Table of contents for 2024-06-07 in Cape Times

from page 1 their shelves. We urge book stores to stand on the right side of history and use this opportunity to feature more books on Palestine in their stores,” they said. PEN SA, an NGO of writers said they were gravely concerned to learn of a public call from SAJBD to remove the educational colouring book from circulation. “Through a series of stunning illustrations, Ngubane tackles the injustice of the Nakba, delves into the history and culture of the land, and introduces young readers to the key concepts driving and sustaining the Palestinian resistance. “South Africa is a democracy in which citizens exercise freedom of expression and are protected from censorship: this is a freedom we should all seek to uphold and protect, not diminish. While the SAJBD is…

Exclusive Books has remained mum over reports that it pulled a children’s colouring book that tells the story of Palestine, off its shelves. The book From the River to the Sea: A Colouring Book for children ages 6 to 10 years is illustrated by Soweto-based writer Nathi Ngubane and published by Social Bandit Media. A number of people took to social media about experience of trying to buy the book from Exclusive Books, including that their orders had been cancelled. Ngubane said he illustrated the book with the aim of educating children in South Africa and worldwide about the history of Palestine, the culture of Palestinian people and their flora and fauna. “I am hoping that by the end of this book, children will be more informed about the devastating…

TO fast-track relief efforts in Eastern Cape areas battered by heavy rains, the government has classified the floods as a national disaster. Mop-up operations are under way with President Cyril Ramaphosa expected to visit the province today to assess the response by government departments and entities. As of Wednesday, a Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) preliminary incident report indicated that eight lives were lost with one person missing and the cost of damage tallied nearly R500 million. Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality (NMBM) acting executive director for Safety and Security Shadrack Sibiya said yesterday disaster management received reports about one person who was swept away by floods while rescue operations were under way. Nine areas in the NMBM, including Kariega were affected and five under the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality.…

Killer stories Brin Hodgskiss, Nicole Engelbrecht Loot.co.za (R209) Jonathan Ball “If YOU made me angry, to me, for that anger to go away I have to get hold of you ... For that anger to go away, I have to do something to you.” These are the words of one of South Africa’s most terrifying serial killers as told to Brin Hodgskiss in the bowels of one of our most secure prisons. Hodgskiss got his doctorate in psychology for a study based on interviews with 13 serial killers. The recordings sat gathering dust until recently, when top true-crime podcaster Nicole Engelbrecht found his paper online. The two connected and the concept for this book was born. In Killer Stories, Hodgskiss uses each of the interviews, combined with the tenets of…

The Cowley Twins disappeared from the Rosebank Medicentre in Johannesburg under the watch of the receptionist at the doctor’s rooms. Tertia Cowley arranged with her husband to fetch the twins at the doctor’s rooms. By the time her name was called to see the doctor, her husband was not there. Tertia decided to leave the twins with the receptionist saying her husband would collect them. A few hours went by until they realised the twins had been “kidnapped”. ‘’Nobody would be happier than me if they find the twins alive and well, but we both know it is not going to happen. If we find out anything at all, it will be how they died,“ said Cowley. Years later, an exclusive newspaper interview with the receptionist at the time has…

As if beating Nigeria away wasn’t a difficult enough task, Bafana Bafana had to deal with a few travel problems on their journey to West Africa this week. The South Africans face their great rivals tonight in a crucial 2026 Fifa World Cup qualifier in Uyo, southern Nigeria, where the visitors need to get at least a point to stay in the hunt for qualification. Bafana – who will take on Zimbabwe in Bloemfontein next Tuesday – are currently second in Group C with three points, having beaten Benin at home and lost to Rwanda away. Nigeria are third on two points, having drawn both their matches so far, against Lesotho and Zimbabwe. So, the Super Eagles will be desperate to beat Bafana tonight, with coach Hugo Broos and his…

Homelessness is on the rise across major Argentinian cities as the new libertarian government’s tough medicine reforms squeeze pensions, state salaries and push up rental prices, forcing more people into poverty. The latest survey by local authorities showed the official number of Argentinians sleeping rough on the streets of Buenos Aires reached 4 009 in April, up from 3 511 a year ago. These numbers are being replicated in other urban centres like Cordoba and Rosario, as President Javier Milei rebalances the state purse at a steep cost to the economy and the most vulnerable. So far, the government response to the homelessness crisis has faced criticism. Charity organiser Monica De Russis, 59, who has helped run Amigos en Camino, or Friends on the Road, for the past 13 years,…

ST PETERSBURG: Russia’s central bank chief called yesterday for Russia to be an “open economy” despite the barrage of Western sanctions and trading restrictions it has been hit with over its Ukraine offensive. Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina was speaking at the Saint Petersburg International Economic Forum, Russia’s annual business event. Western attendees are few and far between this year. China has become Russia’s main economic partner over the past two years, although President Vladimir Putin has railed against the US threatening sanctions on Chinese banks that deal with Russia. Nabiullina also warned that planned tax rises must not discourage investment. | AFP…

KUALA LUMPUR: More than 500 people from seafaring communities around the coast of Malaysia’s Sabah state have been evicted from their homes this week as part of a crackdown against undocumented migrants, local activists said. The Bajau Laut are a community of mostly stateless sea nomads, living offshore in wooden houseboats or huts built on stilts in the Semporna district of Sabah on Borneo island. Born without ID documents, most do not have access to basic facilities such as education, financial or health services. They often live in fear of being deported or detained. Malaysia in recent years has stepped up enforcement against illegal migration. | Reuters…

BUSINESS Report incorrectly reported some of the figures in dollars instead of rands on Wednesday in the story titled, “Post-election uncertainty impacting investment prospects for property sector, says Vukile CEO”. The story should have said Vukile had seen investment opportunities amounting to R7bn to R8bn in South Africa (not as erroneously reported $7bn to $8bn). Similarly, the sentence, “I would say about $5 billion of the $7bn was because of pricing and $2bn was quality of asset once we got into the detail,” should have said, “I would say about R5 billion of the R7bn was because of pricing and R2bn was quality of asset once we got into the detail.” Business Report regrets the error.…

A HANDFUL of ministers who were nominated to serve on the National Assembly will not be among the newly-elected MPs to be sworn in at the first sitting of Parliament. This also applies to a number of ANC chairpersons of portfolio committee who did not make the cut. The ANC, which lost 71 seats in last week’s elections, managed to secure only 159 seats after its electoral support slumped to 40.18%. The published candidate lists show that Police Minister Bheki Cele, who was at position 79 on the national list, did not make the cut. Defence Minister Thandi Modise, who was at position 83, will not be returning along with Public Service and Administration Minister Noxolo Kiviet, who was at position 85. Long-serving minister, International Relations and Co-operation Minister Naledi…

Reject DA coalition, ANC protesters tell NEC WHILE hinting that the ANC was at a stage to agree on a coalition arrangement that was good for South Africa, ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula decried what he termed as distortions that there was already an agreement with the DA. “We’ve got scenarios and options. We narrowed them to a Government of National Unity (GNU), where we invite everybody. We have not confined ourselves to the identity of a political party. “At the end of the negotiations we are to be informed by readiness to compromise and to accept for the goodwill of the people,” he said. He made the remarks on the sidelines of an NEC meeting at the Birchwood Hotel in Boksburg while some ANC members protested against the possibility of…

DR GUY Lamb of the Department of Political Science at Stellenbosch University says serving on the Future Council of the International Criminal Police Organisation known as Interpol will broaden his understanding of crime prevention issues and solutions in other countries. Lamb accepted an invitation to serve on the Future Council following the passing of a resolution at Interpol’s general assembly in Vienna, Austria, at the end of 2023 to create a high-level expert council. It was established to ensure that further implementation of the organisation’s Vision 2030 meets the law enforcement needs of Interpol’s member countries. The Future Council will comprise up to eight crime prevention and policing experts from across the globe. “As a South African, I am deeply honoured to have been invited to serve…

The Land of Lost Things John Connolly Loot.co.za (R312) Hodder & Stoughton I HAD always thought that John Connolly was purely a thriller/mystery writer with a touch of the supernatural, having enjoyed many of his Charlie Parker series and the quirks that he always includes. When I picked up The Land of Lost Things I was expecting a racy thriller. Imagine my surprise when I entered the world of adult fable and found myself falling into an unexpected rabbit hole … Grimm, Hans Christian Andersen, Perrault were all part of my childhood. I do remember being a bit scared sometimes but there were lessons to be learnt, perhaps subliminally, but always imaginatively and with clear and engaging characters. The differences between right and wrong, good and evil marked in…

The Honey Witch Sydney J Shields Loot.co.za (R498) Orbit Twenty-one-year-old Marigold Claude has always preferred the company of the spirits of the meadow to any of the suitors who’ve tried to woo her. So when her grandmother whisks her away to the family cottage on the tiny Isle of Innisfree with an offer to train her as the next Honey Witch, she accepts immediately. But her newfound magic and independence come with a price: no one can fall in love with the Honey Witch. When Lottie Burke, a notoriously grumpy skeptic who doesn’t believe in magic, shows up on her doorstep, Marigold can’t resist the challenge to prove to her that magic is real. But soon, Marigold begins to care for Lottie in ways she never expected. And when darker…

ON May 15, President Cyril Ramaphosa signed the National Health Insurance (NHI) Bill into law. However, its implementation could be stalled for some time. The act is to be implemented in stages. This could take many years if the example of the previous, pivotal piece of health-related legislation, the National Health Act, which took more than a decade to become fully operational, is anything to go by. Each stage will also bring the potential for legal challenges. There is also the issue of the missing money bill. An act such as the NHI Act, which has massive financial and economic ramifications, should be accompanied by a money bill drafted by the National Treasury, setting out the financial aspects. No money bill has been drafted. Should its implementation proceed without clarification…

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was deep in negotiations with alliance partners to form his cabinet yesterday, after an unexpectedly close election that forced his party into a coalition government. Modi’s Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which ruled for the past decade with an outright majority, had been expecting another landslide win. But results of the six-week election released on Tuesday ran counter to exit polls, seeing the BJP lose its majority and sending it into quick-fire talks to lock in a 15-member coalition that would allow it to govern. That grouping, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), announced late on Wednesday that they had agreed to form a government, “unanimously” choosing Modi as their leader. The alliance holds 293 seats in parliament, giving it control of the 543-seat body. The…

Dutch voters cast their ballots yesterday at the start of a four-day election for the European Parliament that is likely to see a rightward shift in the continent’s balance of power. The election will shape how the EU, a bloc of 450 million citizens, confronts external challenges, including a more aggressive Russia, increased industrial competition from China and the US, climate change and immigration. The vote in the Netherlands, where a nationalist party won a 2023 national election, also encapsulates the main internal political challenge facing the 27-nation EU – the rising popularity of nationalist and populist parties that want to dismantle the EU from within. After yesterday’s Dutch ballot, voting will take place today in Ireland and the Czech Republic, in Malta, Slovakia and Latvia tomorrow, and then in…

DAMASCUS: For the first time in more than a decade, thousands of Syrians are travelling directly from government-held parts of Syria to Saudi Arabia for the Haj rituals, a signal of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s gradual reintegration into the Arab fold. After Syria’s conflict erupted in 2011, Saudi Arabia cut ties with Assad and backed figures opposed to him – including by granting Syria’s opposition thousands of visas to be distributed among Syrian pilgrims in Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt and Turkiye. But Riyadh re-established ties with Assad and last month appointed its first envoy to Syria since the rift. Direct flights also resumed. | Reuters…

Seoul: A North Korean defectors’ group said yesterday that it had sent about 10 large plastic balloons carrying propaganda leaflets against the North Korean regime across the border, raising concerns Pyongyang could resume sending trash-filled balloons. Since last week, Pyongyang has sent nearly 1 000 balloons carrying trash to South Korea against such anti-Pyongyang leaflet campaigns. Filled with 200 000 flyers criticising the regime, the balloons were floated from Pocheon, north of Seoul, yesterday, said Park Sang-hak, the head of the Fighters for a Free North Korea. The military said no signs of retaliatory action were detected yet. | IANS…

from page 1 On Wednesday, the SACP announced that it was opposed to a coalition involving the DA and the MKP. Mbalula said: “We will engage with the SACP and understand where they stand in terms of issues in the model. Everyone has a right to say not this direction and all of that.” Policy analyst and researcher Nkosikhulule Nyembezi said: “Not to diminish the current efforts to negotiate national and provincial coalition governments, but there is something darkly comic about watching, split-screen style, the contrast between the pro/anti-DA/MK views in the ANC, as some influential decision-makers publicly express their opposing views on how the outcome should be. “Zuma has already said he is not interested in agreeing with a Ramaphosa-led ANC. What next?”…

The Proteas Men’s team celebrated their opening ICC T20 World Cup victory over Sri Lanka with a special visit to the iconic Yankee Stadium in New York this week. Rob Walter’s team were special guests of the world-famous baseball team for the New York Yankees’ Major League Baseball match against the Minnesota Twins. The team were treated to a special tour of the stadium, situated in the Bronx, while captain Aiden Markram, Walter and fast-bowler Kagiso Rabada also conducted a jersey swap with Yankees coach Aaron Boone and star player Austin Wells. The Proteas squad and members of the management team also travelled to the renowned Times Square, where they were greeted with a customised video message. Displayed prominently on the TSX screen in the heart of “the city that…

ENVIRONMENTAL justice organisation Green Connection has been given access to critical information regarding the Karpowership deals following a successful court order. The interlocutory application was one part of a two-part court action against Nersa’s decision to grant three electricity generation licences to the Karpowership SA companies to operate powerships in the ports of Saldanha, Ngqura (Coega) and Richards Bay. According to Green Connection, while government opposed the challenge to make the information public, the three Karpowerships companies withdrew their opposition and will abide by the court’s decision. In the court order, Nersa agreed to make available a complete, unredacted record of an annexure document and any documents that the respondents claimed to be confidential. The documents should be made available within 10 days after the order was made on June…

Outlive Peter Attia, Bill Gifford Loot.co.za (R289) Vermilion An ABUNDANCE of longevity books have hit the bookshelves over the last year, each with interesting facts on what can be done to extend your lifespan, but Dr Peter Attia’s book goes into greater detail on how to achieve it. Attia, a medical doctor, has become increasingly frustrated with the traditional approach to medicine and illness. In his book Outlive, he takes a hard look at how mainstream medicine has failed to make progress against diseases of ageing such as Alzheimer’s disease, heart disease and cancer to name but a few. Attia speaks openly about his mental health struggles and this is commendable. The very short chapter in emotional health may be seen as one of the stand-out chapters because he was…

Quiet Time with the President Peter Friedland with Jill Margo Loot.co.za (R189) Jonathan Ball After years of serving the country and doing his part to help rebuild South Africa, Dr Peter Friedland was given an opportunity to serve as a member of Nelson Mandela’s medical team and helped to monitor his hearing. Over the years they built a rapport and their conversations regularly veered towards politics. Mandela often gave Peter perspective and would push him to examine his reasons for supporting specific causes and holding particular views. As an ENT specialist, Peter regularly treated victims of violent crime. He also lost colleagues and friends to hijackings and other crimes. But when his daughters were exposed to a robbery, he had to make a life-changing decision. This book examines the…

ON May 15, President Cyril Ramaphosa signed the National Health Insurance Bill (NHI) into law after it was passed by both the National Assembly and National Council of Provinces. According to the “Understanding the National Health Insurance (NHI)” information sheet provided by the government, “the NHI is a fund paid by our taxes, from which the government will buy healthcare services for all of us who live in the country from healthcare providers in the public sector and private sector”. The main driver behind the NHI is the healthcare inequity between the public and private sectors. Some 16% of the population is currently on medical aid, but it is estimated that about half of the expenditure on health care occurs in the private sector, as Janet Michel and her co-authors…

A Gaza hospital said at least 37 people were killed in an Israeli strike yesterday on a UN-run school that the Israeli military alleged housed a “Hamas compound”. The raid came after US, Qatari and Egyptian mediators resumed talks aimed at securing a truce and hostage-prisoner swop in the nearly eight-month war triggered by Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel. The military said it had “eliminated” several militants in a “precise strike on a Hamas compound embedded inside an UNRWA school” just before 2am in central Gaza. Israel accuses Hamas and its allies in Gaza of using schools, hospitals and other civilian infrastructure including facilities run by UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, as operational centres, charges the militants deny. The al-Aqsa Martyrs hospital in Deir al-Balah, near Nuseirat,…

China’s Chang’e-6 probe transferred samples it collected from the moon’s far side to a spacecraft in lunar orbit yesterday, reports said. After receiving the samples, the uncrewed spacecraft will fly back to Earth, with an expected landing in China’s Inner Mongolia region on June 25. If successful, China will be the first country to return lunar matter from the side of the moon that permanently faces away from Earth. The Chang’e-6 probe took off from the moon’s far side on Tuesday, after spending two days on the surface digging up samples. On the moon, the probe unfurled a Chinese flag made of basalt, a material that is abundant on the lunar surface. The successful transfer of the precious samples, which scientists hope can reveal more about the origins of the…

HARARE: Zimbabwe’s central bank has moved to avert a shortage of the country’s newly introduced currency, the Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG), amid concerns that the shortage is hampering people’s daily transactions. The country launched the gold-backed ZiG on April 5 in hopes of curbing inflation and promoting currency stability. The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe said it would enable the public to swipe for local currency in denominations of ZiG1, ZiG2, ZiG5, and ZiG10. The small denominations are meant to provide the public with change while the central bank holds on to larger-value notes as it seeks to choke the parallel market and stem inflation. | Xinhua…

WILMINGTON: Hunter Biden’s sister-in-law testified at his criminal trial yesterday that she found remnants of crack cocaine pipe and a gun in his truck, potentially bolstering prosecutors’ case that US President Joe Biden’s son broke a law barring drug users from owning firearms. Hallie Biden, the widow of Hunter Biden’s brother Beau Biden, who died of cancer in 2015, testified she often cleaned out Hunter Biden’s truck, searching for drugs in an attempt to help him. She told the jury how she took the gun from his truck the last time Hunter Biden had possession of it, and threw it in a bin. Hunter Biden and his attorneys have not said if he will testify, a risky move that most criminal defendants avoid. | Reuters…