Índice para 2022-03-02 em Cape Times

Marsha Dean Marsha.Dean@inl.co.za DESPITE an abundance of energy and mineral resources, the biggest challenge confronting the continent is energy poverty, Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe said during the first day of the Africa Energy Indaba yesterday. The three-day conference is taking place at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) and is also being held virtually. Mantashe said the Africa they wanted and the goal of transforming economies involves prioritising industrialisation, economic diversification and resilience, as well as investment in energy resources and capacities. “The biggest challenge confronting our continent is energy poverty. This is despite the abundance of our individual countries’ energy resources, including mineral resources that are catalytic for a low carbon and environmentally sustainable world.” “Of immediate effect is the rising price of crude that…

Okuhle Hlati okhule.hlati@inl.co.za NEARLY 100 babies have been abandoned in the last nine months, says the Western Cape Department of Social Development. As recently as a week ago, the body of a newborn baby was found wrapped in a black plastic bag, dumped opposite the Deeds office in the city centre. Police are investigating a concealment of the birth case. Social Development MEC Sharna Fernandez has reminded the public that child abandonment is a crime. Her warning comes in the wake of a noticeable rise of reports of babies being dumped. Between April 2019 and March 2020 about 46 were reported to have been dumped, 24 between April 2020 and March 2021, and 26 last year between April and December. “We understand that often the circumstances which lead to mothers…

Mark Kleinschmidt | Rondebosch IT is absolutely no surprise that the government (ANC) is not ad idem regarding Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. Yet again “Jellyfish” Ramaphosa and his Cabinet minister (Pandor, in this instance) are not singing from the same hymn sheet. And that the SA government maintains “friendly and cordial” relations with Russia is yet another indictment on them. Of course, one must not forget the potential nuclear deal with Russia and the lucrative personal financial spin-offs resulting from that unpopular deal. Anyone in their right mind (not left, mind you) knows that Putin’s aggression is wrong. Criminal. Oblivious to the greater good of the planet in its entirety. He should be tried by the International Court of Justice and jailed for the rest of his life.…

Odwa Mkentane odwa.mkentane@inl.co.za A GROUP of protesting Northlink College Protea Campus students have vowed to disrupt classes this week until their demands are met regarding NSFAS allowances. Protesting students blocked the main gate entrance of the college in Bellville at about 6am. Yesterday was the second day of protests, with students saying management had not responded to their demands since last week. SRC representative Lungile Deleki said they will mobilise other campuses to join the protest. “We engaged with management last week and they told us that 20% has been paid to the school by NSFAS and they will soon send money to students. Today, no students have received a cent. We thought by now at least half of students would have received their allowances. We want the management to…

With a resounding voice, let us all stress the importance of democracy proper towards universal emancipation, towards a just and equal society, free from the exploitation of one person, class, social group and country by another. Let us stress the principle of peaceful resolution of national and international disputes alike. In particular, let us say no to imperialism and imperialist expansion, exploitation, domination and war. The conflict caused by the expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato), the primary aggressor, in Eastern Europe will be misunderstood if framed merely as a conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Nato is an instrument of war! It is a military alliance hegemonised by the imperialist regime of the US, which is also using it to serve the interests of its military industrial complex…

KYIV: The Ukrainian special forces commander inspected the remains of a bridge his teams had blown up at the gates of Kyiv and explained his strategy for fighting Russian “saboteurs”. “We have our agents living with the locals,” Spear unit commander Viktor Chelovan said. “If strangers come into our villages, people send us signals, call us, and we go out and take care of these saboteurs.” A fear of Russians disguised as locals is gradually gripping Ukraine. It crept into Kyiv when Russian paratroopers dropped into a local airfield on the edge of the city in the first hours of their invasion last Thursday. The precise number who landed – or who survived the Ukrainian counter-offensive – is unclear. But residents of the neighbouring village of Irpin have been reporting…

LOS ANGELES: Michael Douglas will portray Benjamin Franklin in a new TV show. The Kominsky Method actor will also executive produce in addition to starring as the US Founding Father in the Apple TV+ limited series, which will be based on Stacy Schiff’s book A Great Improvisation: Franklin, France, and the Birth of America. The series will explore Franklin’s mission to convince France, an absolute monarchy, to underwrite America’s experiment in democracy and engineer the alliance between the two countries in 1778 and final peace with England.…

An international human rights watchdog yesterday called on the South Sudanese government to release two prominent government critics, detained since the middle of 2020, and stop arbitrary arrests and detentions. “The government should free the two critics, Abraham Chol Akech and Kuel Aguer Kuel, and put an end to arbitrary arrests and detentions. Lawyers for both men filed court petitions in February 2022 because they have been detained for months without being taken before a judge, as required by law,” the Human Rights Watch said. Late in June 2021, Akech, a self-proclaimed prophet, made a prediction concerning South Sudanese President Salva Kiir and First Vice-President Riek Machar, saying that the both officials would be removed from office by July 9 of the same year. On July 8, the armed police…

Islamabad: The year 2021 saw a major surge in cases related to the harassment and abuse of women in Pakistan, with at least 34 000 women registering complaints in connection with various types of offences. Rape, honour killing, the burning of women, sexual harassment and abuse cases were reported mostly in Pakistan’s Punjab province, while similar cases were also reported from Sindh and Khyber Pukhtunkhwa provinces. The data from Balochistan was not available for reference. “Due to increased education and awareness among women, they are asserting their rights and challenging male dominance,” said Afzal Shigri, the former Inspector General of Police of Sindh province.…

Morgan Bolton morgan.bolton@inl.co.za RASSIE Erasmus is on a mission to change the perception of South African rugby and foster a new culture amongst the nation’s women to get them playing the game from their youth, its grassroots levels, and one day, all the way onto the hallowed Test grounds on a world stage. SA Rugby’s director of rugby has all the tools at his disposal, but his ultimate weapon to get women’s rugby back on track after its absence in the late 2010s is former Irish international Lynne Cantwell, appointed as SA Rugby’s women’s high performance manager in 2021. Due to Covid-19, the duo’s immediate plans stalled, but yesterday, there was no doubt that it was all systems go, with priority No 1 being to implement a revolution in local…

Nicola Daniels nicola.daniels@inl.co.za IN A win for small-scale fishers, seismic survey company Searcher has officially been interdicted from operating off the West and South-West coast of South Africa pending the outcome of a legal challenge of the permit it was granted to do so. West Coast communities and environmental activists had approached the court for the interdict, arguing that the survey in the absence of consultation posed an immediate risk to marine and bird life as well as communities who relied on the ocean for their livelihoods and food sources. They also argued that Searcher was obliged to consult them and obtain environmental authorisation in terms of both the MPRDA and the National Environmental Management Act 107 of 1998 (Nema), when applying for its permit, or before it commenced its…

Chevon Booysen chevon.booysen@inl.co.za AXED Community Safety MEC Albert Fritz has hinted at legally challenging the damning report into allegations of sexual misconduct involving young female staff members, saying the period of his suspension was a consequence of “political orchestration” to assassinate his character. Almost immediately after Premier Alan Winde announced that Fritz had been dismissed with immediate effect, Fritz tendered his resignation from the DA yesterday, citing that the party had fallen “hopelessly short of the transparent process promised by the premier.” There were six complaints against him. Winde said Fritz was “not a fit and proper person” to hold any position in his executive council as the report by Advocate Jennifer Williams found “sufficient credibility” to the allegations levelled against him by the complainants who had been employed in…

Dr Michael Schaaf | Clifton THOUSANDS of people all over the world (even in Russia) demonstrated against Putin’s unprovoked attack on Ukraine, which marks a blatant breach of the Charter of the UN (1945), the Helsinki Accords (1975), the Charter of Paris (1990), the Budapest Memorandum (1994) and the Minsk Agreement (2014). The war is accompanied by an unprecedented fake news campaign in Russia and worldwide via Putin’s propaganda mouthpiece TV channel “RT”. The Russian government has shown that it is not interested in dialogue. It is therefore time for South Africa to join the free and democratic world in strongly condemning and isolating Russia. And it is time to leave BRICS, a club of countries whose leaders are either highly dangerous warmongers (Putin), mendacious oppressors (Xi Jinping),…

Chevon Booysen chevon.booysen@inl.co.za SENTENCING proceedings went ahead against convicted Swellendam serial killer Brian Mudyiwayana after he was found guilty on six counts of murder in the high court sitting at the Swellendam Magistrate’s Court this week. Mudyiwayana – who had during trial been admitted for mental observation to confirm he was fit to stand trial – was also convicted on a count of robbery with aggravating circumstances and two counts of being in the country illegally. He was acquitted of a rape charge. Mudyiwayana went on a killing spree between 2016 and 2017, killing five women and a man in Swellendam, Bredasdorp, Mossel Bay and De Doorns. He killed Moleboheng Mafata, Gladys Ntondini, Grace Nyasha Hondo, Naume Gwengwe, Lungelwa Dangatye, and Michael Pekaan. Judge Derek Wille convicted Mudyiwayana after what…

Okuhle Hlati okhule.hlati@inl.co.za MORE than 1 700 pupils who attend schools in Khayelitsha have been affected by a learner transport route dispute between the Western Cape Education Department (WCED) and the Congress of Democratic Taxi Associations (Codeta). Some pupils who live in areas including Mfuleni have been stranded for the past two days while others had to find other alternative means of transport. At the centre of the dispute is scholar bus tenders allegedly given to people from outside the area, operators allegedly not having permits and no contracts being in place. In a letter to parents seen by the Cape Times, Academia Primary School urged parents to make alternative arrangements in fear that the situation may get “volatile as Codeta militants will be patrolling the routes around schools”. “There…

THE people of Ukraine are fighting with the Russian aggressor for their country, for their independence and for their democratic lifestyle. Ukrainians are fighting with courage and sacrifice. I sincerely hope they defeat the Russian aggressors. Aggression against Ukraine is a point of no return for Russian President Vladimir Putin. He certainly has given the impression that the attack on Ukraine is not a walk in the park, and nobody is waiting with flowers for the Russian army. Mr Putin understands that his political and personal future will be decided in the fields of Ukraine. If he knows Russian history, as he claims, he knows that losers don’t have a brilliant fate. Maybe he remembers what happened to Tsars Vasili Shuisky or Paul I Romanov? Mr Putin’s actions have shown…

Ten people have died, and thousands have been forced to evacuate their homes in eastern Australia as almost a week of torrential rain and record flooding have submerged houses, washed away construction cranes and smashed boats like toys. Flash floods had swept through 297km of Australia’s coast across two states by yesterday, with warnings in place for the most populated city, Sydney, as the country endures the final months of the La Niña weather pattern. Storms began in Queensland on February 22 and drenched coastal towns on the way to the city of Brisbane, which received 80% of its typical annual rainfall in three days. The nation has been living under a La Niña weather pattern since November, and it is predicted to ease over the coming months. La Niña…

MOSCOW: An exhibition dedicated to the 85th anniversary of renowned French artist Alain Pierre Bonnefoit “Flight of beauty Paris – Moscow” opened in Moscow’s art gallery Gartallery yesterday. More than 50 works of different periods from Bonnefoit’s collection are on display, including paintings on canvas and wood, sculptures, works in mixed media, and colour graphics in the style of sumi-e. The exhibition will run until April 30. Bonnefoit was born in 1937 in Paris. He studied at the Higher National School of Fine Arts in Paris, then at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Brussels. He has gained popularity in Europe, Japan, South Korea, Tahiti and the US since the 1960s. The artist is inspired by the beauty of the female body and human emotions. A woman for him…

Athens: Seven bodies have been recovered after a boat carrying refugees and migrants sank off the coast of Greece’s Lesvos island yesterday. A rescue operation by the Coast Guard is under way to locate any survivors, as it was still unclear how many people were on board when the boat overturned and what the circumstances of the incident were, Xinhua news agency reported, citing Greek national news agency AMNA. For years, Greece has hosted a large number of refugees fleeing conflict and poverty. Hundreds of refugees trying to seek safety in Europe have perished in the Aegean Sea in the past seven years.…

Nairobi: Wealthy countries should provide at least $60 billion (R923bn) every year to the world’s poorest nations to combat biodiversity loss, an alliance of environment groups said yesterday. The appeal by WWF, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and other green groups was launched on the sidelines of a major UN environment meeting in Nairobi. It comes ahead of key talks for a UN biodiversity summit to be held in China that will see nations hammer out conservation targets for the next decade. A major UN report on climate change stressed the protection of biodiversity and ecosystems.…

Staff writer THE George municipality says it has done everything in its power to prevent a recurrence of the improper conduct and maladministration found by Public Protector advocate Busisiwe Mkhwebane following the irregular investment of public funds with Old Mutual Limited. Mkhwebane’s probe had found in favour of GOOD Party leader Patricia de Lille that the R350 million invested by the George Municipality with Old Mutual was irregular. De Lille lodged a complaint regarding allegations of improper conduct and maladministration by the municipality in 2019. The investment was made with Old Mutual more than four years ago by George DA councillor Stag Cronjé, when his son was employed as an agent for the institution’s broker distribution. An Old Mutual spokesperson had said they ceased managing the investments in early 2018,…

MICHAEL BAGRAIM | Highlands Estate YOUR article titled “Street by-laws: a view from both sides” (Cape Times, Monday) refers. Thank you for this interesting article from U-Turn. My strong suggestion is that the representatives of U-Turn make an appointment as soon as possible to see the mayor of Cape Town, who has indicated on numerous occasions that he wants to work with the people of Cape Town and wants to ensure that all viewpoints are taken into account. My experience with the mayor has always been a positive and open discussion.…

Nicola Daniels nicola.daniels@inl.co.za NOT ALL those participating in the strike can be blamed for the unlawful acts of one or a few, the Constitutional Court has ruled. This was in relation to a matter between the Commercial Stevedoring Agricultural and Allied Workers’ Union (CSAAWU) and Oak Valley Estates in Grabouw. The central question in the matter was whether an employer faced with unlawful conduct committed during a protected strike could interdict employees participating in that strike without linking each employee to the unlawful conduct. While the Labour Appeal Court held that it can, CSAAWU and 173 striking workers – against whom the Labour Court granted a final interdict – disagreed and approached the apex court to challenge the ruling. They contended that there must be a rational factual connection between…

AN invasive wasp break-out in the suburbs has prompted the City of Cape Town to make additional teams available to remove hives. The City’s invasive species unit said it has assigned four additional teams to shorten the turnaround time for call-out requests. These teams will be operational by Friday if all goes as planned. “The City has a special online reporting tool where residents can report wasp sightings. I urge residents to please sign up,” said deputy mayor and Mayco member for environment, Eddie Andrews. “This service is free of charge. Those who cannot wait for the City’s operations team can use a professional service provider. We are trying our best to improve our turnaround time.” In the past few months the City has been battling an invasion of…

WHEN community groupings take over the role of government officials, including conducting “inspections” aimed at foreign-owned establishments, then South Africans have reason to believe that those they voted into power have failed them. In recent months there has been a considerable increase in the number of these community groupings targeting certain sectors of society, in particular foreign nationals, accusing them of being behind some of the crimes committed in the country. These groupings can be easily described as vigilantes, because at times they charge, prosecute and convict. Among them is the so-called Operation Dudula (push), a group obsessed with those of African origin. Others have been filmed violently demanding that elderly people produce their ID documents. Those who lived during apartheid know very well the pain that this inflicts on…

Russia will continue its special military operation in Ukraine until achieving the main goal of defending itself from Western threats, Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said yesterday. “The main thing for us is to protect Russia from the military threat posed by Western countries trying to use the Ukrainian people in the fight against our country,” Shoigu said during a video conference with top defence officials. The Russian military is not occupying Ukrainian territory and is taking all measures to preserve the lives and safety of civilians, he reiterated. “I’d like to stress that the strikes are carried out only against military targets and exclusively with high-precision weapons,” Shoigu said. Moscow considers the behaviour of IT giants such as Google and Meta unacceptable, said Oleg Gavrilov, deputy director of the information…

Three tycoons and an ex-Nasa astronaut are all set for the first fully private voyage to the International Space Station later this month – just don’t call them tourists. That’s the word from Michael Lopez-Alegria, formerly of the US space agency and now commander of the Ax-1 mission, which will see the crew launch from the Kennedy Space Center on March 30 aboard a SpaceX Dragon, then spend eight days on the orbital platform. The reported ticket price for the three business magnates is $55 million each, a figure that hasn’t been disputed by Axiom Space, the company managing the trip. Speaking to reporters, Lopez-Alegria said: “We are not space tourists. I think there’s an important role for space tourism, but it is not what Axiom is about. “My crewmates…

LONDON: Commuters in London were thrown into chaos yesterday when nearly all tube services were suspended as about 10 000 London Underground workers from the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) Union went on a planned 24-hour strike. The strike follows an unresolved dispute between RMT and Transport for London (TfL) over the latter’s alleged plans to cut up to 600 station posts, as well as concerns over pensions and working conditions. Other TfL services including bus, London Overground, TfL Rail, DLR (Docklands Light Railway), London Trams and National Rail, are operating normally, but with long waiting lines.…

BANGKOK: Thailand plans to facilitate the deployment of labour to Saudi Arabia for the first time in decades, its government said yesterday, as part of the restoration of ties severed by the Gulf State over a multi-million dollar jewellery theft. Thailand has been keen to normalise relations with the oil-rich kingdom after a spat that has cost billions in trade, tourism and the loss of thousands of overseas Thai jobs. Saudi Arabia downgraded relations over the 1989 theft of $20 million of jewels by a Thai janitor in a Saudi prince’s palace. The spat was known as the “Blue Diamond Affair”. The gems, including a rare blue diamond, are yet to be recovered.…