Table of contents for 2022-07-05 in Mercury

Umgeni Water said it is shutting down an aqueduct to conduct urgent repairs due to a leak. The shutdown will start today and last until Sunday. The impact will likely be felt in areas in Durban’s south, with low pressure or intermittent water supply, Umgeni Water said. It said the leak in aqueduct 3 in the vicinity of Annet Drive, Reservoir Hills, Durban, had worsened over the past three months from a drip to a constant flow. Aqueduct 3 conveys on average 180 million litres of raw water daily from Nagle Dam to the Durban Heights Water Treatment Works (WTW). Umgeni Water said that the shutting down of the aqueduct was necessary to prevent a potentially hazardous situation. “Similar to the other three aqueducts, this is a high-pressure pipe that…

Rovers exploring Mars, such as Nasa’s Curiosity and Perseverance and others, may have to dig about two metres or more under the surface of the Red Planet to find signs of ancient life, according to a new laboratory experiment by the US space agency. Nasa said this is because ionising radiation from space degrades small molecules such as amino acids relatively quickly. Amino acids can be created by life and by non-biological chemistry. However, finding certain amino acids on Mars would be considered a potential sign of ancient Martian life because they are widely used by terrestrial life as a component to build proteins. “Our results suggest that amino acids are destroyed by cosmic rays in the Martian surface rocks and regolith at much faster rates than previously thought,” said…

Our country is on the brink of collapse due to the ongoing stage 4 and 6 load shedding. The economy is losing R700 billion a day and will not survive if this does not stop. The whole Eskom board, as well as Pravin Gordhan and Cyril Ramaphosa have allowed this to happen and it seems they have no idea how to fix the problem. Also, the unions are holding us to ransom with their strikes and nobody can win in this situation. Gwede Mantashe also does nothing and refutes blame for Eskom’s woes. So we have a government in denial and while Rome burns, Caesar has gone awol. By the time 2024 comes, South Africa will be dead and buried and there will be no state left. We all have…

The series of powerful earthquakes that have rocked Dubai, the Gulf areas and neighbouring countries could be a precursor to a major seismic event that will some day erupt with tectonic fury. It is a grim possibility that within the next five years, an 8m earthquake will occur, somewhere in that hemisphere. This is bound to happen as the Arabian tectonic plate pushes against the Eurasian plate. The boundary of those plates, the Zagros mountain belt of Iran, is one of the most seismically active regions in the world. An 8m mega quake lasting about 90 seconds could inflict damage of biblical proportions if it were to occur in a major metropolitan area. In the Zagros mountains, two masses of continental crust meet. They are born of a maze of…

Infiltrating non-government organisations (NGOs), trade unions and universities to spread disinformation that could lead to a social movement’s demise or stop planned marches, were among the tactics adopted by the State Security Agency (SSA). This is according to a report which came before the Zondo Commission into State Capture. Civil society organisations released the report, which was declassified by the state capture commission, that details some of the rogue spying activities undertaken by the SSA from January 2016 to February 2017. The organisations are calling for full disclosure into the activities. The report stated that: “Active monitoring of the South Africa First, Right to Know, Savesa, Casac and Greenpeace was done due to the penetration ability of the group.” It said the SSA teams penetrated and became “activists” in…

Almost two months after a North West father was shot dead on the N4 in front of of his wife and daughter, no arrests have been made. Juandré Kidson, 29, a businessman, his wife, Johanette, and their 1-year-old daughter were travelling home from Rustenburg to Brits on May 7, when their car tyres were punctured by rocks strewn on the road. Kidson pulled over to change the tyre and was gunned down. Juandré’s brother, Marco, said a R100 000 reward was still on offer. Johanette, the victim’s wife, was shot in the shoulder, and is recovering. | Mercury Correspondent…

Of the 7 992 people arrested for various crimes in KwaZulu-Natal during the month of June, 400 were arrested in connection with murder and rape alone. Police said they embarked on a number of multidisciplinary operations targeting a variety of crimes taking place in different communities. “These operations have been put in place to strategically combat crime in all districts across the province,” said provincial spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Nqobile Gwala. Gwala said police officers across the province arrested 7 992 persons for various crimes. These include: Murder – 210 Attempted murder – 112 Rape – 204 Assault – 1 055 “Police also recovered drugs such as heroin, mandrax powder, cocaine and dagga. During this period, 480 suspects were arrested for liquor-related offences. ” Gwala added that police seized 262 illegal firearms…

Fortune Charumbira of Zimbabwe was overwhelmingly elected at the just-concluded Pan-African Parliament (PAP) Ordinary Session of the Fifth Parliament held in Midrand. Charumbira, who was nominated to contest for presidency of the PAP Bureau by his Southern Africa Caucus, received 161 votes out of 203 votes cast, with 31 members abstaining from voting while 11 spoilt papers were recorded. He takes over from Roger Nkodo Dang from Cameroon. In his acceptance speech, Charumbira committed to ensuring the full participation of African citizens in the economic development and integration of the continent. Since its establishment in 2004, the parliament has continuously supported the effective implementation of the policies and objectives of the AU in member states through its linkage with national legislatures. “I am a president for everyone regardless of how…

A UN-appointed mission to Libya said yesterday there are “probable mass graves” yet to be investigated, possibly as many as 100, in a town where hundreds of bodies have already been found, and it urged Tripoli to keep searching. The report to be submitted to the UN Human Rights Council this week details how a militia run by seven brothers executed and imprisoned hundreds of people between 2016 and 2020, sometimes keeping them in tiny oven-like structures called “the boxes” which were set alight during interrogations. The evidence of kidnappings, murder and torture in Tarhouna, uncovered by an independent Fact-Finding Mission, represents one of the most egregious examples of rights abuses in the turbulent period since Muammar Gaddafi’s ousting in 2011. Among the victims were the disabled as well as…

LONDON: Singer Adele gave a fan VIP access to her concert, in exchange for borrowing their Pride flag. The 34-year-old star draped herself in a rainbow flag at her concert at British Summer Time in Hyde Park, London at the weekend. Dean William, a teacher from Essex said: “I arrived with my general admission ticket at about 6pm and went straight to the toilet … As I left, a woman approached my friend and I and said she saw I was wearing a pride flag, and that @Adele needed one for her performance. She asked if she could borrow mine so … of course I said yes! Then we were whisked away into the Diamond VIP section.” | Bang Showbiz…

CANAZEI: Helicopter crews and drones searched yesterday for around 15 people missing in the Italian Alps after part of a mountain glacier collapsed, killing at least six people and injuring eight. Much of Italy has been baking in an early-summer heatwave and experts said Sunday’s disaster was linked to climate change. The avalanche took place on the Marmolada, which at more than 3 300m is the highest peak in the Dolomites, a range in the eastern Italian Alps. Four victims were identified yesterday, three of them Italian, including two alpine guides, and another from the Czech Republic, news agency AGI reported, citing rescuers. | Reuters…

farm attacks and murders, trespassing and land invasions, service-delivery protests and strikes, vandalism of essential infrastructure and illegal hunting were among the issues highlighted by the KwaZulu-Natal Agricultural Union (Kwanalu) during the Rural Safety Summit held in the Free State last week. Kwanalu CEO Sandy la Marque said the safety of the country’s farmers, farmworkers and farm dwellers was brought to the fore at the summit. “It is essential we raise the significant contributions of our rural and agricultural community at top level discussions to ensure the viewpoints and needs of all interest groups are taken into account.” La Marque added that Kwanalu would continue to be a united voice for members in the rural and agricultural sector. Uys van der Westhuijzen, chairperson of Agri SA’s Centre of Excellence: Rural…

I really needed a family visit and I got one. When my brother and sister arrived from South Africa and Australia and a friend whom I met when I was 18 arrived from her home in Germany, I knew I was in for a treat. There is something very powerful about all being in the same house, a gathering we’ve not been able to co-ordinate for any meaningful amount of time in decades. Hearing the very familiar voices of other adults in the mornings, coming home to the smells and sounds of people cooking in my kitchen, observing old debates surface around the dining room table – as only siblings and old friends can facilitate – affirmed I was getting what I really needed. I hope they did, too. But…

Like many other South Africans, I do not have money left after paying rates, taxes, home loans, electricity, petrol, school and university fees, etc. So I pondered, where do people get money to hide in furniture? Either they got the money illegally or hid “legit” money from the tax collector. If the money was illegal, it suggests criminality and this threatens the collective well-being of our nation. Ironically, by hiding legal income from the tax collector, the person considers the taxation system to be unfair. I think our president hid the “legal” money from farm profits, but the president felt he was over-taxed, like most of us feel when we pay tax. So, he hid his own money. Since the president obviously dislikes paying tax, I suggest he rethinks the…

The lives of most South African citizens, especially the working class, unemployed, homeless and the less privileged, are being impacted by the slow rate of economic development and progress, as well as the poor level of municipal services. After many years of freedom from the brutal apartheid system and the introduction of democracy, citizens are still struggling to meet basic needs. Local municipalities are mandated to provide decent, quality services to the people; it seems municipalities are failing to deliver due to various reasons. It is becoming more evident that the venomous and harmful power struggle within the governing party is harming service delivery, nation- building and economic progress and hampering the providing of the neces sary municipal services. Similarly, even though the South African government introduced the Batho Pele…

A 44-year-old man was handed a 20-year prison sentence for raping his ex-girlfriend in March 2020 in the Bhekulwandle area near uMlazi in Durban. He appeared for sentencing in the Umlazi Regional Court last week. National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) regional spokesperson Natasha Ramkisson-Kara said the man had been in a seven-year relationship with the woman and they had two children. She said the man had often abused his partner and in January 2020 she ended their relationship. “On the day of the incident, he went to her house under the pretence of seeing their children but an argument soon ensued. He then strangled and raped her until she lost consciousness,” she said. Ramkisson-Kara said the injured woman only awoke the next morning and was unable to speak. She said the…

Preparations for the mass funeral service of the 21 young people who died under mysterious circumstances at the Enyobeni Tavern in East London over a week ago are being finalised. Eastern Cape Community Safety spokesperson Unathi Binqose said some family members will however bury their loved ones at the weekend. The mass funeral service is set to be held tomorrow at the Scenery Park Sports ground. President Cyril Ramaphosa will be joined by Eastern Cape Premier Oscar Mabuyane and provincial and local government leaders at the service. After the mass funeral service, families will be able to bury their loved ones at separate cemeteries. “Preparations for the mass funeral are at an advanced stage … all families will be part of that mass funeral service. We are just tying up…

THE absence of President Cyril Ramaphosa when the country is undergoing its darkest hour of stage 6 load shedding does not inspire confidence in the government’s ability to manage the power crisis. Due to industrial action by Eskom employees who are demanding, among others, a 12% salary increase, the country has been subjected to rolling blackouts that have led to stages 4 and 6 load shedding. The impact of the power cuts will be devastating to an ailing economy that is under pressure due to rising unemployment, ever-increasing food and petrol prices and rising interest rates. What is particularly worrying to observe is the silence of Ramaphosa and his ministers responsible for Eskom when the country is going through its worst energy crisis. Even during the so-called “nine wasted years”,…

Ukrainian forces were taking up new defensive lines in the east yesterday, preparing for a hard new phase in the war as President Vladimir Putin proclaimed Russia’s victory in the months-long battle of Luhansk. Russia’s capture of the city of Lysychansk on Sunday brought an end to one of the biggest battles in Europe for generations, which saw Moscow bring the full might of its ground forces to bear on a small pocket of the front line for two months. The battle completes Russia’s conquest of Luhansk province, one of two regions it has demanded Ukraine cede to separatists in the Donbas region. Putin congratulated Russian forces on their “victories in the Luhansk direction”. Those who participated in the combat should “absolutely rest and recover their military preparedness”, while other…

The EU is planning a deal with Namibia to support the country’s nascent green hydrogen sector and boost its own imports of the fuel, EU and Namibian officials said, as the bloc works to reduce its dependence on Russian energy. Hydrogen has long been touted as a less emissions-heavy alternative to fossil fuels, but while it has seen some uptake in the EU, chiefly in heavy industry and transportation, high costs and a lack of infrastructure have limited consumption, and the fuel covers just 2% of the bloc’s energy needs. Most EU consumption is of so-called “grey” or “blue” hydrogen produced using gas, which drives up costs and related emissions. That has made easier access to green hydrogen, made using renewable energy, a priority. The EU’s energy strategy in May…

Vatican City: Pope Francis has rebuffed suggestions he may be preparing to resign, saying in an interview published yesterday that rumours he was suffering from a serious illness were “court gossip”. Pressed on whether he might emulate his predecessor, Benedict XVI, who was the first pope since the middle ages to resign, the Argentine said, “for the moment, no”. But he repeated his position that he might resign someday if failing health made it impossible for him to run the church. Asked when that might be, the 85-year old said: “We don’t know. God will say.” Francis said he had suffered a “small fracture” in his knee, which was treated with laser and magnet therapy. The knee pain forced him to indefinitely postpone a July trip to Africa. He denied…

Jerusalem: The family of Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh said yesterday they were “incredulous” after the US reported it was not possible to determine whose gun fired the bullet which killed her. The condemnation came after Israel said that its experts rather than American ones examined the bullet that killed Abu Akleh on May 11 while she was covering an Israeli army operation in the north of the occupied West Bank. The US said she was likely killed by gunfire from Israeli positions, but that there was no reason to believe her death was intentional. A senior Palestinian Authority official condemned attempts to “conceal the truth” over the killing. | AFP…

The EFF has vowed to continue to support families and victims of the Marikana massacre. On August 16, 2012, 34 miners were gunned down by police during a strike at mining company Lonmin’s mine in Marikana near Rustenburg. The South Gauteng High Court, in Johannesburg, has now ruled that President Cyril Ramaphosa has a case to answer regarding the deaths of the miners, holding him personally liable for compensation for their injuries and deaths 10 years later. On Friday the court found that a case could be made against Ramaphosa because he “participated in, masterminded, and championed the toxic collusion” between Lonmin and the SAPS, which led to the deaths of 34 miners that attracted global attention. The striking miners and the families of the dead victims are seeking to…

TENNIS decorum takes a hammering. A Wimbledon match between Aussie Nick Kyrgios and Greek fourth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas descended into swearing, berating of the umpire and aiming forearm shots at the opponent’s body, also hitting shots into the crowd, according to the BBC. Just days after being fined $10 000 (R165 000) for spitting at a fan during the first round, Kyrgios was warned for swearing. Tsitsipas was booed by the crowd after losing his temper, breaching the rules twice by smashing the ball away into the crowd. Speaking after what he described as a Kyrgios circus, Tsitsipas said: “He bullies opponents. He was probably a bully at school himself.” Kyrgios eventually won in a frenzied atmosphere under the court floodlights. But the verbal conflict was carried forward into the…

Where is the president when the country has been plunged into darkness? Is he wining and dining with the AU and Brics leaders, impressing them with his oratory skills? The country faces an unprecedented energy crisis and President Cyril Ramaphosa is nowhere to be seen. Where are the energy and public service ministers? Are they all hiding, waiting for the storm to pass before they emerge from their burrows? They did the same thing during the July 2021 riots. They stood by and watched the mobs loot and burn shopping malls, businesses and warehouses. What pathetic leaders we have! Stage 6 load shedding was never heard of before in South Africa. It’s wrecking business and making our lives miserable in the dead of winter. You would expect the leadership of…

Former Paralympic superstar Oscar Pistorius, jailed in 2016 for killing his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, has met her father. This was confirmed by a lawyer for the Steenkamp family. The lawyer, Tania Koen, said Pistorius took part in a process known as victim-offender dialogue. “(I can) confirm Barry Steenkamp and Oscar Pistorius participated in a victim-offender dialogue on June 22,” Koen said. She said she would make no further comment due to her clients’ privacy. The Department of Correctional Services said earlier that Oscar Pistorius was transferred back to Atteridgeville prison near the capital Pretoria, from St Albans Correctional Centre in the Eastern Cape near where Steenkamp’s parents live. He had been moved closer to her family late last year. Singabakho Nxumalo, a spokesperson for the Department of Correctional Services, said…

QUESTIONS have been raised about whether schools are reporting teenage pregnancies involving girls aged under 16 years old to the police. “Schools are compelled to report pregnancies of girls aged between 12 and 16 and pregnancies of girls aged 16 if the father is older than 16 to police,” DA MP Desiree Van der Walt said. Girls aged 12 to 15 cannot give consent to sex, and it must be proved that consent was given among those aged between 16 and 18, she said. She commented after Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga revealed that girls aged between 10 and 19 had recorded 90 000 teenage pregnancies between April 2020 and March 2022. Motshekga obtained the data from the Health Department, showing that KwaZulu-Natal again recorded the highest number of teenage…

Futurelife has set itself the goal of providing a million meals for vulnerable children in celebration of Mandela’s birthday this month. The company said in a statement this forms part of its drive to distribute over 5 million meals to vulnerable children, as well as build a pre-school. To help deliver on the ambitious plan, Futurelife has partnered with the Nelson Mandela Foundation Early Childhood Development Programme. Managing director of Futurelife, Mark Bunn, said the harsh reality was that malnutrition and hunger were a constant for many of the country’s children. “In fact, alarmingly, 4.6 million of our nation’s children will go to bed hungry tonight. Through this new partnership, Futurelife is stepping up to the plate to make sure that this figure changes, and fast. “Futurelife is a brand…

NEARLY 4 000 public servants have been found to have applied for the Early Childhood Development (ECD) Stimulus Relief Fund during the Covid-19 pandemic. A chief of staff in the office of an MEC in one of the provincial governments has yet to be criminally charged for pocketing the R350 social grant. None of the implicated officials has faced any disciplinary or legal action since they received the social grant two years ago. This was revealed by Social Development Minister Lindiwe Zulu when responding to parliamentary questions from DA MP Mimmy Gondwe. The Social Development Department was allocated R588.7 million as part of the ECD Stimulus Relief Fund in July 2020. The amount included R380m for unemployment risk support for 83 333 ECD workers and R116m for the support of…

New code of practice aims to eliminate all forms of harassment HERE is something that will come as little surprise: workplace bullying and harassment are rising. Somewhere in a workplace, a bully is making getting up on Mondays harder for his or her co-workers. Their toxic behaviour is humiliating, reductive, and – inconceivably, to those who have not been in that situation – it is an experience that provokes its victims, rather than its perpetrators, to feel guilt, anger, remorse and shame. And as gross and upsetting false accusations of mistakes persist, things can worsen. It is having someone steal credit for your work, having professional performance belittled or diminished in front of peers, being subjected to the silent treatment, and being the subject of unfair gossip or assaults on…

The chief suspect in a Copenhagen mall shooting was yesterday remanded into a psychiatric care facility, one day after three people, including two teenagers, were shot dead. “The court remands the 22-year-old in a closed psychiatric ward,” Copenhagen police said, following a two-hour hearing involving the suspect. The suspected perpetrator of the attack, which took place late on Sunday afternoon, would be kept in custody for at least 24 days, which can then be extended, according to police. The young man was brought before a judge at midday at the Copenhagen district court yesterday. Wearing a blue T-shirt, he listened as the indictment for murder was read out, before the hearing continued behind closed doors. According to public broadcaster DR, citing several unnamed sources, the suspected gunman had tried to…

Spanish police said yesterday they had seized six underwater drones capable of transporting large quantities of drugs from Morocco to Spain and broken up a gang suspected of manufacturing them. Officers seized six of the so-called “drone submarines” and arrested eight people in raids in Barcelona and the provinces of Malaga and Cadiz. Police said it was the first time they had seized such devices. They believe the gang made underwater drones “capable of bearing big loads” for use by other criminal organisations. The drones had up to 12 motors each and a range of 30km. That is easily enough to manage an underwater crossing of the Strait of Gibraltar separating Spain from Morocco which measures just 15km. Three of the drones were due to be delivered to a…

BEIJING: Chinese search and rescue officials yesterday pulled 12 bodies from waters southwest of Hong Kong after an engineering vessel snapped in two as tropical storm Chaba passed through, state television said. Maritime authorities were stepping up efforts to identify the bodies, suspected to have drowned, after they were retrieved about 50 nautical miles from where the stricken ship sank. Four of its crew were rescued by yesterday. The sunken vessel, “Fujing 001”, with a crew of 30, was at an anti-typhoon anchorage near Yangjiang in Guangdong when its anchor chain snapped. Chaba, China’s first typhoon of the year, has weakened to a tropical depression. | Reuters…