Índice para 2022-06-01 em Cape Times

THE home affairs portfolio committee has given the National Assembly the green light to recommend the reappointment of Electoral Commission of SA (IEC) chairperson Glen Mashinini as a commissioner. This comes after the committee considered the report of the panel chaired by Chief Justice Raymond Zondo, which submitted eight names for consideration, including Mashinini, for the vacancy of a commissioner at the electoral body. Mashinini’s seven-year term came to an end in April, the expiration of which led to the nomination of candidates to fill the position. Twelve candidates were shortlisted, but three withdrew their applications, so just nine candidates were interviewed. The committee heard yesterday that Mashinini had been nominated to fill the vacancy at their last meeting, but opposition parties requested more time to consult with their caucuses.…

A COUNTRY has to be really sick if it values its guns more than it values its childrens’ lives. Nineteen kids and two teachers were slaughtered inside what should be a happy place filled with joy and the raw, unspoilt energy of a classroom where boys and girls learn and play. White Republican men will say what they always say about hearts, thoughts and prayers and they will do what they always do when children are massacred: deny, deflect and blame anyone or anything but the guns and the profiteers who sell them. What is wrong with American society?…

THE scramble for school placement is under way as parents have until June 17 to confirm their final choice of school for their children next year. This is to allow for other learners to get access to placement, too. The Western Cape Education Department (WCED) yesterday announced that school governing bodies (SGB) were applying their admission policies to determine placements for next year. The provincial secretary for the SA Democratic Teachers Union (Sadtu), Jonavon Rustin, said the applications process was “stressful”, especially if parents followed all guidelines and were then told that schools were oversubscribed. “This is a huge challenge we have with the current admission policy, which is in the hands of the SGB. “We’ve noted with concern that year on year, at the beginning of the year, we…

SOUTH Africa has a huge burden of tobacco use with about 12.7 million adults, almost 30% of the population, still using tobacco products despite being aware of the dangers of its use and exposure. This is according to the Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS) undertaken by the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) on behalf of the National Department of Health (NDoH) and released on World No Tobacco Day (WNTD) yesterday. Implemented for the first time in South Africa in 2021, the GATS, a component of the Global Tobacco Surveillance System (GTSS), provides a global standard for systematically monitoring adult tobacco use and tracking key tobacco control indicators. Key findings from the GATS show that South Africa has a huge burden of tobacco use, exposure to second-hand smoke, and…

THERE might not have been chairs flying, but emotions, frustration with logistics, and an almost two-day delay characterised the MK All-Inclusive Conference (AIC) that was held at the East London International Convention Centre (ICC) recently. It was chaotic, as delegates, some elderly and fragile, were made to wait in the cold for transport that was not ideal for long travel, only to arrive to hostility and disrespect at the conference venue. An illegality was also enforced by the Preparatory Committee in demanding that delegates either produce a valid vaccination certificate or be subjected to a Covid-19 test on-site for them to be allowed to participate in the conference. But this is a violation of the ANC’s and country’s constitutions – a misdemeanour that cannot be taken lightly. This then brings…

Israel signed a free trade deal with the United Arab Emirates yesterday, its first with an Arab country, building on their US-brokered normalisation of diplomatic relations in 2020. Israel’s ambassador to the oil-rich UAE, Amir Hayek, tweeted “mabruk” – congratulations in Arabic – with a photo of Emirati and Israeli officials holding documents at a signing ceremony in Dubai. The Emirati envoy to Israel, Mohamed Al Khaja, hailed as an “unprecedented achievement” the deal that, according to the Israeli side, scraps customs duties on 96% of all products traded. “Businesses in both countries will benefit from faster access to markets and lower tariffs as our nations work together to increase trade, create jobs, promote new skills and deepen co- operation,” Khaja tweeted. The 2020 deal was part of the US-brokered…

Amritsar: Thousands of mourners gathered Tuesday for the cremation of Indian hip hop star Sidhu Moose Wala, whose murder at the weekend shocked fans at home and in Punjabi communities from Canada to Britain. Bollywood actors and Indian politicians paid tribute. Moose Wala, 28, was shot dead in his car by unidentified assailants on Sunday. The police said the murder was linked to inter-gang rivalry, and that a Canada-based gangster known as Goldy Brar claimed responsibility. Crowds thronged Moose Wala’s hearse as it reached the rapper’s palatial house in his native village of Moosa. He rose to fame with songs that attacked rival rappers and politicians, portraying him as a man who fought for his community. Moose Wala was often criticised for promoting gun culture through his music videos, and…

CONAKRY: The UN Security Council yesterday urged greater action to stop piracy in the Gulf of Guinea, which has become by far the world’s riskiest waters for maritime kidnappings. A Security Council resolution, approved unanimously, said it “strongly condemns” the spike of piracy in West African waters. The council called on all nations in the region to criminalise piracy in domestic laws. According to a UN report, 27 of the world’s 28 recorded kidnappings at sea in 2020 took place in the Gulf of Guinea. Stretching 5 700km from Senegal to Angola, it is rich in hydrocarbons and fisheries and borders 20 countries. Pirate groups can earn $5 million (R78m) a year through theft and hostage-taking. | AFP…

An unemployment rate above 30% is still of serious concern, experts say, after StatsSA yesterday released its Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS), which showed the unemployment rate had dropped by just under one percent, from 35.3% in the fourth quarter of 2021 to 34.5% in the first quarter of 2022. The total number of persons employed was 14.9 million in the first quarter of 2022, StatsSA said. “These results indicate that 370 000 jobs were gained between the fourth quarter of 2021 and the first quarter of 2022. The biggest job gains were recorded in community and social services (281 000), manufacturing (263 000) and trade (98 000). “However, there were job losses in private households (186 000), finance (72 000), construction (60 000) and agriculture (23 000).” Don Consultancy…

THE assassination of Colonel Saayad Khodae, a member of Unit 840, has all the hallmarks of a Mossad killing. The silent war of death and destruction between Iran and Israel continues unabated. According to intelligence sources, Mossad hit three Iranian nuclear sites from July 2020 to June 202, and cyber attacked other nuclear related sites as well, as recently as September 2021. The Mossad has agents embedded in Iran’s security establishment. In the past decades, a number of Iran’s prominent nuclear scientists have been killed. In late January 2018, in the dead of night, 12 men broke into a storage facility in the industrial district 30 km from the capital Tehran, and raided 32 safes containing classified material in Farsi regarding Iran’s nuclear programme. Twenty-seven locks were melted that…

FROM humble beginnings to launching an online fashion store, Fatima Mbuqe has used the challenges faced during her childhood to channel her fashion sense into her new brand, The Chic Connection Fashion Outlet. The launch of the online store took place yesterday at the Silo Hotel at the V&A Waterfront, where guests were treated to breakfast and champagne. The 40-year-old from Goodwood describes her upbringing as “childhood trauma”, and said that what she did not have while growing up, she now sold in her clothing collection. “As much as it is about the launch of my online clothing store, it is also about celebrating the fact that I am finally able to do what I always wanted to do, which is clothing. “When you talk about poverty and someone being…

A BOLT e-hailing driver has been precautionarily suspended after a woman detailed how what was supposed to be an exciting trip from Bishop Lavis to Elsies River to get a tattoo, turned into a ride from hell. Milleston Sass, 25, said she and her friend, Tercia Solomons, 20, were left with serious injuries after they jumped from the car along Halt Road on May 24. This, after the Bolt driver allegedly took an unfamiliar route. “I was observing everything in the car, he was not even on the Bolt app with the map that shows the route he was supposed to take, he was busy texting someone on Whatsapp and he kept his phone at the bottom of the steering wheel,” said Sass. “He kept saying that he needs to…

Iran yesterday condemned a report by the UN nuclear watchdog as “not fair”. The report stated that traces of nuclear material were found at three undeclared sites, as talks on reviving a 2015 deal remain deadlocked. “Unfortunately, this report does not reflect the reality of the negotiations between Iran and the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency),” foreign ministry spokesperson Saeed Khatibzadeh said, referring to the report on Monday by the agency. “It’s not a fair and balanced report,” he said, adding: “We expect this path to be corrected.” The IAEA’s report came as talks to restore the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and major powers have seen no major developments since March. In the report, the watchdog said it still had questions which were “not clarified” regarding nuclear material previously…

THE leaders of the EU have agreed to an embargo on Russian oil imports that will start kicking in near the end of the year and which exempts, for now, pipeline imports that Hungary and two other landlocked central European states rely on. The toughest sanction yet on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, was agreed on overnight after weeks of wrangling. It aims to remove 90% of Russia’s crude imports into the 27-nation bloc by year-end, senior officials said. “The purpose is to stop Russia’s aggressive war,” Latvian Prime Minister Krisjanis Karins said. Two-thirds of the Russian oil imported by the EU is delivered by tanker and one third through the Druzhba pipeline. The ban on the seaborne imports will be imposed with a phase-in period of six months…

Geneva: The tobacco industry is a far greater threat than many realise as it is one of the world’s biggest polluters, from leaving mountains of waste to driving global warming, the WHO said yesterday. The World Health Organization accused the industry of causing widespread deforestation and spewing out plastic and chemical waste as well as emitting millions of tons of carbon dioxide. In its report released on World No Tobacco Day, the UN agency called for the tobacco industry to be held to account and foot the bill for the clean-up. The WHO also called for governments to halt the $500 billion it pays in annual subsidies. | AFP…

Ottawa: Many residents in Ottawa, the capital city of Canada, and some parts of Ontario and Quebec provinces remain without power nine days after a series of powerful late-spring storms lashed the region. Ottawa’s hydro utility said 9 000 homes and businesses in the capital were still unconnected to the grid, and more than a dozen schools remained closed due to power outages, following a derecho – a line of thunderstorms that started to cut through the city and some parts of Ontario and Quebec provinces on May 21, reports Xinhua news agency. However, the hydro utility said that it had restored power to 94% of its 180 000 customers. | IANS…

Parties across the political divide voted in support of the amendment bill that will provide for taking of DNA samples from all persons convicted under Schedule 8 offences. The offences include murder, rape, sexual assault, any sexual offence against a child or a person who is mentally disabled, and child stealing. The Criminal Law (Forensic Procedures) Amendment Bill will empower the SAPS commissioner to lodge an application to a judge or a magistrate for a warrant against a prisoner who refuses to submit to the taking of his or her DNA sample. Those authorised to take the samples, assisted by correctional officials, will be allowed to use minimum force against those who refuse samples to be taken from them. Speaking during the tabling of the report on the bill, parties…

UNITED Democratic Movement leader Bantu Holomisa believes Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane is capable of handling his request for her to investigate Glencore’s possible corruption links in South Africa. This follows former Eskom acting chief executive Matshela Koko’s assertion that President Cyril Ramaphosa, a known associate of the mining company, remained untouchable. Koko told Cape Times sister paper Pretoria News he had unsuccessfully engaged the public protector to investigate Ramaphosa’s association with Glencore and the implications their relationship had on the running of Eskom. “No institution wants to pursue anything related to Ramaphosa. I wrote to the public protector towards the end of 2020 and had an interview with her and her team on March 7, 2021, but I have not heard from them. I believe the latest request will receive…

BRING back the Scorpions! It is no use just complaining about corruption. The government has to act – that is if they are sincere. The Scorpions were highly effective but guess who could not stand their tenacity? Jacob Zuma dissolved them in January 2009! This decision was controversial, and it was opposed by a majority of South Africans. The DA was prominent in accusing the ANC of making the move in order to subvert investigations into corrupt ANC officials. There you have it President Ramaphosa. The Hawks followed up after the Scorpions were disbanded but now being part of the SAPS they lack autonomy/independence. The Hawks are thus “insufficiently insulated from political interference”. By now we all know they are being manipulated and not effective. South Africans are sick and…

GOVERNMENTS have done nothing to prevent ritual attacks, abuse, physical and psychological violence on thousands of African children accused of witchcraft, according to a shocking report from the African Child Policy Forum (ACPF). The report titled “Uncovering our Hidden Shame: Addressing Witchcraft Accusations and Ritual Attacks in Africa“, also uncovers how witchcraft accusations and ritual attacks happen within families and communities, but are hidden, ignored and go unreported to authorities. The ACPF is an independent Pan-African institute of policy research and dialogue on the African child. Its latest report analyses efforts by states and non-state actors to address violence against children driven by witchcraft accusations and ritual attacks. Witchcraft accusations and ritual attacks against children have been reported in Benin, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Ghana, Madagascar, Niger, Angola, eSwatini, Liberia,…

Groundbreaking accomplishments abound in various fields THE 7th World Conference on Research Integrity (WCRI) at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) from May 29 to June 1 follows the great success of the previous edition in Hong Kong three years ago. This event is a great opportunity to review and share China’s achievements in scientific and technological innovation (STI) over the past decade as the Chinese government has always attached great importance to STI and research integrity. For China, the decade since 2012, when President Xi Jinping took office, has witnessed the greatest progress in science and technology and the fastest improvement in scientific and technological strength. The government places great emphasis on science and technology (S&T) reform and has strengthened the “two-wheel drive of scientific and technological innovation…

The grieving Texas town of Uvalde has begun laying to rest the 21 children and teachers who were killed in a mass shooting at an elementary school a week ago, with funerals for a pair of 10-year-old girls yesterday. The children were killed along with 17 other students, all aged 9 to 11, and two teachers by an 18-year-old gunman who burst into their Grade 4 classroom and opened fire with a high-velocity AR-15-style semi- automatic rifle. Several large media outlets in Texas, observed 21 minutes of silence – one minute for each of the victims. Over the next two weeks, a series of funerals will take place in the town of 16 000, which is nearly 80% Latino or Hispanic and largely Roman Catholic. Among those are services for…

New York: Hollywood actor Kevin Spacey will voluntarily appear in a British court over sexual assault charges, he said yesterday, adding that he was confident he would prove his innocence. British police and prosecutors announced last week that he faced four sexual assault charges and one charge of “causing a person to engage in penetrative sexual activity without consent”. British authorities had planned to seek Spacey’s extradition. Allegations against him first emerged in the wake of the #MeToo movement. Spacey has previously denied similar charges in the US. | AFP…

Recife: The death toll from torrential rains that triggered floods and landslides in north-eastern Brazil has risen to 100, officials said yesterday, as emergency workers searched for more victims. The force of the landslides ripped apart houses in neighborhoods including Jardim Monteverde, a poor community just outside the city of Recife. Rescue workers have found dozens of bodies buried in the mud that tore through the neighbourhood on Saturday, and said they expected to find more. At least 14 people were missing, said disaster management officials for the state of Pernambuco, scene of the latest deadly weather disaster to hit Brazil in recent months. | AFP…

KHARTOUM: The trial of four Sudanese protesters accused of killing a police officer has begun in Khartoum amid anti-military demonstrations and a heavy police presence. The defendants, who have become emblems of the anti-military protest movement, deny the charges. Security forces have detained figures connected to the protest movement since a coup ended a military-civilian power sharing arrangement in October. Lawyers say dozens remain in detention. Sudanese authorities this week freed several dozen political detainees, although others remain jailed, after Sudan military officials announced the lifting of a state of emergency. | Reuters…