Table of contents for 2021-05-19 in Cape Times

EDWARD WEST edward.west@inl.co.za TRADE, Industry and Competition Minister Ebrahim Patel yesterday unveiled South Africa’s policy proposals to accelerate electric vehicle (EV) production. Patel said in his budget vote that the policy would create a strategy to put South Africa at the forefront of advanced vehicle and vehicle component manufacturing. Dr Norman Lamprecht, the execu- tive manager for trade, exports and research at Naamsa, the Automotive Business Council, said the Green Paper was necessary to speed up the creation of the “vast” ecosystem that went with EV production. Lamprecht said this would include charging infrastructure, battery waste facilities, and incentives to stimulate demand for EVs in the local market before local production could ensue because locally-made EVs would have to be 60 percent local content to be able to be…

Zanele Mvana zanele.mvana@inl.co.za VARSITY College lecturer Dr Marizanne Grundlingh will embark on the 12km Langebaan Mad Dash swim from Kraalbaai to Mykonos next month to raise funds for NGO Ladles of Love. Humanities and Social Sciences student support lecturer Grundlingh said with the Covid-19 lockdown and its far-reaching effects, she felt the need to lend a hand to help the homeless, and that she could do so through assisting Ladles of Love, which provides meals to the homeless in the city centre. “I’ve noticed that there’s been an increase in homelessness in the city and people begging for food at the traffic lights, and many people are living in the streets. I thought I should try and make a small contribution, for basic needs and food security. “I then decided…

Okuhle Hlati okhule.hlati@inl.co.za IN AN effort to deal with tertiary student-funding decision delays that have resulted in protest action at institutions every year, the National Students’ Financial Aid Scheme (Nsfas) will be enhancing its application portals. This would allow students to get real-time answers on whether they were eligible for funding, said Nsfas chief executive Andile Nongogo. He was speaking at a media briefing in Wynberg yesterday, where the new Nsfas board of directors addressed Parliament’s portfolio committee on Higher Education, Science, and Technology about their challenges and plans to turn around the entity. Nongogo said that among the issues the board faced were delays in funding decisions, appeals processing, disbursements, weak query resolution mechanisms, and an organisational structure that was not aligned with the student-centred model. For the months…

ZELDA VENTER zelda.venter@inl.co.za IT HAS become fashionable for legal practitioners to take off their velvet gloves and unashamedly attack judicial officers or the judiciary when they are not happy with the judgments. This is according to Mpumalanga Judge President Frans Legodi, who has had enough of lawyers disrespecting the courts. The judge did not take kindly to remarks made by attorney Lufuno Ramarumo and her advocate, only named as Zwane, in which they had accused him of being on a “mere joy-ride on an ego-trip”. They were trying to appeal an order which the judge had made against Ramarumo. They called his judgment “irrational” and said he should personally pay the legal costs for her leave to appeal application. It all started when Judge Legodi ordered Ramarumo to personally foot…

Chevon Booysen chevon.booysen@inl.co.za TWO men alleged to have been part of a group that stormed a camera gear shop in the CBD in February last year have lost their second bail bid in the Western Cape High Court. Sithembele Yanta, 26, and Ludwe Mgwelana, 27, face various charges including murder and robbery with aggravating circumstances. Last week, they approached the high court with an appeal against their denied bail application in a lower court. According to court documents, Yanta and Mgwelana are alleged to have been part of a group of “eight men (who) entered the premises of Orms Pro Shop in Roeland Street, Cape Town, driving two vehicles, a white Polo and a silver-grey Toyota Quest” on February 22 last year. “According to an employee of Orms, while he…

The year 2021 marks the centenary of the Communist Party of China (CPC). In 1921, at a time when the Chinese Nation was confronted with an unprecedented social crisis, grave domestic turmoil and foreign aggression, the CPC came into being. The rise of the CPC was an epoch-making event that reshaped the course of the history of the Chinese Nation, the fate and future of the Chinese people. Since its birth, the CPC has been relying closely on the people, conquered all difficulties, and striven forward in a relentless pursuit of happiness for the Chinese people, rejuvenation for the Chinese nation, and the common good for the world. As a result, the Chinese nation has achieved a great transformation from standing up to growing rich, and to becoming stronger, and…

Victor Bennett | Cape Town DSTV has an information service called Supersport Active. A better name would be “Supersport Inactive”. Under the heading “New Zealand v England” cricket tour, they are showing results of old fixtures between India v England. The itinerary for the British Lions rugby tour to South Africa has been announced. Is “Supersport Active” showing details yet? Not a chance. DStv loves showing how Multichoice helps turn ordinary people into professionals. So why retain very unprofessional people within the organisation who are too lazy or incompetent to update sports information on Supersport platforms?…

The United Nations said yesterday it was alarmed by reports that Tanzania has been forcibly returning people fleeing unrest in neighbouring Mozambique. UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, upheld the right to cross borders to seek asylum and said conditions at the frontier village of Negomano in Mozambique were “dire”. “UNHCR and partners have received worrying reports - including direct testimonies - that several thousand Mozambicans have been pushed back from Tanzania into northern Mozambique since last year,” spokesperson Boris Cheshirkov told reporters in Geneva. “This includes reports of over 1 500 returned this month.” He said an April mission to Negomano found that most Mozambicans sheltering there had hoped to find refuge in Tanzania after fleeing deadly attacks by non-state armed groups in Palma in March. Those without proof of…

Dhaka: The arrest of a top Bangladesh reporter, who wrote scathing stories on the country’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, sparked protests by hundreds of reporters yesterday. Rozina Islam, an investigative journalist for Prothom Alo newspaper, was detained late Monday under the Official Secrets Act, police said. She appeared in court yesterday charged with stealing health ministry documents under the same act. A new hearing was set for Thursday. Rights groups say a crackdown on the media has grown during the coronavirus crisis.…

Moroccan security forces intervened yesterday after a record 6 000 migrants crossed largely unimpeded into a Spanish North African enclave amid diplomatic tension between Rabat and Madrid. Reinforcements were deployed at Morocco’s Fnideq border crossing with the enclave of Ceuta and fired tear gas to disperse a large crowd of would-be migrants who had gathered in the hope of seizing a rare opportunity to slip across, an AFP correspondent reported. The surge in numbers came after some migrants were able to cross into the tiny Spanish territory of some 84 000 people virtually unimpeded by Moroccan border guards. The Moroccan government has been angered by Spain’s decision to provide medical treatment for the leader of the Western Sahara independence movement who has been seriously ill with Covid-19. Spanish Prime Minister…

Dineo Faku dineo.faku@inl.co.za THE DEPARTMENT of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) said the government was scaling up the country’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) potential as part of pursuing a diversified energy mix that moves away from fossil fuels. Speaking during the department’s virtual budget vote, Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy Gwede Mantashe said the government had undertaken an environmental impact assessment study for three gas-to-power plants of 1 000 megawatts (MW) each to enable gas-to-power projects in special economic zones. “The request for proposals will be issued in the third quarter of the 2021/22 financial year,” said Mantashe. He said an estimated total capital investment for 15 projects currently under construction, as licensed by the National Energy Regulator of South Africa, was R8.9bn. “From these projects, at least four…

Emily Edlynn As a mother, I know why parents yell at their kids, and why they feel guilty about it. As a child psychologist, I know that they shouldn’t feel so bad. I am not advocating a “go forth and yell” parenting approach. The calmer and less reactive we are, the more effective our parenting. In the worthy pursuit of yelling less, it may help us reach that goal if we feel less guilt and shame when we inevitably yell. We feel guilty because we don’t use it as an intentional discipline strategy; it probably represents frustration. “In my clinical and personal experience, yelling goes hand in hand with being overwhelmed,” says Rebecca Schrag Hershberg, clinical psychologist and author of The Tantrum Survival Guide. “Something about the situation is…

Odwa Mkentane odwa.mkentane@inl.co.za HUMAN Settlements, Water and Sanitation Minister Lindiwe Sisulu announced that the department had disbursed almost R290 million to provinces to provide 4 435 temporary shelters to vulnerable people affected by disasters. Another R130m has been allocated to municipalities to provide 1 651 temporary shelters. During a virtual debate on the Human Settlements Budget Vote 2021/22, Sisulu said sections of the population had been affected by natural and man-made disasters which required a caring government to respond with urgency and compassion. It was towards this end that the department developed and implemented an emergency housing grant to assist provinces and municipalities in responding to disasters regardless of their cause, she said. “In the past year there were disasters caused by inclement weather and fires that ranged from a…

Lisa Isaacs and Siyavuya Mzantsi SOME survivors of domestic violence used drugs to cope with the violence or had attempted to commit suicide in South Africa. This is according to a UN women’s rights committee, which found that the country’s low levels of prosecution and conviction in domestic violence cases and the frequent failures by police to serve and enforce protection orders, exposed survivors to repeated abuses and resulted in the violation of women’s fundamental rights. In the scathing report published Monday, the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) said available evidence indicated that the scale of domestic violence, including femicide, is alarmingly high in South Africa. Committee members visited South Africa in September 2019 to conduct a confidential inquiry into allegations by civil society organisations…

WHEN heavy rain fell on Saturday, some may have remembered that the day was also the anniversary of Cape Town’s “Great Gale”. On May 15, 1865, a north-west gale and extremely heavy seas drove 18 ships ashore in Table Bay. When a storm threatened, boatmen would take out extra anchors to ships in the roadstead, but often the conditions were too hazardous. “During that day of tragedy,” wrote a contemporary journalist referring to the Great Gale, “the agents of one ship offered a thousand pounds to any boatman who would take out an anchor.” The offer was declined as “already that day, twelve of the boldest boatmen had lost their lives”. To go to the assistance of vessels in distress, the early tugs would need to raise steam before heading…

Staff writer CONSERVATIONIST and UCT alum Lucy Kemp has received the prestigious Whitley Award, worth over R790 000, to align traditional beliefs with new con- servation action to protect the Southern Ground-hornbill and its habitat. The Whitley Awards are presented annually to individuals from the Global South by the Whitley Fund for Nature, a charity based in the UK. Six conservationists were recognised for conserving some of the planet’s most endangered species and natural habitats – and received messages of support from charity trustee Sir David Attenborough.“Whitley Award winners are environmental heroes, harnessing the best available science and leading projects with passion. I admire their courage, their commitment and their ability to effect change. Few jobs are more important,” said Sir Attenborough. Kemp, one of the six conservationists, graduated from…

Athandile Siyo athandile.siyo@inl.co.za THE Cape of Good Hope SPCA and the City’s Law Enforcement Animal Control Unit seized puppies and two other dogs from a property in Mitchells Plain where they were allegedly being groomed for the world of dog fighting. This after chief inspector Jaco Pieterse and inspector Carly Jordaan recently viewed what they described as “horrific” video footage of two young pups being pitted against each other. The SPCA said often puppies that don’t have a good fighting instinct become bait dogs used to train those who will become fighting dogs. “A bait dog may have their mouth taped shut or their teeth pulled so that they don’t cause any injury to a fighting dog in training. A bait dog may be used many times over and will…

Zoheb Khan SOCIAL impact bonds are a financing model for social welfare services based on “payment by results”.. In social impact bonds, investors provide working capital upfront to NGOs to deliver services. If the NGO successfully meets predefined targets – like placing a certain number of work-seekers in jobs – outcome funders repay investors with interest. If NGOs miss the targets, outcome funders reduce their payments to investors in proportion to the performance gap, thus diminishing their returns. If targets are missed by a wide margin, investors could also lose their capital. In most cases, philanthropists (typically charitable or corporate foundations) provide investment capital, rather than grants. The investments give philanthropists the chance to earn returns and recycle social expenditure, ensuring the money goes a bit further. Performance against…

Israeli jets kept up a barrage of air strikes against the Palestinian enclave of Gaza on Monday evening as a week of violence that has killed more than 200 people pushed world leaders to step up mediation. Air strikes sent dust clouds billowing into the skyline, while the Hamas militant group that controls the besieged and densely populated coastal strip threatened more rocket strikes on Tel Aviv if bombing of residential areas did not stop. In a call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday night, US President Joe Biden said he backed a ceasefire, shortly after diplomats said Washington had blocked a third draft of a UN Security Council resolution calling for an end to the violence. Gaza resident Roba Abu al-Awf, 20, said she was bracing for…

NEW DELHI: At least 127 people who were on board Barge 305 that first went adrift and then sunk at Mumbai high in India are reported missing after cyclone Tauktae hit that area, officials said A search for the missing people is under way despite challenging conditions. Reports said 273 people were on board the barge. A total of 146 have been resued so far, officials said. Mumbai high is an offshore oilfield 176km off the west coast of Mumbai. The barge went adrift hours before a severe cyclonic storm with winds gusting up to 185km/h made landfall on the Gujarat coast.…

LUANDA: At least 110 cases of human trafficking were recorded in Angola from January 2021 to date, Secretary of State for Human Rights and Citizenship, Ana Celeste Januario has said. The official revealed this at the two-day workshop on “National Reference Mechanism for Protection and Assistance to Victims of Human Trafficking in Angola”. Most cases were registered in the province of Luanda, the capital, and in northern Zaire province, she said, stressing that since 2014, Angola has been improving the national system for prevention, protection and assistance to victims of human trafficking, as well as bringing to court the perpetrators.…

Siphelele Dludla siphelele.dludla@inl.co.za PUBLIC Service and Administration Minister Senzo Mchunu has slammed the conduct of the Public Servants Association (PSA) during crucial wage negotiations between the government and public sector unions. PSA acting deputy manager for members’ affairs Reuben Maleka on Monday went on a media roadshow alleging that the Public Service Co-ordinating Bargaining Council (PSCBC) had excluded them from the facilitation process. Maleka said the decision to exclude them from the current public service wage negotiations was childish and displayed a lack of vision by the PSCBC while Cosatu-affiliated unions remained at negotiations. “It is ridiculous and short of any sense to exclude a union in the process to find a solution and which is salaries,” Maleka said. “We are unhappy about the exclusion from the facilitation, but we…

| Bang Showbiz David Beckham has joked his 18-year-old son, Romeo copied his iconic bleached buzzcut look from 2008. The 18-year-old model took to Instagram to show off his new platinum blonde buzzcut on Monday but David Beckham couldn’t help but notice his new style resembles his iconic hairdo from 2008. The former footballer – who also has Brooklyn, 22, Cruz, 16, and Harper, 7, with Victoria Beckham – was not the only one to spot the resemblance as a number of fans also commented on the picture. One wrote: "@davidbeckham, I can tell he has surely copied this hair from you. Beckham you had the best hairstyles ever, and you still have.This hairstyle was when you joined the LA Galaxy in 2007. Amazing!!!!” Another added: “@davidbeckham Like his…

Viwe Ndongeni-Ntlebi viwe.ndongeni@inl.co.za Breastfeeding in public is continuing to be a hot topic among new mothers and those who frown upon it. New mom and actress Zikhona Sodlaka has called out all those who think mothers should not breastfeed in public. In an Instagram post with a sign saying, “people want to see your boobs until you’re feeding a baby – then it’s considered indecent”, the star shared her thoughts on the subject: “Here’s what’s not going to happen, my baby and everybody else’s baby who feeds from the breast is not going to go hungry because of the strange comments made when a woman decides to feed her child.” To those who felt uncomfortable about nursing mothers, Sodlaka said: “If it is uncomfortable for you to look at…

Loyiso Sidimba loyiso.sidimba@inl.co.za A FORMER senior justice department official, whose arrest led to President Cyril Ramaphosa authorising the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) probe into widespread maladministration and corruption, has failed in her bid to be released on bail. Bina Masuku, former deputy master of the Mpumalanga High Court in Mbombela – who is accused of stealing almost R2 million in inheritances with her boyfriend – will remain in custody while the Department of Home Affairs investigates her citizenship. Masuku, an admitted advocate, lost her bid to be released on bail on Friday after Mpumalanga High Court Judge Brian Mashile dismissed her appeal against the Mbombela Magistrate’s Court’s ruling denying her bail. The Justice Department has indicated that the investigation into the offices of the master of the high court was…

Reuters Six-year-old Suzy Eshkuntana woke up alone in Gaza’s largest hospital where she was rushed by rescuers from the rubble of her home, which had been wrecked by a pre-dawn Israeli strike that killed her mother and all four of her siblings. The young girl, trapped for seven hours under the debris, was reunited in Shifa Hospital with her father, who was also being treated for his wounds. “Forgive me, my daughter. You screamed to me to come to you, but I couldn’t come,” Riyad Eshkuntana told her after medics brought them together in adjoining beds. The Palestinian family’s home was hit in Israeli air strikes early on Sunday on Gaza City, a wave of attacks that Gaza health officials said killed 42 people including 10 children and raised the…

Ingredients: Method 2 tsp cooking oil 1 large onion, peeled and chopped 500g mutton or lamb or beef pieces 1½ cups frozen peas 1 tsp allspice 1-2 green chillies 2 tsp salt, or to taste Hot water as needed 800g 3 potatoes Chopped parsley for garnishing Heat the oil and braise the onions until golden brown. Add meat, and braise until dark brown. Add the salt, chillies, allspice and enough water; simmer until the meat is nearly tender. Add the carrots and potatoes and cook until potatoes are nearly soft. Add the frozen peas and cook or until the potatoes are soft. Garnish with chopped parsley. |…

Athandile Siyo athandile.siyo@inl.co.za THE father of a six-year-old girl who was raped allegedly by a teenage shopkeeper in Gugulethu has broken his silence about the ordeal. The young father who can’t be named to protect the identity of the child, said that the family is shattered by the incident reported on Thursday. “My daughter lives with her mother and I live in a nearby area. I was called to come over quickly because something had happened to my child. When I got there, her grandmother (said) that my daughter told her that she had just been raped by the shopkeeper.” The father said that in relaying the incident, the minor alleged that the teen lured her into the shop and dragged her to the back. “She said that she…

Chevon Booysen chevon.booysen@inl.co.za THE Justice Department is considering increasing the security detail for the magistrate who was wounded in a shooting in Mfuleni at the weekend which claimed the life of a police officer. Magistrate Abram Mashala was in the vicinity of a car wash when assailants opened fire in Tourmaline Street in Bardale informal settlement. On Monday, the bail application of murder-accused Zane Killian’s co-accused, Nafiz Modack, Jacques Cronje, Ashley Tabisher and Ricardo Morgan, had to be postponed to May 24 due to Mashala’s unavailability. Department of Justice and Correctional Development’s spokesperson Steve Mahlangu said the matter was receiving urgent attention. “The department can confirm, according to information at our disposal, that an incident occurred in which Magistrate Mashala was shot at and injured. The incident, which was confirmed…

THE Department of Basic Education Education (DBE) should do more to protect vulnerable pupils from the perverts, bullies and other potential criminal elements within its ranks. In recent months, disturbing stories have emerged about the physical, emotional and sexual assault of pupils at various schools, allegedly by pupils and teachers. This week alone, we reported that a former pupil from Mbilwi High School in Limpopo had laid criminal charges against her 50-year-old former teacher for allegedly molesting her repeatedly in 2018 when she was 17. The teacher had allegedly lured the teenager to a nearby lodge under the pretence of offering her private lessons. The young woman, now 20, charged him last week, three years after she matriculated from the school. Recently, another Mbilwi pupil, Lufuno Mavhunga, committed suicide…

THE bodies of eight men and one woman with bullet wounds were found in a truck in the western Mexican state of Michoacan, local prosecutors said. None of the victims were identified, they said. The vehicle in which they were found was parked in a central area of the city of Zitacuaro and the matter was reported to authorities by neighbours. Officials opened an investigation and the bodies were transported to the medical examiner. Michoacan, located along the Pacific coast, is facing a wave of violence linked to ongoing clashes between criminal gangs fighting over drug trafficking routes. Last month, eight decapitated bodies were found in a mountainous area of the Aguililla region, where attacks by the Jalisco New Generation cartel have been reported. More than 300 000 people…

addis ababa: The government of Ethiopia said it rejects repeated calls by partners to cease hostilities and negotiate with the outlawed Tigray People Liberation Front (TPLF). The government is ready to engage with legal opposition parties, members of the civil society, the private sector, elders, scholars, prominent personalities, and others in the Tigray region with a view to promoting a culture of peace and reconciliation, and build civic political culture, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Monday. However, it should be clear that the push by partners to involve the TPLF in this national dialogue process is unacceptable, the ministry noted.…

BERLIN: German police has detained a man on suspicion of involvement in a 2019 jewel heist at a museum housing one of Europe’s greatest collections of treasures, the Dresden public prosecutor’s office said. The 22-year-old man, identified as Abdul Majed R. under reporting rules, is the fifth and final suspect accused of stealing at least three sets of early 18th century jewellery from Dresden’s Gruenes Gewoelbe or Green Vault Museum, the prosecutor’s office said yesterday. The other four suspects were arrested last year, it said, adding that police were still looking for the stolen items.…

Zaahier Adams The Proteas have committed to a fresh group of players for the tours of West Indies and Ireland after AB de Villiers decided “once and for all that his retirement will remain final”. De Villiers retired from all forms of international cricket in May 2018, but continued freelancing in the various T20 leagues around the world. The 37-year-old was, however, set to make an international comeback with the ICC T20 World Cup looming, particularly after admitting during the recent Indian Premier League that he had been in talks with Proteas coach Mark Boucher about a possible return to the South African national team. "Last year, he (Boucher) asked me if I would be interested. And I said, 'absolutely'. And come the end of the IPL, we will…

MIHLALI BALEKA SAFA president Danny Jordaan has lauded the decision taken by Hollywoodbets to become the first sponsor to back women’s football after establishing the Hollywoodbets Super League. Two years back, Safa formed the National Women’s League which was an upgrade from the Sasol League. But they failed to find a sponsor as they had to fork out the winnings of R500 000 to champions Mamelodi Sundowns from their own pocket. But this week, Safa announced a historic partnership with Hollywoodbets who changed the National Women’s League to the Hollywoodbets Super League. The partnership is for a period of one year, while Hollywoodbets will invest over R17million into the league. From the R17m, the champions will pocket a cool cheque of R2m, the runners-up will bag R1m, while the…

A TOP medical organisation has thrown its weight behind calls to cancel the Tokyo Olympics, saying hospitals are already overwhelmed as the country battles a spike in coronavirus infections less than three months from the start of the Olympic Games. The Tokyo Medical Practitioners Association representing about 6 000 primary care doctors said hospitals in the Games host city “have their hands full, and have almost no spare capacity” amid a surge in infections. “We strongly request that the authorities convince the IOC (International Olympic Committee) that holding the Olympics is difficult and obtain its decision to cancel the Games,” the association said in a May 14 open letter to Japan’s Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, which was posted to its website on Monday. A jump in infections has stoked alarm…