax refund: Medical scheme tax credits Previously, medical aid contributions were deducted against income. The medical tax credit system now provides for a monthly credit against your tax owing to the South African Revenue Service (Sars). If you and your dependants belong to a medical scheme, then you will receive a R332 medical tax credit every month in 2022 (R319 in 2021) for the first two members and a further R224 in 2022 (R215 in 2021) every month for every other member or dependant on…

Vernon Mchunu and Tarryn-Leigh Solomons ANC president Cyril Ramaphosa and deputy secretary-general Jessie Duarte last week took a decision to oppose suspended secretary-general Ace Magashule’s court application, according to papers addressed to the Johannesburg High Court’s Gauteng Division. In court papers signed and dated on Friday last week on behalf of Ramaphosa, Duarte and the ANC stated: “Be please to take notice (sic) that the first, second and third respondents intend to oppose the application and hereby enter its appearance to oppose.” The papers were also addressed to Eric Mabuza, of Mabuza Attorneys, which is representing Magashule. Magashule has approached the court to challenge not only his suspension but the ANC’s step-aside resolution. According to court papers, the matter will be heard on June 1, 2021, at 10am. In…

JEAN MICHEL BOUVIER | Bryanston THE German government is getting more pathetic, pitiful and feeble by the day. I was appalled and I found it deplorable and shameful when I heard their foreign minister the other day, saying that they fully support Israel and the steps they have taken against Hamas and the Palestinians. Are they so blind, deaf and dumb to the extreme suffering Israel has kept on inflicting over the past 73 years to the Palestinians? What is happening? Gaza is the biggest open-air prison in the world and Israel attacks and kills civilians there and bombs buildings and infrastructure at their leisure without any consequences. Has Germany’s guilt complex for their WWII crimes, brutality, cruelty and atrocities taken over and they ignore today’s realities on…

MOHAMED SAEED | Pietermaritzburg THE most recent and persistent attacks and assaults of the Israeli regime against the al-Aqsa Mosque and the Palestinians affect, undoubtedly, universal values of humanity. I believe that it is our responsibility as people who have experienced apartheid to stand firm against oppression. Given our own history as South Africans, we are morally, ethically and politically compelled to act in support of the Palestinian people. International solidarity extended to us in our Struggle against apartheid South Africa helped to defeat that dreadful regime. It is incumbent on South Africans to play a leading role globally to ensure that apartheid Israel is similarly treated as a pariah state by the international community, facing full economic sanctions, boycotts and an arms embargo. We cannot sit by…

TURKMENISTAN, the Asian country that was once part of the Soviet Union, has created a new national holiday to honour its native dog breed, the alabay. The state holiday was observed for the first time recently with a dog show and awards ceremony, according to Sky News. The alabay looks a bit like a white-ish rather than golden Labrador, but is used as a sheepdog. President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov obviously has a soft spot for the breed because last year he unveiled a huge statue of the alabay in the capital, Ashgabat. And now a public holiday. It sets one thinking. Our own capital, Maritzburg, also has its distinctive breed of dog, the Prince Alfred Street terrier. It looks a bit like a fox terrier, a bit like a corgi, a…

ZELDA VENTER zelda.venter@inl.co.za WITH the municipal elections scheduled for October, online project Judges Matter said it was concerned about whether the Electoral Court would be ready. According to the project, which specialises in legal issues, the five-member court has three vacancies. The project, which keeps a close watch on matters in the judiciary, posed the question whether electoral democracy would be able to survive the pandemic. Judges Matter said that along with the Electoral Commission, the Electoral Court was responsible for the smooth operation of the electoral system. While Judge Boissie Mbha is the current chairperson, and Sungaree Pather is one of the non-judge members, the other three positions were still vacant, the project said. While the Judicial Services Commission held interviews and short-listed candidates for all the courts across…

Sakhiseni Nxumalo sakhiseni.nxumalo@inl.co.za LOCAL truck drivers have threatened to intensify their actions against foreign nationals employed in the freight industry in the coming weeks. This past weekend in Richards Bay, truck drivers were stopped by a group of men, who questioned them about their nationality and threatened them. The incidents were captured in videos which were circulated on social media platforms. In a video seen by The Mercury, a driver was threatened and told to immediately quit his job. The man, who identified himself as Mbuso Mnisi from Mbabane, in Swaziland, was told that the cargo in his truck must go back to the depot. A voice of a man, who appeared to be recording the video, is heard exchanging words with Mnisi saying: “From this moment, we don’t want…

Karen Singh karen.singh@inl.co.za As South Africa starts Phase 2 of the Covid-19 vaccination rollout today, healthcare workers (HCWs) who were not vaccinated in the Sisonke Johnson & Johnson study await to hear from the government how they will be included in this next phase. The Mercury reported last week that vaccinations under the Sisonke implementation study for HCWs was expected to come to an end on Saturday to prevent a clash with Phase 2. The study was also expanded to include non-patient-facing HCWs, which caused chaos last week outside Durban’s St Augustine’s Hospital as hundreds of HCWs showed up without an appointment to be vaccinated. Democratic Nursing Organisation of South Africa (Denosa) provincial secretary Mandla Shabangu said the union met with the Health Department following the incident. Shabangu said that…

World doesn’t need to choose between Israel’s right to exist, Palestinian self-determination SOUTH African Muslims observed Eid celebrations on Friday, the festival marking the end of Ramadaan, the holy month of fasting, tempered by the ongoing global coronavirus pandemic, which has affected the country badly. They are also disheartened by the latest Israeli/Palestinian situation – fast degenerating into a “senseless civil war”, pitting Jews against Arabs and vice versa. As President Biden’s Peace Envoy, Hady Amr, touched down in Israel on Saturday, the conflict had claimed 133 Palestinian and 10 Israeli lives, left thousands injured plus the destruction of property and infrastructure. Imagine celebrating your most important religious festival with armed police entering your place of worship, preceded by days of tensions with threatened “evictions” of citizens from a nearby…

Israeli air strikes killed 33 Palestinians, including 13 children, in Gaza early yesterday, Gaza health officials said, and militants fired rockets into Israel as hostilities stretched into a seventh day. The pre-dawn attacks were on houses in the centre of Gaza City, health officials said. A spokesperson for the Israeli military said he would look into these reports. The death toll in Gaza jumped to 181, including 52 children, since the fighting erupted last Monday. In Israel, 10 people including two children have been killed in rocket attacks by Hamas and other militant groups. With no sign of an end to the worst outbreak of Israeli-Palestinian violence in years, the United Nations Security Council was due to meet later on Sunday to discuss the situation. Both Israel and Hamas, the…

Members of Colombia’s national police force who are responsible for abuses or acts of violence amid protests will be punished to the full extent of the law, the head of the force said. Demonstrators and human rights groups have repeatedly accused police officers of killing civilians, excessive use of force, sexual abuse and the use of firearms, both during current protests and previous ones. Accusations of an abuse of a minor in the city of Popayan have sparked violent protests there this week. “We are the first to reject illegal behaviour by an officer and we will ask for forgiveness when there’s a judicial decision,” national police director General Jorge Luis Vargas said said. Vargas said 122 disciplinary proceedings have been opened against police since protests began last month,…

New York: Los Angeles Lakers icon Kobe Bryant was inducted posthumously into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on Saturday, part of a star-studded group that also included Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett. Bryant was inducted as part of the Class of 2020, almost 16 months after he and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna were killed in a helicopter crash along with seven others in southern California. Bryant’s wife, Vanessa, took the podium Saturday to speak movingly about his love for basketball, his family, his teammates and his fans. “You did it. You are in the Hall of Fame now. You are a true champion, not just an MVP. You are an all-time great,” Vanessa said. San Antonio Spurs star Duncan, Minnesota Timberwolves and Boston Celtics big man Garnett, two-time…

MELBOURNE: A British yachtsman has been placed in mandatory coronavirus quarantine in a hotel in Sydney after being rescued from his sinking craft in rough waters, Australian police said yesterday. Australian media said the 40-year-old was sailing to Sydney from Tahiti. Police in New South Wales said they launched a 26-hour rescue effort from midnight on Friday, after receiving reports of a 15m yacht taking on water about 95 nautical miles off the coast of Newcastle. Police escorted the man to mandatory quarantine after border processing formalities, they said, but did not disclose his name.…

A 59th-minute goal from Ben Malango earned Raja Casablanca a vital 1-1 draw against Orlando Pirates in their Caf Confederation Cup quarter-final first-leg clash at Orlando Stadium yesterday. There is no doubt that Raja will be the happier team with the outcome. Not only did they avoid defeat, but they also scored a vital away goal. Malango was gifted the ball following a defensive lapse in concentration from Nathaniel Nyauza ,with Pirates defender Bongani Sam also unable to recover following his defensive partner's error. Vincent Pule had put the Sea Robbers ahead in the 38th minute with a well-executed goal from a one-on-one situation after taking advantage of lax defending from the visitors and rolling the ball into the net. The first half was a fairly tame affair…

Vuyolwethu Fundam Vuyolwethu.Fundam@africannewsagency.com Do you get enough sleep but still feel exhausted? I do, and I’ve always been curious as to why. Snacking on unhealthy foods such as chips or chocolate, it turns out, can make us feel sluggish and unproductive. Experts suggest that snacking healthily helps boost your energy levels. Here’s how you can snack smarter to avoid feeling lethargic: Eggs Eggs are an excellent way to replenish your energy. They are high in protein, which gives you a steady supply of energy. They contain vitamin B, which aids in the digestion of food for energy. They also have amino acids for the restoration of muscle energy. Spinach Spinach is a source of iron which transports oxygen throughout your body to keep your organs alive. It is also…

Vernon Mchunu vernon.mchunu@inl.co.za WHILE South Africa said it was geared up to provide support to any locals trapped in the strife-torn Gaza Strip, Palestinian support groups have called for a decisive international stance against Israel, including cutting diplomatic ties. But SA-based Israel-aligned organisations have slammed SA’s “one-sided and blinkered” approach to the violence, arguing that Israel had also received its fair share of attacks. More than 122 Palestinians, including 31 children, were killed in bombings by the Israeli army, according to the SA BDS Coalition, a Palestinian support body. Reuters reported that 10 people had been killed in Israel, including two children, according to Israeli authorities. While the #Africa4Palestine movement expected similar flare-ups in the future, based on past experience, the World Head and Caliph of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community…

OUR mother died 41 years ago today on the fifth floor of Addington Hospital. At times I feel I never knew her. But at times it is as if she is still with us. This is one of many paradoxes of dying and living. We make our mark then go away. We live on in the hearts, memories and the values of those who knew and loved us. Mavis Iona Smith is as alive as ever and has been gone too long to remember. There’s hardly a morning when I dress that I don’t hear her voice telling me anything is possible today but do you really want to wear that shirt? There’s hardly a meal I prepare that I don’t hear her just suggesting I’m adding too much of…

GLEN CHRISTIE | Durban North WHILE noting that Treasury has allocated R10.5 billion to SAA and Mango – but so far only R5.7 billion was given, and these state entities want another R2.7 billion to be transferred to Mango, SAA Technical and Air Chefs – it is now also doubtful whether this amount will be enough. The tax-paying public in this country – which one is led to believe to be in the region of around 18% of the population (a very liberal figure) – should take a stand against this continued abuse and waste of taxes. This country does not need a state-subsidised SAA Airline plus Mango – the state has wasted enough of taxpayers’ money over the years. Or is it that with SAA, all government…

MALCOLM MITCHELL | Hillcrest YOUR May 13 edition highlights problems being experienced with the installation of fibre optic cables in Durban. Residents have had many complaints regarding the consequences of poor installation procedures. While the DA noted that the municipality had said that national legislation “out-muscles” local authority legislation regarding the right and/ or necessity to install such infrastructure, it pointed out that “municipalities are responsible for granting way leave agreements” for the installation of the cables. Accepting the fact that the Constitution of South Africa accepts that national government cannot impede municipalities from the right to perform their functions in their area of jurisdiction, surely in the granting of the way leaves the municipality should set conditions for the orderly and efficient carrying out of the…

Bulelwa Payi bulelwa.payi@inl.co.za An urgent application by students whose funding by the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) had been withdrawn has been struck off the roll. The North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria ruled that the matter was not urgent and suggested that the applicants seek a special allocation on the court roll as the matter could affect thousands of students countrywide. The application for an interdict was brought on behalf of students whose funding in terms of the N+2 rule had been withdrawn. Minister of Higher Education and Training Dr Blade Nzimande and NSFAS were cited as respondents. The legal representative for the applicants, advocate Jazz Vilakazi, argued that the affected students were currently not receiving funding from NSFAS and were on the verge of losing the current…

WITH fewer than two months before the Protection of Personal Information Act (Popia) comes into effect, on July 1, South Africa’s information regulator is consulting attorneys with a view to forcing Facebook and WhatsApp to obey the country’s privacy laws. On Saturday, WhatsApp, which is owned by Facebook, implemented its controversial new terms of service, nearly six months after it first announced plans to do so. The information regulator said in a recent statement that it had written to WhatsApp LLC and requested it to revise the privacy policy in South Africa to the standard used in the European Union (EU). “The regulator has received no agreement from WhatsApp. Under the circumstances the regulator is briefing attorneys to prepare an opinion on the way forward in terms of litigation.’ The…

Mercury Reporter THE SA Revenue Service (Sars) and the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) have announced they will be strengthening collaboration efforts to fight tax crime and curb non-compliance. Sars said its commissioner, Edward Kieswetter, and the National Director for Public Prosecutions (NDPP), advocate Shamila Batohi, have agreed to enhance collaboration and deal with key challenges of tax crime and non-compliance – that is eroding the tax revenue base and the integrity of the tax system. It said the enhanced collaboration would cover a number of aspects but the immediate focus would be on non-compliance by employers, who deduct Pay as You Earn (PAYE), but do not turn those taxes over to Sars, and do not file their returns when required, as well as other general corrupt activities. “The NDPP and…

Thami Magubane thami.magubane@inl.co.za THE Msunduzi Municipality has been accused of treating its ratepayers with disdain by “ignoring” their objections to the proposed tariff increases. The councillors recently held a workshop to discuss, among many other issues, the tariff increases. An opposition councillor said the manner in which the objections were treated was an insult to ratepayers. The municipality has received close to 4 000 written objections to the proposed increases. It wants to increase its tariffs by 5.35%; water and electricity are expected to increase by more as those tariffs are determined by outside factors. “The manner in which the objections were treated was an insult. We received thousands of objections and we only spent a few minutes going through them, we did not take them seriously …” said the…

Eskom announced yesterday that it had implemented stage 2 load shedding due to the loss of ten generating units at seven power stations. Load shedding was implemented from 5pm yesterday and was expected to end at 10pm on Tuesday. Eskom said it was experiencing a failure of three generation units at Tutuka Power Station, a unit at Majuba was a forced shutdown, and another unit tripped. A generation unit at Kriel was taken down for a boiler tube leak. There was a steam leak at a unit at Matla power station, while there were trips at other sites. | Mercury Reporter…

As most of us do, we leave things for the last minute. As a result, after spending three years in Beijing, visiting the southern city of Kunming, the Terracotta Army near Xi’an, the Great Wall, the skiing resort in Yanging and the Beijing National Stadium was on my to-do list for my last semester. However, Covid-19 happened and these plans had to be shelved. Each of these cultural sites holds a special significance in the life of Chinese people. For example, Beijing National Stadium, or the Bird’s Nest as it is informally called, is a stadium with a capacity of 91 000 and is said to be the world’s largest steel structure. The most complex stadium ever constructed, the stadium is also on the north-south axis of the city and…

Firefighters put out a blaze early yesterday at one of the Philippines’ largest hospitals that had prompted the evacuation of dozens of patients from the facility, which also treats patients with Covid-19. No casualties were reported in the fire at the government-run Philippine General Hospital in the capital, Manila, which was extinguished at dawn. Its cause is not known. On Twitter, Vice President Leni Robredo made an appeal for “big, industrial fans” to clear the smoke caused by the fire. Hospital authorities could not immediately be reached for comment. Some patients were transferred to nearby hospitals, including two who needed surgery and 12 babies from the neonatal intensive care unit, CNN Philippines said, citing hospital officials. Hospital staff said the fire started in an operating room supply area soon after…

BODIES of Covid-19 victims have been found dumped in some Indian rivers, a state government has said – the first official acknowledgement of an alarming practice it said may stem from poverty and fear of the disease in villages. Images of corpses drifting down the Ganges River, which Hindus consider holy, have shocked a nation reeling under the world’s worst surge in infections. Media have linked the recent increase in numbers of such bodies to the pandemic, but the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, home to 240 million people, has until now not publicly revealed the cause of the deaths. “The administration has information that bodies of those who have succumbed to Covid-19 or any other disease are being thrown into rivers instead of being disposed of as per proper…

akarta: Seven Indonesians drowned after an overloaded boat capsized because of tourists attempting a selfie in a reservoir on Java island, police said yesterday. The accident happened when all 20 passengers suddenly moved to the one side of the vessel to take a group photo on Saturday in the Boyolali regency, said Central Java police chief Ahmad Lutfi. “The cause of the accident was overcapacity,” Lutfi told reporters. “The 20 people took a selfie on the right side then the boat lost balance and flipped.” Police added that 11 people were rescued but seven were found dead. Rescuers were searching for two people still missing.…

Rain played havoc in the early moments of the MotoGP category of the French Grand Prix yesterday in Le Mans, with the riders pitting to change to their wet-tyre set-ups, with several crashes resulting, but unfortunately the chaos was not enough to help Brad Binder break into the top 10. Brad had another weekend to forget on his KTM, starting 21nd on the grid after a poor qualifying session. With the white-flags calling in the riders as early as the fourth lap, there was an opportunity for Brad to take advantage of the change-up and the wet conditions, and make something of a terrible weekend for the team. The 25-year-old did well to stay on his bike as his counterparts battled to tame the conditions, but could only finish…

Gerry Cupido geraldine.cupido@inl.co.za She’s 55 and the mom of supermodel Kaia Gerber, but Cindy Crawford, who’s considered to be one of the original supermodels, still knows how to work a camera. Earlier this week the mom of two took to Instagram to share the image of the latest Vogue Brazil cover. In a message to photography duo Luigi and Iango, she says: “Thanks to @luigiandiango for reminding me what I love about modelling – collaboration and big hair! Ha! This shoot for @voguebrasil was so much fun!” Posting images featured in the magazine, Crawford shows off her long legs and slim body in all-black outfits. In one image, she’s almost nude, wearing only a jewelled bra and sheer veil draped over her body, highlighting her flat tummy. Photographers Luigi…

A team of palaeontologists in Mexico have identified a new species of dinosaur after finding its 72 million-year-old fossilised remains almost a decade ago, Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology and History has said. The 1.32m-long new species, named Tlatolophus galorum, was identified as a crested dinosaur after 80% of its skull was recovered, allowing experts to compare it to other dinosaurs of that type, it added. The investigation, which included specialists from the National Autonomous University of Mexico, began in 2013 with the discovery of an articulated tail of the dinosaur in the state of Coahuila. Tlatolophus is a mixture of two words, putting together a term from the indigenous language of Nahuatl that means "word" with the Greek term meaning "crest". Galorum refers to the people linked to the…

SABER AHMED JAZBHAY | Newlands West ON THE 70th anniversary of the Palestinian Nakba, I crave your understanding that I exercise my inalienable right to freedom of expression. Permit me to address a letter to Bibi aka Benjamin Netanyahu about a solution and viable outcome vis-a-vis Palestine. It goes like this: Dear Bibi, Shalom Aleikem Never mind the corruption charges you are facing. Let this be made clear to you. There will be one democratic state of Palestine with a constitution boasting an inalienable bill of rights for all who live in it. There will be a TRC process where ordinary civilians will meet and deliberate about how to live in a just and peaceful Palestine. Land deliberately stolen will be redistributed among its original owners and the…

PETER SHARLAND | Hillcrest WE HAVE recently travelled to the Drakensberg for a short break. Travelling north along the N3 on a Tuesday was the normal traffic flow which was largely uneventful. During this journey we could’nt help but notice the massive traffic congestion heading south towards Durban and the port. There were cars and heavy vehicles backed up and moving at a snail’s pace for kilometres directly due to the recently awarded N3 road widening and upgrade contracts. Once we passed Pietermaritzburg, we again came across another kilometres-long tailback of heavy trucks stretching back to Merrievale due to further roadworks halfway down Town Hill. As a veteran (and thankfully retired) civil engineering contractor, I know for a fact that these upgrades were ready to commence, from a…

WHISTLEBLOWERS and campaigners against the multibillion-rand arms deal have not given up on justice for taxpayers after the Judicial Conduct Committee (JCC) confirmed it was investigating complaints against two judges who probed the transaction. Whistleblower and Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Patricia de Lille wants the R137 million spent on the commission headed by retired Supreme Court of Appeal Judge Willie Seriti to be recovered from evidence leaders, the lawyers and investigators it employed. De Lille, unlike other whistleblowers, former IFP MP Gavin Woods and Terry Crawford-Browne, does not want the commission to be reinstituted. Instead she wants a criminal investigation into the allegations of corruption in the R142 billion deal she first publicised during a sitting of the National Assembly on September 9, 1999. De Lille told Independent Media…

Zimbabwe’s justice minister accused the country’s judiciary of being “captured” by foreign forces seeking to destabilise the government after the high court ruled it was illegal to extend the tenure of the chief justice by five more years. Three judges of the high court said in a judgment on Saturday that Luke Malaba had ceased being a judge and chief justice after he turned 70. Justice Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi said in a strongly worded statement that the ruling was “a typical case of overreach and as government we cannot accept that”. The Judicial Service Commission, which employs all judges, said the decision meant that Deputy Chief Justice Elizabeth Gwaunza became acting chief justice pending the outcome of an appeal. The ruling was a rare setback for President Emmerson Mnangagwa…

An oil painting by Pablo Picasso sold for $103.4 million (R1.46 billion) at a Christie’s auction in New York, smashing its pre-sale estimate of $55m. The portrait of Picasso’s French lover Marie-Therese, Femme assise près d’une fenêtre (Marie-Thérèse), or Woman sitting near a window, led the sale last week. Keith Gill, head of the Impressionist and Modern Art department at Christie’s London, said the work may be familiar to art lovers from its appearance at a landmark Picasso 1932 exhibition at the Tate Modern in 2018. The auction, streamed live from the Rockefeller Center, marked the fifth work by the Spanish painter to have sold for more than $100m. | Reuters…

Sakhiseni Nxumalo sakhiseni.nxumalo@inl.co.za ETHEKWINI Municipality opened a R27-million Verulam Fire Station at the weekend, bringing relief to Durban’s northern communities. The municipality said the facility, located in the heart of town, would serve Verulam and the surrounding communities and businesses of Canelands, King Shaka International Airport, Cornubia, Phoenix, Umhlanga and uThongathi. Durban mayor Mxolisi Kaunda, speaking during the opening, said communities had been calling for the facility for many years. He said in the previous dispensation, communities like Verulam, Inanda, Phoenix and other nearby areas were left out when infrastructure planning was done. “As a responsive and caring government, we are pleased that their request has now been fulfilled. Opening the fire station has brought a great sense of relief to residents and businesses in the area. It is important…

ANXIOUS South Africans who lack information on the vaccine programme have not registered for the next round of the roll-out process. This, together with delays in vaccinating healthcare workers will delay the next round of the roll-out, starting today, with the target group of those aged 60 and over or those with comorbidities. Many in this target group have not registered or have not received information on how to go about the process. There are approximately 5 million South Africans over 60 and only 1 million have registered on the government’s system. This will delay the vaccine programme and ultimately push back the date when the country can achieve herd immunity against a pandemic that is already seeing parts of the country experience a third wave. There are 500 000…

Drowning is a leading cause of death in toddlers. The places that toddlers face the greatest danger from water is at, and near, their homes. Children can drown in only a few centimetres of water, which is why anything from backyard swimming pools to bathtubs and buckets pose a great risk. The National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) is urging parents and caregivers to ensure that their homes are water safe. Saturday, May 15, is International Water Safety Day and this year the NSRI wants to spread awareness of drowning in South Africa and is focusing on educating the youth in becoming safer in and around water through their school water safety programme. “Most drownings of children under 5 years of age are at, or near, their home. Special attention should…

Six opposition rebels have been killed after days of clashes in Myanmar, an anti-junta defence force made up of civilians said Sunday. Britain and the United States condemned the military’s violence against civilians. The country has been in uproar since the military ousted civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi in a February 1 coup, triggering a massive uprising which authorities have sought to quell with lethal force. Some in the anti-junta movement have set up local militias armed with home-made weapons to protect their towns from security forces - which have killed at least 790 civilians. In the western state of Chin, the town of Mindat has emerged as a hotspot for unrest, where some residents have formed the Chinland Defence Force (CDF). “Six members of our CDF who tried…

WASHINGTON: US media are not trustworthy at the moment, telling “all lies, all the time”, says Suzanne Massie, a US historian who advised President Ronald Reagan on Russia. Massie researched Russia as a scholar, travelled there many times, and, in the final years of the Cold War, became first an adviser to Reagan, then informal intermediary between the White House and Moscow. “We cannot read our own media because it is all lies now, all the time.” Incumbent US president, Joe Biden, is “no president, but a puppet”, she said and “Washington is now a swamp”.…

Tehran: Iranian newspapers voiced concern yesterday about the potential turnout for next month’s presidential poll, a day after candidate registration ended. The reformist press was particularly worried, arguing that a low turnout would favour the conservative camp as in legislative elections last year. According to the election committee, close to 600 hopefuls including 40 women have registered for the June 18 vote to elect a successor to moderate President Hassan Rouhani. The Shargh daily, “various polls” show that “more than half” of eligible voters are expected to stay away.…

Mamelodi Sundowns co-coach Manqoba Mngqithi believes his team were "the better team football wise" despite losing to 2-0 to Al Ahly in the CAF Champions League quarter-final first leg in Cairo on Saturday evening. The South African champions dominated possession for long periods and created a couple of chances to score an all-important away goal, but unfortunately did not utilize their opportunities. Against a quality team like Al Ahly it would prove suicidal as the Red Devils scored through a wonderful strike from Mohamed Taher before a calamitous mistake from Sundowns goalkeeper Denis Onyango gifted Salah Mohsen the opportunity for a tap in during the closing stages to allow Pitso Mosimane's team to take a two goal cushion into the second leg in South Africa on Saturday. "Like…

In the end, her challengers stumbled at the final hurdle yesterday, and Lee-Anne Pace held on to win her fourth national open title when she won the Investec South African Women’s Open Championship title by one stroke at Westlake Golf Club. She carded a level-par 72 in the final round after a weekend of trying conditions, and that was enough to ward off the threat posed by the young German Leonie Harm, who also shot level-par in the final round which left her just short at three-over for the tournament. In a share of third place were another German, Karolin Lampert, and South Africa’s Nicole Garcia on five-over. “It’s really very special for me,” said Pace of the tournament co-sanctioned by the Sunshine Ladies Tour and the Ladies European Tour.…