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A N C D A I L Y N E W S B R I E F I N G
MONDAY 11 JANUARY 1999
PLEASE NOTE: This News Briefing is a compilation of items from South
African press agencies and as such does not reflect the views of the
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@ DRCONGO-ZIMBABWE
HARARE January 9 1999 Sapa-AFP
KABILA'S ALLIES CLAIM VICTORIES, URGE REBELS TO SURRENDER
Allies of Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) President Laurent
Kabila claimed Saturday to have cut supply routes to rebels in the
east of the country, and called on them to surrender.
"As a result of the intensified allied offensive, which has cut
most supply routes of the invading forces, their troops are now
ravaging for food from the locals," said a statement by Allied
Taskforce Headquarters in Kinshasa, released in Zimbabwe Saturday,
"Task force headquarters is encouraging invading forces to give
themselves up to the allied forces, who will treat them in
accordance with international conventions governing the treatment
of prisoners of war."
The statement said aircraft had inflicted heavy losses on rebel
forces in recent attacks.
"The invading forces in the eastern front suffered heavy
casualties when two of their battalions were attacked by allied
airforce planes at the towns of Mikato and Loni on December 31.
"The enemy troops were using boats and canoes previously seized
from the local population who live around the Congo River and
depend on them for their livelihood."
The aircraft also sank a large ferry on Lake Tanganyika, which
was being used to carry reinforcements and supplies, the statement
said, without giving further details.
It added that early this month allied aircraft engaged enemy
forces at Mpala as they were retreating from Moba, which was
"liberated by the allies on January 3."
The "allied forces" referred to in the statement are those of
the DRC itself, along with troops from Zimbabwe, Angola, Namibia
and Chad.
The rebels are supported by Uganda and Rwanda.
@ SWAZI-UNIONS
MBABANE January 9 1999 Sapa
SWAZILAND GOVERNMENT DE-REGISTERS BIGGEST TRADE UNION
Swaziland's department of labour on Saturday de-registered the
country's largest union, the Swaziland Agriculture, Plantation and
Allied Workers Union, because of its failure to submit annual
financial reports for inspection.
SAPAWU has 15000 members and its de-registration could severely
cripple the operations of the Swaziland Federation of Trade Unions.
A statement from the department said SAPAWU had repeatedly
ignored ultimatums by the government to submit its annual returns
as required by Swazi law.
SAPAWU general secretary, Jan Sithole, who also doubles up as
SFTU general secretary challenged the de-registration saying the
department had no power to take such a drastic action.
Sithole said de-registering of unions was the prerogative of
the Industrial Court.
He said SAPAWU's failure to submit financial returns was due to
changes in the union's financial year end and changes in leadership
structures.
The union's financial year-end was changed from March to
September.
@ DRCONGO-TALKS
KINSHASA January 9 1999 Sapa-AFP
KINSHASA HINTS AT DIALOGUE WITH REBELS
The government of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has
hinted at direct talks with Tutsi-led rebels ahead of a planned
summit on the conflict involving at least six other countries.
Official television said late Friday that a form of "internal
dialogue" might allow the government of President Laurent Kabila to
"guage (the rebels') actual freedom of movement" while under the
patronage of Rwanda, Uganda and, allegedly, Burundi.
Since the Tutsi-led rebels took up arms last August, the
government has refused any contact with them, dismissing them as
puppets of their eastern neighbors. Meanwhile Angola, Zimbabwe,
Namibia and Chad have deployed troops in the DRC to back Kabila.
"The concern of the government is to speed up the end of the
war," the television said, noting Kabila's "sense of forgiveness"
in not eliminating opponents after his overthrow of the late
dictator Marshal Mobutu Sese Seko in May 1997.
The summit, postponed three times and now set to be held
between January 12 and 15 in the Zambian capital Lusaka, will once
more try to set the parameters for a ceasefire.
Zambian President Frederick Chiluba, who initiated the summit,
said Thursday that he had invited a rebel delegation.
Earlier this week, Kabila was categorical: "Meeting the rebels
is out of the question wherever that may be."
But the government said it was "disposed" to participate in the
summit, and a source close to the presidency did not rule out that
"close associates" of Kabila might meet with envoys of the
rebellion in Zambia.
The apparent opening remains conditional, however. "Everything
must begin with the restoration of peace and the liberation of
occupied territories" in the east of the DRC, the television
commentator said.
Observers said the more conciliatory stance was designed to
encourage dissension within rebel ranks which has become
increasingly apparent.
On Thursday, Foreign Minister Jean-Charles Okoto Lolakombe
officially accused his predecessor Bizima Karaha, now in the rebel
leadership, of having "personally directed" the massacre of 500
civilians late last month in the town of Makobola in the eastern
South Kivu province.
The Rome-based missionary news agency MISNA reported the
massacre, carried out on December 30 and January 1, describing it
as a reprisal for an earlier attack by traditional Mai-Mai fighters
operating in the region.
The deputy head of the rebels' political movement, Arthur
Zahidi Ngoma, said earlier Wednesday that such a massacre could not
have taken place.
Sources close to the government said it was seeking to take
advantage of the effect of the massacre on the rebels'
international image.
On the ground, the government and allied forces are gaining the
upper hand on the eastern front, notably to the north of
southeastern Katanga province on the shores of Lake Tanganyika,
after an offensive of more than two months, led mainly by a
10,000-strong Zimbabwean contingent.
The Zimbabwean command in the DRC on Saturday called on the
rebels to surrender, citing "heavy losses" among rebel ranks in the
east.
In a communique from "allied forces headquarters" the command
said those who surrendered would be treated "in conformity with
international conventions on prisoners of war."
The allied forces have "cut most supply routes of the
aggression forces," the communique said.
This week Kabila, without elaborating, said an operation was
under way "to surround and annihilate the enemy" along part of the
front. Success would put the regime in a strong negotiating
position if it finally does talk to the rebels.
@ IFP-RALLY
JOHANNESBURG January 9 1999 Sapa
BURY PAST AND WORK FOR BETTER FUTURE, BUTHELEZI TELLS EAST RAND
The people of the East Rand should put behind them the
political violence that has characterised the region and work
towards building a better future, Inkatha Freedom Party president
Mangosuthu Buthelezi said on Saturday.
Addressing more than 2000 people at a campaign rally in
Tsakane, Buthelezi said East Rand residents should shun political
differences and violence as these retarded development.
"I know that the people of the East Rand have suffered
enormously for the past twenty years and that they have endured
untold misery in the hope that one day their future will be on a
steady course towards social stability and economic prosperity,"
Buthelezi said.
"The time has now come to create a new start in which people
can use their energies, not to fight one another but to work
together towards the daily construction of a better future."
The volatile East Rand was ravaged by political clashes between
supporters of the African National Congress and the IFP hostel
dwellers in the early 1990s.
Going back to such hostilities would wreck prospects of a
better life for the people, he said.
The IFP, he said, would continue working for peace in the run
up to the general elections in May 1999.
He urged those present to vote for the IFP saying its
federalism policy was the only way to reconstruct the country and
its people.
"I remain convinced that the more we devolve powers to
communities and local and provincial governments, the better our
policing, our hospitals, our schools, our housing projects and our
welfare systems will become," said Buthelezi.
"Provincial legislatures have unwittingly become mere
sub-committees of the second chamber of our national parliament,
the National Council of Provinces and have not adopted legislation
of their own."
The best form of governance, he said, takes place at community
level.
"Communities do not squander their own money when they need to
build hospitals for their sick and schools for their children...we
have shown this commitment in our defence for the integrity of
traditional communities, from our advocacy for the protection of
everybody's culture and traditions and our commitment to family."
@ IMMIGRANTS-TEMBISA
JOHANNESBURG January 9 1999 Sapa
SISULU-GUMA CONDEMNS NECKLACING OF FOREIGN NATIONALS
The necklacing of two foreign nationals in Ivory Park, near
Midrand, was a despicable act which should not be tolerated, Home
Affairs deputy minister, Lindiwe Sisulu-Guma said on Saturday.
"As the department responsible for all foreigners in this
country, we in Home Affairs are very concerned at the seemingly
spiralling incidents of attacks on foreign nationals," Sisulu-Guma
said in a statement.
She said her department together with the SA Police Service was
striving to determine the nationality of the victims and the motive
for the violent attack.
"We will make sure the perpetrators face the full wrath of the
law," she said.
A team comprising six police officers was appointed on Friday
to investigate the mob killing of the two, thought to be
Mozambicans, at the Ivory Park informal settlement in Midrand.
The two were part of a group of six men who were kidnapped on
Tuesday and held until the early hours of Wednesday by a group of
vigilantes in the Goniwe section of Ivory Park.
The men were severely beaten before two of them were necklaced
- burnt to death by having a tyre thrown over their neck, doused
with petrol, and set alight. Three were seriously injured, and one
escaped.
The men were accused of rape, theft and terrorising residents.
The bodies of the necklaced men were found tied together with
rope.
The three injured men were taken to hospital where one of them
was treated and discharged.
Two of the men are said to be in a critical condition.
@ DRCONGO-CHILUBA
LUSAKA January 9 1999 Sapa
CHILUBA HEADS FOR HARARE
Zambian president Frederick Chiluba leaves on Sunday for
Harare, Zimbabwe, to consult his Zimbabwean counterpart Robert
Mugabe on ways of ending the bloody civil war in the Democratic
Republic of Congo.
A Sapa correspondent in Lusaka reported on Saturday that
Chiluba had intensified his diplomatic shuttles in quest of a
speedy resolution to the bloody conflict in the DRC.
Chiluba has conceded there was reluctance by the combatants in
the Congolese civil war to agree to a ceasefire but he was
encouraged by the response from Rwandan president Pasteur
Bizimungu, whom he met a few days ago.
Chiluba was persuading him to exert influence and pressure on
the Congolese rebels to accept the proposed ceasefire accord
drafted by the Organisation of African Unity.
According to diplomatic sources in Lusaka, Chiluba has
convinced DRC president Laurent Kabila to meet face-to-face with
the rebels in an effort to secure a ceasefire, particularly in the
eastern DRC.
Chiluba is likely to discuss with Mugabe the proposed SADC
summit on the DRC in Lusaka at which the warring factions could be
persuaded to sign a ceasefire agreement to end the five month civil
war.
Rwanda and Uganda are backing the Tutsi-led rebellion while
Kabila has mustered support to crush the rebellion from Angola,
Chad, Namibia and Zimbabwe.
The reported rifts in the ranks of the Congolese rebels over
leadership, representation and lack of support from the grassroots
population has caused consternation in the rebel movement.
@ TRAFFIC
PRETORIA January 9 1999 Sapa
827 PEOPLE KILLED ON SA ROADS SINCE DECEMBER 1
The death toll on South African roads since December 1 rose to
827 by noon on Saturday, a statement of the Arrive Alive campaign
said.
Of the dead 275 were drivers, 299 passengers and 253
pedestrians.
Most people - 152 - died in KwaZulu-Natal, followed by 129 in
the Western Cape, 117 in Gauteng, 110 in the Eastern Cape, 81 in
the Free State, 75 in Mpumalanga, 68 in the Northern Province, 56
in North West and 39 in the Northern Cape.
Most drivers died in Gauteng, and most passenger and pedestrian
deaths were in KwaZulu-Natal.
@ MBEKI-RALLY
CAPE TOWN January 9 1999 Sapa
MBEKI SPEAKS OUT AGAINST CRIME, VIGILANTES AND INTOLERANCE IN
CAPE
African National Congress president Thabo Mbeki on Saturday
spoke out against crime, vigilante groups and political intolerance
in the Western Cape, and promised action at a national level to
deal with these problems.
Speaking to a mass rally at the Athlone stadium in Cape Town -
held to celebrate the ANC's 87th birthday - he said the time had
come to deal with the serious problem of crime in the province.
"We must deal with the problem of gangsters that are
terrorising the people; with the problem of gangsters who are
distributing and selling drugs in this province, even in the
schools."
Mbeki said Safety and Security Minister Sydney Mufamadi had
held discussions with some of the police leadership in the Western
Cape and at a national level, and it was agreed that the minister
and national police officers should lead the offensive against
crime in the region.
"There are people who have constituted themselves into
vigilante groups in this province who think they are the only ones
who are concerned about crime, and the rest of us don't care.
"Who decided that they must take the law into their (own) hands
and do whatever they want to do - to kill people, to intimidate,
to burn houses, to bomb shops."
"There is nobody who has been appointed above God to be a crime
fighter above everyone else," he said.
Referring to an incident which took place at a Cape Town mosque
two weeks ago, when Western Cape ANC leader Ebrahim Rasool was
prevented from addressing a congregation, Mbeki said it appeared
some people in the province had decided they had a right to decide
who should speak where.
"We do not agree and will not allow that... as we come into
this election campaign... that anybody should stop anybody from
talking to the people, so that the people can hear these messages
from all parties so that... (they) can decide who shall govern
them."
Sharing a platform with Mbeki were Finance Minister Trevor
Manuel, Water Affairs Minister Kader Asmal and Trade and Industry
Minister Alec Erwin. Numerous dignitaries and party veterans also
attended the celebrations.
At the start of his address to the crowd - estimated by
marshalls to number about 10,000 - who had packed into the stadium
for the day's events, Mbeki said a mistake had been made in the
Western Cape in 1994.
"We made a mistake and elected a party in this province to
govern us.
"The same party that had been oppressing us.
"That was a mistake," Mbeki said to loud applause from the
crowd.
"We are now in 1999, we have to... take a new decision about
who is going to govern us in the Western Cape," he said.
- The ANC was founded on January 8, 1912.
@ DRCONGO-ZIMBABWE
HARARE, January 9 1999 Sapa-AFP
ZIMBABWEAN COMMAND CALLS ON DR CONGO REBELS TO SURRENDER
The Zimbabwean command in the Democratic Republic of Congo
(DRC) on Saturday called on Tutsi-led rebels to surrender, citing
"heavy losses" among rebel ranks in the east of the country.
In a communique from "allied forces headquarters," the command
said those who surrendered would be treated "in conformity with
international conventions on prisoners of war."
The communique, originating in Kinshasa but published in
Harare, said allied warplanes had inflicted "heavy losses" since
the start of the year on rebels backed by Rwanda and Uganda in the
area of Kalemie on the shore of Lake Tanganyika.
Zimbabwe has provided 10,000 troops to back President Laurent
Kabila against the rebels, who took up arms last August. Angola,
Namibia and Chad have also contributed smaller contingents on the
government side.
The allied forces have "cut most supply routes of the
aggression forces," the communique said.
Since the start of November, the Zimbabwean force has gone on
the offensive in the east, especially in the area just north of the
mineral-rich Katanga province.
Zimbabwean warplanes have been bombing rebel positions in the
area on a daily basis for the past two months.
The communique said the planes had "attacked and inflicted
heavy losses on two battalions of the aggression forces" on
December 31 in the villages of Mikato and Loni, south of Kalemie.
It said a barge transporting soldiers on Lake Tanganyika was
sunk in a bombing raid, without elaborating.
The town of Moba, south of Kalemie, was recaptured last Sunday,
the communique said.
The government army had announced the victory last Monday,
prompting a denial from the rebels.
On December 30, the Zimbabwean command announced the fall of
Fizi, to the north of Kalemie, which the rebels also denied.
The Zimbabwean communique said control of Fizi "cut the main
supply routes of the enemy linking Goma, Bukavu and Uvira (the
rebels' three main strongholds) to Kalemie."
@ TRUTH-BIKO
JOHANNESBURG, South Africa January 9 1999 Sapa-AP
POLICEMAN DENIED AMNESTY IN BIKO KILLING
A policeman has been denied amnesty in the killing of black
liberation leader Steve Biko, making him liable for possible
criminal charges in a case that shocked the world and hastened the
end of apartheid, sources said Saturday.
Former Detective Sgt. Gideon Nieuwoudt was denied amnesty
because he and four other officers, who are also applying for
amnesty in the 1977 beating death of Biko, did not admit to any
crime, said George Bizos, an attorney representing the Biko family.
The five officers testified before the Truth and Reconciliation
Commission last year that Biko, despite being outnumbered and
exhausted after weeks of incarceration, tried to attack one of his
interrogators while in custody in the coastal city of Port
Elizabeth.
The officers say they tackled the 30-year-old Biko, accidently
slamming his head against a wall. He was then taken in a police
van, naked and bleeding, on a 750-mile (1,200-kilometer) ride to a
prison in Pretoria, where he died of massive brain injuries on
Sept. 12, 1977.
"They did not admit they committed a crime," izos tod The
Associated Press. "By their own story they would not be entitled
to amnesty."
Only those who fully confess to politically motivated crimes
committed during apartheid are eligible for amnesty.
The ruling by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's amnesty
committee was made on Dec. 15, but has not been made public because
it came as the Christmas holidays began.
Truth Commission spokesman Mdu Lembede, in a telephone
interview, confirmed Nieuwoudt was denied amnesty. Lembede said he
would not have any details until Monday, when the Truth
Commission's offices reopen.
Lembede said rulings in the amnesty applications of the four
other policemen have not been made yet.
Bizos said the amnesty committee's ruling left Nieuwoudt open
for possible criminal prosecution.
"For murder, there is no statute of limitations," Bizos said
in a telephone interview.
However, Nieuwoudt would apparently be free from facing charges
of manslaughter or culpable homicide, for which the statute of
limitations is 20 years, according to Bizos.
It would be up to the attorney general of Eastern Cape
province, where Port Elizabeth is located, to decide whether to
initiate criminal proceedings, Bizos said. The attorney general's
offices were closed and no one was immediately available to
comment.
Nieuwoudt's attorney, Francois Van Der Merwe, expressed
confidence nothing more would come of the case.
"I doubt whether any civil or criminal procedures will emanate
from this," he told South African Broadcasting Corp. television.
In the mid-1970s, Biko was a leading black figure, with a
message of black pride that especially appealed to township youths
oppressed by white rule.
His death sparked an outcry at home and abroad, spurring
activism that eventually contributed to the end of apartheid. It
also inspired the movie "Cry Freedom," with Denzel Washington
portraying Biko.
@ CRIME-TOPSPORT
JOHANNESBURG January 9 1999 Sapa
TOPSPORT EXECUTIVE PRODUCER SHOT DEAD
An executive producer of SABC's Topsport died on Friday night
after being abducted from Zone 10, Sebokeng, SABC television news
reported on Saturday night.
It quoted Vaal Triangle police spokesman Captain Thabang
Letlala as saying Tsepe Botsane, 49, and a woman companion were
driven at gunpoint to a secluded area along the Randfontein Road,
where Botsane was shot dead.
The deceased's car was later found abandoned in another section
of the township.
Thabang said robbery may have been the motive for the killing.
Botsane is survived by his wife, Judith, and two teenagers,
Molefe and Madisebo.
@ ISRAEL-TUTU
JERUSALEM January 9 1999 Sapa-AP
ISRAEL AND PALESTINIANS CAN ACHIEVE RECONCILIATION:TUTU
South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu said Saturday that Israel
and the Palestinians can achieve reconciliation if their leaders
are prepared to take risks.
Tutu, who received the 1984 Nobel Peace Prize for his 30 year
struggle against the apartheid regime in his native South Africa,
was speaking at Jerusalem's Yakar Institute for Social Concern.
He told the gathering that many people had said the regime of
discrimination aginst no-whites could not be overthrown without a
bloodbath, yet the peoples of South Africa had done it, and
achieved reconciliation.
"So if it could happen to us it can happen anywhere." he
said. "Can anyone tell me why it cannot happen here?"
However this could only be achieved if leaders on both sides
are prepared to take risks, he said, to face the truth and to say
they are sorry.
Welcoming the Archbishop, the institute's director Benjamin
Pogrund described him as "a moral compass."
@ CRIME-GRASSYPARK
CAPE TOWN Jan 10 Sapa
CAPE TOWN FAST-FOOD OUTLET PETROL BOMBED
Two men hurled bricks and petrol bombs at the Grassy Park
branch of Kentucky Fried Chicken early Sunday morning, Cape Town
police spokeswoman, Superintendent Nina Kirsten said.
Kirsten said damage estimated at more than R2500 was caused
when one of the petrol bombs exploded at the outlet in Victoria
road at 2.30am.
Another petrol bomb exploded outside.
The motive for the attack was not yet known, Kirsten said.
The bombs and bricks caused damage to the outlet's windows,
counter and floor.
@ HEALTH-ABORTIONS
HARARE Jan 10 Sapa
ABOUT 20-MILLION UNSAFE ABORTIONS PERFORMED EACH YEAR
Almost 20 million unsafe abortions take place world-wide each
year, according to the latest figures from the World Health
Organisation, Ziana news agency reported on Sunday.
Almost one in ten pregnancies ended in unsafe abortion and 95
percent of unsafe abortions took place in developing countries, the
WHO said in its latest Safe Motherhood newsletter.
The number of deaths from unsafe abortions was highest in Asia
and Africa, it said.
"Studies show that many married women in developing countries
often do not have access to the contraception they require to space
their children or limit family size.
"The situation is even worse for unmarried women, particularly
adolescents," the WHO said.
Prevention of unwanted pregnancies must always be given the
highest priority and all attempts should be made to eliminate the
need for abortion, it advised.
@ ZIM-GROWTH
HARARE Jan 10 Sapa
ZIMBABWE'S THREE MAIN SECTORS RECORD LOW GROWTH IN 1998
Zimbabwe's three key sectors - manufacturing, mining and
agriculture - recorded declines in growth in 1998, Ziana news
agency reported on Sunday.
According to figures released by the Ministry of Finance, they
were hit by inflationary pressures due to the plunging Zimbabwean
Dollar.
The Agricultural sector was expected to record more growth
although crop production was expected to decline.
Manufacturing was stagnant in the first seven months of 1998
while mineral production decreased in comparison to the same period
the previous year, the bulletin said.
@ SA-CHILUBA
PRETORIA Jan 10 Sapa
CHILUBA'S VISIT TO SA ON HOLD
Zambian President Frederick Chiluba's visit to South Africa on
Sunday was put on hold to allow for further consultations with the
leaders of countries involved in the Democratic Republic of Congo
peace process, Deputy President Thabo Mbeki's office said.
Chiluba arrived in Harare on Sunday morning to consult his
Zimbabwean counterpart Robert Mugabe on ways of ending the bloody
civil war in the DRC.
He was originally expected to arrive in South Africa on Sunday
to brief Mbeki on his peace efforts.
Mbeki's aide Ronnie Mamoepa said it was not yet known when
Chiluba would arrive in South Africa.
@ TANZANIA-MALAWI
DAR ES SALAAM January 10 1999 Sapa-AFP
MALAWI'S PRESIDENT VISITING TANZANIA
Malawi's President Bakili Muluzi arrived here Sunday for a
four-day official visit aimed at promoting trade and economic
cooperation between the two neighbouring countries, the foreign
ministry said.
The Malawian leader was later Sunday due to have talks with his
Tanzanian counterpart Benjamin Mkapa and other government
officials.
He will tour the Indian Ocean port of Dar es Salaam and address
representatives of the local business community on Monday, before
flying to the island of Pemba to attend the 35th anniversary of the
revolution which toppled the Arab sultanate of Tanzania's
semi-autonomous islands of Zanzibar.
Muluzi will also visit Tanzania's southern port of Mtwara on
Wednesday before returning home.
The tour is Muluzi's first to Tanzania since he assumed office
in Lilongwe after defeating former dictator Kamuzu Banda, now
deceased, in multi-party elections four years ago.
The visit was preceded by a three-day meeting of the
Tanzania-Malawi Joint Commission, which deliberated on ways of
enhancing trade and economic cooperation between the two countries,
particularly the development of projects on the Mtwara corridor,
along the border.
@ TANZANIA-CHINA
DAR ES SALAAM January 10 1999 Sapa-AFP
CHINESE FOREIGN MINISTER ARRIVES IN TANZANIA
Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan arrived here Sunday for a
three-day official visit during which he will have talks with his
Tanzanian counterpart and President Benjamin Mkapa, foreign
ministry officials said.
The visit is aimed at strengthening bilateral relations between
the two countries, according to a foreign ministry statement.
Tang has already visited neighbouring Kenya and Uganda and will
also tour Zimbabwe and Egypt.
Africa has emerged as one of the major battlefields in a
diplomatic recognition tug-of-war between China and Taiwan.
Twenty-seven countries recognize Taiwan which Beijing regards
as a breakaway province.
@ TRAFFIC
PRETORIA January 10 1999 Sapa
839 PEOPLE KILLED ON SA ROADS SINCE DECEMBER 1
The death toll on South African roads since December 1 rose to
839 by noon on Sunday, Arrive Alive road safety campaigners said.
Of the dead 278 were drivers, 305 passengers and 256 were
pedestrians.
Most deaths were in KwaZulu-Natal where 153 people died,
followed by 131 in the Western Cape, 119 in Gauteng, 110 in the
Eastern Cape, 88 in the Free State, 75 in Mpumalanga, 68 in the
Northern Province, 56 in North West and 39 in the Northern Cape.
Most drivers died in Gauteng, and most passenger and pedestrian
deaths were in KwaZulu-Natal.
@ ZIMBABWE-PLOT
HARARE January 10 1999 Sapa-AFP
ARMY OFFICERS ARRESTED IN ALLEGED COUP PLOT: PRESS
Some 23 Zimbabwean military officers have been arrested for
inciting colleagues in the army to topple President Robert Mugabe,
an independent Sunday paper reported.
The Standard quoted unnamed but highly placed military sources
saying that the senior army officers had been rounded up on
December 17.
"Twenty-three members of the Zimbabwe National Army are
believed to have been arrested last month for inciting their
colleagues within the defence forces to overthrow the government of
President Robert Mugabe," the paper said.
The paper said several commissioned officers including a
colonel, a cabinet minister and a legislator, were behind the
clandestine plot which resulted in more than 20,000 troops being
put on standby to thwart any coup bid on December 16.
The suspected plotters were arrested during the early hours of
December 17, 1998. Those detained did not not include the minister
or the parliamentary deputy.
The paper said the harsh economic conditions in the country and
Zimbabwe's involvement in the war in the Democratic Republic of
Congo (DRC) were the source of discontent that led to the alleged
plot.
No immediate comment could be obtained from the defence
ministry, but Information Minister Chen Chimutengwende denied the
report labelling it "completely false".
"It is certainly not true. There are people who are disciplined
in the army from time and again," he said accusing the paper of
being the most imaginative in crafting fake stories.
He added that if any minister was involved, that minister would
have been removed from office through some form of a reshuffle, but
there had not been any cabinet changes made in the last six months.
Five senior Zimbabwe army officers were last month
court-martialled for trying to incite mutiny among troops serving
in the DRC, the Zimbabwe Independent, a sister paper to the
Standard reported in December.
The Independent said several other officers had been demoted
for expressing discontent and attempting to sabotage an eastern
offensive against rebel forces in the DRC.
Zimbabwe has up to 10,000 soldiers in the DRC in support of
President Laurent Kabila.
@ CRIME-RUSTENBURG-MOLEFE
MAFIKENG January 10 1999 Sapa
MOLEFE CONDEMNS KILLING OF FARMER NEAR RUSTENBURG
North-West Premier Popo Molefe on Sunday condemned Friday's
murder of an elderly farmer, and said farmers and their workers
should remain vigilant and be security-conscious at all times.
Three armed men shot and killed Joe Barnard at
Boekenhoutfontein near Rustenburg on Friday morning. They also
viciously assaulted his wife before stealing a firearm and some
clothing.
"We condemn not only the unacceptably high levels of crime and
criminality, but also the senseless violence directed against the
victims of crime," Molefe said in a statement.
He said it was clear that criminals considered farms easy
targets, considering that some farmers were old and therefore less
able to defend themselves.
"This makes these crimes even more heinous and unacceptable.
Our culture requires us to protect and care for the elderly; we
therefore cannot tolerate those anti-social elements amongst us who
would target the aged for their despicable acts."
Molefe called on police to bring the perpetrators of this
incident to justice and called on the Department of Justice not to
show any leniency to those responsible.
@ ANGOLA-VIOLENCE
LUANDA, January 10 1999 Sapa-AFP
HEAVY FIGHTING IN ANGOLA AS UN SEEKS SECOND DOWNED PLANE
Angolan troops and rebels were Sunday engaged in heavy clashes
near the north-central town of Malanje, officials there said, as
the United Nations sought help from both sides to find a plane
downed in the south earlier this month.
"Right now, the situation is worrying. There are bitter clashes
as close as 20 to 30 kilometers (12 to 20 miles) from here," Flavio
Fernandes said on state radio from Malanje, 380 kilometers (235
miles) east of Luanda).
Artillery was active all afternoon Saturday, and led to some 20
injuries, local media quoted health officials as saying in a
preliminary toll.
Saturday's shells mainly hit Catepa, Kizanga and Zona-Seis,
districts in the Malanje area, the Jornal de Angola said Sunday.
State radio described the military situation in the area as
"critical."
At least 52 people have been killed since the National Union
for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) began an assault
mid-December.
Two people were killed at and at least a dozen were injured in
an ambush late Saturday on a road linking Malanje with Calandula,
60 kilometers (40 miles) to the northeast.
Medicine, blood and food were delivered to Malanje on Saturday
and Sunday, officials in the town said.
Many of the supplies were destined for the town's hospital,
which is treating some 200 victims of the shelling and has been
faced with a dire lack of supplies.
The United Nations, meanwhile, was Sunday trying to get help
from the government and rebels to locate the wreck of a plane which
went down January 2 in the centre of the country with nine people
aboard.
The UN has already recovered the charred remains of 14 people
- 10 of them employed by the UN - who died when another Hercules
C-130 transport plane went down December 26 in the eastern Huambo
district, another theatre of the civil war.
Both planes had been chartered by the UN and UNITA has denied
government accusations of shooting them down.
The UN secretary-general's envoy, Benon Sevan, continued his
shuttle diplomacy between antagonists Sunday to seek their
cooperation in looking for the second plane, which disappeared to
the northeast of Huambo.
"We are trying to find out all we can about the second plane
from both camps," UN spokesman Hamadoun Toure told AFP.
The government has told the UN that at least six people
survived the crash and are being held by UNITA.
But the army had also claimed that those aboard the first plane
had survived, when in fact all aboard were killed in the crash.
Attempts to reach the second wreck have been hampered by a lack
of information and of guarantees from both sides.
Fighting is also taking place in the southeast region of
Benguela, as well as in the provinces of Bie and Huambo, according
to military sources.
Angola is in the midst of a new civil war since mid November,
when the AAF began an offensive against UNITA, who it says
paralyzed a peace process begun November 20, 1994 with the Treaty
of Lusaka.
@ IEC-NNP
JOHANNESBURG January 10 1999 Sapa
IEC WILL NOT OPPOSE NEW NP BAR CODE COURT APPLICATION: NP
The New National Party on Sunday said it welcomed a decision by
the Independent Electoral Commission not to oppose its court
application to scrap the requirement that potential voters need
bar-coded identity to register for next year's election.
NNP legal head Andre Gaum said the party, which is applying for
the scrapping of the requirement on the grounds that it is
unconstitutional, never intended taking issue with the IEC, and did
not plan to apply for costs from the commission.
"The court application is aimed at the government, which is
depriving millions of South Africans of their right to vote," he
said.
The NNP said it had received a notice on Friday signed by IEC
chairman Judge Johann Kriegler and chief executive officer Mandla
Mchunu saying the commission would not oppose the February 5
application and would abide by the decision of the Cape High Court.
The IEC had undertaken to send its lawyers to court to ensure
any administrative information needed could be made available at
short notice, the NNP said.
Gaum said the IEC had abandoned its previous stance opposing
the NNP's application.
The Sunday Independent on Sunday reported that a confrontation
was brewing between the government and the IEC over how to respond
to the legal challenges made by the NNP and the Democratic Party to
the barcoded ID book stipulation.
The newspaper said the government and the IEC had both been
cited as respondents in the two court actions and, while the
government's response was to dismiss as invalid the claim of
interference and subversion of the IEC's independence, the
commission, through an affidavit by Kriegler had taken a different
line.
Kriegler's affidavit, which was to have been filed in the
Pretoria High Court on Friday, was reported to side with the
political parties.
Mchunu was to have filed an affidavit supporting Kriegler, but
he failed to do so, saying he needed time to read the affidavit
thoroughly before committing himself.
The NNP first brought its case before the Cape High Court on
December 7.
The party is also calling for the court to investigate the
conduct of the government, Home Affairs Minister Mangosuthu
Buthelezi and Finance Minister Trevor Manuel.
It argues that the imposition of financial constraints on the
IEC - which forced it to use of public servants to assist with
voter registration
- was unconstitutional and interfered with the commission's
independence.
The DP is challenging only the barcode ruling, saying it was
"unreasonable and discriminatory in that it weighs heavily and
unjustly on certain sections of the population such as young people
and coloured, Indian and white voters over age 35."
Kriegler has at various times argued against the barcode
stipulation and has also opposed the use of civil servants in voter
registration, saying the government should give the IEC adequate
funds to register voters.
Kriegler was at one time rumoured to have threatened to resign
over the government's refusal to give the electoral commission an
additional R200 million.
Just over 10 million out of an estimated 25 million voters have
registered thus far.
Polls conducted by independent bodies have claimed that more
than 4,6 million people do not have barcoded documents.
This has been hotly challenged by the home affairs department,
which said the number was no higher than 2,5 million.
The majority of people without barcoded documents are white.
IEC spokesman Victor Dhlamini on Sunday declined to comment on
the article, saying the case was sub judice.
@ DRCONGO-SUMMIT
HARARE January 10 1999 Sapa
DRC PEACE SUMMIT SCHEDULED FOR NEXT WEEK
A regional peace summit to end the war in the Democratic
Republic of Congo will be held in Lusaka next week where parties to
the conflict are expected to sign a ceasefire agreement, Zambian
President Frederick Chiluba said on Sunday.
Chiluba, in Zimbabwe to discuss with President Robert Mugabe
efforts to end the war in the central African country, said the
heads of state summit would start on January 16 or 17 and would be
preceded by a meeting of defence and foreign affairs ministers,
Ziana news agency reported.
He told journalists the meeting would be attended by Angola,
Botswana, Gabon, Kenya, South Africa, Chad, Rwanda, Uganda, Zambia,
Zimbabwe and DRC rebels trying to topple President Laurent Kabila.
Rwanda and Uganda are backing the rebels while Zimbabwe,
Angola, Namibia and Chad have sent troops to support Kabila.
Chiluba said there was a possibility the rebels might
participate directly in the talks after Kabila said he was willing
to meet them face to face.
In previous meetings, the rebels have participated on a
proximity basis.
Kabila, who has so far refused to meet the rebels, surprised
his foes last Wednesday with an offer to hold direct talks with
them - but only in Kinshasa.
Chiluba said the modalities of the ceasefire agreement were the
exchange of prisoners of war, withdrawal of foreign troops and
ensuring security in countries bordering the DRC and the central
African country itself.
"We are trying very very hard to make this meeting work. All
countries associated with this conflict will be there," he said.
Chiluba said there was commitment on the parties involved in
the war to find a peaceful solution to the conflict.
"There is real commitment but when you fight there exists
mistrust and suspicion. You cannot overcome this before you meet,"
Chiluba said.
"President Mugabe said let us advance on this matter and allow
the people of Congo to proceed with development," he added.
Chiluba said Rwanda also agreed during his recent visit that
there should be no more delays to the peace efforts.
"There is a lot of commitment, everybody wants this matter to
come to a close."
The Zambian president has been shuttling in the region
consulting heads of state on preparations for the peace summit
following a failed one which should have been held last month in
Lusaka.
Mugabe said Zimbabwe would attend the peace summit in Lusaka
and emphasised that preparations for the meeting should be
thorough.
"It may be necessary for some interactions to occur even before
the meeting," Mugabe saud.
Chiluba returned home on Sunday. He was seen off at Harare
International Airport by Mugabe.
@ PROTEST-WATERFRONT
CAPE TOWN January 10 1999 Sapa-AFP
CAPE MOSLEM GROUPS WARN OF WAR
Moslem groups warned here Sunday that they would go to war with
authorities if one of their supporters, critically wounded by
police as he protested against British Prime Minister Tony Blair's
visit, should die.
Yusuf Jacobs, 25, is in a critical condition after he was shot
in the head with a rubber bullet Friday when police dispersed
Moslems demonstrating against Britain's role in the recent air
strikes against Iraq.
Four other people were injured and hree Moslem groups Sunday
held a placard demonstration at Cape Town's Waterfront, protesting
against "police brutality" and promising revenge.
"If anything happens to that brother, we swear to Allah, this
country will become ungovernable," Salih Abadah, the security chief
of vigilante group People Against Gangsterism and Drugs (PAGAD),
told the crowd of 150 people.
"We will rise up from the grassroots. We say people prepare
yourselves and take to the streets."
PAGAD leader Abdusalaam Ebrahim told AFP that though Sunday's
protest was peaceful, Jacobs, who is suffering a brain haemorrhage
according to his family, could prove a catalyst for the town's
large, conservative Moslem community.
"We don't think he's going to make it and if he does not, all
of this is going to take a very different turn," Ebrahim said.
Relations between the authorities and PAGAD and smaller,
like-minded fondamentalist groups have long been tense, but
deteriorated this week with Blair's visit.
On Thursday eight members of Muslims Against Global Oppression
(Mago) and Muslims Against Illegitimate Leaders (Mail) were
arrested during flag-burning protests at parliament and the
American embassy.
In the meanwhile police sources quoted by the Sunday
Independent said the deadly bombing of the Planet Hollywood
restaurant in the Waterfront last year may have been carried out by
Moslem extremists.
According to the newspaper, the police believe members of
PAGAD's armed guard and Qibla, the hard-core militant group that
spawned PAGAD, carried out the bombing which came after the US
bombed Afghanistan and Sudan to rout suspected Islamic terrorists.
Police have thus far failed to arrest any suspects and in the
report blamed intimidation of potential informants by PAGAD for
their lack of progress.
Dozens of bombings, with similar devices to that used at Planet
Hollywood, occurred around Cape Town last year and are suspected to
be part of the war that PAGAD declared against Cape Town gangsters.
PAGAD claims to have no official link with Mago and Mail but
police believe the groups share the same support base and even
membership, forming a united front.
@ IEC-LD-NNP
JOHANNESBURG January 10 1999 Sapa
IEC DENIES CLASH WITH GOVERNMENT
The Independent Electoral Commission on Sunday denied there was
any conflict of interests between itself and the government over a
legal challenge to scrap the requirement that potential voters need
bar-coded identity to register for next year's election.
"Contrary to speculation in the media, there is no showdown
looming between the IEC and the government," said IEC spokesman
Victor Dlamini.
This was because the court applicants, the New National Party
and the Democratic Party, were not seeking any order against the
commission, he said.
The IEC's answering affidavit to the February 5 court challenge
of the NNP, filed on Friday in the Pretoria High Court, simply
aimed to add clarity and more context to the issues discussed in
the affidavits of the other parties, Dlamini added.
IEC Chief Electoral Officer Mandla Mchunu would file hs
confirmatory affidavit on Monday.
Mchunu and IEC Chairman Judge Johann Kriegler are the fourth
and fifth respondents respectively in the court application of the
NNP.
Mchunu's affidavit would confirm the contents of Kriegler's in
the matter, in so far as it related to administrative, management
and implementation issues, Dlamini said.
The IEC's five commissioners, led by Kriegler, constitute the
organisation's policy-making body, which advises on and oversees
administration led by Mchunu.
Even though Kriegler and Mchunu are cited separately as fourth
and fifth respondents in the case, the IEC is a single entity,
hence its submission of one affidavit.
As the matter was sub-judice, neither Kriegler nor Mchunu were
prepared to engage in media discussions on the merits of the case,
Dlamini said.
@ TRAFFIC-SPEEDING
ESTCOURT January 10 1999 Sapa
SPEEDSTERS COUGH UP THOUSANDS FOR BAIL
Two speedsters arrested on Saturday were released after putting
up thousands of rand in bail money after appearing in the Estcourt
Magistrates Court in KwaZulu-Natal, the province's traffic
spokesman, Logan Maistry, said Sunday.
The two were arrested between 1am and 2am on Saturday morning
after they were recorded travelling 198km/h and 223km/h
respectively on the N3 at Estcourt.
The men were arrested, charged and released on R5000 and R8000
bail respectively.
An Estcourt magistrate last week sentenced a minibus taxi
driver who broke the speed limit by 42km/h while carrying five
passengers more than he was legally allowed to to one year in
prison and a R1300 fine. Selby Ziqubu also had his drivers' licence
suspended for 18 months.
Maistry said a man arrested for travelling at 203km/h on the N3
in Ladysmith at 9pm on Saturday was released on R500 bail.
The young man who was arrested two weeks ago with the highest
speed recorded over the festive season was also due to appear in
court in Estcourt.
Wayne Naidoo, 18, from Brakpan was arrested for travelling
229km/h im a Mercedes Benz.
Maistry said it was amazing that even after the dangers of
speeding had been publicized so well over the festive season, at
least five people had been arrested for travelling in excess of
200km/h in KwaZulu-Natal between mid-December and mid-January.
"If people want to carry on with this macho nonsense there is
nothing we can do," he said.
@ CRIME-SABC
JOHANNESBURG January 10 1999 Sapa
SECOND SABC EMPLOYEE KILLED
A second South African Broadcasting Corporation employee was
shot dead this weekend in a highjacking outside his home in
Diepkloof Extention, Soweto, SABC radio reported on Sunday.
Jerry Moatshe was a full-time shop steward with an SABC union -
the Media Workers Association of South Africa.
Soweto police did not know about the incident, SABC said.
It quoted his daughter as saying a vehicle with four men
blocked Moatshe and his wife in their driveway last night.
She said her mother managed to escape but the four men
assaulted Moatshe, shot him and made off with his car and
cellphone.
Moatshe, 49, is survived by his wife and four children.
On Saturday an executive producer of SABC's Topsport died on
Friday night after being abducted from Zone 10.
Tsepe Botsane, 49, and a woman companion were driven at
gunpoint to a secluded area along the Randfontein Road, where
Botsane was shot dead.
The deceased's car was later found abandoned in another section
of the township.
Botsane is survived by his wife, Judith, and two teenage
children.
@ DRCONGO-BATTLE
BANGUI, DRC January 10 1999 Sapa-AFP
DRCONGO REBELS CHASED OUT OF TWO NORTH-WESTERN TOWNS
Rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have been
flushed out of two north-western towns by the army, sources said
Sunday.
Missionaries here said the Congolese government soldiers had
recaptured the town of Libenge.
"The rebels were chased out (Friday) in a joint action by the
Zimbabwean air force and some 350 soldiers of the Congolese Armed
Forces who crossed the Oubangui river" from the Central African
town of Mougounba, according to a senior priest, Tonino Falaguasta.
These infantrymen were among a contingent which arrived last
weekend in Bangui, around 100 kilometers (60 miles) from the river.
"Several thousand civilians, from DRC and Central Africa
Republic, have fled the combat zone and are seeking refuge in the
bush inside the CAR," added Falaguasta.
"Some of the population were killed during the Zimbabwean air
raid," he said.
The church in Libenge, some 970 kilometers (600 miles)
northeast of Kinshasa, was damaged and "two bombs accidentally fell
on the Central African side of the Oubangui," according to Chadian
military sources based in Bangui.
The Chadians, who together with troops from Zimbabwe, Angola
and Namibia are backing DRC President Laurent Kabila, said Libenge
was retaken "without great difficulty."
Government troops had flushed the rebels from all of the
riverine area and were chasing them 100 kilometers (60 miles) to
the east.
The DRC's defence ministry in Kinshasa confirmed Sunday that
the army had regained Libenge, and said the town of Gemena in the
same northeastern province had also been won back.
According to an official communique, the forces killed 117
rebels at Gemena, and had taken "several Ugandan prisoners",
sending the rebels fleeing.
Meanwhile, France denied media allegations that it was
financially supporting Zimbabwe's military operations in the DRC.
"France does not help in financing the war effort of any of the
countries involved in the conflict in the DRC," Sebastien Surun, a
senior diplomat at the French embassy said in a statement received
by AFP Sunday.
"France is in no way involved in the events currently taking
place in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Great Lakes
region," he said, renewing France's calls for a ceasefire between
the warring parties.
The embassy said it had issued the statement in response to
Zimbabwean and international media reports that the French
government would be financially supporting Zimbabwe which has
committed 10,000 troops and military equipment to the DRC backing
Kabila.
Seven countries involved in fighting in the DRC verbally agreed
in Paris in November last year to an immediate truce that was to be
formalised by mid-December.
A summit expected to fulfil the Paris agreement is scheduled
for January 16 and 17.
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A N C D A I L Y N E W S B R I E F I N G
TUESDAY 12 JANUARY 1999
PLEASE NOTE: This News Briefing is a compilation of items from South
African press agencies and as such does not reflect the views of the
ANC. It is for reading and information only, and strictly not for
publication or broadcast.
To unsubscribe from the ANC Daily News Briefing mailing list send a
message to 'list...@wn.apc.org'. In the body of your message put
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@ ANGOLA-TANZANIA
DAR ES SALAAM, January 11 1999 Sapa-AFP
TANZANIAN PRESIDENT BLAMES SAVIMBI FOR ANGOLA FIGHTING
Tanzanian President Benjamin Mkapa has strongly condemned
Angolan rebel leader Jonas Savimbi, saying his intransigence has
led to the current fighting in the southern African country.
In a speech at a state banquet in honour of visiting Malawi
President Bakili Muluzi here on Sunday, Mkapa urged Savimbi to
commit himself to the full implementation of the 1994 Lusaka peace
accord.
"The international community, especially the UN Security
Council, should come down really hard on him and his followers. The
resolve with which problems in the former Yugoslavia are handled
should likewise be applied in Angola in respect to Savimbi," said
Mkapa.
"Tanzania and the Southern African Development Community (SADC)
in general is deeply perturbed by the continued intransigence of
Savimbi," he added.
Angola is in the midst of a new civil war since mid-November,
when government troops began an offensive against Savimbi's
National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA), which
it says paralyzed a peace process begun on November 20, 1994 with
the Treaty of Lusaka.
Mkapa also deplored continued civil unrest in other parts of
Africa and asked leaders in the world's poorest continent to
"cultivate new thinking and political will to end the veritable
disgrace."
"Our people need food, shelter, education, workable and
credible policies aimed at eradicating poverty, ignorance and
disease, not making wars," he said.
Mkapa said it was shameful for African countries to send their
people to war while denying them basic rights, particularly
education.
Muluzi arrived Sunday afternoon for a four-day visit.
Land-locked Malawi depends heavily on the port of Dar es Salaam for
its imports and exports.
Mkapa said that the volume of trade between the two countries
had grown significantly in the past 10 years.
He said trade between the two countries was currently valued at
16 million dollars, with Tanzania exporting 9.7 million dollars
worth of goods to Malawi and importing goods valued at 6.3 million
dollars.
In reply, Muluzi also expressed concern over widespread civil
wars in Africa and asked Tanzania to continue its efforts for peace
in the Great Lakes region, particularly Burundi and the Democratic
Republic of Congo (DRC).
He commended Tanzania for accepting refugees from troubled
African countries.
"We know how difficult it is to host so many refugees because
we had no less than two million during the recent protracted war in
Mozambique," said Muluzi.
The Malawian leader appealed to all warring groups in the
continent to end hostilities and start talking peace for the sake
of prosperity in their countries.
@ SARB-RESERVES
JOHANNESBURG January 11 1999 Sapa
DECEMBER GOLD AND FOREIGN ASSETS UP R330 MILLION
South Africa's total gold and foreign assets rose R330,16
million in December to R58,84 billion, the SA Reserve Bank said on
Monday.
Although gold reserves fell R412,95 million during the month to
R6,06 billion, foreign assets rose R743,11 million to R25,52
billion.
Government loans and advances increased R41,65 million to
R669,39 million, while the SARB's accommodation to banks went down
R200 million to R6,3 billion.
The rand per fine ounce decreased R5,54 to R1514,59, while gold
holdings in fine ounces fell 257076 fine ounces to 4000612 fine
ounces.
Notes and coins in circulation for the month rose a whopping
R1,15 billion to R25,42 billion.
@ COMMUNITY DOCTORS WELCOME COMPULSORY SERVICE IN EC
GRAHAMSTOWN (ECN Feature Service) - Unlike many medical
graduates who opt for sparkling clean corridors and bumper paychecks
in southern hemisphere hospitals, Lungile Pepeta has no plans to
abandon the decrepid Eastern Cape health system.
While some medical graduates are grumpy about the prospect of having
to spend a year in a rural backwater, some of the 116 community
service doctors who reported for duty in the Eastern Cape on New
Years Day are upbeat about the future.
Pepete graduated from the University of Transkei and completed his
internship at Umtata General Hospital, so he will not be a newcomer
to the conditions which plague the health system such as a shortage
of medicines, overcrowding, maladministration and peeling paint.
He said: "I fully support the community service programme because we
don't have doctors and this makes sure that the little bits are
tied."
Stationed at Frontier Hospital in Queenstown, Pepete is not naive
about the challenges facing the health system and acknowledges that
it will "require a lot of work in terms of people being serious
about their jobs".
He said: "It is also about getting people committed to the policies
they draft."
Pepete also believes that while hospitals are faced with a lack of
equipment, hospitals are also not making use of the equipment which
is at their disposal.
As one of 116 graduates to begin their year-long state-imposed
philanthropy in the Eastern Cape - there are over 1 000 nationally
- Pepete will work six months at Frontier hospital before spending
time in the rural outlying districts.
The doctors are part of the government's nation-wide year long
compulsory community service for new medical graduates.
Coordinator for community service doctors in the Northern Region Dr
John BN Shaw said the region - which has 14 hospitals - would
receive 10 new doctors.
As a significant proportion of the 800 doctors which serve six
million people in the Eastern Cape, community doctors are expected
to fulfill an important function.
Shaw said: "I think it will make quite a difference and it will be a
real help to us and the patients."
He said the "young and fresh" doctors would be capable of "handling
a whole range of problems" in the health care system.
Department of Health PRO Nomsa Matshingana said the department had
attempted to achieve a balance between the need to improve services
in peripheral district hospitals and to ensure that doctors working
in isolated hospitals would have the appropriate skills.
She said most regions had therefore arranged for the graduates to
spend time at both the larger and smaller hospitals.
She said: "District hospitals will see the largest percentage of
staff allocations because of the smaller number of doctors at these
hospitals."
Matshingana said the Western Region of the Eastern Cape would
receive 19 doctors, the Northern region 12, the central region 42,
the Eastern region 30, and the East Griqualand-Kei region 13
doctors.
The community doctors will also not be a replacement for the 397
foreign doctors operating in the province - nearly half the otal
number of doctors.
Matshingane said: "Foreign doctors cannot be phased out in this
province because we are still far too dependent on having them to
staff our hospitals."
"Even after we have employed the community doctors we still need the
foreign doctors."
Shaw said: "What we are trying to do is think about it as a way to
serve the community and use the doctors where the needs are great.
"It is also a way for doctors to grow in a way that makes them
better doctors."
University of Cape Town graduate Tina Davidson told ECN from
Frontier Hospital where she is doing her service: "In a way it is
good because I thought it would be good for one's career to work in
a rural hospital."
Shaw said various support networks would be instituted for the
interns.
A series of guidelines would be issued dealing with how to care for
new patients and would provide a job description.
The guidlines also state that the doctors are to be given access to
a computer with email so that they can communication with friends
and family and that meetings with the doctors be held once a month.
Dr Mark Patrick, a South African paediatrician working at Frontier
hospital, is happy about the programme.
He said: "The state of staffing before they came to the region was
that there were only two South African doctors in a region of 1,2m
people.
"Now we are 12 and it is a significant development for the health
system." - ECN Feature Service 11/1/99
@ HOUSING-DUKUDUKU
DURBAN January 11 1999 Sapa
R17 MILLION HOUSING DEVELOPMENT PROJECT FOR DUKUDUKU APPROVED
The KwaZulu-Natal housing department has approved a R17 million
housing development project for 944 families who are living
illegally in the Dukuduku forest in northern KwaZulu-Natal.
The department's regional chief director, Bhekukwenza Gumbi, on
Monday said the project had been approved and the construction of
houses would begin soon.
The forest has been occupied by the families since the 1980s.
Gumbi said the project was the culmination of a move initiated
by the former Natal Provincial Administration to protect the
forest. The Dukuduku steering committee together with the residents
had formed a company to oversee the project.
"The department has appointed facilitators who will assist the
community with the process of appointing developers and choosing
the most suitable type of top structure," Gumbi said.
He said it was important that developers who intended
submitting proposals for the construction of houses were able to
demonstrate their ability to empower the local community.
@ PAGAD-JACOBS
CAPE TOWN January 11 1999 Sapa
PAGAD MAN CRITICAL AFTER FRIDAY'S ANTI-BLAIR PROTEST
People Against Gangsterism and Drugs has warned that South
Africa would become ungovernable if one of their members should die
after being shot when police fired rubber bullets at anti-Tony
Blair protesters near the Castle in Cape Town on Friday.
A Groote Schuur Hospital spokeswoman on Monday said Yusuf
Jacobs, 22, who was shot in the temple was still in a critical
condition.
She declined to give further details but a spokesman for Pagad
said Jacobs' vital signs were failing and he was on a life support
system.
Pagad member Salie Abader, speaking after a picket protest at
the entrance to the Waterfront on Sunday, said: "If the brother in
hospital should die, the country will become ungovernable."
On Sunday another Pagad member, Cassiem Parker, questioned the
use of rubber bullets for crowd control at the protest against the
visiting British prime minister.
Parker said if Jacobs died Pagad would recommend that the
policemen involved be removed from service.
A spokesman for Muslims Against Illegitimate Leaders,
Abdurahmam Khan, has condemned the government for bringing Blair to
South Africa.
He said the same government had refused permission for Hamas
leader Sheikh Achmat Yassien to visit the country.
"If the government continues in this fashion they will face the
wrath of the people. The battle lines have been drawn and we are
prepared to die," Khan said.
@ NIGERIA-VOTE-C'WEALTH
LAGOS, January 11 1999 Sapa-AFP
NIGERIAN ELECTIONS "ANOTHER IMPORTANT STEP": COMMONWEALTH
Nigeria's state elections at the weekend marked "another
important step" in the country's return to democracy, Commonwealth
Secretary-General Emeka Anyaoku said in a statement Monday.
The elections, the second round in a series paving the way for
a return to civilian rule on May 29, were "another important step
in the transition to democracy," said Anyaoku, a Nigerian former
foreign minister.
"Nigeria is well on course in the programme of transition to
democracy and civilian rule," he said.
In his statement, a copy of which was received here, Anyaoku
expressed "satisfaction" with the state elections which he said
were "on the whole orderly and successfully organised."
He said logistical problems seen in local elections in December
appeared to have been resolved.
"I believe the elections will get progressively more efficient
next month," when legislative and presidential elections take
place, he said.
Nigeria was suspended from the Commonwealth in 1995, under the
regime of General Sani Abacha, hardline predecessor to the current
military chief General Abubakar Abdulsalami, over its human rights
record and military rule.
Anyaoku said Botswanan former president Ketumile Masire would
lead a high-level Commonwealth mission to Nigeria next month to
monitor the legislative and presidential elections.
@ HEATH-GAUTENG
JOHANNESBURG January 11 1999 Sapa
GAUTENG ADMINISTRATION DENIES MALADMINISTATION CHARGES
Gauteng premier Mathole Motshekga and his director-general
Lulamile Mbete have dismissed all allegations of maladministration
and corruption in their office as cheap politicking.
Last week Gauteng Democratic Party leader Peter Leon handed
over documents to the Heath special investigative unit backing the
allegations, which include large scale irregularities in
Motshekga's office, the preence of unnecessary personnel on
overseas trips and the unauthorised use of government vehicles.
Mbete released the documents to the media on Monday, saying
they mostly contained common corridor gossip, some of which had
been distorted.
"Our view is that this is actually a report written by someone
in our office who must be on the payroll of the Democratic Party -
and Mr Leon in particular - to pass on information which he can
use to attack the premier of Gauteng."
Mbete did not know who wrote the report, but said he would be
very interested to find out.
The report claims there was maladministration in the department
because two employees in the department had drinking problems.
Mbete said it was common knowledge that the two staff members
had a problem and they had to be helped to overcome it.
The report also claimed another employee - Joseph Sedumedi -
was suspected of having been involved in fraudulent activity
involving some R30000.
Mbete said an investigation had been implemeted and Sedumedi
had been suspended and subsequently dismissed.
Another staff member who ordered that an invoice be altered to
disguise the fact that R2500 had been spent on alcohol had
resigned.
Mbete said allegations that an employee owed the premier's
office R5000 and had used a vehicle without authorisation dated
back two-and-a-half years, and would be investigated.
He claimed it was possible Leon had written the document
himself.
"Mr Leon will use any tactics, dirty or otherwise to score
political points," he said.
He declined to comment as to whether legal action would be
taken against the DP.
In a statement Motshekga said the Heath commission did not need
his permission to investigate his office.
"I take exception to the attempts being made by some political
parties to divide and divert the attention of the province's
administration from its core business to a spying network," he
said.
He accused Leon and his sources of spreading false and
malicious rumours and of personally attacking his officials.
The Heath commission is to second a team of investigators to
probe the alleged irregularities.
@ BOTSWANA-LESOTHO
GABARONE January 11 1999 Sapa
BOTSWANA'S LESOTHO EFFORT COST 4.2 MILLION PULA
The cost of Botswana's peacekeeping operation in Lesotho was
4.2 million Pula (R5.5 million) by the end of November, a Botswana
Defence Force spokesman said on Monday.
Lieutenant-Colonel Mike Molefe said Botswana would foot the
bill.
There was still no date for the withdrawal of the Botswana
troops, sent to Lesotho as part of the Southern African Development
Community intervention force in last year's post-election
disturbances.
@ APPOINTMENT OF NEW HEADS OF MISSIONS
Issued by: Department of Foreign Affairs
Foreign Minister Alfred Nzo today announced the appointment of
the following new heads of South African diplomatic and consular
missions:
Mrs T E Mazibuko-Skweyiya Ambassador: Paris, France Mrs
Thuthukile Mazibuko-Skweyiya (45) is at present Deputy
Director-General in the Department of Foreign Affairs, responsible
for Asia and the Middle East. She also served as Acting
Director-General during the first six months of 1998, and has had
the additional responsibility of serving as Acting Deputy
Director-General for Europe and the Americas since March 1998. Mrs
Skweyiya holds a Masters Degree in Philosophy (Teaching) from the
Karl Marx University in Leipzig. Her educational background also
includes a Diploma in Trade Unionism from the Fritz-Heckert High
School for Trade Unions in the former East Berlin and a three month
course on Practical Management Methods at the Industrial Society in
London. She applied these skills by successfully organising
workshops for South African women in Lusaka on personal skills in
communication, problem solving techniques and career planning.
During this period Mrs Skweyiya worked for the South African
Congress of Trade Unions in Dar-es-Salaam and was elected
chairperson of the ANC Women Students Union in East Germany. Since
1990 Mrs Skweyiya served in various leadership positions in the ANC
Women's League in the Natal area. She was also involved with student
affairs at the University of Natal and served as Coordinator for the
South African Advanced Education Project.
Ms S V M Sisulu Ambassador: Washington, USA Ms Sheila Sisulu
(49) has served South Africa as Consul-General in New York since
1997. She holds a BA degree from the University of Botswana, Lesotho
and Swaziland and a B Ed degree from the University of the
Witwatersrand. Throughout her career Ms Sisulu was particularly
active in the field of education. Over a period of ten years,
between 1978 and 1988, she held various positions in the South
African Committee for Higher Education (SACHED). From 1988 to 1991
Ms Sisulu was the Education Coordinator of the African Bursary Fund
of the South African Council of Churches, assisting member churches
and organisations to develop a critical understanding of the issues,
developments and debates in education. She became Director of the
Joint Enrichment Project (JEP) - a Youth Service Organisation - in
1991, a position she held until 1994. Ms Sisulu's wide-ranging
experience in the educational field culminated in her appointment as
Special Advisor to the Minister of Education in 1994.
Mr J K N Mamabolo Ambassador: OAU, Addis Ababa Mr Kingsley
Mamabolo (43) joined the Department of Foreign Affairs in 1994 and
is currently serving as South Africa's High Commissioner in Harare.
Mr Mamabolo holds a diploma in Sociology from the University in
Moscow and a diploma in Journalism from the Polytechnic in Harare.
He attended courses in International Relations and Diplomacy in
France, Belgium, the UK, Norway, Germany and South Africa. Mr
Mamabolo was Deputy ANC Representative in Tanzania and Zimbabwe, and
later Chief ANC Representative in Mozambique, Cuba and Zimbabwe. He
was a regular member of the ANC delegation to OAU Conferences in
Dar-es-Salaam and a member of the ANC delegation led by the late Mr
Oliver Thambo to the Children's Conference in Harare and the
Non-aligned Meeting held in that country. His international
experience also includes representing the ANC at FAO Conferences in
Rome on numerous occasions.
Mr S G Nene Permanent Representative:
UN Mission, Geneva, Switzerland
Mr George Nene (50) will be completing a four year term as South
Africa's first High Commissioner to Nigeria before taking up his new
post in Geneva. His tertiary education includes studies in education
at the University of Zululand, as well as courses in International
Relations and Diplomacy in France, Belgium, the UK, Norway, Germany
and South Africa. While serving the ANC abroad, he was an instructor
in politics, journalism and education. Before joining the Department
of Foreign Affairs in 1994, Mr Nene served as Chief ANC
Representative in Nigeria, in which capacity he was also accredited
to Benin, Togo and Ghana.
Mr L L A Mnguni High Commissioner: Port Louis,
Mauritius
Mr Louis Mnguni (44) became a member of the National Assembly in
1994 where he has served on the Portfolio Committees of Foreign
Affairs, Education and the Reconstruction and Development Programme
(RDP) and was an alternate member of the Safety and Security
Portfolio Committee. Mr Mnguni holds a BA Hons degree (Philosophy)
from the University of the North where he also lectured in the
Department of Philosophy until 1994. He obtained a Masters Degree
from Glasgow University and completed a New School University
Foreign Officials Course. Mr Mnguni was President of the United
Democratic Front Northern Transvaal as well as a member of the UDF
National Executive between 1986 and 1991. He also served as
Secretary to the Black Staff Association of the University of the
North and Branch Executive member of UDUSA-Unin. He was the Northern
Transvaal Coordinator for the African Scholarship Programme between
1990 and 1991 and ANC PEC member for Northern Province between 1992
and 1994. During 1993 and 1994 he was ANC overall elections
coordinator for Northern Province.
Mr Y Saloojee Ambassador: Abu Dhabi, UAE Mr Yusuf Saloojee (54)
took up his post as South African Ambassador in Abu Dhabi at the end
of 1998.
He was ANC Chief Representative to Canada between 1977 and 1989,
after which he served at the ANC Head Quarters in Lusaka until
September 1990. Between 1990 and 1994 he was ANC Head of
Administration, and Secretary for International Affairs between
September 1994 and September 1997. During his active political
career, he attended many major conferences and liaised with
political parties of many countries. Mr Saloojee's educational
background includes various courses at the Johannesburg Training
Institute for Indian Teachers, the University of Zambia and the
Ontario Department of Education.
Consular appointments:
Ms Thami Ngwevela : Consul-General, New York
Mr Rapu Molekane Consul-General, Munich, Germany
ISSUED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
PRETORIA
11 JANUARY 1999
@ TRC DECISION ON GIDEON JOHANNES NIEWOUDT
Issued by: Truth and Reconciliation Commission
In the application of:
GIDEON JOHANNES NIEWOUDT
(Heard in Cape Town on 30 March 1998)
D E C I S I 0 N
The applicant applies for amnesty for the killing of Mr Steven
Bantu Biko and for assaulting Mr Peter Jones during the general
period at which time Mr Biko died. He is one of five persons who
make the application for the same events but the applicant's
application is a separate one.
The death of Mr Biko and the assault on Mr Jones has regularly
been in focus for more than twenty years and been the subject of
various enquiries. Generally, it seems whoever testified at these
forums, submitted versions that are not too different from the
version tendered by the applicant.
In short, he stated that Mr Biko and Mr Jones were arrested near
Grahamstown in the Eastern Cape. They were taken to the local police
cells where they were held for a while. It is common cause that
neither of them were in any way injured at the time. Their
conditions remained the same and they were both, though separately,
transferred to Port Elizabeth and into the direct custody of the
then Security Branch of the South African Police to which the
applicant was attached.
He said that he was part of a team that interrogated the two
detainees separately. The interrogation of Mr Biko continued for
between twenty four to forty eight hours. At some stage during the
interrogation Mr Biko sustained some injuries, the most important
thereof being to the brain.
Amongst the other injuries observed during the post mortem
examinations were extensive but minor bruises and abrasions. There
were two distinct scabs on the upper lip, two localised bruises on
the rib cage, tramline scars to the left buttock, and bruising to
the region of the left eye. There were also a number of lesions
found on the brain.
While there was no direct medical evidence at this hearing, the
reports of some pathologists or experts with equivalent
qualifications were placed before us. The authors of reports were
persons who had examined the body of Mr Biko. We will have regard
for the general import of the report especially in respect of
aspects upon which there was general agreement amongst them. We will
furthermore have only general regard for the applications and
evidence of the other applicants who have made applications for
amnesty in respect of the same incidents.
According to the applicant, at some stage during the
"interrogation", Mr Biko had a violent outburst and directed this at
his interrogators. As a result Mr Biko was taken hold of in
self-defence and in the ensuing struggle which has been termed a
"scuffle", Mr Biko's head struck one of the walls, sustaining the
head injury which he suspects lead to his eventual death. He said
that initially, upon Mr Biko's outburst, he hit him with a hosepipe
in an attempt to compel some restraint but this did not help. He
then assisted his colleagues in grabbing hold of Mr Biko after which
they all fell in the direction of the wall against which Mr Biko
struck his head. Mr Biko then fell onto the floor. It seems Mr Biko
was rendered unconscious or almost unconscious as a result. There
are variations in the versions as testified to by the applicant and
the versions of the others who also made applications in respect of
the same incidents. However, we do not find it necessary to have
much regard for these differences.
The applicant testified that thereafter, he assisted in
handcuffing, into a crucifix position, a very near unconscious (if
not completely) Mr Biko to the iron grille in that room. It is
common cause that Mr Biko was later transported to Pretoria for the
purposes of receiving medical attention at some state institution
where he was declared dead on arrival or died soon after arrival. It
is not clear as to why Mr Biko could not or did not receive medical
treatment at Port Elizabeth when it seems that this was the most
appropriate action to have been taken.
In the case of Mr Biko, charges, if anything, against those who
caused his death would be limited to murder or any competent verdict
arising therefrom.
The applicant also admits to assaulting Mr Jones. He testified
to assaulting him a number of times by means of the piece of
hosepipe while the two of them were alone after the rest of the
interrogating team had left the room for reasons which are not
really clear. This was after about eighteen hours of interrogation
which did not produce any significant information. He hit him a few
times after which and as a result of which a full statement was
written out by the detainee.
On the other hand Mr Jones rendered a substantially different
version of the events related to the assault on him. He said that
from the time while he was first in custody at the Walmer Police
Station, he suffered from assaults by his interrogators including
the applicant. He says that he was not assaulted in the mariner
described by the Applicant.
Clearly the activities of the applicant and his colleagues were
not the result of orders, direct or otherwise, but occurred during
interrogation completed within the course and scope of their
employment. In the case of both the late Mr Biko and Mr Jones, the
applicant suggests that the interrogation was necessary because not
much was known of the two detainees save that they were opponents of
Apartheid. More information was needed from them especially about
the authorship of a particular pamphlet which the applicant and his
colleagues found offensive. In addition, it seems, information was
also required because of a need for evidence so that contemplated
prosecution of the detainees could be processed.
Essentially the material actions of the applicant and his
colleagues was a defensive mechanism.
Section 20 of the Promotion of National Unity and Reconciliation
Act No 34 of 1995 as amended (hereinafter referred to as 'the Act')
provides for the granting of amnesty. It deals with issues relating
to persons who are able to qualify for amnesty and under which
circumstances' amnesty must be granted.
For the purposes of this application, the relevant provisions of
section 20 of the Act are the following:-
(a) "the act, omission or offence to which the application
relates is an act associated with a political objective committed in
the course of the conflicts of the past in accordance with the
provisions of subsections. (2) and (3) of section 20; and
(b) the applicant must make a full disclosure of all relevant
facts".
in relation to (a) above, subsection 20 (2) (b) thereof has
relevance and reads as follows:
"any employee of the State or any former state or any member of the
Security Forces of the State or any former state in the course and
scope of his or her duties and within the scope of his or her
express or implied authority directed against a publically known
political organisation or liberation movement engaged in a political
struggle against the State or a former State or against any members
or supporters of such organisation ored bona fide with the object of
countering or otherwise resisting the said struggle".
Furthermore, subsection 20 (3) deals with criteria as a means of
establishing whether the act, omission or offence is one which is
contemplated in subsection 20 (2). These are a number of crucial
considerations which fall to be decided in this particular
application.
The nature of the Act demands a direct relationship between the
offence, the result of the act and the political motive for it. The
death of Mr Biko was, on the applicant's version, not intentional
nor could it have been foreseen. Therefore it was not a consequence
that ought to have been foreseen. As a result, at least the criminal
liability of the applicant must be doubted, Furthermore, the
requirement of political motivation carries with it the implicit (at
least) component of direct intention to commit an unlawful act in
order to counter political opposition and to achieve or contribute
towards achieving that kind of result. Here again Mr Biko's death
did not occur as a result of achieving or contributing towards
countering political opposition. Indeed it is not clear whether the
applicant knew if the two detainees were members or supported any
political party involved in opposing apartheid. Nor did the
applicant or his colleagues know whether Mr Biko and/or Mr Jones
were connected to a political party which caused so much political
discomfort to the government of the time. Therefore the acts
admitted by the applicant cannot be regarded as having been
necessary to achieve or contributed to achieving the destruction of
any opposition.
The nature of the applicant's explanation of the events does not
lend itself to the finding that he and or his colleagues had
reasonable grounds to believe that their actions were related to
destroying political opposition, in any way. On his own version, the
actions which lead to Mr Biko's death were intended to control him
and to defend the interrogators. This was their only objective and
the material actions related solely to police duties which were
expected in the circumstances and not to any political objective.
The actions which led to the death of Mr Biko are far too remote and
distinct from any political motive.
While it is also peremptory that the applicant should have made
full disclosure of all the relevant facts pertaining to the
activities for which amnesty is sought, in view of our findings, we
do not deem it necessary to deal with the question of full
disclosure.
As for the application relating to an assault on Mr Jones it is, to our
mind, clear that two independent assaults and distinct are being referred
to.
Mr Jones refers to an assault (s) on his person committed by the
applicant and his colleagues during the course of his detention,
while the applicant refers to an assault committed when Mr Jones was
in the applicants' company only. Mr Jones does not refer to this and
the applicant does not make application in respect of the assault
referred to by Mr Jones.
In the circumstances it seems to us that we are cabled upon to
decide on the application in respect of the assault referred to by
the applicant.
We make no finding on the alleged assault referred to by Mr
Jones because no application was made in respect thereof. It is
clear that Mr Jones was arrested for what was essentially political
reasons and the assault was effected in order to obtain information
which was intended to lead to punishment in the form of imprisonment
of a political opponent. The assault was committed to facilitate the
eventual imprisonment.
While there is no evidence to confirm the said assault we find
it strange that the applicant would admit to a non-existent assault.
It is possible that after such a long period and the fact that Mr
Jones was interrogated for long periods and assaulted on various
occasions during his detentions that the assault referred to by the
applicant may have occurred but was not significant by comparison to
the other assaults for it to have been the subject matter of a
mental note that Mr Jones could have made. Without casting any doubt
on the integrity of Mr Jones, we prefer to give the applicant the
benefit of any doubt in this regard and it seems that the
application for the assault as referred to by the applicant, on Mr
Jones should be granted.
In the result and for the reasons as set out above, we are not
satisfied that the application in respect of the death of Mr Biko
complies with the Act and consequently the application is refused.
In respect of the assault on Mr Jones, and for which the applicant
seeks amnesty, the application is granted.
Dated at Cape Town this 14 day of December 1998.
JUDGE R. PILLAY
@ MEDIA SHOULD NOT PLAY ROLE OF OPPOSITION EC
GRAHAMSTOWN (ECN) - The media have been slammed by the ANC for
appointing themselves as the official opposition because of their
belief that the organisation is to strong.
ANC provincial Eastern Cape spokesman Mcebisi Bata climbed into the
media during an interview on Friday discussing the upcoming
elections and the United Democratic Movement (UDM).
He said: "Quite clearly the media has taken it upon themselves that
the ANC is to strong so it is playing the role of official
opposition itself."
Bata cited newspaper editorials which he said told people that the
ANC should be prevented from obtaining a two thirds majority as an
example of the way in which the media had overstepped the boundaries
of objectivity.
He said: "We are not saying that the media should not be critical,
just that they should not be telling people what to do."
Bata said the UDM received attention which was "out of proportion"
to their size.
"It is a few individuals who are quite vocal because the media want
to take everything that is against the ANC."
Bata said the ANC election strategy would focus on telling people to
renew the 86 percent mandate given to the organisation in 1994 so
the organisation could continue with the work it had begun.
He said the ANC aimed to get back their 86 percent majority and
improve on it. - ECN Mon 11/1/99
@ HEATH-LD-GAUTENG
JOHANNESBURG January 11 1999 Sapa
MBETE EFFECTIVELY CONFIRMS MALADMINISTRATION ALLEGATIONS
Gauteng director-general Lulamile Mbete has effectively
confirmed that a number of allegations of maladministration and
corruption in the office of provincial premier Mathole Motshekga
are true.
Mbete on Monday called a press conference to dismiss all
allegations of mismanagement contained in a report referred to the
Heath special investigative unit by Gauteng Democratic Party leader
Peter Leon,
Mbete released the report to the media saying it mostly
contained common corridor gossip, some of which had been distorted.
However he disclosed that:
- Two officials in the office had serious drinking problems.
- Another official suspected of having been involved in
fraudulent activity involving about R30,000 had been suspended and
subsequently dismissed.
- A staff member who ordered that an invoice be altered to
disguise the fact that R2500 had been spent on alcohol had
resigned.
- An investigation would be mounted into allegations that an
employee owed the premier's office R5000 and had used a vehicle
without authorisation.
All instances are dealt with in the report referred to the
Heath commission yet incredibly Mbete still claims the entire
report is false.
"Our view is that this is actually a report written by someone
in our office who must be on the payroll of the Democratic Party -
and Mr Leon in particular - to pass on information which he can
use to attack the premier of Gauteng."
Mbete did not know who wrote the report, but said he would be
very interested to find out.
He claimed it was possible Leon had written the document
himself.
"Mr Leon will use any tactics, dirty or otherwise to score
political points," he said.
He declined to comment as to whether legal action would be
taken against the DP.
In a statement Motshekga said the Heath commission did not need
his permission to investigate his office.
"I take exception to the attempts being made by some political
parties to divide and divert the attention of the province's
administration from its core business to a spying network," he
said.
He accused Leon and his sources of spreading false and
malicious rumours and of personally attacking his officials.
In his reaction, Leon said Mbete had largely vindicated his
decision to refer the matter to the Heath commission.
He said Mbete had defamed members of his own staff by naming
those accused of maladministration, something the DP had never
done.
"It is unbelievable that Mbete claims he is committed to
efficient government while two alcoholics are still allowed to
continue working in his office," Leon said.
He said he did not know who sent him the report saying Mbete's
claims that the author was on his payroll amounted to defamation.
Leon said further documents had been leaked to him dealing with
problems in Gauteng's safety and security department, which he
would release this week.
He claimed Motshekga had refused to answer his questions about
an overseas trip to Malaysia, which had cost R60000.
Heath Commission spokesman Guy Rich said the Gauteng
investigation had not yet commenced.
Investigators would meet with Motshekga on January 19 to
establish a working relationship and lines of communication, he
said.
@ EDUC-TEXTBOOKS
JOHANNESBURG January 11 1999 Sapa
ALL GAUTENG SCHOOLS TO HAVE BOOKS BY END OF JANUARY: METCALFE
Gauteng school pupils, who return to school on Tuesday, can
expect to have all their school books and stationery delivered by
the end of the month, Gauteng education MEC Mary Metcalfe said on
Monday.
Metcalfe said many schools had already received material and
all schools in the province would have textbooks and stationery by
the end of January.
"Despite the complexity of the task, we believe the process is
on track," Metcalfe said.
She said the school book situation had greatly improved as this
year's budget for stationery and textbooks - R86 million - was
almost four times that of last year's.
Stationery deliveries began in October last year and textbook
deliveries started in December. More would be made this week, she
said.
"Principals and school management teams are required to ensure
effective management of textbooks at school level."
Metcalfe also appealed to pupils to take care of the books to
ensure that they were available to future pupils.
"We are expecting the books to stay in schools," she said.
@ COURT-VILJOEN
VRYBURG, North-West January 11 1999 Sapa
POLICE OFFICER IN VRYBURG COURT FOR ASSAULTING POLICE OFFICER
A police inspector at the Vryburg crime investigation service
in North-West has appeared in the town's magistrate's court in
connection with assaulting a police sergeant arrested for theft of
firearms.
Police spokesman Patrick Asaneng on Monday said Inspector PAV
Viljoen was out on R1000 bail and would appear in court again on
February 15. He faced charges of assault with intent to do grievous
bodily harm.
The State alleges Viljoen, who was assigned to investigate the
theft, booked the sergeant out from the holding cells for further
investigation and allegedly assaulted him.
The sergeant, who had been implicated in the theft of weapons
at the Piet Plessis police station, was hospitalised following the
alleged assault.
@ NZO-AMBASSADORS
PRETORIA January 11 1999 Sapa
NZO APPOINTS SHEILA SISULU AS AMBASSADOR TO THE US
Sheila Sisulu has been appointed South African ambassador to the United
States, Foreign Affairs Minister Alfred Nzo announced on Monday.
Other newly appointed heads of diplomatic missions included Thuthukile
Mazibuko-Skweyiya as ambassador to France and Kingsley Mamabolo as
ambassador to the Organisation of African Unity, Nzo said in a statement in
Pretoria.
George Nene would become South Africa's permanent representative to the
United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, Louis Mnguni would be high
commissioner to Mauritius, and Yusuf Saloojee ambassador to the United Arab
Emirates.
Sisulu, 49, has been serving as South African consul-general in New York
since 1997. She holds a BA degree from the University of Botswana, Lesotho
and Swaziland, as well as B Ed degree from the University of Witwatersrand.
She held several positions in the SA Committee for Higher Education, and
was special adviser to Education Minister Sibusiso Bengu before joining the
Department of Foreign Affairs.
Mazibuku-Skweyiya, 45, deputy director-general in the Department of
Foreign Affairs, has a Masters degree in philosophy from the Karl Marx
University in Leipzig.
In the 1980s she was chairwoman of the African National Congress Women
Students Union in East Germany, and was elected to several leadership
positions in the ANC Women's League in Natal since 1990.
Mamabolo, 43, at present South African High Commissioner to Zimbabwe,
joined the Department of Foreign Affairs in 1994.
He obtained a diploma in sociology from the University of Moscow and a
diploma in journalism from the Polytechnic in Harare, Zimbabwe.
Before being appointed chief ANC representative in Mozambique, he
attended courses in international relations and diplomacy in several
European countries.
Nene, 50, at present high commissioner to Nigeria, studied education at
the University of Zululand, and joined the Department of Foreign Affairs in
1994.
He formerly served as chief ANC representative in Nigeria.
Mnguni, 44, became an ANC MP in 1994, and has served on two portfolio
committees. He holds a Masters degree in philosophy from Glasgow University
and was a lecturer at the University of the North until 1994.
During 1993 and 1994 he was the ANC's elections co-ordinator for the
Northern Province.
Saloojee, 54, was the chief ANC representative in Canada until 1989, and
was the party's secretary for international affairs from 1994 until 1997.
Nzo also announced two new consular appointments - that of Thami
Ngwevela as consul-general in New York and of Rapu Molekane as
consul-general in Munich, Germany.
@ NAMIBIA-CAPRIVI
PRETORIA January 11 1999 Sapa-AFP
NAMIBIAN FORCES ROOTING OUT SECESSIONISTS: REFUGEES
Namibian refugees claim security forces in the country's
Caprivi strip are pursuing operations against a secessionist
movement, a representative of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees
(UNHCR) said Monday.
Some 2,000 Namibians have fled the Caprivi strip to
neighbouring Botswana complaining of brutal intimidation and
interrogation by government forces, the UNHCR's Mengesha Kebeda
told AFP in South Africa after meeting refugees at Dukwe camp in
Botswana.
The Namibians, most of whom have nothing to do with the
secessionist movement, have crossed into Botswana since October
seeking political asylum and protection from the security forces.
Windhoek claims to have discovered a "terrorist" plot in the
marshy northeastern Caprivi corridor, bordered by Angola, Zambia
and Botswana.
Unconfirmed reports say the government has sent about 1,500
soldiers to the area to root out the plot.
Last week Namibian Prime Minister Hage Geingob accused Angola's
National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) rebel
movement, led by Jonas Savimbi, of supplying arms to secessionists
in Caprivi.
The leaders of the secessionist group are under police guard in
Botswana's capital Gaborone waiting for the government to decide on
their political status.
Despite the efforts of the Namibian and Botswanan governments
to encourage them to return home, the refugees fear reprisals by
authorities in their home country and have gathered at the northern
Dukwe refugee camp.
Kebeda said the United Nations was concerned that the situation
was becoming more tense as it appeared Namibian troops were being
deployed along the border with Botswana to stop any further
crossings.
Relations between Namibia and Botswana have deteriorated in the
past year as both countries claim ownership of three small
uninhabited islands in the Linyati River, which forms the boundary
between Caprivi and Botswana.
The dispute will be heard next month by the International Court
of Justice in The Hague.
@ EDUC-TEACHERS
JOHANNESBURG January 11 1999 Sapa
GAUTENG SCHOOLS TO SHED 2800 POSTS
The Gauteng education department on Monday announced that it
would shed 2800 posts - resulting in an estimated 1500 permanent
and temporary teachers leaving the system.
Colette Clark, acting director of labour relations at the
Gauteng education department, said an as yet unkown number of
permanent teachers would receive letters on Tuesday informing they
had been declared "in excess".
These teachers would join 3665 temporary teachers in competing
for 4960 new posts created when the national agreement on
rightsizing and redeployment is implemented at the end of March.
The contracts of temporary teachers would expire at the end of
March, Clark said.
Clark said district education offices would have the names of
all teachers declared in excess by Friday and would then announce
the number who would have to reapply for new posts.
"By Friday we should have more accurate figures," she said.
Clark said permanent teachers would be given priority over
temporary teachers in filling the new posts.
Those permanent teachers who were unsuccessful would have to
take retrenchment packages, Clark said.
Gauteng education MEC Mary Metcalfe said the 4960 vacancies had
been advertised and the department hoped to finalise the
appointments by the end of March.
"We are delighted that this protracted period of achieving
equity through redeployment and rightsizing will soon draw to a
close," she said.
Turning to teacher discipline, Metcalfe said the South African
Council of Education had nearly completed its task of registering
all teachers and this would allow the department to act decisively
in cases of misconduct.
"The SACE will have the power to discipline teachers by
withdrawing their professional registration thus preventing them
from ever occupying a teaching position."
Metcalfe said 128 teachers were last year charged with
misconduct and 93 were found guilty of a variety of offences
including fraud, theft, sexual abuse, gross insubordination,
indolence, negligence, drunkenness and absenteeism.
"Teachers who believe that they can indulge in such practices
with impunity are warned that we are in the process of
strengthening our capacity to deal with such unacceptable
behaviour."
Metcalfe said most of these teachers were dismissed.
@ POLICE-WCAPE
CAPE TOWN January 11 1999 Sapa
WESTERN CAPE POLICE COMMAND STRUCTURE STILL IN CONTROL
The Western Cape command structure of the police would not be
replaced by senior officers from head office in Pretoria.
Police spokeswoman Senior Superintendent Sally de Beer said
various confusing statements concerning policing in the Western
Cape were carried in the media during the past two days.
As a result an erroneous perception was created that the
command structure of the Western Cape would be replaced by senior
officers from Pretoria head office.
She said national police commissioner George Fivaz and senior
management were reassessing the entire capacity and structure of
the Western Cape police to deal specifically with urban terrorism
and related violent crimes and unrest.
"It has been decided that a combined structure comprising
national and provincial resources has to be established to improve
effectiveness of the operational, intelligence and investigative
ability of the SAPS in that regard. Obviously the approach will
result in day to day involvement, management and monitoring by the
office of the national commissioner in conjunction with the
provicial commissioner."
Deputy national commissioner Mike Bester nd divisional
commissioners Andre Pruis and Manie Schoeman were assisting Fivaz.
De Beer said the provincial policing structure in the Western
Cape was still responsible for safety and security.
@ ALIENS
PRETORIA January 11 1999 Sapa
SA DENIES DUMPING ILLEGAL AFRICAN ALIENS IN MOZAMBIQUE
South Africa on Monday denied dumping all illegal African
aliens into Mozambique, saying set procedures were being followed
to prevent that from happening.
These procedures were approved by Mozambique, the Department of
Home Affairs said in a statement.
They required Mozambican immigration officials to make sure
that aliens deported from South Africa were Mozambican nationals
before being accepted.
"If the Mozambican officials determine that the alien is not
Mozambican, the alien is returned to the South African officials,"
the department said.
"It is clear that a large number of nationals from other
countries are not being dumped in Mozambique from South Africa."
Mozambican police commander in the border town of Ressano
Garcia, Simao Jonasse, was last week quoted as saying: "The South
Africans continue to deport into our country individuals of various
nationalities."
The department on Monday said South African and Mozambican
officials held regular talks on migration issues.
"If there is or was indeed a problem, the matter would be
discussed at such a forum," the statement said.
@ ANGOLA-HUNGER
LUANDA January 11 1999 Sapa-DPA
DIRE CONSEQUENCES SEEN FOR ANGOLA AFTER U.N. HALTS RELIEF FLIGHTS
U.N. World Food Programme (WFP) officials warned
Monday that hundreds of thousands of Angolan civilians could face
starvation and death following a shortage of supplies after the
suspension of U.N. relief flights in the war-torn country.
All U.N. aircraft have been grounded throughout Angola since
December 30 pending the outcome of investigations into two recent
fatal air crashes involving U.N. employees.
Two U.N-chartered Hercules C130 aircraft carrying a total of 23
people, all of whom are now presumed dead, were shot down during the
course of U.N. humanitarian missions in the central part of the
country in the past three weeks.
The grounding of U.N. planes has raised fears that hundreds of
thousands of people could starve and there were likely to be further
fatalities among Angolans wounded in the country's ongoing civil war.
Some areas and cities in the south-west African country have WFP
supplies of food, antibiotics and other medical material for only
five more days, sources said.
The WFP have been distributing emergency food rations and medical
supplies to hundreds of thousands of people fleeing their homes in
the wake of renewed and fierce fighting following 30 years of war to
the north-east of the capital Luanda and central Angola.
Until two weeks ago, the WFP undertook some 20 weekly flights
providing 350 tonnes of emergency food on each mission.
Humanitarian workers have expressed their surprise at the extent
to which Angolan civilians are prepared to go in order to help family
and friends.
Some families in Luanda and other safer cities were accommodating
and feeding an additional 12 to 15 refugee relatives from war-ravaged
parts of the country, a Roman Catholic priest and humanitarian worker
told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.
@ COURT-BARCODE
CAPE TOWN January 11 1999 Sapa
BARCODE BACKLOG `HALF A MILLION'
The home affairs department's backlog for the issuing of
barcoded identity documents had grown to over half a million by
mid-December last year, demographer Prof Jan Sadie said in an
affidavit to the Cape High Court on Monday.
His statement was handed in as a replying affidavit in the
latest round of the New National Party's battle to overturn the
Electoral Act requirement that voters need barcoded IDs to register
for the upcoming general election.
Sadie said the backlog had increased from 94294 at the end of
January 1997 to 460012 at the end of November.
He said he had also established that between November 30 and
December 18, 280752 applications were received and 233499 dealt
with.
If this difference of 47253 was added to the cumulative total,
it meant the backlog had grown to more than 500000.
The case - in which the NNP has cited the government and
senior Independent Electoral Commission officials as respondents -
will be heard on February 5.
The IEC said last week it would not oppose the application.
@ PAGAD-REAX
CAPE TOWN January 11 1999 Sapa
PAGAD LEADERSHIP MUST ACT RESPONSIBLY
The New National Party on Monday called on the leadership of
People against Gangsterism and Drugs to act responsibly and not to
threaten the lives of innocent people.
Commenting on Friday's illegal gathering in Cape Town and
clashes with the police, NNP media director Juli Kilian said it was
unacceptable that innocent people were continuously being drawn
into the violence and conflict.
The NNP called on the police to act decisively "so as to once
and for all put an end to the radicalism that is taking root in
certain parts of the country, particularly the Western Cape."
The ANC's Western Cape secretary-general, Mcebisi Skwatsha,
said the actions and threats by Pagad, Muslims against Illegitimate
Leaders and Muslims against Global Oppression were totally
unacceptable.
"Their behaviour and complete contempt and disrepect for life
and civilian order are becoming untenable. Sooner or later it could
lead to a backlash by members of the public," Skwatsha said.
He said more and more people, also from the Muslim community,
were getting fed-up with being held to ransom by pipe bombs at
their workplaces, intimidation and illegal marches and
demonstrations.
@ TANZANIA-CHINA
DAR ES SALAAM, January 11 1999 Sapa-AFP
TANZANIA, CHINA SIGN FIVE COOPERATION AGREEMENTS
Tanzania and China on Monday signed five agreements on economic
and cultural cooperation, including provision of grants totalling
2.6 million dollars to the east African country.
The agreements were signed shortly after talks between visiting
Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan and his Tanzanian counterpart
Jakaya Kikwete.
"We had long and friendly talks which were vary fruitful,"
Kikwete told a news conference after the talks.
Kikwete said the Chinese government had agreed to give Tanzania
100,000 dollars as food aid and 2.5 million dollars to rehabilitate
water supply for the country's designated capital, Dodoma in
central Tanzania.
Other agreements were related to the upgrading of the Chinese
consulate in Zanzibar to the level of consul-general, supply of
office equipment to the Tanzanian foreign ministry and cultural
co-operation.
Kikwete said that the delegates also discussed the need to
increase trade between China and Tanzania, particularly raising
Tanzania's exports to China.
Tang told the news conference that "Tanzania is selling very
little to China. The market is there .. it is open for you."
Kikwete also said that the Chinese minister has pledged to
appeal to more Chinese businessmen to invest in Tanzania,
particularly to participate in privatised state firms that were
established through the assistance of the Chinese government.
Kikwete said many state firms established through Chinese
government support were now doing badly.
Tang who arrived in Dar es Salaam on Sunday is scheduled to
meet Tanzanian President Benjamin Mkapa later on Monday and leaves
on Tuesday for Zimbabwe, the next stop on a five-nation African
tour that will also take him to Egypt.
@ ANGOLA-UNITA
LUANDA January 11 1999 Sapa-AFP
HUNDREDS OF UNITA DISSIDENTS HOLD CONGRESS IN LUANDA
Some 700 members of Angola's UNITA movement opened a congress
here on Monday to elect a new chairman in place of Jonas Savimbi,
whose hardline militarism split the group in September.
Angola late last year plunged back into all-out civil war
between UNITA rebels, who long fought the formerly Marxist regime
after independence in 1975, and government troops, in spite of
peace accords signed in 1994.
The National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA)
now effectively comprises two opposed factions, one supporting
Savimbi's rejection of the peace accords, the other aligned with
the Luanda government and its determination to crush the continuing
insurrection.
UNITA dissident leader Jorge Valentim, Savimbi's erstwhile
spokesman, and former secretary general Eugenio Manuvakola have put
themselves forward as candidates for the leadership.
A secret ballot is scheduled for Wednesday.
The congress was called to "end the murderous doctrine of
obsession with guns and replace it by a policy of freedom and open
debate."
UNITA formally split on September 2, when some members said in
a statement that they had had enough of the "incoherent politics of
Doctor Jonas Savimbi, engaged in a bloody and dramatic adventure,"
according to Valentim.
Later that month, Luanda recognised the dissidents as the
government's "only partner" in the peace process and broke off
dialogue with Savimbi himself in early October.
Congress delegates want to make sure the UNITA dissidents
retain positions in the organs of state, including the National
Government of Unity and Reconciliation, which emerged from the
peace accords signed in the Zambian capital Lusaka in 1994.
Also high on the agenda is the establishment of conditions for
general elections.
According to Valentim, the dissidents also want to see people
from UNITA controlled areas, especially demobilised rebel fighters,
integrated into state institutions and companies.
The breakaway group seems to have failed, however, in its
efforts to bring about the mass defection of UNITA fighters.
Only 15 of UNITA's 70 parliamentary deputies showed up to the
congress. Notable among the absentees was Abel Chivukuvuku, once an
advisor of Savimbi's, now in Europe having refused to join the
dissidents.
Some 65 percent of those who were attending were women. There
were no representatives of the Kwanza-Norte, Majanje and Huambo,
provinces where fierce fighting is taking place between government
troops and UNITA fighters.
Fighting escalated mid-November, when both sides declared their
refusal to put up with aggression of the other.
As a result the UN has suspended its operations, pulling its
observers from areas of conflict after two planes it had chartered
crashed in the central Huambo area late December and early January.
Savimbi created UNITA in 1966, when Angola was still a
Portuguese colony. In 1975, it rebelled against the Marxist
government of Luanda.
@ HEATH-N/L-GAUTENG
JOHANNESBURG January 11 1999 Sapa
MBETE'S ADMISSIONS STRENGTHEN INCOMPETENCE CLAIMS: DP
Official confirmation of several incidents of fraud and
maladministration in the office of provincial premier Mathole
Motshekga strengthened the Democratic Party's assertions that
neither Gauteng director-general Lulamile Mbete nor Motshekga were
able to run the office, the DP said on Monday.
Gauteng DP leader Peter Leon said the fact that two senior
officials had drinking problems - as admitted by Mbete at a press
conference on Monday - and were allowed to continue in their
positions for a year demonstrated a complete lack of management in
the premier's office.
Mbete also disclosed at the press conference that an official
suspected of fraud involving about R300,000 had been dismissed, an
employee who had altered an invoice to disguise a R2500 alcohol
purchase had resigned, and that allegations of an employee owing
the premier's office R5000 and using a vehicle without
authorisation would be investigated.
Leon said in a statement that the failure of the employee to
repay the R5000 spent on personal purchases after three years
provided further proof of maladminstration in Motshekga's office.
The alleged fraud of about R300,000 only came to light in the
wake of allegations contained in a report which Leon received and
referred to the Heath special investigative unit.
"As it is obvious that neither Motshekga nor Mbete has the will
or ability to deal with these matters effectively, I shall be
referring these matters to the National Public Service Commission
to conduct a thorough investigation into the office of the Gauteng
premier," Leon said.
Mbete strongly denied on Monday that he had admitted to
corruption in the premier's office.
"A couple of people have been caught with their hand in the
till and they have been dealt with most severely, but that doesn't
mean that the (whole) department is corrupt," he told Sapa.
Mbete said in a statement that the problems in the premier's
office were not a reflection on Motshekga's abilities as a leader.
Most of the problems outlined in the report - allegedly
written by a staff member in the premier's office - had been dealt
with, while the others had proved non-existent, he said.
Heath Commission spokesman Guy Rich said the Gauteng
investigation had not yet commenced.
Investigators would meet Motshekga on January 19 to establish a
working relationship and lines of communication, he said.
In a statement Motshekga said the Heath commission did not need
his permission to investigate his office.
"I take exception to the attempts being made by some political
parties to divide and divert the attention of the province's
administration from its core business to a spying network," he
said.
He accused Leon and his sources of spreading false and
malicious rumours and of personally attacking his officials.
At the press conference, Mbete claimed that the report must
have been written by someone who was on the payroll of the DP to
pass on information which Leon could use to attack Motshekga.
He said it was possible that Leon, who claimed he did not know
who had sent him the report, had written the document himself.
Leon said further documents had been leaked to him dealing with
problems in Gauteng's safety and security department, which he
would release this week.
The admission by the Gauteng director-general that there were
serious irregularities in the office of the provincial premier was
cause for grave concern, the New National Party said on Monday.
"The NNP in Gauteng is very concerned about the
maladministration and possible misappropriation of public funds,"
NNP spokesman Wally Labuschagne said in a statement.
Motshekga should call a halt to his diversion strategies and
give the Heath commission carte blanche to investigate all alleged
cases of fraud and corruption in as many departments in Gauteng as
necessary, Labuschagne said.
"Motshekga, a legally qualified person, should know that a
proclamation is necessary before the Heath commission can move
in... the commission needs Motshekga's approval," Labuschagne said.
@ TRUTH-BIKO
JOHANNESBURG January 11 1999 Sapa-AP
POLICE MAY FACE MURDER CHARGES IN KILLING OF STEVE BIKO
A top prosecutor said Monday that policemen who killed
anti-apartheid leader Steve Biko might be tried for murder in a
case that stunned the world and fueled resistance to white rule.
Such a trial would be a landmark event in South Africa, whose
post-apartheid government created a Truth and Reconciliation
Commission to expose apartheid's horrors and to offer amnesty to
those who fully confessed to politically motivated abuses.
Five police officers sought amnesty in the 1977 beating death
of Biko but denied any wrongdoing, testifying that he hit his head
against a wall in a struggle during interrogation.
The Truth Commission announced Monday it denied amnesty to one
of the former policemen, Col. Gideon Nieuwoudt. The decision -
first reported by The Associated Press on Saturday - leaves the
state with the option of charging Nieuwoudt with murder in Biko's
death.
Les Roberts, attorney general for Eastern Cape province where
Biko suffered the fatal beating, told the AP he would wait for the
Truth Commission's rulings on the amnesty applications of the
remaining three former officers before deciding whether to
prosecute. The fifth amnesty applicant, Col. Harold Snyman, died of
cancer last year.
"I don't want to do this piecemeal - I want the whole
picture," Roberts said in a telephone interview.
If all four former officers are denied amnesty - as appeared
likely since their testimony was virtually identical - Roberts said
he might offer leniency to one or more of the men in exchange for
them testifying against the others.
There is no statute of limitations on murder. A person could be
charged with murder even when a killing was not the ultimate goal
of an action - for example a severe beating - but was a foreseeable
possible consequence, according to Roberts.
Truth Commission spokesman Mdu Lembede said he didn't know when
the commission would rule in the remaining amnesty applications.
Biko's son Nkosinathi welcomed the Truth Commission's decision
on Nieuwoudt because it leaves him open to murder charges.
Nkosinathi Biko said he believed the policemen lied about Biko's
death.
"He had bruises all over his body, his rib cage, his left eye
and a number of lesions on the brain," he told the South African
Press Association.
Nieuwoudt was denied amnesty because he and the other officers
did not admit to any crime, noted George Bizos, the Biko family's
attorney.
"If this comes to trial, it would be a most significant
vindication of the amnesty process," Bizos told the AP. "Amnesty
is not there for the asking. There are certain legal requirements:
That you should tell the truth about what happened, where the
orders came from, there shud be full disclosure."
Bizos said he also believed the policemen lied about Biko's
death, saying the injuries were inconsistent with their story.
The officers testified the 30-year-old black consciousness
leader tried to attack one of his interrogators while in custody in
the coastal city of Port Elizabeth. They testified that they
tackled Biko, accidently slamming his head against a wall.
Biko was then taken in a police van, naked and bleeding, on a
750-mile (1,200-kilometer) ride to a prison in Pretoria, where he
died of massive brain injuries on Sept. 12, 1977.
Biko's death sparked an outcry at home and abroad, spurring
activism that eventually contributed to the end of apartheid. It
also inspired the movie "Cry Freedom," with Denzel Washington
portraying Biko, and the song "Biko" by Peter Gabriel.
@ NWEST-IRREGULARITIES
JOHANNESBURG January 11 1999 Sapa
COUNCILLORS ASKED TO RESIGN OVER ALLEGED IRREGULAR INVESTMENT
The North West government on Monday said it has requested the
resignation of four senior councillors of the eastern transitional
district council at Brits for allegedly making an irregular
investment of R20-million.
The investment, allegedly made by the councillors in February
last year without the necessary mandate to do so, resulted in a
loss of R500,000 in interest.
Local government MEC Darkey Africa made the announcement on
Monday following a meeting with the Brits transitional council to
present the findings of a departmental investigation into the
investment.
North West spokesman Leswoeu Seeco told Sapa councillors
Ananias Edward Baloyi (chairman of the infrastructural committee),
Kholisile Dingiswayo (deputy chairman of the executive council),
David Moleti Mfoloe (chairman of the executive council) and Mpho
Poppie Magongwa (chairperson of the eastern council) were given
seven days to submit their resignations.
"It was found that they violated council regulations and they
were given seven days to hand in their letters of resignation,"
Seeco said.
The Brits council invested R20-million from its levy account
with South African Brokers to facilitate the development of loans
for projects.
Africa said in his report information received indicated there
may have been irregularities in the transaction in which the Brits
council lost potential interest which could have accrued had the
money been left with Nedbank.
During a meeting with Africa in April last year, the council
was requested to retrieve the money from South African Brokers. A
departmental investigation was also launched to enquire into the
circumstances surrounding the investment.
The investigation found that Dingiswayo and Baloyi pressurised
two council officials - the director for administration Solomon
Malao and the acting director for finance Mosweu Mokgatsi, to sign
the investment agreement by subjecting the officials to fear and
intimidation.
The two officials were allegedly ordered to study the draft
agreement between the council and the brokers the night before it
was signed.
"Clearly the two officials were not afforded the opportunity to
apply their minds properly to a matter with farreaching
implications to the council," Africa said.
The two officials were not asked to resign.
"It is clear from the evidence gathered that internal
procedures and controls within the eastern district council
administration in relation to financial administration of the
council were totally disregarded," Africa said.
He said Dingiswayo and Baloyi acted on their own without
obtaining a proper mandate from the council.
The investment was also not on the agenda for discussion by the
executive council during a meeting on February 6 last year.
The African National Congress at Brits, after considering
Africa's report, resolved that the four councillors must submit
their resignation as soon as possible.
@ ELECTION-MANDELA
JOHANNESBURG January 11 1999 Sapa
MANDELA WON'T SET ELECTION DATE BEFORE PARLIAMENT RECONVENES
President Nelson Mandela will not announce a date for the 1999
general election before Parliament reconvened early in February,
presidential spokesman Parks Mankahlana said on Monday.
He said there were a whole range of issues that still needed to
be dealt with before any date could be announced.
"The legal process has been put in place but President Mandela
will not formally set the date until Parliament has changed the
Constitution to allow him to announce the election dates."
President Mandela would only be able to promulgate the date
after the expiry of the National Assembly's term on April 30.
An amendment would be put to Parliament during its short
session starting on February 5, allowing Mandela to proclaim the
date beforehand, Mankahlana said.
The President's office previously denied reports that May 19
was a likely election date.
@ EDUC-NWEST
MAFIKENG January 11 1999 Sapa
NWEST AIMS FOR 10 PERCENT INCREASE IN 1999 MATRIC PASS RATE
North West would aim for a 10 percent increase this year on its
1998 matric pass rate of 54 percent, education MEC Zachariah Tolo
said in a statement on Monday.
He said he was satisfied though with the 4,63 percent
improvement in the 1998 matric pass rate on that of the previous
year.
The improvement was the result of more visits to schools,
training of principals and school management, workshops for
governing bodies, improved deployment of subject advisors and
administrative intervention, Tolo said.
"Such intervention strategies need to be intensified. In this
regard my department has already set up an examination analysis
team to look at the strenghts and weaknesses of our schools."
He said the 10 percent increase in results could be obtained
through measures which included greater financial accountability.
To achieve its goal, the department further aimed to improve
the relations between provincial politicians and the community by
deploying 32 members of the provincial legislature, including the
premier, at schools in the province when they re-open on Tuesday.
Tolo said he would also suggest the establishing of an
inter-ministerial sub-committee to deal effectively with taxi
violence in the Zeerust-Lehurutshe area which could result in
learners not getting to schools safely.
While stationery to the value of R30 million has already been
delivered to the majority of schools, most of the schools could not
be supplied with textbooks, Tolo said.
An amount of R49,9 million has been budgeted for the provision
of textbooks, of which the national Education Department made
available R15,9 million.
"Despite the additional amount of R15,9 million from the
national department, we do not have the financial resources to
supply most schools with textbooks.
"There has been a significant increase in the number of
learners and this has put tremendous pressure on the provincial
education department's budget," Tolo said.
He added that despite these financial constraints the
department would do its best to provide schools with textbooks.
According to Tolo the department's deficits will by mid-January
have been reduced to zero following an overspending of R87 million
on the 1998/1999 budget.
He said there had been an improvement in the administration of
the department with a number of appointments to crucial positions,
including 557 principals. A further 226 posts would be filled
during the year to bring about greater educational stability.
Tolo said excess educators, including temporary teachers
appointed after July 1997, would be redeployed to ensure that no
classroom was without an educator.
@ COURT-CHEQUES
UMTATA January 11 1999 Sapa
THREE APPEAR IN COURT IN CONNECTION WITH WELFARE CHEQUE THEFT
Three men appeared briefly in the Lady Frere District Court on
Monday on housebreaking and theft charges linked to the
disappearance of 3200 state welfare cheques worth R1,6 million a
week ago.
Sithembiso Wiseman Luthango, 28, Sayinile Mvumvu, 38, and
Nkululeko Nwelende, 40, were not asked to plead.
The case was postponed to January 18 for further investigation
and bail was refused.
The commander of the police fraud unit, Captain Yoliswa
Siyothula, said two other men would appear in the court on Tuesday
on similar charges.
The men were all arrested in connection with last week's
break-in at the security offices of the welfare department in Lady
Frere.
Cheques to the value of R1,6 million intended for old age
pensions and disability grants in the district were stolen.
Captain Siyothula said about 300 missing cheques were
recovered, but 34 cheques worth R17000 had already been cashed.
@ PROTESTS-ICD
CAPE TOWN January 11 1999 Sapa
ICD TO INVESTIGATE ALLEGED POLICE BRUTALITY DURING CAPE DEMOS
The Independent Complaints Directorate (ICD) will investigate
claims of alleged police brutality at two demonstrations in Cape
Town last week against the visit of British prime minister Tony
Blair, ICD director Riaz Saloojee said on Monday.
"We will be conducting extensive investigations into last
week's shootings. At this stage we are still gathering all the
information needed," he said.
Five people were arrested on Thursday and charged with
attempted murder for allegedly firing shots at a police vehicle,
gathering illegally and public violence during a protest outside
the United States embassy.
Three more were arrested on chargeS of the illegal possession
of firearms.
Police spokesman Wicus Holtzhausen on Monday said the state
temporarily withdrew the charges against Rashaad Toefy, Yaqoob
Jacobs, Gasant Safodien, Abduragmaan Khan and Muain Achmat until
video footage of the demonstration could be viewed.
On Friday police fired rubber bullets at demonstrators at the
Castle who failed to heed a warning to disperse.
Five people were injured, including Pagad member Yusuf Jacobs,
22, who was shot in the temple and critically injured.
Reports claimed birdshot was also used, but Holtzhausen denied
this.
"The routine the police uses for crowd control in the case of
illegal gatherings is firstly verbal warnings, followed by a
five-minute allowance to disperse. This is followed by stun
grenades, which only gives a loud bang and cannot harm anyone, (and
only) then rubber bullets are fired.
"Rubber bullets are shot toward the ground but unfortunately
they ricochet and it is that what injures the people. Unfortunately
Jacobs was hit on the side of his head, which is one of the softest
parts of the head," said Holtzhausen.
He said it was a pity if the organisations involved retaliated
in the way they said they would - by making the country
ungovernable if Jacobs died - at a demonstration against the
alleged police brutality outside the Waterfront on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Groote Schuur Hospital spokeswoman Phillipa Johnson
said Jacobs' condition was still critical.
She explained why the person whom the organisations claimed was
Jacobs' doctor has been denied access to see him.
Johnson said the hospital was not opposed to their doctors
working alongside a patient's personal doctor, but in this case
there was a problem.
"The person in question could not produce any form of
identification and he could not even name the patient that he was
coming to see. We cannot allow anyone who claims they are doctors
into the hospital," Johnson said.
@ ZIM-COMMODITIES
HARARE January 11 1999 Sapa
NO RISE IN BREAD, SUGAR, MEALIE-MEAL PRICES
A meeting between government and the private sector on Monday
failed to reach an agreement on the pricing of basic commodities, a
government official announced.
At a news conference after the meeting, Industry and Commerce
Minister Nathan Shamuyarira said the meeting resolved that only the
prices of sugar, bread and mealie-meal not be raised, the Zimbabwe
news agency Ziana reported.
Shamuyarira said food manufacturers feared that if they did not
raise the price of commodities, companies would not be viable and
might close.
The meeting attended by an inter-ministerial task force,
representatives of farmers, miners, bankers and industrialists is
part of marathon consultations being held in search of a solution
to the unstable macro-economic environment.
Manufacturers have expressed concern at the continued increase
in their production costs due to the devaluation of the Zimbabwe
dollar, fuel price increases, high distribution costs, high
inflation and high interest rates.
Shamuyarira said while the government was not controlling the
price of commodities, he advised the manufacturers to ensure that
every price increase they make be justified, but not on the basis
of profiteering.
"The government wants to keep the prices of basic commodities
low so that people can afford to buy them," he said.
@ ANGOLA-FIGHTING
LUANDA January 11 1999 Sapa-AP
ANGOLAN REBES BROADEN OFFENSIVE TO OIL, DIAMOND AREAS IN
NORTH
Angolan rebel forces have switched their offensive from the
central highlands to the North and are targeting areas of oil and
diamond production, army sources reported Monday.
Meanwhile, Defense Minister Pedro Sebastiao on Monday signed a
law drafting all males between 18 and 20 into the armed forces.
They must report to their nearest army bases between Jan. 17 and
26.
The UNITA rebels, backed by heavy artillery, are advancing on
the government-held oil town of Soyo, 300 kilometers (185 miles)
north of the capital, Luanda, unidentified army sources told state
radio.
Angola is sub-Saharan Africa's largest oil producer after
Nigeria, and oil revenue provides more than half the state's
income. Foreign oil companies, including Chevron, Elf-Aquitaine and
Fina, have invested heavily in the sector.
Rebel troops also are converging on Negage, in a diamond mining
region, 600 kilometers (370 miles) northeast of Luanda, the radio
reported. The United Nations on Sunday evacuated all its 69 staff
from the town.
The town is a center for surrounding diamond mines - many run
by companies from Canada, Russia, Australia and Brazil - which also
provide crucial income for the government.
Since the latest fighting flared last month, derailing a 1994
U.N.-brokered peace accord aimed at ending a two-decade civil war,
battles mostly have focused on the central highlands.
However the rebels last week turned their long-range artillery
on Malanje, which lies north of the highlands on a main road to
Luanda.
More than 50 people were killed last week in rebel artillery
barrages against Malanje, local officials said, though the city
reportedly has been quiet since Saturday.
The army said it had retaken control of areas around the
central highland city of Huambo, about 480 kilometers (300 miles)
southeast of Luanda.
Two U.N. cargo planes crashed in recent weeks in areas of heavy
fighting around Huambo.
A U.N. team found no survivors of the first crash, which went
down Dec. 26. The United Nations is awaiting guarantees of safe
passage before sending a team to the site of the second crash,
though its exact location is not known.
A U.N. engineering team was to go to the site of the first
plane crash on Tuesday to excavate it, U.N. spokesman Fred Eckhard
said in New York.
UNITA - the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola
- held up implementation of the 1994 peace deal by refusing to
relinquish control of its highland strongholds.
Last month, the government's army tried to take them by force
but was beaten back, as the rebels overwhelmed their opponent with
superior fire power.
The 1994 deal also called for disarmament, although the rebels
are thought to have 30,000 fighters hidden in the bush.
@ POLICING-BIZOS
JOHANNESBURG January 11 1999 Sapa
BIZOS SLAMS WESTERN CAPE MINISTER'S CALL FOR ANTI-TERRORISM
LAWS
Legal expert George Bizos on Monday criticised calls for new
urban anti-terrorism laws as draconian, saying that vigilante crime
in the Western Cape could be controlled by proper policing, the
SABC reported.
Responding to calls from Western Cape community safety minister
Mark Wiley for the introduction of hardline anti-terrorism laws,
Bizos said: "I am appalled by Mr Wiley's statement."
"The idea of calling for anti-terrorism legislation such as we
had during the apartheid regime is not something that anybody who
respects democracy and constitutionality can possible advocate,"
Bizos said.
He said crime could be controlled by proper policing, police
procedures and scientific investigations, but that political will
was needed to enforce this.
"This is how to fight crime, not to take draconian measures
that take us back years," Bizos said.
In an interview with the SABC, Wiley said the Constitution
afforded militant communities more rights than the police and that
more stringent measures were needed to bring peace to the Western
Cape.
@ PENSIONERS-KZN
JOHANNESBURG January 11 1999 Sapa
KWAZULU-NATAL PENSIONERS BEGIN REREGISTRATION PROCESS
Half a million KwaZulu-Natal pensioners and grantees must
re-register before March 31 or risk losing their state benefits,
SABC TV news reported on Monday, as the process kicked off in the
province.
This decision was taken by the provincial welfare department at
the end of 1998 in the face of growing pension fraud and
corruption.
@ STORM-DURBAN
DURBAN January 11 1999 Sapa
DURBAN THUNDERSTORM CAUSES FLOODING, TRAFFIC DISRUPTIONS
A massive thunderstorm over the greater Durban area caused
major flooding and disruptions to rail and road traffic on Monday
evening.
The Durban fire department received about 200 distress calls
within an hour, chiefly from Phoenix and Chatsworth, where
storm-water drains were unable to cope and houses below
street-level were flooded.
An electrical distribution station in the Pinetown area was hit
by lightning, and the resulting fire had to be extinguished by the
fire department.
Durban fire department division commander Owen Singh said a few
residential walls collapsed and some vehicles slid across major
highways.
The N3 and southern N2 had sheets of water over them in places.
"We were lucky that there were no major collisions or deaths.
There seemed to be good discipline on the N2, where a lot of
drivers stopped under bridges," Singh said.
Stopping under a bridge had both advantages and disadvantages,
Singh pointed out.
"It is probably safer to wait under a bridge during heavy
weather conditions, but there is always the danger posed by heavily
laden trucks not being able to stop in time."
Singh said the storm would probably have impacted quite heavily
on the shack settlements around Durban.
"Those people are going to have a hard time, and after we have
had a look tomorrow morning we will decide whether to enlist the
help of the Red Cross."
Durban's Metro Rail said power-failures disrupted signals,
causing major train delays.
Amanzimtoti resident Anna Clarke said the storm started at
about 7pm with spectacular bursts of thunder and lightning.
"Then these sheets of water came pouring down in violent
torrents," Clarke said.
A spokesman at the Chatsworth police station said the overall
damage situation would only be evaluated in the morning.
"I must say though that quite a few members of the public came
into the station to report damage to property, presumably for
insurance purposes," he said.
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A N C D A I L Y N E W S B R I E F I N G
WEDNESDAY 13 JANUARY 1999
PLEASE NOTE: This News Briefing is a compilation of items from South
African press agencies and as such does not reflect the views of the
ANC. It is for reading and information only, and strictly not for
publication or broadcast.
To unsubscribe from the ANC Daily News Briefing mailing list send a
message to 'list...@wn.apc.org'. In the body of your message put
'unsubscribe ancnews'.
@ PAGAD-POLICE
CAPE TOWN January 12 1999 Sapa
POLICE WELL PREPARED FOR POSSIBLE REACTION TO JACOBS' DEATH
Police have put contingency plans into action after the death
of Pagad member Yusuf Jacobs in Groote Schuur Hospital on Tuesday.
Pagad spokesman Salie Abader last week warned that Moslems
would make the country ungovernable should Jacobs die.
On Tuesday, however, Abader said these words were said in the
heat of the moment and Pagad was still prepared to work with
police.
He said Pagad was in mourning and the only action being planned
was the funeral of Jacobs later on Tuesday.
Police spokesman Superintendent Wicus Holtzhausen said police
would be happy to work with Pagad to combat crime and drugs.
He said police management met on Monday to plan a strategy in
the event of Jacobs' death and that they were well prepared.
"Operation Recoil, launched in October 1997, is a combined
operation by the police and defence force to combat crime and we
will be liaising closely to monitor any possible reaction to the
death of Jacobs," Holtzhausen said.
@ MAJOR MILESTONE IN WATER DELIVERY IN SA
Issued by: Department of Water Affairs and Forestry
Saturday, 16 January will mark a major milestone in water
delivery in South Africa.
Thousands of people will converge on the KwaMhlanga Stadium,
KwaNdebele in Mpumalanga, to celebrate the 3 millionth recipient of
water in South Africa since 1994. The 3 millionth target is being
met with the Kwandebele Moutse Moretele Water Augmentation Project,
which will be launched on Saturday. The occasion will also mark the
inauguration of the Ikangala Water Board.
The Deputy President, Mr. Thabo Mbeki, will be the Principal
Speaker at the function which will be hosted by the Minister of
Water Affairs and forestry, Prof Kader Asmal, MP. The former Prime
Minister of Japan, His Excellency Mr. Ryuto Hashimoto and the
Mpumalanga Premier, Mr. Matthews Phosa will also attend the
function. The R185 million Kwandebele Moutse Moretele Water
Augmentation Project has been co-funded by a loan from the Japanese
Overseas Economic Cooperation Fund. the establishment of the
Ikangala Water Board has been supported by the British Department
for International Development.
While it took three years for the Department of Water Affairs
and Forestry to provide the one millionth person with safe, clean
water in May 1997, service delivery has accelerated since then. The
3 millionth target was reached in a little over half the time. This
was due to programmes being properly set up and implemented, drawing
on lessons from on-going evaluation of Departmental and other
projects.
The name of the 3 millionth recipient of water will be announced
by Professor Kader Asmal at the function on Saturday.
With this function, South Africa's water success will shine more
brightly on the international scene, given that during the United
Nations Water and Sanitation decade (1981-1990), half the water
services infrastructure in the developing world collapsed within the
first year of construction.
"We're doing it differently," says Prof Asmal, who says
sustainability is ensured through the extensive institutional
development framework that the Department has put in place. This
mobilises people to participate actively in the management of their
water services. The Department empowers local government to operate
and manage the water services infrastructure by creating bodies such
as water boards to assist where needed. Cost recovery is being put
in place on the project as part of this process.
The KwaNdebele Moutse Moretele Water augmentation Project, which
benefits approximately 1 million people, provided valuable skills
training leading to more than a hundred local jobs on construction.
It also trained local entrepreneurs to carry out contracts.
The project is among the 1 020 targeting in total, 4,8 million
people all over South Africa from 1994 to date, at a cost, to date,
of R2,2 billion. The RDP projects have to date provided a total of
250,000 temporary construction jobs.
On 17 February, Prof Asmal will be announcing the next water
services delivery programme. He says of the Saturday's celebration:
"It is through the active participation of communities, local and
provincial government, the private sector and NGOs, that all this
has been possible. We merely pause to salute the 3 millionth
recipient, then we press on."
Enquiries: Dr. Eugene Mokeyane (012) 338 8764
Cell 082 772 2538
Mr. Kalinga Pelpola (012) 338 8789
Cell 082 807 4344
@ MEDIA INVITE BY DEPT OF WATER AFFAIRS AND FORESTRY
Issued by: Department of Water Affairs and Forestry
Professor Kader Asmal, MP, Minister of Water Affairs and
Forestry and His Excellency Mr Atsushi Hatakenaka, Ambassador of
Japan, have pleasure in inviting you to celebrate the provision of
water to the 3 millionth person in South Africa, the launch of the
KwaNdebele Moutse Moretele Water Augmentation Project, and the
inauguration of the Ikangala Water Board. The establishment of the
Ikangala Water Board has been supported by the British Department
for International Development.
The Deputy President, Mr Thabo Mbeki, will be the key speaker at
the function, which will also be attended by the former Japanese
Prime Minister, His Excellency Mr Ryuto Hashimoto.
With your RSVP, please indicate whether you would like to
interview any of the dignitaries.
Venue: KwaMhlanga Stadium KwaNdebele
Date: Saturday, 16 January 1999
Time: 10h30
R.S.V.P. Before or on 13 Jan 1999
Ms Hannelie Peens
Tel: (012) 338 8246/64
Fax: (012) 324 6592
Ms Saadia Ebrahim
Tel: (012) 338 8717
Fax: (012) 324 6592
@ NORTHPROV-MALARIA
TZANEEN January 12 1999 Sapa
NORTHERN PROVINCE WARNS OF MALARIA EPIDEMIC
The Northern Province health department on Tuesday warned that
continued rain in the area could lead to an outbreak of malaria,
African Eye News Service reported.
Provincial malaria programme manager Philip Kruger said malaria
infections were increasing rapidly in the region, with 1233 serious
cases reported since July 1998.
Nine people had died of the mosquito-borne disease in the
province during the rainy season and more deaths are expected
during malaria's traditional high period from January to the
beginning of March.
Kruger said: "There isn't much that we can do in the short-term
to prevent an epidemic. It's up to individuals to take their own
precautions because malaria doesn't pose a threat as long as people
protect themselves from being bitten by mosquitoes."
Bushbuckridge, Giyani, Malamulela, Thohoyandou and Tzaneen are
particular malaria hot spots.
Residents in the affected areas were urged to use insecticides
and stay indoors between dusk and dawn to reduce exposure to
mosquitoes.
In Mpumalanga, 6293 malaria cases were reported last year, 976
of which were reported between July to December. A total of 15
people died of the disease.
Most of the cases were reported in the Nkomazi area that
borders northern Swaziland and Mozambique.
@ KWANATAL-PRISONERS
DURBAN January 12 1999 Sapa
PRISONERS TO PROTEST FOLLOWING PROSECUTORS' STRIKE
Awaiting-trial prisoners in KwaZulu-Natal have threatened to
embark on a massive protest following prosecutors' work-to-rule
protest action.
SA Prisoners' Organisation for Human Rights deputy president
Derrick Mdluli on Tuesday said the prisoners who were largely
affected by the prosecutors' strike would embark on a protest
action to express their dissatisfaction over the strike.
On Monday, National Union of Prosecutors in SA spokesman
Michael Vehbi said the work-to-rule action would continue until the
Justice Minister Dullah Omar was prepared to resolve the dispute.
Prosecutors' action began in December when Omar announced a six
percent salary increase for prosecutors and advocates.
Omar's announcement contradicted an earlier statement by new
Director of Public Prosecutions Bulelani Ngcuka that increases
would reach 30 percent.
"Sapohr fully sympathises with awaiting-trial inmates and we
believe that their planned strike is legitimate and their demands
are genuine," Mdluli said.
He said Sapohr understood that prosecutors had grievances, but
their protest action was not acceptable.
@ DP-TEXTBOOKS
JOHANNESBURG January 12 1999 Sapa
DP SAYS LACK OF TEXTBOOKS HAD INFLUENCE ON MATRIC RESULTS
The Democratic Party in the Gauteng legislature on Tuesday said
the lack of textbooks had and would continue to influence matric
results.
DP MPL Brian Goodall said in a statement: "This is indeed a
very dismal start to the academic year and sets a bad example to
our future roleplayers in our country's economy.
"It is unacceptable that on the first day of school that
learners are not capacitated, but have to wait for books. The
planning and delivery of books should take place prior to the new
year so that literally on day one all learners are ready and able
to start learning."
Goodall expressed his party's disappointment at statements by
Education Minister Sibusiso Bengu and Gauteng education MEC Mary
Metcalfe that contrary to President Nelson Mandela's promises in
1998, final deliveries would only take place by the end of January
and pupils would have to share books.
He said the DP would keep a close eye on the delivery promises
of the department and would not hesitate to publicly voice its
opinion where there was obvious failure to deliver.
@ NECKLACE-MASHATILE
JOHANNESBURG January 12 1999 Sapa
IVORY PARK TO CONSIDER STREET COMMITTEES
The residents of Ivory Park, still reeling from last week's
necklacings and assaults, are to consider forming street and block
watch committees to prevent crime and vigilantism in the area, the
Gauteng department of Safety and Security said on Tuesday.
Department spokeswoman Delca Maluleke said safety and security
MEC Paul Mashatile proposed the street committees and the block
watch at a three hour meeting in Ivory Park on Monday night
attended by representatives of political parties, church groups and
local police.
Two people were necklaced - doused in petrol and forced into a
car tyre then set alight - and dumped in open land in Goniwe
section on Monday. Another two died in hospital later in the week
after they were severely beaten.
The four were accused of being responsible for rapes and thefts
in the area.
Their attackers are thought to be vigilantes from Goniwe
section.
Initial reports that they were Mozambicans sparked fears for
the safety of people from other African countries living in the
area.
Maluleke said people at the meeting unequivocally condemned the
necklacing and any vigilante activity in the area.
Community leaders assured Mashatile that the community was not
against Mozambicans or any foreigners in the country.
"However, they explained that the community is sick and tired
of criminals breaking into people's houses, stealing their
belongings at gunpoint, raping young girls and murdering people
with impunity," Maluleke said.
"There seems to be people in the community who feel that the
solution is to take the law into their own hands.
"The meeting however agreed that that was not the way to go,
but agreed that the community must be mobilised against crime in a
co-ordinated way, respecting the rule of the law."
A small committee would meet later this week to consider a
crime prevention plan and the plan to set up street and block
committees.
North Rand police spokesman Superintendent Eugene Opperman said
the four who died had still not been formally identified.
@ NAMIBIA-PRESS
WINDHOEK January 12 1999 Sapa
NAMIBIA LIFTS MEDIA BLACKOUT ON ITS INVOLVEMENT IN DR CONGO WAR
The Namibian defence ministry has lifted the media blackout on
the country's involvement in the war in the Democratic Republic of
Congo, The Namibian newspaper reported on Tuesday.
The decision to lift the embargo was taken after discussions
between defence minister Erikki Nghimtina and the editor of The
Namibian, Gwen Lister, on Monday.
The Namibian government imposed the ban after claiming that
information sent to the media on Namibian casualties in the DRC and
other related incidents was being distorted.
The ban was supported by Prime Minister Hage Geingob who said
last week that the blackout had been enforced for the sake of the
security of Namibian forces in the DRC.
Nghimtina agreed to lift the ban at Monday's meeting after
expressing his concern about the publication of rumours which could
adversely affect the safety and security of Namibian soldiers in
the DRC conflict.
Lister stressed the need for Namibians to be kept accurately
informed about the situation in the DRC and for more open channels
of communication to be established between the media and the
ministry of defence in the public interest, to avoid rumour and
speculation.
The ban has been lifted with immediate effect.
@ PAGAD-MUFAMADI
CAPE TOWN January 12 1999 Sapa
MANDELA TO BE APPROACHED FOR INQUEST INTO DEATH OF PAGAD MAN
President Nelson Mandela will be approached to appoint a
judicial inquest to determine the causes and circumstances
surrounding the death of Pagad member Yusuf Jacobs, Safety and
Security Minister Sydney Mufamadi announced on Tuesday.
Jacobs, 22, a member of People Against Gangsterism and Drugs,
who was shot in the head during an illegal gathering at Cape Town's
Grand Parade on Friday, died in Groote Schuur hospital on Tuesday.
Mufamadi, on behalf of the ministry and government, expressed
deep regret and heartfelt condolences to Jacobs' family and
friends.
Because of the seriousness with which government regarded the
matter Mandela would be approached to appoint a judicial inquest,
Mufamadi said.
The inquest should determine the causes and circumstances
surrounding Jacobs' death and in particular whether police used
excessive force and whether the demonstrators used firearms.
"We have taken note of the statements from the spokespersons of
some organisations who have threatended to make the country
ungovernable as a result of this tragic event.
"We must warn that such statements constitute an incitement to
violence. The government will act against anybody who either
propagates or attempts to instigate any acts of violence.
"At this time I want to appeal to everybody to act with calm
and restraint and not to make irresponsible statements," Mufamadi
said.
He said the police, supported by the defence force, has been
directed to be on full alert in order to deal with any eventuality.
They have also been instructed to show restraint and to act with
compassion to allow the funeral to proceed in a dignified manner.
@ PAGAD-AUTOPSY
CAPE TOWN January 12 1999 Sapa
POST MORTEM RESULTS ON PAGAD MAN COULD TAKE UP TO SIX WEEKS
The official post mortem results of People Against Gansterism
and Drugs member Yusuf Jacobs could take up to six weeks, a Pagad
member said.
Jacobs was hit in the temple by a rubber bullet during an
illegal gathering at Cape Town's Grand Parade on Friday and died in
hospital on Tuesday.
Pagad lawyer Adiel Theunissen on Tuesday said the official
autopsy results could take up to six weeks. Jacob's family was
contemplating charges against the police, but would await the
official outcome of the post mortem.
The Independent Complaints Directorate was also investigating
the events on the Parade on Friday.
@ TRAFFIC
PRETORIA January 12 1999 Sapa
174 PEOPLE DIE ON SA ROADS SINCE JANUARY 1
Road accidents in South Africa have claimed the lives of 174
people since January 1, the Arrive Alive campaign said on Tuesday.
In 129 crashes, 55 drivers, 81 passengers and 38 pedestrians
died.
Seven pedestrians were killed over the 24-hour period ending at
noon on Tuesday. Eight vehicles overturned which resulted in 14
fatalities.
Arrive Alive said speed contributed to four crashes in which 12
people died, and that alcohol abuse caused at least five accidents.
Most people - 38 - died in the Eastern Cape, followed by 28
in the Western Cape, 24 in Free State, 23 in KwaZulu-Natal, 21 in
the Northern Province, 12 in the Northern Cape, 12 in Gauteng,
eight in Mpumalanga, and eight in North-West.
The death toll for December last year was provisionally set at
718. For the same period in 1997, 806 people died, Arrive Alive
said.
@ IEC-ELECTION
CAPE TOWN January 12 1999 Sapa
ELECTION IMPOSSIBLE WITHOUT MORE CASH: IEC
The Independent Electoral Commission has warned that it will be
impossible to conduct this year's national and provincial polls on
its R550 million budget.
This comes as court challenges get under way against the
Electoral Act provision that only citizens with barcoded identity
documents may register as voters.
The warning that the IEC would not be able to conduct the
election on its present budget was contained in a sworn statement
submitted to the Cape High Court yesterday by IEC chairman Judge
Johan Kriegler.
He said even if free assistance from civil servants were made
available to the IEC - as was done in a last-minute bid to rescue
the three-day voter registration late last year - it would still
not be possible to conduct the election on the existing budget.
Kriegler said the shortcomings of the 1994 election were to a
large extent overcome by popular enthusiasm for a ballot which
represented reconciliation and liberation.
But the credibility of this year's election would depend on the
IEC's technical efficiency, which would mean spending more than the
commission was able to afford.
The technical demands of the election would be complex. Aside
from electronic equipment to read and verify barcoded IDs, and
computers to check off voters as they cast their ballots, data will
have to be transmitted via a satellite system to a computer that
will calculate and issue results.
It is regarded as one of the most complex election systems in
existence and is designed to deliver an efficient and reliable
result free of fraud.
But it is expensive and the IEC has complained about a lack of
funds to operate it for almost three years.
There has been no indication on when judgment on the New
National Party and Democratic Party applications to have the
barcoded ID rule set aside can be expected, but until it has been
delivered President Nelson Mandela probably will not be able to
announce an election date.
A provisional date of May 26 was mentioned late last year, but
many observers believe this target will be difficult to meet.
@ DFA ON THE SITUATION IN SIERRA LEONE
Issued by: Government Communications (GCIS)
The South African Government has noted with deep concern the
growing spiral of violence in the Republic of Sierra Leone,
culminating in reports that elements of the rebel Revolutionary
United Front (RUF) and the former military elements of the Armed
Forces Revolutionary Council have invaded the capital, Freetown. The
effect of this invasion has led to intense fighting inside Freetown,
resulting in numerous civilian casualties. South Africa condemns the
reported use by the RUF of innocent civilians as human shields in
clashes in the Freetown area, and maintains that the use of force by
the rebels is unacceptable.
Sierra Leone had been subject to prolonged cycles of violence,
exacerbated by a civil war and a number of military coups. The South
African Government believes that for stability to return to Sierra
Leone, the rebels need to immediately stop their offensive. The
cessation of hostilities throughout the country, is a prerequisite
for dialogue aimed at promoting national reconciliation. South
Africa recognises the legitimately elected Government of President
Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, and believes that the underlying causes of the
violence have to be addressed through negotiation. South Africa
further welcomes the efforts of the Economic Community of West
African States (ECOWAS) in trying to promote a political dialogue,
and commends the efforts of its military observer group, ECOMOG, in
providing military assistance to the Sierra Leonean government.
An immediate cease-fire would furthermore allow the UN and other
international aid agencies to carry on their vital role of
addressing the urgent needs of Sierra Leone's internally displaced
population.
ISSUED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
PRETORIA
12 JANUARY 1999
@ WATER-TRIBUNAL
BLOEMFONTEIN January 12 1999 Sapa
NOMINATIONS SOUGHT FOR WATER TRIBUNAL
Water Affairs Minister Kader Asmal, through the Judicial
Service Commission, has called for nominations for members of the
Water Tribunal, in terms of the National Water Act of 1998.
A chairman and three members, one of whom will be appointed as
deputy chairman, are being sought.
The appointments will be on a part-time basis for three years,
subject to further appointments for terms that do not exceed four
years.
The employment conditions and remuneration for the appointees
will be determined by Asmal and Finance Minister Trevor Manuel.
Nominees should not be disqualified for appointment in terms of
Item Two of Schedule 6 of the Water Act and should have a knowledge
of law, engineering, water resource management or related fields of
knowledge.
Nominations must reach the secretary of the JSC no later than
February 15. They must be accompanied by a full curriculum vitae of
the nominee and the nominee's acceptance in writing. Every
nomination must be signed by a proposer and a seconder, neither of
whom may be a nominee.
The activities of the tribunal will consist mainly of hearing
appeals against decisions on entitlements to use water, and against
directives to remedy or prevent pollution. It will also determine
compensation when required to do so in terms of the Act.
Functions of members will include the reading of files, hearing
cases and writing judgments. The chairman will also do
administrative work - particularly the allocation of cases to
tribunal members and the monitoring of their progress.
An immediate function will be to make rules to govern the
procedure of the tribunal.
@ CONGO-AIRATTACK
NAIROBI, Kenya January 12 1999 Sapa-AP
CONGOLESE GOVERNMENT ALLIES BOMB CONGO'S THIRD CITY
Allies of Congolese President Laurent Kabila's government have
bombed Kisangani, the country's third-largest city, killing 17
people, including five children, a rebel leader said Tuesday.
Ernest Wamba dia Wamba told The Associated Press by satellite
telephone from the rebel stronghold in Goma in eastern Congo that
an Antonov aircraft dropped bombs on Kisangani at 9.45 p.m.
(1945gmt) Sunday, killing civilians and causing a material damage.
The Rome-based Italian missionary news service, MISNA, also
reported that Kisangani had been bombed but said 40 people were
killed. Wamba disputed the death toll.
A military source in the Congolese capital, Kinshasa, confirmed
the bombing and said such attacks would continue prior to the
launching of a land offensive.
"They are massacring civilians," Wamba said. "There were no
military targets. Seventeen civilians died, including five children
and eight women."
Kisangani is the last navigable port on the 4,700-kilometer
(2,900-mile) Congo River that rises in Zambia and flows north as
far as Kisangani, where it takes a sharp turn westward at
impassable rapids.
Rebels, backed by Rwanda and Uganda, took up arms in August
against Kabila, accusing him of misrule and inciting ethnic hatred.
They have controlled Kisangani, now their military headquarters
and home of Ugandan commanders backing the rebellion, since
September.
Kabila is receiving tactical and material support from
Zimbabwe, Namibia, Angola and Chad.
Last week, the Congolese leader, who was put in power by Rwanda
and Uganda in May 1997, indicated he could, for the first time, be
willing to talk to the rebels - a coalition of ethnic Tutsis,
disaffected Congolese soldiers and opposition politicians.
Up to now, he has been demanding the withdrawal of Rwandan and
Ugandan troops and has accused the rebels of being the puppets of
foreign forces.
Wamba said, however, that the rebels will not go to Lusaka,
Zambia for the latest round of talks aimed at achieving a
cease-fire in the five-month conflict in Africa's third-largest
nation unless they receive insurances that Kabila will meet them
face-to-face.
The talks, organized by the chief African mediator and Zambian
President Frederick Chiluba, have been re-scheduled for Jan. 18.
"It is hard to negotiate with somebody who is bombing you,"
Wamba said.
Wamba said the former Kisangai residence of rebel commander
Jean-Pierre Ondekande was hit in Sunday's bombing raid, but
Ondekane had moved out some weeks ago.
Fighting in northwestern Congo has intensified in recent weeks
with the rebels approaching Mbandaka 1,200 kilometers (750 miles)
upriver from Kinshasa.
MISNA reported the rebels had recaptured Gemena in northwestern
Congo but lost Libenge, an important town on the road to Gbadolite,
on the border with Central African Republic and the base of Chadian
forces fighting in support of the government.
@ NUM-TORNADO
JOHANNESBURG January 12 1999 Sapa
TORNADO VICTIMS GET R50,000 FROM NUM TO REBUILD HOMES
About R50,000 aid relief money will be presented by the National
Union of Mineworkers to the victims of the recent tornado disaster
in Umtata in the Eastern Cape on Tuesday.
More than 500 homes were destroyed and many people displaced by
the tornado. Num's spokesman Gregory Mcatshelwa said on Tuesday the
money would be used for the reconstruction of the town.
@ SLEONE-SA
PRETORIA January 12 1999 Sapa
SA CONDEMNS REBEL ACTION IN SIERRA LEONE, CALLS FOR CEASEFIRE
The South African government on Tuesday called for an immediate
ceasefire in Sierra Leone following the recent rebel invasion of
the capital, Freetown.
In a statement, the South African Department of Foreign Affairs
expressed support for the government of President Ahmad Tejan
Kabbah and said the use of force by the rebels was unacceptable.
"The South African government has noted with deep concern the
growing spiral of violence in the Republic of Sierra Leone,
culminating in reports that elements of the rebel Revolutionary
United Front (RUF) and the former military elements of the Armed
Forces Revolutionary Council have invaded the capital, Freetown.
"South Africa believes that the underlying causes of the
violence have to be addressed through negotiation."
The Department strongly condemned the RUF for the reported use
of civilians as human shields in recent clashes in Freetown. It
urged the rebels to immediately stop their offensive, saying this
was a prerequisite for dialogue aimed at national reconciliation.
South Africa also commended efforts by the Economic Community
of West African States (Ecowas) to promote political dialogue
between opposing factions, and its military observer group (Ecomog)
for providing military assistance to the government.
"An immediate ceasefire would furthermore allow the UN and
other international aid agencies to carry on their vital role of
addressing the urgent needs of Sierra Leone's internally displaced
population," the department added.
@ NNP-TEXTBOOKS
CAPE TOWN January 12 1999 Sapa
MANDELA MUST EXPLAIN TEXTBOOK DELAY: NNP
President Nelson Mandela and Education Minister Sibusiso Bengu
owed the public an explanation for the non-delivery of school
textbooks, the New National Party said on Tuesday.
NNP education spokeswoman Dr Tertia King was reacting to the
news that in five of the nine provinces, pupils in grades one, two
and 12 can expect their textbooks only in March, and that other
grades will probably not receive new textbooks this year.
She said Mandela, who gave an assurance in 1998 that all
learners would have textbooks within the first few days of this
school year, had yet to learn that it was better not to make
promises, as they could lead to disapointment.
Her party had warned that the additional R200 million allocated
by government for textbooks was a drop in the ocean.
The NNP was also concerned about the neglect of grade 11, the
core stage in preparations for the final examination, for which no
provision was being made.
She asked if serious attention was being paid to the
implications of the unavailability of textbooks on implementating
Curriculum 2005.
@ ANGOLA-DRCONGO
LUANDA January 12 1999 Sapa-AFP
DR CONGO SOLDIERS COMPLETE TRAINING IN ANGOLA
Soldiers from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) completed
advanced training in Angola on Tuesday and will return home to
fight Tutsi-led rebels in their own country later this week, a
military source said.
The source would not say how many soldiers had received the
training with Angolan counterparts in Lobito, some 500 kilometers
(300 miles) south of Luanda.
Angola, along with Zimbabwe, Namibia and Chad, has troops in
the DRC supporting the regime of President Laurent Kabila against
the rebels, who took up arms last August and have the backing of
Rwandan and Ugandan troops.
Kinshasa and Luanda have a "friendship accord" covering
military and police affairs, under which Angola trains DRC riot
police and crack troops in special operations.
The Luanda government, itself embroiled in a civil war against
the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA), on
Monday announced a military recruitment drive for youths between
the ages of 18 and 20, warning that shirkers would be punished.
@ FIVAZ-WCAPE
PRETORIA January 12 1999 Sapa
FIVAZ ANNOUNCES SPECIAL OPERATION AGAINST WCAPE URBAN TERRORISM
A concerted effort to fight urban terrorism in the Western Cape
would see extra police, money and equipment being poured into the
province, national police commissioner George Fivaz announced on
Tuesday.
The project, dubbed Operation Good Hope, would cost R4,3
million a month, he told reporters in Pretoria.
It kicked off with the deployment of more police at the Cape
Town Waterfront earlier in the day, and call-up papers being sent
to several police units throughout the country for reinforcements.
"We really want to get this thing under control," Fivaz said.
He said police legal teams were also examining extraordinary
legislation against urban terrorism that might include the banning
of certain non-political organisations.
In a bid to involve community leaders in the operation, Safety
and Security Minister Sydney Mufamadi was considering holding a
summit on urban terrorism and related crimes.
"We feel the support of the Western Cape community is not up to
standard," Fivaz said.
The Western Cape, especially the Cape Town metropolitan area,
has for more than a year been plagued by gangster and criminal
violence. Instability escalated with two bomb explosions at the
Waterfront in recent months.
Last week, violent clashes between the police and demonstrating
supporters of the vigilante group People Against Gangsterism and
Drugs occurred during a visit to Cape Town by British Prime
Minister Tony Blair.
Pagad member Yusuf Jacobs, 22, who was hit in the temple by a
rubber bullet during the fighting, died early on Tuesday.
Deputy President Thabo Mbeki on Sunday said police in the
Western Cape had agreed that Mufamadi and national police officers
should lead the fight against crime in the province.
Fivaz on Tuesday said police had for some time been examining
ways to improve policing in the Western Cape. Its Operation Recoil,
launched in October 1997, had not achieved the desired success.
The Waterfront management on Monday night expressed its concern
to Mbeki about the safety of tourists and visitors.
"Additional public order policing members were this morning
(Tuesday) deployed to patrol and secure the Waterfront," Fivaz
said.
He said Mufamadi had instructed him to evaluate the possibility
of extraordinary legislation against urban terrorism, similar to
measures that were recently introduced in Northern Ireland and
Russia.
Constitutional obligations, which did not allow detention
without trial, would be taken into account.
Measures under consideration could include extending
legislation against gangsterism to organisations involved in urban
terrorism. Certain non-political organisations might also be
banned.
Divisional Commissioner Andre Pruis said Operation Good Hope
would be a joint effort between the Western Cape and national
police to deal with urban violence. Replacing the Western Cape
police management was not on the cards.
A special task force, a reaction group, and expanded public
order policing units would be deployed, using extra staff from
Pretoria and other parts of the country.
Soldiers currently involved in policing duties in the Western
Cape would join the operation, which would include clean-up swoops
in trouble spots, and actions to protect communities.
All South Africa's intelligence agencies would work together in
a project team to beef up the gathering of information. Another
team would focus on project-driven investigations.
Pruis said the operation would have its own budget of about
R4,3 million a month.
"We will follow a zero-tolerance, no-nonsense approach to the
perpetrators of crime."
Fivaz added: "I am satisfied that we now have a proper plan in
place. Sooner or later, we will break the back of this problem."
@ ATTACK AND KILLING OF BOIPATONG RESIDENTS
Issued by: Truth and Reconciliation Commission
Thirteen Inkatha Freedom Party members will appear before the
Amnesty Committee of the TRC next week for their role in the attack
and killing of Boipatong residents on June 17 1990.
On this evening, about 200 men armed with automatic rifles and
other weapons from Kwamadala hostel attacked the Boipatong township.
Residents were hacked, stabbed, shot, beaten and disembowelled.
The Boipating massacre in which 46 people lost their lives
nearly scuttled peace negotiations between former National Party
leader FW de Klerk and the ANC.
The partly heard matter will be heard over a two week period,
from January 18 to 29 at the Iscor Recreational Club in
Vanderbijlpark.
The hearing was first heard on July 6 1998 at the Sebokeng
College of Education. The applications of Victor Mthandeni Mthembu,
Vincent Khanyile, Mhlupheki Shabangu and Jack Mbele were heard
during two hearing periods July 6 to 14 and August 11 to 14 1998.
During this time, the amnesty application of Andries Nosenga was
introduced to the panel. The applicant is seeking amnesty for his
alleged involvement in the Boipatong massacre amongst others.
Zuko Mapoma will lead evidence during the hearing.
For more information call Mbulelo Sompetha at 082 452 7870.
@ PAGAD-UNITY
CAPE TOWN January 12 1999 Sapa
NEW UNITY MOVEMENT EXPRESSES ANGER AT PAGAD MEMBER'S DEATH
The New Unity Movement on Tuesday expressed its anger, disgust
and abhorrence at the "murder" of a member of anti-drug group
People Against Gangsterism and Drugs.
Yusuf Jacobs, 22, was hit in the temple by a rubber bullet
during an anti-Tony Blair gathering at Cape Town's Grand Parade on
Friday. He died in hospital early on Tuesday.
New Unity Movement life president Richard Dudley said that
between US President Bill Clinton and British Prime Minister Blair
and their predecessors, more wars had been conducted against
oppressed and exploited people in colonial and ex-colonial
countries than in any other period this century.
"It is an utter disgrace that the South African government has
welcomed both these warmongers and their agents," Dudley said.
Dudley, on behalf of the movement, extended his sympathy and
condolences to Jacobs' family, friends and co-workers.
@ 18 GRANTED AMNESTY AND FIVE REFUSED
Issued by: Truth and Reconciliation Commission
At least 18 people across the political spectrum have been
granted amnesty and five others refused by the Amnesty Committee of
the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. They were applying for
amnesty for crimes ranging from murder, conspiracy to murder,
sabotage to illegal possession of arms and explosives committed
shortly before the 1994 elections.
Among those granted amnesty is an Inkatha Freedom Party member
Boy Vusimuzi Gwamanda who applied for amnesty for the 1990
conspiracy to kill Mpumalanga Premier Mr Matthews Phosa and for
embarking on sporadic shooting spree in the then strife-torn
Ndwendwe district near Durban in 1993. Gwamanda testified at his
amnesty hearing that he was ordered by Mr Dingizwa Mfayela, an IFP
leader at Ndwendwe to embark on a shooting spree in the area
targeting African National Congress supporters.
Announcing its decision, the Committee said:" Little is known of
the conspiracy to assassinate Mr Phosa, but taking into account
(his) high political profile, the only reasonable inference that can
be drawn is that the conspiracy had a political objective. (
Gwamanda) was manipulated and used by the prison's authorities who
were involved in the conspiracy.
"We are of the opinion that the applicant was not part of the
conspiracy merely for personal gain, but that he was being used by
the conspirators to effect their plan and as such was an agent of
the conspirators".
The Committee also said while Gwamanda was not a satisfactory
witness, it was of the view that he had made full disclosure of all
the relevant facts as required by the laws governing the TRC. "
There is no reason why (he) should present false testimony. He has
not been arrested, charged or convicted in respect of any of the
incidents and it is his evidence that has brought these incidents to
light. He (was also) subjected to cross examination by the legal
representatives of various implicated persons as well as the legal
representative of Mr Phosa," the Committee said.
Other people granted amnesty include two members of the
Afrikaners Weerstandsbewiging (AWB) Pieter Magiel Breytenbach and De
Wet Johann Strydom for the murder of Mr Kleinbooi Ramolla near
Bultfontein in 1994 and for sabotage, former ANC's armed wing
Umkhonto weSizwe member Philane Zondi for the murder of an IFP
supporter Sihle Makhapheni Mpanza at Empangeni in 1994, two members
of the former Pan Africanist Congress's armed wing African People's
Liberation Army (Apla) Mangaliseni Bhani for the murder of Mr Joao
Manuel Jardim in Randfontein in 1994 and Mduduzi Cyril Ngema for the
murder of Mr John Khanyile at Umlazi and Mr Christopher Nhlanhla
Myeza near the University of Durban Westville in 1992 respectively,
Ntsikelelo Jackson Zwayi for the 1994 murder near Swartkopies Road
in Alberton,.
John Fanyana Mndebele, Sipho Silas Nkonyana, Nicholas Mfundisis
Zwane, Jabu Mkhwanazi, Mzwandile Gushu, Paulos Pistol Nkonyane,
David Elvis Majola, Mandlenkosi Enoch Mnisi, Mpumelelo Livingstone
Lukhele, Bongani Sibusiso Khaba and Lucky Petros Mbokane all members
of the ANC who were applying for amnesty for murder and attempted
murder of Black Cats and IFP members at Wesselton near Ermelo
between 1990 and 1993. At least 17 people were killed and scores of
others injured in the conflict between the Black Cats and IFP
supporters.
The committee said :" Having regard to the motives for the
attacks, the context in which they occurred, in particular, the fact
that the attacks were directed against political opponents who had
the actual or perceived support of the police, we are satisfied that
the applicants are entitled to amnesty. It is clear that some of the
victims were caught up in the cross fire and we accept that the
attacks were mainly directed against those who were responsible for
the violence."
Those refused amnesty are Phakamile Cishe and Kwanele Msizi who
murdered two policemen and an alleged informer in Zwide Township,
Port Elizabeth in 1990, Nkosinathi Emmanuel Ntuli who murdered Mr
Nhlanhla Msane at Kwa Makutha in 1991, Pelele Lawrence Shongwe for
the murder of Mr Ernest Malele in Ermelo in 1994. However, Shongwe
has been granted amnesty for the 1993 murder of Mr Bongani Malinga
in the town. Petros Bhekinkosi Mthalane has also been refused
amnesty for the murder of Mr Clement Mxolisi Mchunu near Ixopo in
1993.
The Committee recommended to the Commission's Reparation and
Rehabilitation Committee that the dependants of the deceased and
those who were injured in the attacks should be considered for
compensation and relief as laid down in the law that governs the
TRC.
Media inquiries: Mdu Lembede, 082 458 8464
The full text of the respective amnesty decisions, is available on
request from Vuyani Green or Ruth Faragher on 021-245 161.
@ EDUC-FIRSTDAY
JOHANNESBURG January 12 1999 Sapa
SCHOOLS REOPEN IN GAUTENG
Schools in Gauteng on Tuesday reopened with education
department officials confident the school year got off to a good
start.
Gauteng education MEC Mary Metcalfe, who on Tuesday toured
schools with Gauteng premier Mathole Motshekga, said preliminary
reports indicated things had gone well. However, she said she had
seen many pupils in township streets and not in schools.
Metcalfe said educators were battling to change a perception in
the province's townships that the first day of school was the day
to register school children.
"There are still too many kids in the streets," she said.
Unlike formerly white schools - where teaching starts on the
first day of school - the first week of term was traditionally
taken up with registering pupils.
"This has been the practice in township schools for many years,
but it has to change," she said.
The education department was working towards achieving a
situation where all schools started teaching on the first day of
school, Metcalfe said.
At Mafori Mphahlele High in Soweto - where Motshegka and
Metcalfe were received with enthusiasm - no pupils were in class,
although headmaster Willie Masemola said lessons would hopefully
start on Wednesday.
By contrast, at Nobel Primary, a former white school in Kempton
Park, pupils were receiving their books and lessons had begun.
Masemola said the late registration of pupils meant
administrative work delayed the start of teaching.
Mafori Mphahlele High achieved a 65 percent pass rate, an
improvement of 52 percent on last year's performance.
When Masemola took up his post at the school in 1995, only 14
percent of the matrics passed.
Masemola said the improvement was a result of improved teamwork
between teachers, parents and learners.
Pupils at the school echoed Masemola, saying the situation at
the school had improved greatly in the past few years.
However, the school had been burgled twice last year and even
the gardening tools had been stolen.
The United Democratic Movement issued a statement on Tuesday
saying it would monitor the delivery of textbooks to schools and
the Gauteng government's claim that no class would be without
teachers.
"The UDM expects to see action taken against all those
tenderers that do not meet the tender specifications, especially on
deadlines and quality," said Lulama Mshumpela, the UDM's Gauteng
leader.
Schools in Mpumalanga, North-West and Northern Province also
reopened on Tuesday. Schools in the rest of the country will reopen
next Tuesday.
@ CHINA-DELEGATION
BLOEMFONTEIN January 12 1999 Sapa
DELEGATION FROM NANGING, CHINA TO VISIT BLOEMFONTEIN
A four-man delegation from Nanging in China arrives in
Bloemfontein on Wednesday for a four-day visit to the city.
The delegates will have discussions with organisations in the
business sector and view developments in and around Bloemfontein.
A memorandum of understanding in regard to culture,
agriculture, science and tourism will be signed on Friday
afternoon. This will possibly lead to a "sister city" agreement at
some time in the future.
The visit reciprocates one made by Bloemfontein mayor Jani
Mohapi to China in July 1998.
@ ZIM-DRCONGO
HARARE January 12 1999 Sapa-AP
ZIMBABWE SAYS IT IS HOLDING RWANDAN PRISONERS FROM CONGO WAR
Military police on Tuesday detained the editor of a newspaper
that reported 23 soldiers were arrested for plotting a coup, a
report the government has denied.
After Mark Chavunduka, editor of The Standard, was detained,
intelligence agents interrogated other staff at the newspaper's
offices, said publisher Clive Wilson.
Defense Minister Moven Mahachi repeated denials of the
newspaper's report Sunday that 23 officers and men were arrested in
Zimbabwe for plotting to overthrow the government for its
involvement in the Congo war and alleged economic mismanagement.
Such reports were "treasonable," written by reporters wanting
to destroy the country and harm the morale of soldiers fighting in
Congo, Mahachi told a news conference.
Zimbabwe has 8,000 troops fighting in Congo who, along with
troops from Angola, Namibia and Chad, are backing Congolese
President Laurent Kabila against rebels backed by Rwandan and
Ugandan troops.
Mahachi announced that 40 Rwandan troops captured by Zimbabwean
forces have been brought to Zimbabwe. The Zimbabwean government
wants to exchange them for 17 Zimbabwean troops captured by
Congolese forces, Mahachi said.
The Rwandan prisoners were being visited by officials of the
International Red Cross, the defense minister said.
"We were kind to them. They would have been chopped (up) by
the Congo government if they were still there," Mahachi said.
He insisted the fate of the captured Zimbabwean soldiers lay in
the hands of Rwanda.
"The rebels are of no consequence at all. If Rwanda and Uganda
pull out tomorrow there will be no war" in Congo, he said.
Mahachi, meanwhile, confirmed a Zimbabwe air force transport
plane crashed Sunday on a flight from eastern Congo to the capital,
Kinshasa, killing all five people aboard.
The Spanish-built CASA 212 crashed in bad weather from a
suspected mechanical fault.
He said the air-crash deaths brought the totol loss of
Zimbabwean forces killed in the Congo war to 31.
@ TRUTH-BOIPATONG
JOHANNESBURG January 12 1999 Sapa
UPCOMING AMNESTY APPLICATION FOR BOIPATONG PERPETRATORS
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission on Tuesday announced
that 13 Inkatha Freedom Party members would next week appear before
the amnesty committee for their role in the attack on Boipatong
residents in 1990.
On the evening of June 17, about 200 men from Kwamadala hostel,
armed with automatic rifles and other weapons, attacked the
Boipatong township in the Vaal Triangle. Residents were hacked,
stabbed, shot, beaten and disembowelled.
The Boipatong massacre, in which 46 people lost their lives,
nearly destroyed peace negotiations between former National Party
leader FW de Klerk and the African National Congress.
The partly-heard amnesty applications will be heard over a two
week period from January 18 to 29 at the Iscor Recreational Club in
Vanderbijlpark.
The hearing was first heard on July 6, 1998, at the Sebokeng
College of Education.
The applications of Victor Mthandeni Mthembu, Vincent Khanyile,
Mhlupheki Shabangu and Jack Mbele were earlier heard from July 6 to
14 and from August 11 to 14, 1998.
During this time, the application of Andries Nosenga was
introduced to the panel.
Zuko Mapoma will lead evidence during the hearing.
@ CRIME-MUFAMADI
JOHANNESBURG January 12 1999 Sapa
POLICE ARE SHOWING GROWING SUCCESS IN SOLVING CRIMES - MUFAMADI
Safety and Security minister Sydney Mufamadi on Tuesday said
recent police successes in solving high profile crimes showed they
had finally come to grips with combating crime.
At a press conference in Johannesburg, Mufamadi said he was
satisfied police officers involved in investigating the cases had
gone far beyond the call of duty, working long hours during the
festive season to solve the crimes.
Police had made progress in the last two to three weeks in
solving some of the cases that have received national media
attention.
Mufumadi added that a lot of work still needed to be done in
order to bring crime to a tolerable level in the country.
Gauteng police commissioner Sharma Maharaj admitted at the
press conference that there had been little improvement on previous
years' priority crimes like rape, hijacking, vehicle and firearm
theft, although there had been a marked drop in politically
motivated crimes since December 1995.
Mufamadi, however, said: "Generally we feel that the police are
coming to grips with the matter at hand."
No statistics were presented at the conference.
Among some of the success stories quoted was the recent arrest
of a suspect believed to have been involved in the Capital Park
murders in Pretoria in which five people lost their lives.
Maharaj said police questioned a man found in the vicinity of
the previous murders on January 6. Items found in his possession
led to his arrest.
Police have also identified a suspect believed to have been
involved in the hijacking of the chairman of the West Indies
Cricket Board, Pat Rosseau, his wife Helena and a Jamaican
journalist Tony Becca in Soweto.
Maharaj said police were working around the clock to secure the
suspect's arrest.
He cited too the arrest of Lazarus Mazingane, now believed to
be the Nasrec serial killer. Mazingane was arrested in Orlando
after he allegedly hijacked a couple's vehicle and raped the woman
on August 5 last year near the Rand Showgrounds.
Mazingane has since been positively linked to many of the 14
victims though DNA testing, according to Maharaj.
Four men were arrested in connection with the November 29
hijacking and murder of the driver of Deputy minister of National
Intelligence Joe Nhlanhla. Police also confiscated three firearms.
Maharaj said large amounts of money stolen during bank
robberies in Gauteng had also been recovered and a number of people
had been arrested, some from as far afield as KwaZulu-Natal and
Swaziland.
Eight men were arrested in connection with the December 8
robbery of United Bank in Hillbrow. Police also recovered a vehicle
bought with the stolen money.
Police have arrested four men, confiscated two firearms and
recovered a substantial amount of money believed to have been
stolen during the R3,5 million robbery of the People's Bank in
Hillbrow on December 8.
Six Zimbabweans were arrested in connection with the November
19 robbery of United Bank in Norwood.
Police recovered R325000, two cellphones stolen from customers
in the bank and a Honda Ballade.
The driver of a Fidelity Guard vehicle, Anthony Pat Nkosi, who
disappeared with R2 million on December 24, was traced to Bhumya in
Swaziland were he was arrested a week later.
His accomplices were arrested on January 5.
Mufamadi said while the department was proud of the work the
police was doing, the crime rate could not be reduced without the
public's assistance.
He said vigilantism, which was on the increase, arose from the
perception that not enough was being done to solve violent crimes.
"People are sitting with information that they have regarding a
crime and they are unwilling to give it to the police, yet they
accuse the police of not addressing the problem."
Maharaj said police were also taking the increase in gang
violence very seriously.
@ JUSTICE-COMMISSION
CAPE TOWN January 12 1999 Sapa
LAW COMMISSION REAPPOINTED, INCLUDES BLACK WOMAN JUDGE
The appointment of second black woman judge to the
reconstituted South African Law Commission was a boost to race and
gender representivity, Justice Minister Dullah Omar said on
Tuesday.
Judge Lucy Mailula, of the Witwatersrand Local Division, has
been appointed to serve on the commission.
Omar said the commission's term of office expired at the end of
last year and announced that President Nelson Mandela had
reappointed seven of the eight members.
He said Judge Pierre Olivier, former vice-chairman of the
commission, had agreed to head a task team on better court and case
management and training, and had asked to be relieved of his
commission duties.
Judge Mailula had been appointed to fill the vacancy, while
Judge Yvonne Mokgoro would take his place as vice-chairman.
The commission is headed by Chief Justice Ismail Mahomed.
Omar said the other members of Olivier's task team would be
announced soon, and would begin their duties early this year.
@ TEACHERS-NNP
CAPE TOWN January 12 1999 Sapa
REDEPLOYMENT WILL LOWER STANDARDS: NNP
The redeployment of teachers would cause a decline in education
standards which the country could ill afford, the New National
Party said on Tuesday.
"The redeployment exercise will cause a further critical loss
of expertise as thousands of highly qualified teachers will be
rentrenched," NNP education spokeswoman Tertia King said.
"It makes a mockery of yet another promise...by President
Mandela."
She said teachers who were not prepared to be transferred to
areas where crime reigned supreme were literally being driven from
the system.
Her party saw the redeployment strategy as an African National
Congress mechanism to reduce teacher numbers without paying
severance packages.
The percentage of pupils who obtained matric exemption had
already declined drastically compared to previous years - a clear
sign of a further decline in teaching standards, King said.
"The NNP expresses its strong objection against the
ill-considered manner in which everything in education is being
dismantled, and the unrealistic, grandiose plans being devised and
placed on the the table but never coming to fruition, for example
Curriculum 2005."
@ LAW-COMMISSION
CAPE TOWN January 12 1999 Sapa
LAW COMMISSION REAPPOINTED, INCLUDES BLACK WOMAN JUDGE
The appointment of second black woman judge to the
reconstituted South African Law Commission was a boost to race and
gender representivity, Justice Minister Dullah Omar said on
Tuesday.
Judge Lucy Mailula, of the Witwatersrand Local Division, has
been appointed to serve on the commission.
Omar said the commission's term of office expired at the end of
last year and announced that President Nelson Mandela had
reappointed seven of the eight members.
He said Judge Pierre Olivier, former vice-chairman of the
commission, had agreed to head a task team on better court and case
management and training, and had asked to be relieved of his
commission duties.
Judge Mailula had been appointed to fill the vacancy, while
Judge Yvonne Mokgoro would take his place as vice-chairman.
The commission is headed by Chief Justice Ismail Mahomed.
Omar said the other members of Olivier's task team would be
announced soon, and would begin their duties early this year.
@ LESOTHO-MOKHEHLE
MASERU January 12 1999 Sapa
PAC'S PHEKO IN MASERU TO PAY TRIBUTE AT MOKHEHLE'S FUNERAL
The deputy president of the Pan Africanist Congress, Dr Motsoko
Pheko, visited Maseru on Tuesday to express his party's condolences
on the death of former Lesotho Prime Minister, Dr Ntsu Mokhehle,
who died last Friday.
The PAC had had a long association with the Basotholand
Congress Party, which was founded by Mokhehle in 1952, he said.
In its fraternal relations with the BCP, Mokhehle had
represented the PAC at several Pan-African conferences.
Pheko on Tuesday also met Prime Minister Pakalitha Mosilisi and
other party leaders for talks on the political situation.
He will lead the PAC delegation at Mokhehle's memorial service
on Thursday and at his funeral on Friday.
@ POVERTY-CONFERENCE
JOHANNESBURG January 12 1999 Sapa
DEVELOPMENT INVOLVES MORE THAN ECONOMICS: STIGLITZ
There was growing recognition that human development had to
take into account more than just economic issues, World Bank chief
economist Joseph Stiglitz said on Tuesday.
"It involves in some way the fundamental transformation of
society," he told delegates attending an anti-poverty conference at
Kempton Park near Johannesburg.
Traditional poverty measurement focused on income, and while
this was still important, other factors also had to be taken into
account, Stiglitz said.
Poverty assessment had to include the effects of a lack of
access to security, health, education and economic opportunities,
and of the breakdown of communities.
Stiglitz, who is on a two-day visit to South Africa, stressed
that employment creation had to remain the main tenet of any
anti-poverty strategy and should be at the centre of macro-economic
policy.
Land reform and better education were key to reducing poverty,
and the poor had to be given access to information, allowing them
to participate in decision-making, he said.
The Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town, Njongonkulu Ndungane, who
hosted the conference, called on leaders of the Group of Eight
industrialised countries to make an unequivocal commitment of
intent to cancel the developing world's unpayable debts when they
meet in Cologne in June.
The "astronomical debt" developing countries owed to developed
ones was a major contributor to poverty, he said.
For instance, World Bank figures illustrate that in 1996,
Africa transferred US14,4 billion of its resources to Organisation
for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries - the
amount it spent on education and twice the amount it spent on
health.
Ndugane said the government's macro-economic policies had to be
reworked to address the needs of the poor.
It was inappropriate that market forces on their own should
dictate the way in which governments structure their economies.
The entire world was being haunted by the spectre of
unrestricted economic growth accompanied by the neo-liberal
mechanisms needed to generate it, such as globalisation,
privatisation and deregulation, Ndungane said.
@ STORM-DURBAN
DURBAN January 12 1999 Sapa
MOPPING UP BEGINS IN DURBAN AFTER THUNDERSTORM CAUSES FLOODING
Mopping up operations were underway in the greater Durban area
on Tuesday despite occasional showers after massive thunderstorms
on Monday evening caused major flooding and disrupted rail and road
traffic.
More than 60 millimetres of rain was recorded in about three
hours on Monday, according to the Weather Bureau. Storm water
drains, unable to cope with the downpour, flooded houses below
street-level.
The Durban city council's protection services has received
about 200 complaints by Tuesday afternoon, and the drainage and
coastal engineering department about 250 complaints.
Acting director of the department, Andre Petersen, said the
areas worst affected by the flooding were Chatsworth, Bluff,
Merewent and Phoenix.
He said there was minor flooding elsewhere.
In the Durban city centre several traffic lights were out of
order and pointmen were used to direct traffic on Tuesday.
The ground floor of some office blocks on Durban's Esplanade
were also flooded.
The fire department received reports that a few residential
walls had collapsed in the storm, division commander Owen Singh
said.
He said informal shack settlements around Durban were expected
to have been hardest hit by the storm. Previous storms left
hundreds of shack dwellers homeless.
Authorites were unable to say on Tuesday how many, if any, of
the informal settlements had been affected.
Petersen said his department had received reports of flood
damage to household furniture, driveways, embankments and gardens.
Maintenance crews were presently attending to as many of the
blockage problems as possible, he said.
Petersen said the department would examine the drainage system
to determine whether design deficiencies existed.
The protection services of Amanzimtoti, south of Durban, said
it had to pump water out of seven houses on Monday night and others
were damaged by mud slides.
A spokeswoman for Spoornet said a Trans-Natal train travelling
from Johannesburg to Durban on Monday night was delayed by over
three hours, while a train travelling from Durban to Johannesburg
on Tuesday was delayed by over seven hours.
Passengers scheduled to catch connecting trains in Johannesburg
were bused from Ladysmith to Johannesburg on Tuesday.
The Weather Bureau said the worst of the rain was over,
although occasional showers were forecast for Tuesday.
@ AMNESTY
JOHANNESBURG January 12 1999 Sapa
TRC GIVES AMNESTY TO 18 AND REFUSES IT TO FIVE
Eighteen 18 people across the political spectrum have been
given amnesty by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, and five
were turned down.
The TRC said in a statement on Tuesday the 23 were applying for
amnesty for crimes committed shortly before the 1994 elections. The
crimes included murder, illegal possession of arms and explosives,
sabotage, and conspiracy to murder.
Among those given amnesty was Inkatha Freedom Party member Boy
Vusimuzi Gwamanda for the 1990 conspiracy to kill Mpumalanga
premier Mathews Phosa. He also applied for amnesty for a sporadic
shooting spree in the strife-torn Ndwendwe district near Durban in
1993.
Gwamanda testified before the TRC's amnesty committee that he
was ordered by Dingizwa Mfayela, an IFP leader at Ndwendwe, to
embark on a shooting spree in the area and to target African
National Congress supporters.
Announcing its decision, the committee said: "Little is known
of the conspiracy to assassinate Mr Phosa, but taking into account
(his) high political profile, the only reasonable inference that
can be drawn is that the conspiracy had a political objective.
"(Gwamanda) was manipulated...
"We are of the opinion that the applicant was not part of the
conspiracy merely for personal gain, but that he was being used by
the conspirators to effect their plan, and as such was an agent of
the conspirators."
The committee said while Gwamanda was not a satisfactory
witness, it was of the view that he made full disclosure of all the
relevant facts as required by the law governing the TRC.
"There is no reason why (he) should present false testimony. He
has not been arrested, charged or convicted in respect of any of
the incidents, and it is his evidence that has brought these
incidents to light.
"He (was also) subjected to cross-examination by the legal
representatives of various implicated persons as well as the legal
representative of Mr Phosa," the committee said.
Other people granted amnesty include two members of the
Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging, Pieter Magiel Breytenbach and De Wet
Johann Strydom, for sabotage and the murder of Kleinbooi Ramolla
near Bultfontein in 1994.
Philane Zondi, member of the ANC's former armed wing, Umkhonto
we Sizwe, was granted amnesty for the murder of IFP supporter Sihle
Makhapheni Mpanza at Empangeni in 1994.
Two members of the former Pan Africanist Congress armed wing,
the African People's Liberation Army (Apla), Mangaliseni Bhani and
Cyril Ngema, were granted amnesty for the murders of Joao Manuel
Jardim in Randfontein in 1994; and John Khanyile at Umlazi and
Christopher Nhlanhla Myeza near the University of Durban-Westville
in 1992.
Ntsikelelo Jackson Zwayi's amnesty application for a 1994
murder near Swartkopies Road in Alberton was also successful.
ANC members John Fanyana Mndebele, Sipho Silas Nkonyana,
Ncholas Mfundisis Zwane, Jabu Mkhwanazi, Mzwandile Gushu, Paulos
Pistol Nkonyane, David Elvis Majola, Mandlenkosi Enoch Mnisi,
Mpumelelo Livingstone Lukhele, Bongani Sibusiso Khaba and Lucky
Petros Mbokane applied for amnesty for murder and the attempted
murder of Black Cats gang members and IFP members at Wesselton near
Ermelo between 1990 and 1993.
At least 17 people were killed and scores were injured in the
conflict between the Black Cats and ANC supporters.
The committee said : "Having regard to the motives for the
attacks, the context in which they occurred, in particular the fact
that the attacks were directed against political opponents who had
the actual or perceived support of the police, we are satisfied
that the applicants are entitled to amnesty.
"It is clear that some of the victims were caught up in the
crossfire and we accept that the attacks were mainly directed
against those who were responsible for the violence."
The five refused amnesty included Phakamile Cishe and Kwanele
Msizi, who murdered two policemen and an alleged informer in Zwide
Township, Port Elizabeth in 1990.
Nkosinathi Emmanuel Ntuli, who murdered Nhlanhla Msane at Kwa
Makutha in 1991, was also denied amnesty, as was Pelele Lawrence
Shongwe for the murder of Ernest Malele in Ermelo in 1994.
Nevertheless, Shongwe was granted amnesty for the 1993 murder
of Bongani Malinga in Ermelo.
Petros Bhekinkosi Mthalane was refused amnesty for the murder
of Clement Mxolisi Mchunu near Ixopo in 1993.
The committee recommended to the TRC that the dependants of the
deceased and those who were injured in the attacks should be
considered for compensation and relief as laid down in the law that
governs the TRC.
@ PROSECUTORS-NEHAWU
JOHANNESBURG January 12 1999 Sapa
NEHAWU TO PLAN ACTIONS TO BACK PROSECUTORS' PAY RISE DEMAND
State prosecutors who are members of the National Education,
Health and Allied Workers' Union are to meet on Thursday next week
to discuss actions to back their demand for an immediate salary
increase of at least 20 percent.
Nehawu spokesman Fikile Majola said this move followed a
meeting in Johannesburg on Tuesday at which Gauteng prosecutors
expressed dissatisfaction with last year's six percent increment.
Prosecutors' demand for salary parity with magistrates would be
a key part of the proposals the union would put to the Justice
Department, as they believed they were on the same level as the
latter regarding qualifications. Magistrates' salaries were now on
average between 30 and 150 percent higher than those of
prosecutors, Majola said.
The work-to-rule action prosecutors had adopted over the past
few months had severely constrained the justice system's delivery,
making a speedy resolution of the issue crucial, he said.
The union would also seek an urgent meeting with National
Director of Public Prosecutions, Bulelani Ngcuka, and the Justice
Minister Dullah Omar.
@ TRUTH-NIEWOUDT
EAST LONDON January 12 1999 Sapa
NIEWOUDT MAY ASK FOR REVIEW OF TRC DECISION, ATTORNEY
Gideon Nieuwoudt, whose application for amnesty for his role in
the 1977 death in detention of Black Consciousness leader Steve
Biko was rejected by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, may
ask for a review of the decision, his attorney said on Tuesday.
Port Elizabeth attorney Francois van der Merwe said Nieuwoudt
was reviewing his options.
His client was one of the most feared members of apartheid
South Africa's security police in the Eastern Cape in the 1980s.
He was sentenced to 20 years in jail in 1996 for blowing up
three black security policemen and a police informer near
Motherwell in December 1989.
Van der Merwe said: "I haven't taken a decision at this stage.
Calling for a review of the decision is more likely, but we are
still considering our options."
He said he had not yet heard anything from the TRC's amnesty
committee - which made its ruling on Nieuwoudt's application on
December 14 but released a formal statement only on Sunday -
regarding his other clients in the Biko matter.
Nieuwoudt's amnesty application was heard separately from his
former security police colleagues.
TRC spokesman Vuyani Green said the amnesty committee was yet
to rule on the applications of Lieutenant Daan Siebert, Warrant
Officer Rubin Marx and Warrant Officer Johannes Beneke.
Eastern Cape attorney-general Les Roberts said on Monday no
decision to prosecute Nieuwoudt would be made until the amnesty
committee made a decision on the remaining Biko applications.
Roberts said he was also waiting for the results of Nieuwoudt's
application for his role in the murders of the Pebco Three in May
1985 and of Cosas activist Siphiwo Mtimkhulu and his friend Topsy
Madaka in April 1982.
@ ANGOLA-UNITA
LUANDA January 12 1999 Sapa-AP
ANGOLAN REBEL SAYS UNITA NOT AFFECTED BY U.N. SANCTIONS
A top UNITA rebel said Tuesday new U.N. Security Council
sanctions against his movement, including a possible block on its
telecommunication systems, will not restrain the rebels.
"A sanction is a form of punishment," UNITA Secretary-General
Paulo Lukamba Gato said. "You only punish someone with a whip if
that person is sensitive to it."
The Security Council warned Monday that it may impose sanctions
on the rebels' telecommunications following the downing of two
U.N.-chartered planes over UNITA-controlled territory with a total
of 23 people on board last month.
"We've already shown we're not sensitive to that whip," Gato
added.
Last year, the United Nations imposed a pack of sanctions on
the rebels, including a ban on their diamond exports, in an attempt
to starve UNITA of money to finance the war.
But the rebels have used their control over more than half the
country's diamond trade to amass wealth estimated by the human
rights group, Global Witness, at dlrs 3.7 billion.
Defense analysts say UNITA has purchased weapons, mainly off
the international black market. The rebels are estimated to have
about 30,000 guerrilla soldiers hidden in the vast bushland,
compared with the government's 100,000-strong army.
Both sides returned to a two-decade civil war last month,
undermining a 1994 peace pact brokered by the United Nations.
The government condemned the U.N. observer mission in Angola
for failing to secure rebel compliance with the peace demands,
which included demobilization and handing over territory under
rebel control to the government.
UNITA - the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola
- also has criticized the United Nations for failing to restrain
the government hawks who engineered the army's attack on UNITA's
central highland strongholds last month.
Gato said cutting off the phones would strain relations between
the United Nations and the rebels even further.
"How would they contact us then?" Gato said by satellite
phone from the group's highland base.
Meanwhile, the United Nations is still waiting for the rebels
to guarantee a team of U.N. investigators safe passage to the site
where its second plane went down Jan. 2 with nine people on board.
A U.N. rescue team found no survivors of the first crash of a
plane with 14 people aboard on Dec. 26. A U.N. engineering team was
expected to go to the site this week to excavate it.
@ CRIME-WILEY
CAPE TOWN January 12 1999 Sapa
WESTERN GOVT VOICES SUPPORT FOR WCAPE OPERATION AGAINST CRIME
The South African Police Service would be supported by the
Western Cape provincial government in the fight against urban
terrorism and crime, Western Cape Minister of Community Safety Mark
Wiley said on Tuesday.
"I am extremely pleased with the steps announced by
Commissioner Fivaz. Terrorism is a national issue and needs to be
confronted as such," Wiley said.
Wiley responded to a media statement issued in Pretoria earlier
on Tuesday by the National Commissioner of Police, Commissioner
George Fivaz concerning the police service's capacity to fight
crime in the Western Cape.
Fivaz announced that extra police officials, money and
equipment would be poured into the province.
The project, dubbed Operation Good Hope, would cost R4,3
million a month, he told reporters.
It kicked off with the deployment of more police at the Cape
Town Waterfront earlier in the day, and call-up papers being sent
to several police units throughout the country for reinforcements.
Fivaz said police legal teams were also examining extraordinary
legislation against urban terrorism that might include the banning
of certain non-political organisations.
The Western Cape, especially the Cape Town metropolitan area,
has for more than a year been plagued by gangster and criminal
violence. Instability escalated with two bomb explosions at the
Waterfront in recent months.
Last week, violent clashes between the police and demonstrating
supporters of the vigilante group People Against Gangsterism and
Drugs occurred during a visit to Cape Town by British Prime
Minister Tony Blair.
Pagad member Yusuf Jacobs, 22, who was hit in the temple by a
rubber bullet during the fighting, died early on Tuesday.
@ PAGAD-FUNERAL
CAPE TOWN January 12 1999 Sapa
PAGAD'S STRUGGLE WILL CONTINUE: NATIONAL CO-ORDINATOR
The struggle by People Against Gangsterism and Drugs for a drug
and gangster free society will continue despite the fact that the
police had declared war on the organisation, Pagad's chief national
co-ordinator Abdus Salaam Ebrahim said on Tuesday.
He was speaking at a funeral service in Athlone for Yusuf
Jacobs who died in Groote Schuur Hospital shortly after midnight
after being shot at an illegal gathering on the Grand Parade on
Friday.
Mourners met at Ebrahim's Lansdowne house before they left by
car for the City Park Sports Stadium in Athlone where an open air
service was held for Jacobs. Mourners then met at a Rondebosch
shopping centre before marching to the Mowbray cemetery where
Jacobs was buried.
Police kept a low profile. No incidents were reported, a police
spokesman said.
Salaam Ebrahim said Pagad knew that the police and army were
using unconventional means to kill Moslems.
He called on the several hundred mourners to be disciplined
when they carry the coffin to the Mowbray cemetery, but also warned
them to be organised as they would determine their own destination.
He warned that the police and army were going to act against
Muslims but warned that an injury to one was an injury to all.
"We say to the police, the army, corrupt members of the
government, corrupt businessmen, gangsters and drug lords, you can
all go to hell.
"We are not afraid to go to prison. We are fighting a just
cause and our struggle will continue to free our society of drugs
and gangsters."
He said Pagad wanted nothing less than the heads of those
police officers who gave the order to fire on Friday and they also
wanted the heads of those members who pulled the triggers that hurt
the demonstrators.
Salie Abader, Pagad's head of security who was also injured on
the Parade, said not a single shot was to be fired during the march
to the cemetery.
"If a shot is fired we will say that it is a police agent who
is trying to create problems and to give police the chance to
display their brutality towards us."
He said Pagad demanded the unconditional release of all of its
members who were still in jail. They demanded that the killers of
Jacobs be confined to their barracks and that a full commission of
enquiry should be held into Friday's shootings.
In pamphlets issued in Pagad's name that were handed out at the
service it was claimed that Jacobs committed one crime in life -
love for his fellow human beings.
Jacobs was trained by the St Johns ambulance service and was an
important member of Pagad's medical team. Pagad claimed he was shot
when he ran to assist two women who were hit by rubber bullets.
"This unbridled bravery led to his death. This pious act of
service to humanity is sure to bestow martyrdom on brother Yusuf
Jacobs," the pamphlet said.
@ Y2K-NAIDOO
JOHANNESBURG January 12 1999 Sapa
SA'S Y2K PROGRAMME ON TRACK, SAYS NAIDOO
South Africa's Y2K readiness programme is on track and it was
expected that by the end of this year the country would be 65-70
percent compliant, said Jay Naidoo, Minister for Posts,
Telecommunications and Broadcasting, on Tuesday.
The Y2K (Year 2000) problem is also known as the millenium bug.
Computers which have not been updated will not recognise the new
century in the date. All calculations and operations which take a
date into account will be affected.
"This percentage is a conservative figure and assumes that all
the sectors will at least maintain their current rate of progress.
"The country's level of readiness is very dependent on the
extent to which all key players participate in the Y2K challenge,"
Naidoo said.
He assured the public there was no need for panic - though
ther by companies, and a need to
educate the general public.
He added that mission critical systems, those in control of
essential services, would be close to full compliance by the end of
this year, meaning that the majority of people should experience
only minor disruptions in essential services.
Most major organisations were progressing well with their
individual Y2K programmes, Naidoo said.
However, many organisations had not paid due attention to the
inter-connected nature of their businesses and had ignored their
dependence on other oganisations.
@ ZIM-FARMS
HARARE January 12 1999 Sapa
IMF TO END LOAN FREEZE AFTER ZIMBABWE PROMISES FAIR LAND REFORM
The International Monetary Fund is to end its freeze on lending
to Zimbabwe after assurances by President Robert Mugabe's
government that it would not break agreements for a gradual land
reform programme.
The bank also announced on Tuesday it accepted the government's
explanation that the war in the Democratic Republic of Congo was
receiving major external funding and was not draining the natioal
budget.
Goodall Gondwe, chief of the IMF's Africa division, said at a
press conference in Harare outside sponsors were carrying the cost
of munitions, transport and fuel while the government paid for
salaries and bonuses due to soldiers for serving abroad.
He also suggested that Mugabe's controversial rhetoric should
be ignored.
"The president has said a number of things to different
audiences.
"What matters is what takes place, rather than what he said in
Kadoma or Gweru (two Zimbabwe towns away from the centre of
government).
"The basis for moving ahead has been reached," Gondwe said.
"We will recommend to the board (of the IMF) at its next
meeting in the first week of March that we go ahead with the
stand-by (loan)."
This would appear to mark the end of a long dispute between the
IMF and Mugabe's government over payment of a US dlrs 176 million
loan that has been held up repeatedly by heated political arguments
- over Mugabe's plan to grab white-owned land, the cost of the
government's involvement in the DRC war, price controls and a
controversial deal (that was previously denounced as corrupt) to
sell the country's main power station to a Malaysian company.
Observers say the IMF appears to have made a signficant
turn-about on policy and dropped its previously harsh conditions
for finance.
With the economy in its worst crisis since independence in
1980, Zimbabwe is desperate for Western donor governments'
concessional finance which has been frozen almost continuously
since August 1995 by what IMF officials called "Zimbabwe's long
record of non- compliance" with IMF targets.
Western donor governments make concessional loans to third
world governments only with IMF backing.
Finance Minister Herbert Murerwa told the press conference that
as a result of the IMF's announcement, the government was now
expecting US dlrs 800 million from the World Bank, European Union
and other donors.
The IMF was due to resume lending in November last year, but
withdrew when the government confiscated 841 white-owned farms
without consultation with donors or farmers.
The move appeared to contradict government's promise at a land
conference in September that it would attempt to raise money for
its resettlement programme and that only 120 farms - all of them
offered to the government - would be taken over for resettlement
over the following two years.
But Gondwe said the IMF had been assured that the government
was firmly behind its agreement with donors in September that only
the two-year phase would be carried out.
Michael Nowak, Gondwe's deputy, said the bank believed that the
government would not be following the route of immediately taking
control of and resettling people on the 841 farms.
"We were assured the negative impact (on commercial
agricultural production) we envisaged will not be the case."
Gondwe also dismissed Mugabe's remarks last week that white
farmers would be paid for their farms with "IOUs".
"Compensation will be paid up front, in cash and will reflect
the fair market value of the land," he said.
The government had agreed to issue "a comprehensive statement
to allay confusion" over the land issue.
The statement was being drafted, Gondwe said.
@ MOZ-HEALTH
MAPUTO January 12 1999 Sapa-AFP
ALMOST 1000 PEOPLE DIE OF CHOLERA IN MOZAMBIQUE
Some 990 people have died of cholera in Mozambique since an
epidemic re-emerged in the Southern African state last September
after a two-month lull, official sources announced on Tuesday.
Some 20,000 cases of the disease have been recorded over the
same period.
Avertino Barreto, deputy national director of health, told
journalists that the northern provinces of Cabo Delgado and Nampula
had registered the largest number of cases - more than half the
total.
Over the last five days the country registered a total of 700
cases and 13 deaths, said Barreto.
The health ministry official blamed the prevailance of cholera
in the country on the failure by most residents to observe hygiene,
especially in the country's overpopulated urban areas.
Barreto said that overpopulation is behind the widespread
detoriation of sanitary infrastructures and the proliferation of
street markets, one of the potential birthbeds of epidemics,
particulary during rainy seasons.
An earlier oubreak killed around 800 people across the nation.
The largest death toll was registered in the southern captial city
of Maputo, and the central city of Beira.
@ UN-ANGOLA
UNITED NATIONS, Jan 12, Sapa-AFP
UN SECURITY COUNCIL WARNS ANGOLA'S UNITA OF POSSIBLE NEW
SANCTIONS
The UN Security Council on Tuesday warned Angolan rebels that
it would consider possible new sanctions unless UNITA complied with
its obligations under peace accords.
In a resolution adopted unanimously, the council expressed
readiness to "consider the imposition of additional measures,
including in the area of telecommunications," against the National
Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA).
The council called on all states to comply with sanctions
already in force against UNITA, which include an oil and arms
embargo, a travel ban and a ban on diamond sales from areas under
UNITA control.
However US Ambassador Peter Burleigh expressed reservations
about the possible threat to UNITA's telecommunications, which
would aim to cut off UNITA's contacts with the outside world.
"We doubt the wisdom of considering imposition of sanctions
against communications with UNITA," Burleigh said during the
council session, referring to the proposal put forward by Brazil.
Referring to the crash of two UN planes in rebel-held territory
in central Angola on December 26 and January 2, Burleigh said that
"the past three weeks have demonstrated the crucial importance of
being able to communicate quickly with UNITA on search and rescue
operations."
The Security Council resolution condemned the downing of the
two aircraft and called on the government and the rebels to
cooperate with an investigation.
A UN team found no survivors on reaching the first crash site
last Friday. But the team has not yet been able to locate the
second downed aircraft, which had nine people aboard.
Angola late last year plunged back into all-out civil war
between UNITA rebels, who long fought the formerly Marxist regime
after independence in 1975, and government troops, despite UN
efforts to implement peace accords signed in 1994.
The Security Council accuses UNITA, and particularly UNITA
leader Jonas Savimbi, of bearing primary responsibility.
UNITA has notably refused to fully demobilize its troops and
hand over rebel-controlled areas to the government in line with the
Lusaka peace accords.
The Security Council is awaiting a report from UN chief Kofi
Annan, expected by Wednesday, on whether to maintain the 700-strong
UN peacekeeping mission in Angola in the face of the renewed
conflict.
@ FEATURE-DRCONGO-TALK
LUSAKA January 12 1999 Sapa-DPA
DATE SET FOR PEACE TALKS
African leaders will meet in the Zambian
capital of Lusaka on Jan 16 to try to find a peaceful solution to
the conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), according to
Zambian officials.
The date for the summit was announced by President Frederick Chiluba
of Zambia after meeting his Zimbabwean counterpart, Robert Mugabe,
in the Zimbabwean capital of Harare late last week.
Zimbabwe's High Commissioner to Zambia, John T. Kangai, told IPS on
Monday that he was confident the summit would take place on
Saturday, after it was put off, at least, thrice.
Kangai, whose country, along with Angola, Namibia and Chad, has sent
troops to prop up the beleaguered government of President
Laurent-Desire Kabila, said he was also hopeful that peace would be
achieved as DRC's belligerents now appear willing to talk.
"We are working towards achieving peace," Kangai said, adding
that, "maybe a cease-fire could even be achieved and then we can
talk about the next phase of action which would involve political
reforms in the DRC."
He said the reforms in the DRC would only work if the govenment of
Kabila accepted to work with the civil society and the dissidents.
"There are currently three to four rebel factions in the DRC, if
these are involved in the political reforms with the government of
President Kabila, peace will come to that country," he said.
While Zimbabwe is confident that the Lusaka summit will take place
as scheduled, on Jan 16, some representatives of the 14- nation
Southern African Development Community (SADC), which backs the
Congolese President, appear pessimistic.
An official at the Angolan embassy in Lusaka, who refused to be
named, said on Monday that: "Normally we get information at quite
an early stage that a meeting of this nature will take place...we
have not heard from the Zambian government up to now about this
particular meeting."
Last week, another official at the South African High Commission in
Zambia, Xolisile Duda, expressed similar doubts about the summit
when contacted by IPS.
Chiluba, who is mediating between Congolese belligerents, last week
visited two African leaders, considered as crucial to the peace
process in the DRC.
Returning from Harare on Sunday, Chiluba told journalists that he
was impressed with the talks he held with Presidents Pasteur
Bizimungu of Rwanda and Mugabe. The two are expected to take part in
the Lusaka parley.
The summit will be proceeded by a three-day preliminary meeting of
foreign affairs and defence ministers which will begin on Jan 14.
The rebellion in the DRC erupted on Aug. 2 after Kabila ordered the
remaining Rwandan troops and military instructors,
who helped him overthrow the late President Mobutu Sese Seko in May
1997, out of the country.
Kabila has accused Rwanda and Uganda of instigating the rebellion.
Both have denied the claims.
@ LOCKERBIE-LIBYA-SAFRICA
TRIPOLI, January 12 1999 Sapa-AFP
KADHAFI MEETS VISITING SAUDI, S AFRICAN OFFICIALS ON LOCKERBIE
Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi met here Tuesday with Saudi
Arabian and South African officials to discuss the impasse in the
Lockerbie affair, Libyan television reported.
Kadhafi held talks with Jakes Gerwel, a top aide to South
African President Nelson Mandela, as well as the Saudi ambassador
to Washington, Prince Bandar ibn Sultan, it said.
The report said the men brought messages from Mandela and Saudi
Arabia's King Fahd about efforts being made to resolve the matter.
Gerwel said in South Africa on Friday: "It is too optimistic to
say (we will finalise the issue), but we are confident that we will
make progress towards that conclusion."
He said: "This is part of an ongoing process of trying to
clarify and sort out the remaining issues."
The UN Security Council agreed to temporarily lift its air
embargo against Libya to allow the two officials to fly to Tripoli.
Kadhafi has in principle agreed to extradite for trial in the
Netherlands the two Libyans suspected of masterminding the December
1988 bombing of a Pan Am jet over Lockerbie, Scotland, that left
270 dead.
But he has been demanding "guarantees" on the fate of the men,
particularly that they not be imprisoned in Britain or the United
States if found guilty.
@ MOSLEM-FILM
CAPE TOWN January 12 1999 Sapa-AFP
CAPE TOWN CINEMAS STOP SCREENING 'THE SIEGE' AMID THREATS
Two Cape Town cinemas on Tuesday stopped screening the American
film 'The Siege' in the interests of their clients' safety, amidst
Moslem condemnation and threats over the film.
Nu Metro cinemas announced that it would stop screening the
film, which shows New York under siege by Moslem bombers, at the
Waterfront and the Ratanga Junction fun park - both busy tourist
destinations.
The decision came as police received four fresh bomb threats
Tuesday in the city where Moslem sentiments are running high.
"We had to stop showing the movie in the interests of public
safety," Nu Metro manager Pierre Joubert told The Argus newspaper.
A car bomb exploded at the Waterfront over the Christmas
season, shortly after the movie opened there.
Police confirmed Tuesday that three of the bomb threats were
made at the cinemas where The Siege was showing, including at the
Waterfront.
The film, starring Bruce Willis and Denzel Washington, has been
the target of much anger from Cape Town's conservative Moslem
community, who objected to its portrayal of Moslems as terrorists.
Radical local Moslem groups threatened violence after police
last week broke up protests against the visit of British Prime
Minister Tony Blair.
On Tuesday they vowed to avenge the death of one of their
members who was shot with a rubber bullet by police at one the
protests.
+-----------------------------------------------------------+
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| Cape Town Internet: in...@anc.org.za |
| South Africa CompuServe: 100014,344 |
+------------------------------------------------------------+
--=====================_916245024==_--
Rainer Moringer
messages as I am not particular interested what you have to say and consider
it spamming
Rainer
----- Original Message -----
From: Sandra Zanma-L Ross (573-882-4898work; 771-0344-home)
<c70...@showme.missouri.edu>
To: Multiple recipients of list <anc...@lists.sn.apc.org>
Sent: Wednesday, January 13, 1999 8:25 PM
Subject: Re: ANC News Briefing
>Happy New Year ANC Briefing (Journalists and Staff),
>This is Sandy Ross, from the U.S. I'm writing to let you know that I
>will be in South Africa Feb. 20 to March 31, 1999, and seek your
>assistance. I will be doing a project on job satisfaction of South
>African journalists. I'd like to meet with as many journalists there as
>
>possible, especially Black Journalists and organizations such as FBJ.
>Can you help me? If possible, I'd like to give a presentation/paper
>about being a black journalist in America for them, tentatively titled
>"A Testimonial: U.S. Media and News Writing."
>Do you know how I may contact them? And you? Please e-mail me if this
>meeting might be possible. I have been working with Lizeka Mda,
>Executive Editor, The Star.
> Any help you can give me will be greatly appreciated.
>
>Also please say hello for me to Max and Elinor Sisulu, whom I met while
>I was a writer at The Tampa Tribune and they were visiting fellows at
>the Poynter Institute, St. Petersburg, Fla.
>
>I look forward to your reply.
>
>Kindest regards,
>Sandy Ross
>
>
Sandra Zanma-L Ross (573-882-4898work; 771-0344-home)
hatty
------=_NextPart_000_007C_01BE3F9E.3AADBD80
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charset="iso-8859-1"
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TO RAINER
She was only looking for help you ASSHOLE!!!!!!!!!
If anyone is spamming it is you and your entirely unhelpful and angry =
reply. What the hell is wrong with you? Sheesh!
-----Original Message-----
From: Rainer Moringer <rai...@intekom.co.za>
To: Multiple recipients of list <anc...@lists.sn.apc.org>
Date: Thursday, 14 January 1999 8:59
Subject: Re: ANC News Briefing
Would you please refrain from using the mailing list to distribute your
messages as I am not particular interested what you have to say and =
consider
it spamming
Rainer
----- Original Message -----
From: Sandra Zanma-L Ross (573-882-4898work; 771-0344-home)
<c70...@showme.missouri.edu>
To: Multiple recipients of list <anc...@lists.sn.apc.org>
Sent: Wednesday, January 13, 1999 8:25 PM
Subject: Re: ANC News Briefing
>Happy New Year ANC Briefing (Journalists and Staff),
>This is Sandy Ross, from the U.S. I'm writing to let you know that I
>will be in South Africa Feb. 20 to March 31, 1999, and seek your
>assistance. I will be doing a project on job satisfaction of South
>African journalists. I'd like to meet with as many journalists there =
as
>
>possible, especially Black Journalists and organizations such as FBJ.
>Can you help me? If possible, I'd like to give a presentation/paper
>about being a black journalist in America for them, tentatively titled
>"A Testimonial: U.S. Media and News Writing."
>Do you know how I may contact them? And you? Please e-mail me if this
>meeting might be possible. I have been working with Lizeka Mda,
>Executive Editor, The Star.
> Any help you can give me will be greatly appreciated.
>
>Also please say hello for me to Max and Elinor Sisulu, whom I met while
>I was a writer at The Tampa Tribune and they were visiting fellows at
>the Poynter Institute, St. Petersburg, Fla.
>
>I look forward to your reply.
>
>Kindest regards,
>Sandy Ross
>
>
------=_NextPart_000_007C_01BE3F9E.3AADBD80
Content-Type: text/html;
charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD W3 HTML//EN">
<HTML>
<HEAD>
<META content=3Dtext/html;charset=3Diso-8859-1 =
http-equiv=3DContent-Type>
<META content=3D'"MSHTML 4.72.3110.7"' name=3DGENERATOR>
</HEAD>
<BODY bgColor=3D#ffffff>
<DIV><FONT color=3D#000000 size=3D2>TO RAINER</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT color=3D#000000 size=3D2>She was only looking for help you=20
ASSHOLE!!!!!!!!!</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT color=3D#000000 size=3D2>If anyone is spamming it is you and =
your=20
entirely unhelpful and angry reply. What the hell is wrong with you?=20
Sheesh!</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2><B>-----Original =
Message-----</B><BR><B>From:=20
</B>Rainer Moringer <<A=20
href=3D"mailto:rai...@intekom.co.za">rai...@intekom.co.za</A>><BR><B=
>To:=20
</B>Multiple recipients of list <<A=20
href=3D"mailto:anc...@lists.sn.apc.org">anc...@lists.sn.apc.org</A>>=
<BR><B>Date:=20
</B>Thursday, 14 January 1999 8:59<BR><B>Subject: </B>Re: ANC News=20
Briefing<BR><BR></DIV></FONT>Would you please refrain from using the =
mailing=20
list to distribute your<BR>messages as I am not particular interested =
what you=20
have to say and consider<BR>it spamming<BR><BR>Rainer<BR><BR>----- =
Original=20
Message -----<BR>From: Sandra Zanma-L Ross (573-882-4898work;=20
771-0344-home)<BR><<A=20
href=3D"mailto:c70...@showme.missouri.edu">c70...@showme.missouri.edu</=
A>><BR>To:=20
Multiple recipients of list <<A=20
href=3D"mailto:anc...@lists.sn.apc.org">anc...@lists.sn.apc.org</A>>=
<BR>Sent:=20
Wednesday, January 13, 1999 8:25 PM<BR>Subject: Re: ANC News=20
Briefing<BR><BR><BR>>Happy New Year ANC Briefing (Journalists and=20
Staff),<BR>>This is Sandy Ross, from the U.S. I'm writing to =
let you=20
know that I<BR>>will be in South Africa Feb. 20 to March 31, 1999, =
and seek=20
your<BR>>assistance. I will be doing a project on job =
satisfaction of=20
South<BR>>African journalists. I'd like to meet with as many=20
journalists there as<BR>><BR>>possible, especially Black =
Journalists and=20
organizations such as FBJ.<BR>>Can you help me? If possible, =
I'd like=20
to give a presentation/paper<BR>>about being a black journalist in =
America=20
for them, tentatively titled<BR>>"A Testimonial: U.S. =
Media and=20
News Writing."<BR>>Do you know how I may contact them? And =
you? Please e-mail me if this<BR>>meeting might be =
possible. I=20
have been working with Lizeka Mda,<BR>>Executive Editor, The =
Star.<BR>>=20
Any help you can give me will be greatly =
appreciated.<BR>><BR>>Also please=20
say hello for me to Max and Elinor Sisulu, whom I met while<BR>>I was =
a=20
writer at The Tampa Tribune and they were visiting fellows at<BR>>the =
Poynter=20
Institute, St. Petersburg, Fla.<BR>><BR>>I look forward to your=20
reply.<BR>><BR>>Kindest regards,<BR>>Sandy=20
Ross<BR>><BR>><BR><BR></BODY></HTML>
------=_NextPart_000_007C_01BE3F9E.3AADBD80--
ANC Information
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A N C D A I L Y N E W S B R I E F I N G
THURSDAY 14 JANUARY 1999
PLEASE NOTE: This News Briefing is a compilation of items from South
African press agencies and as such does not reflect the views of the
ANC. It is for reading and information only, and strictly not for
publication or broadcast.
To unsubscribe from the ANC Daily News Briefing mailing list send a
message to 'list...@wn.apc.org'. In the body of your message put
'unsubscribe ancnews'.
@ EDUC-DP
JOHANNESBURG January 13 1999 Sapa
DP SAYS IT'S DISMAYED BY RATIONALISATION OF TEACHERS
The Democratic Party in the Gauteng legislature on Wednesday
said it was dismayed about the manner in which the rationalisation
of teachers in the province had taken place.
DP MPL Brian Goodall in a statement in Johannesburg said while
there was seemingly a need to rightsize the department, the method
and timing was unacceptable.
He said schools had to set their school fees at a fully
constituted meeting of the parent body, and this needed to be done
before the end of a school year for the following year.
"The notification to teachers at this stage means that many
schools have not budgetted or forward planned for the loss and
financial implications," Goodall said in a statement.
"In many instances teacher to pupil ratios will also have to be
increased when absorption takes place into other classes."
He also said the possibility existed of industrial action which
would have a devastating effect countrywide.
@ TRADE-EU
JOHANNEBURG January 13 1999 Sapa
DATE YET TO BE SET FOR RESUMPTION OF SA-EU TRADE NEGOTIATIONS
A date has yet to be set for the resumption of the stalled
negotiations on a trade, co-operation and development agreement
between South Africa and the European Union.
"There is nothing scheduled for this week," Bahle Sibisi, South
Africa's chief director for bilateral trade, said on Wednesday.
It had also not yet been decided at what level the next round
of negotiations would be.
Sibisi expected new information to come to light next week.
The talks, which have been under way for about three years,
have stalled over the EU's insistence that South African producers
phase out the use of the names port and sherry in domestic markets.
EU leaders have set a March deadline for the conclusion of the
negotiations.
@ CRIME-BESTER
CAPE TOWN January 13 1999 Sapa
TOURISM MEC BESTER BACKS ANTI-TERROR PLAN
The police plan to fight urban terrorism and crime in the
Western Cape should go a long way towards stabilising the
environment for the province's economy and tourism industry to
flourish, business promotion and tourism MEC Hennie Bester said on
Wednesday.
He was responding to a media statement in Pretoria on Tuesday
by national police commissioner George Fivaz concerning the
police's capacity to fight crime in the Western Cape.
Fivaz said extra police officers, money and equipment would be
poured into the province. The project, dubbed Operation Good Hope,
would cost R4,3 million a month.
Bester said to ensure continued growth, especially of
international tourism to the country, two key responses to attacks
of urban terror were required.
Firstly, the response of the security forces had to be
professional, quick and successful.
"This requires not only efficient policing, but also successful
prosecutions. Whereas Operation Good Hope adds substantially to the
policing capacty in our province, we need substantial additional
capacity and commitment within our criminal justice system," Bester
said.
Secondly, attacks of urban terror required a heightened tourism
marketing effort.
He said his department had made R1 million available for an
international marketing effort following the attack on Planet
Hollywood restuarant at the Cape Town waterfront last August.
"This programme is co-ordinated by the Western Cape Tourism
Board in co-operation with Satour. It has been up and running since
November last year and will run until the end of July this year,"
Bester said.
@ ANC-PHOSA
NELSPRUIT January 13 1999 Sapa
ANC AND PHOSA DENY `SECRET' CORRUPTION PROBE AGAINST PHOSA
Mpumalanga premier Mathews Phosa on Wednesday dismissed press
reports that he was being probed for possible corruption by a
top-level African National Congress investigative team.
Reports in Johannesburg daily The Star on Wednesday contended
that Phosa was being investigated for possibly benefiting from an
illegal promissory note deal worth over R1,3 billion as well as the
earlier R25 billion Dolphin deal.
Both schemes were designed by suspended Mpumalanga Parks Board
chief executive Alan Gray and used the province's game parks as
collateral to raise foreign funding, African Eye News Service
reported.
ANC national spokesman Thabo Masebe on Wednesday denied any
knowledge of a specific investigation into Phosa, but confirmed the
party had instituted a broad internal commission of inquiry into
the string of scandals featuring Gray and the MPB.
Masebe said the commission was being headed by the chair ofthe
ANC's national executive committee sub-committee on Mpumalanga,
Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula
The Star said Mapisa-Nqakula, who also chairs Parliament's
joint standing committee on intelligence, was heading the probe
into Phosa.
Phosa in a statement on Wednesday said the report was part of a
concerted and unsubstantiated smear campaign aimed at destroying
his credibility as Mpumalanga premier and chairman of the ANC in
the province.
Denying that he had benefited in any way from the Dolphin or
promissory note deals, Phosa said he refused to be diverted from
his anti-corruption campaign by the allegations.
"I challenge those who are behind these allegations to come
forward to prove them. When criminals are caught with their hands
in the till they often react by blaming those who want to serve the
taxpayers in a transparent and decisive way," he said.
Phosa's spokesman, Oupa Pilane, said there were a number of
factual inaccuracies in The Star's report, including the blurring
of two separate scandals involving Dolphin and the promissory notes
into a single event. "The two events were separated by two years.
The reporter was obviously briefed by someone and didn't check his
facts before going to print," said Pilane.
Mpumalanga ANC spokesman Jackson Mthembu confirmed that the
party was not conducting an investigation into Phosa and said The
Star may have been misinformed about the terms of reference
governing the existing ANC commission into the MPB.
@ ANC ON DEMOCRATIC PARTY'S ALLEGATIONS OF NEPOTISM
Issued by: African National Congress
The Democratic Party has for the umpteenth time repeated its
allegations that the ANC is providing jobs for the relatives and
families of ANC leaders at the expense of ordinary people.
The DP attempts to substantiate this absurd allegation by
enunciating ANC members or relatives of such persons who have
government jobs. The hidden suggestion here is that all these people
are not qualified for the jobs they hold and have been appointed to
them because of nepotism.
The DP would do well to advise the South African public exactly
whom it considers eligible for government jobs. If we are to take
the party for its word, it would appear that it is of the opinion
that anybody related to an ANC leader or prominent member should be
disqualified from employment by the state.
This posture provokes the question, what would be the cut-off
point for such relations? Would the DP suggest first cousins, second
cousins, aunts and uncles or merely sons and daughters? Considering
that Black families - African, Coloured and Indian - are not
structured like the conventional western nuclear family, what degree
of vigour or flexibility will the DP and its leader insist upon?
The DP as is its habit these days, is very obviously stooping to
the level of innuendos and near-slanders to serve cheap political
points. All civil servants, as DP, well knows are only employed
after openly advertised vacancies. They compete on an equal basis,
with all other applicants for the positions they have won. No civil
servants have been employed except after an interview process
wherein they compete with other applicants.
The inexorable conclusion is unless the DP is suggesting that
all these proceses are corrupt, it is talking arrant nonsense and
deliberately misleading the pubic. But then desperate political
parties know few scruples.
Issued by ANC Department of Information and Publicity
For further information contact Thabo Masebe at 082 551 4945 or 330
7082
13 January 1999
@ ZIM-EDITOR
HARARE January 13 1999 Sapa
EDITOR STILL BEING HELD BY ZIMBABWEAN MILITARY
Mark Chavunduka, editor of the independent Standard newspaper,
was still in the custody of Zimbabwean military police on Wednesday
morning, more than 24-hours after being arrested, a Sapa
correspondent reported.
Chavanduka telephoned the Sunday newspaper on Wednesday, saying
he was still being held at Cranborne military barracks in Harare's
southern suburbs, said the paper's publisher Clive Wilson.
Chavanduka told Wilson he had not been assaulted.
Wilson telephoned military police demanding the editor's
release and was told by an official that he would need to apply to
the Minister of Defence.
Lawyers were on Wednesday due to apply for a high court order
for Chavunduka's release.
His arrest followed the newspaper's report on Sunday that 23
soldiers, including seven army officers, had been arrested in
December for inciting their colleagues to rise against President
Robert Mugabe.
On Tuesday, Zimbabwean Defence Minister Moven Mahachi accused
the Standard and other independent newspapers of publishing reports
"aimed at undermining the state and to try and lower the morale of
our forces on the front" in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
He described the Standard as an enemy of the state and said
"appropriate action" would be taken.
@ AIDS-UN
DURBAN January 13 1999 Sapa
UN SLAMS MURDER OF ANTI-AIDS ACTIVIST IN KWAZULU-NATAL
The silence surrounding the Aids epidemic in South Africa
needed to be broken to prevent the spread of the disease, the
United Nations in South Africa said on Wednesday.
The UN was responding to the murder of Aids educator Gugu
Dlamini who was beaten to death in KwaMashu, north of Durban, on
December 12 after she disclosed she was HIV positive.
In a statement the UN said it was tragic that her determination
to persuade members of her community not to discriminate against
those infected with HIV or those suffering from Aids had led to her
violent death.
Dlamini was beaten to death by youths who had threatened to
kill her after she went public with her HIV status.
The UN said: "The silence surrounding the epidemic as a result
of discrimination in communities and the workplace allows for the
spread of the epidemic to continue unabated.
"The senseless killing of Ms Dlamini highlights the need for
this silence t be broken."
@ DRCONGO-SADC
LUSAKA January 13 1999 Sapa
SADC HEADS OF STATE TO GATHER IN LUSAKA TO DISCUSS DRC
Southern African Development Community heads of state will meet
in Lusaka on Saturday to discuss ways of ending the war in the
Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambian foreign affairs spokesman
Kimbala Meleka confirmed on Wednesday.
The gathering, which was delayed several times, would be
preceded by a two-day meeting of SADC defence and foreign
ministers, starting on Thursday.
Zambian government spokesman Richard Sakala said rebels
fighting to topple DRC President Laurent Kabila had been invited to
attend the meeting and would take part in all deliberations to
present their side of the story.
The summit would discuss modalities for foreign troop
withdrawal and exchange of prisoners of war.
A ceasefire agreement to be drafted by the Organisation of
African Unity and endorsed by the warring Congolese factions would
be discussed.
Zambian President Frederick Chiluba last Sunday said the
Congolese rebels could not be sidelined if SADC efforts to end the
war were to succeed.
Representatives from Angola, Botswana, Chad, DRC, Gabon, Kenya,
Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia
and Zimbabwe were expected to attend the meeting.
@ LIBYA-LOCKERBIE
TRIPOLI January 13 1999 Sapa-AFP
PROGRESS MADE TOWARDS LOCKERBIE SETTLEMENT: LIBYA
Progress has been made towards resolving the impasse over the
Lockerbie bombing case during talks between Libyan leaders and
South African and Saudi envoys, the official JANA news agency said
Wednesday.
JANA, citing a foreign ministry spokesman, said Tuesday's
meetings constituted a "big step towards a settlement of what is
being called the Lockerbie affair."
It said the talks were "important and comprehensive" and had
brought out "crucial practical measures for the resolution of the
matter."
"All parties have good intentions for resolving the problem,"
JANA said, adding: "The discussions on the subject will continue as
well as the efforts to lift the remaining obstacles."
The Saudi ambassador to Washington, Prince Bandar ibn Sultan,
and South African envoy Jakes Gerwel held talks on Tuesday with
Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi.
Prince Bandar said he had come to Libya to "work toward a
definitive lifting of the embargo" against Tripoli, JANA reported
Wednesday.
The two delivered messages to Colonel Kadhafi on Tuesday from
King Fahd of Saudi Arabia and South African President Nelson
Mandela on efforts to resolve the Lockerbie bombing case.
The UN Security Council agreed to temporarily lift its air
embargo against Libya to allow the two officials to fly to Tripoli.
Kadhafi has in principle agreed to extradite for trial in the
Netherlands two Libyans suspected of masterminding the December
1988 bombing of a Pan Am jet over Lockerbie, Scotland, that left
270 dead.
But he has been demanding "guarantees" on the fate of the men,
particularly that they not be imprisoned in Britain or the United
States if found guilty.
@ ALANT
CAPE TOWN January 13 1999 Sapa
ALANT TO QUIT PARLIAMENT
New National Party MP and finance spokesman Dr Theo Alant
announced on Wednesday that he would quit Parliament to focus in
business interests.
"After a parliamentary career of 18 years, I have decided to
retire from public office and not make myself available for
re-election," he said in statement.
He said he would remain a committed member and supporter of the
NNP and would perform all his duties in Parliament and the party
until the coming election.
Alant said he was committed to the vision and role that the NNP
would play in establishing multiparty democracy in the country.
He became MP for Pretoria East in 1981 and rose through the old
NP's ranks, becoming deputy finance minister in former state
president FW de Klerk's cabinet.
@ ANC-NEPOTISM
JOHANNESBURG January 13 1999 Sapa
DP'S NEPOTISM CLAIMS NOT TRUE: ANC
The Democratic Party's claim of nepotism by the African
National Congress in the allocation of government jobs was an
attempt at scoring cheap political points, the ANC said on
Wednesday.
In response to DP's repeated claims that the ANC was providing
jobs for relatives and families of party leaders at the expense of
ordinary people, the ANC said it would be advisable if the public
knew exactly whom the DP considered eligible for government jobs.
"This posture provokes the question, what would be the cut-off
point for such relations?" asked ANC spokesman Thabo Masebe.
"Would the DP suggest first cousins, second cousins, aunts and
uncles or merely sons and daughters?
"Considering that black families are not structured like the
conventional western nuclear family, what degree of vigour or
flexibility will the DP and its leader insist upon?"
He described the DP's claims as stooping to the level of
innuendo and near-slander to score cheap political points.
No civil servants had been employed except after an interview
process wherein they competed with other applicants, Masebe said.
"The inexorable conclusion is unless the DP is suggesting that
all these processes are corrupt, it is talking nonsense and
deliberately misleading the pubic," he said.
@ KWANATAL-DRIVERS
DURBAN January 13 1999 Sapa
NDEBELE THREATENS TO SUSPEND SPEEDSTERS' LICENCES
KwaZulu-Natal transport MEC S'bu Ndebele has threatened to
suspend the licences of drivers found guilty of speeding.
Department spokesman Logan Maistry on Wednesday said Ndebele
was thinking of using a sanction provided in section 30 of the Road
Traffic Act, stating the MEC had the authority to suspend a
driver's license if he felt the holder would constitute a danger on
a public road.
Maistry said the department had not yet suspended any driver's
licences, but at least 30 letters had been sent to offenders found
guilty of speeding.
He said the department was issuing a warning to all motorists
that speeding could cost them their lives and the right to drive.
"The drivers' response to these letters will not negate the
commencement of the administrative action. Some may receive final
warnings while others may have their licences electronically
endorsed through the National Traffic Information System," Maistry
said.
He said Ndebele had also decided to expose drunken drivers by
publishing weekly lists of all those convicted in all major
newspapers.
"For too many motorists, heavy fines mean nothing. But with
offenders' names hung out in public places, people will begin to
question the credibility of those convicted," he said.
@ ANC LEADERS AT NATOO BABENIA'S MEMORIAL SERVICE
Issued by: African National Congress
ANC Deputy President, Jacob Zuma will be a main speaker at the
memorial service of the late Natoo Babenia, a prominent
anti-apartheid activist campaigner and ex-Robben Island prisoner. It
will be held on Saturday, 16 January 1999 at Justice Hall,
Ecumenical Centre, 20 St Andrews Street, Durban at 13h30.
Babenia, a South African who actively participated and jailed
during both the Indian and South African struggles, passed away on
Friday, 01 January, aged 75. He was a member of the ANC, SACP and
our glorious people's army, Umkhonto We Sizwe (MK). In 1995, Babenia
released his biography, which was aptly titled "Memoirs of a
Saboteur". Other prominent ANC/SACP/COSATU leaders including ANC
National Executive Committee member and Deputy Minister of Defence,
Ronnie Kasrils, will attend this service in memory of a freedom
fighter, friend and a colleague.
NATOO BABENIA - PART OF THE MAJORITY
During the last festive season, the ANC in KwaZulu Natal
suffered two great losses. Dorothy Nomzansi "Mam D" Nyembe passed
away in her sleep on December 17, a night after the Day of
Reconciliation. On New Year's Day Natoo Babenias' eyes were closed
forever. Perhaps a conspiracy of the elders!
As per custom, the remains of this great soldier with a stout
heart were cremated the following day. His remains may be no more
but his memory lives on among us. He was born on the 28th of March
1924 in Coedmore Road, Bellair in Durban. He grew up among Indians
and Africans. From a young age, he knew no difference between an
Indian and an African. Yet even at that age he could understand that
national oppression was common among them. It was at that time that
he was affectionately known as "Thukela" (the biggest river
criss-crossing KwaZulu Natal) among most Africans in the area.
Indeed, Natoo Babenia lived the life of uThukela song:
"In my womb lie the dead sediments of the past, In my womb lie the
worms to devour the poison past, In my womb lie the pride to unite,
In my womb lie the seeds of unity."
In 1936 Babenia and his family left for India after experiencing
economic difficulties as a result of racial discrimination in South
Africa. The quest for national liberation in India was reaching its
apex. The young Babenia still at a primary school found himself an
active role in the Congress movement of India. Even at that age,
Babenia endeared peace. But he did not use that quest for peace as
an excuse not to take arms against British colonialism. In 1942
after the British colonialists had arrested most leaders, including
Mahatma Ghandi, of the All India National Congress, he was part of
the "Quit India" campaign aimed at forcing British colonialism out
of India through armed struggle.
In 1949 Natoo Babenia arrived back to South Africa. India had
received its independence in 1947. In South Africa a party whose
leaders had thrown bombs in support of Nazism, the National Party,
had assumed office with the ticket of apartheid. How was it possible
for a man like Babenia who had occupied the forward trenches in the
independence struggle of India to leave that liberated country to
apartheid South Africa? Would it not be better to remain in India
and bask in the glory of being a hero of the Indian liberation
struggle? To many this would have been an option.
But Babenia was different. Nobody knew more than he did that
freedom is indivisible. Freedom for India without freedom for South
Africa and that of the world as a whole was unimaginable for
Babenia. When he arrived in South Africa he became part of the
Congress Movement led by the ANC. He also joined the Communist
Party. He had no problem in loyally serving both organisations
individually and collectively.
In 1960 the ANC and other organisations were banned. The state
of emergency was declared. Mass detention and torture of leaders and
activists took place. It became clear that the time had come for
South Africa when there remained only two choices - submit or fight.
Comrade Babenia and thousands more had no choice but to fight back
with everything at their disposal.
Babenia found himself in the ranks of the pioneers of Umkhonto
we Sizwe, the armed offshoot of the ANC. He worked with such
stalwarts as Curnick "Mthakathi" Ndlovu, Jacob Zuma, Billy Nair,
Ebrahim Ebrahim, Ronnie Kasril, Sonny "Bobby" Singh, Eric "Khehla"
Mtshali and Ms Maud Mfusi. He specialised as a saboteur and was a
disciplined underground worker who successfully operated under the
very nose of fascism.
Butthe apartheid network of spies was flung wide and with the
draconian powers of torture and detention without trial already
enjoyed by the apartheid state, Babenia and some of his colleagues
were finally arrested. Babenia was sentenced to sixteen years on
Robben Island. As revolutionaries we belong to a school of thought
that says history is made by the people and not by individuals. Yet
we are all agreed that there are individuals in every society and
epoch whose actions and contributions help guide the masses and give
the tone of march. Comrade Babenia belonged to that company. Perhaps
one of our humblest leaders and yet one of our unsung heroes. His
life is documented in his book "Memoirs of a Saboteur" which is a
must to every youth who wants to lead a meaningful life. Comrade
Babenia never regarded himself as an outcast in his own country that
he fought for so long and so hard. He was a proud member of the
South African family in its magnificent variety. He lived the life
of the majority be they Indian, coloured, African and white. He
fought in the front columns of the oppressed and democratic
majority. He was part of the majority.
The African National Congress dips its revolutionary banner to
this great patriot and colossus. He may rest in peace for victory is
certain.
From: Dumisani Makhaye - ANC National Executive Committee Member
@ CONGO-GOVERNMENT
BRAZZAVILLE, January 13 1999 Sapa-AFP
WAR-TORN CONGO'S PRESIDENT FORMS NEW GOVERNMENT
Congo's President Denis Sassou Nguesso has carried out a
reshuffle of his government and named a defence minister as part of
a battle by his forces to fight the militiamen of a government he
himself ousted by force of arms.
The main change in the reshuffle, officially announced late
Tuesday, was the naming of one of Sassou Nguesso's aides, Lekounzou
Iti Osetoumba, to run defence affairs with the rank of minister in
the president's office.
General Sassou Nguesso had previously taken direct
responsibility for defence.
His troops have since late last year again been pitted against
militia forces who served the toppled civilian president Pascal
Lissouba and the latter's premier Bernard Kolelas, who was mayor of
Brazzaville.
"The new government must, in the shortest possible time, put an
end to disorder of all kinds and to the many sources of tension
which remain in some parts of the country," the new transport
minister, Isidore Mvouba, who had been Sassou Nguesso's cabinet
director, said on state radio.
By appointing a defence minister, Sassou Nguesso appears to
have chosen the military option to resolve the conflict with the
so-called Ninja militias who backed Kolelas, observers said.
The Ninjas withdrew into the Pool region adjoining Brazzaville
when the general seized power for a second time in October 1997
after weeks of fighting in and around the capital.
The other government official responsible for security matters,
police chief and interior minister Pierre Oba, retained his post,
as did other key members of the cabinet, which was however reduced
in number from 33 to 25 members.
One new face was brought in - Alphonse Mbamba, responsible for
industrial development.
Among those who retained their portfolios were the ministers of
the economy (Mathias Nzon), foreign affairs (Rodolphe Adada) and
hydrocarbons (Jean-Baptiste Taty-Loutard). Congo is rich in oil
resources.
Sassou Nguesso, quoted by Mvouba, said: "The new government is
urgently required to re-establish a climate appropriate to the
restoration of order in the country in order to restore the
authority of the state across the whole territory."
Since September, the Ninjas have stepped up ambushes on army
units in the Pool district, leading to heavy fighting in December
between the militia forces and government troops backed by Angolan
soldiers. The clashes spread into southern districts of
Brazzaville.
Several hundred people died last month in the fighting,
according to Sassou Nguesso, a former military ruler who had handed
over to Lissouba in 1992. He seized back power at the end of a
five-month civil war which broke out after the head of state tried
to disarm rival militias.
An army source, however, said the recent fighting had claimed
between 1,000 and 1,500 lives. Since December 10, the Pool region
has been sealed off by government and allied troops, who have been
particularly active in the Linzolo hills some 20 kilometres (12
miles) southwest of Brazzaville.
Humanitarian sources have expressed alarm at the dramatic
situation faced by local people driven from their villages into
hiding in the forests because of the fighting, while atrocities
against civilians have also been reported.
The government has blamed these abuses on the Ninjas, refuting
allegations that Sassou Nguesso's Cobra militia have carried out
major rights violations.
@ SEATS
CAPE TOWN January 13 1999 Sapa
ALMOST A QUARTER OF ASSEMBLY MPS GONE
Almost a quarter of the Members of Parliament who filled the
benches when the National Assembly met for the first time in 1994
have now left, and more are expected to follow as politicians
jockey for position in the runup to the general election.
There are 400 seats in the National Assembly: when Parliament
comes back on February 5 for a seven-week session, at least 98 MPs
will have been replaced since that historic first sitting.
The first of them was Nelson Mandela, who lost his seat as an
elected MP when he was sworn in as president on May 10, 1994.
Among the Afrian National Congress stalwarts who have left
Parliament altogether are former Labour Minister Tito Mboweni,
being groomed for governorship of the Reserve Bank, and ex-chief
whip Makhenkhesi Stofile, now premier of the Eastern Cape.
Unionist Cyril Ramaphosa midwifed the new Constitution, but
after reportedly losing a power struggle with Thabo Mbeki, entered
the business sector.
He now chairs the Johnnic industrial group, and is on the board
of the powerful black-owned New Africa Investments - but still
holds a strong position on the ANC national executive.
Simon Farisani went first to the National Council of Provinces,
then to the Northern Province, where is he now minister of
agriculture.
Constitutional affairs guru Pravin Gordhan became deputy
commissioner of the South African Revenue Services.
A handful of MPs died, including Housing Minister Joe Slovo,
who lost his battle with cancer in 1995.
Late last year deputy chief whip Naledi Pandor took over the
deputy chairmanship of the National Council of Provinces, vacated
by Bulelani Ngcuka when he became national director of public
prosecutions.
Mendi Msimang did a spell as high commissioner in London before
his recall in 1997 to take up the post of ANC national treasurer.
Other ambassadorial appointments from within the ranks of the
ANC in the Assembly included Raymond Suttner to Sweden, Carl
Niehaus to the Hague, John Nkadimeng to Cuba, and Chris Dlamini to
China, while Jackie Selebi is now director-general of the
Department of Foreign Affairs.
This week Louis Mnguni was appointed high commissioner to
Mauritius, and safety and security committee chairman Rapu Molekane
was named as consul-general in Munich.
Redeployments claimed Saki Macozoma, now chief executive
officer of Transnet, Stofile's successor Max Sisulu, who was last
year posted to Denel, and Titus Mafolo, now in the deputy
president's office.
Linda Mti became national intelligence co-ordinator, and Jenny
Schreiner, like Mti a former Umkhonto we Sizwe guerilla, was
appointed an adviser in his office.
Disillusioned with parliamentary politics, singer Jennifer
Ferguson left to start a new life in Sweden, while former unionists
Marcel Golding and John Copelyn went into the business sector.
One of the most spectacular departures from the ANC was that of
deputy environment minister Bantu Holomisa, who was expelled from
the party for refusing to back down on his insistence that Public
Enterprises Minister Stella Sigcau answer to corruption charges.
Since then he has become president of the United Democratic
Movement, which he co-founded with Roelf Meyer, who was ousted as
National Party general secretary, and left Parliament, after being
sidelined by party conservatives.
The NP's Gauteng leader, Sam de Beer, lost his seat when he
defected to the UDM in August last year, and was followed in
December by KwaZulu-Natal NP warhorse Dr Johan Steenkamp.
Perhaps the most damaging blow for the National Party was the
departure in 1997 of FW de Klerk, who handed over the party
leadership to the younger Marthinus van Schalkwyk, and went on to
divorce his wife and marry Elita Georgiades.
The previous year, the NP's decision to quit the government of
national unity saw the exit of the gravel-voiced former foreign
minister Pik Botha, who declared he was going to become an
investment adviser, and of a trio of other ex-ministers - Dawie de
Villiers, Chris Fismer and Kraai van Niekerk.
Also in 1996, Ramaphosa's co-chairman in the Constitutional
Assembly, Leon Wessels, left to resume his Krugersdorp law
practice.
Nic Koornhof has become Western Cape MEC for education, and
Pieter Marais MEC for health government and the loser in a contest
for the provincial premiership.
Pieter Saaiman went to the Northern Cape legislature where he
hopes to become premier after the 1999 elections.
At the end of last year David Graaff, whose father led the
United Party, and whose grandfather served as finance minister,
bowed out of politics.
The Inkatha Freedom Party took Arts Minister Ben Ngubane back
to KwaZulu-Natal in 1996 to step into Frank Mdladlose's shoes as
premier, while party strategist Walter Felgate responded to his
recall to the province by joining the ANC.
Former head of the Pan Africanist Congress Clarence Makwetu
reluctantly left Parliament after a bruising clash with his party
leadership.
Eight MPs have already indicated they will use the general
election to bow out, among them Transport Minister Mac Maharaj and
his cabinet colleagues Sibusiso Bengu (education) and Joe Modise
(defence).
On Wednesday New National Party finance spokesman Dr Theo Alant
said he would not stand for re-election.
Education portfolio committee chairman Blade Nzimande will be
leaving to give full-time attention to his position as general
secretary of the South African Communist Party.
@ MACHEL-MONUMENT
PRETORIA January 13 1999 Sapa
MANDELA TO UNVEIL MEMORIAL FOR SAMORA MACHEL
President Nelson Mandela will later this the month unveil a
memorial for Mozambican President Samora Machel at the site where
he died in an air crash in 1986.
Mozambican President Joachim Chissano would also attend the
ceremony at Mbuzini in Mpumalanga, the Ministry of Arts, Culture,
Science and Technology said in a statement in Pretoria.
Machel and 34 others died on October 9, 1986, when his
presidential aircraft crashed in mountainous terrain near Mbuzini
settlement in the Barberton district.
The cause of the accident has been a subject of much debate. An
inquiry under the former National Party government blamed the crash
on a pilot error, while a Soviet team found that a decoy beacon had
caused the aircraft to stray.
On the tenth anniversary of Machel's death, Mandela promised
that the governments of South Africa and Mozambique would jointly
erect a memorial for Machel.
The ministry said the memorial was designed by Mozambican
architect Jose Forjaz. The unveiling ceremony on January 19 would
also be attended by Cabinet members and MECs.
Both Mandela and Chissano will speak at the event.
The Machel memorial was one of eight commemorative structures
planned by the Department of Arts, Culture, Science and Technology
as part of what the ministry described as a national legacy
project.
"These new monuments, museums and other symbolic structures
will reflect the government's efforts to portray the full spectrum
of South Africa's history," the ministry said.
@ TRAFFIC
PRETORIA January 13 1999 Sapa
197 PEOPLE DIE ON SA ROADS SINCE JANUARY 1
Road accidents in South Africa have claimed the lives of 197
people since January 1, the Arrive Alive campaign said on
Wednesday.
Of these deaths, 63 were drivers, 93 were passengers, and 41
were pedestrians.
The deaths occurred as a result of 144 crashes, of which 28
percent involved pedestrians.
Head-on collisions accounted for eight percent of the
accidents, four percent were the result of vehicles driving into
the back of other vehicles, and 39 percent involved vehicles
overturning.
Seven pedestrians were killed over the 24-hour period ending at
noon on Wednesday. Eight vehicles overturned causing 14 fatalities.
Arrive Alive said speed had contributed to five crashes.
Most people - 40 - died in the Eastern Cape, followed by 30
in the Western Cape, 28 in KwaZulu-Natal, 27 in Free State, 23 in
Northern Province, 20 in Gauteng, 13 in Northern Cape, eight in
Mpumalanga, and eight in North West.
Most drivers died in the Western Cape, and the Eastern Cape
reported most fatal crashes.
@ EDUC-MPUMA
NELSPRUIT January 13 1999 Sapa
TWO-BRITISH COMPANIES DONATE BOOKS TO MPUMA PRE-SCHOOLS
Mpumalanga pre-schools on Wednesday recieved books worth R1,2
million donated to disadvantaged children by two British companies,
African Eye News Service reported.
The books were handed over by Egoli Education company on behalf
of BBC World, a British 24-hour news channel, and Jonathan Bell
Publishers.
The donations followed appeals to the arts, culture, language
and science national portfolio committee by the Library and
Information Association of SA, which claimed library services had
deteriorated since the first democratic election.
It also claimed eight million of the country's 12 million
learners had no access to library facilities and that many
libraries funded by the reconstruction and development programme
could not be equipped with books because there was no money.
Egoli Education managing director John Gomes, handing over the
books, said his company started seeking book donations three years
ago when requested to help obtain donations for young children.
"Last year, we equipped a total of 152 pre-schools across the
country that didn't have books," Gomes said.
Mpumalanga education MEC David Mabuza said the donation marked
the laying of the first brick for the development of young
children.
Mabuza urged parents and teachers to support pre-school
education.
@ REGISTER-ANCYL
JOHANNESBURG January 13 1999 Sapa
ANCYL CALL FOR SPECIAL REGISTRATION DAY FOR STUDENTS
The African National Congress Youth League on Wednesday called
for the Independent Electorial Commission to declare a special day
for tertiary students to register for the general election.
In a statement, ANCYL said the dates set for the second
registration drive would not allow students to register at their
institutions because they would still be in recess.
Students have been directed to register at their learning
institutions. "We therefore call and demand from the IEC to declare
special registration days for students during the month of February
to ensure that such students are able to register and vote."
ANCYL called on all students to register in the vicinity of
their institutions.
@ UNVEILING OF SAMORA MACHEL MEMORIAL
Issued by: The Ministry of Arts, Culture, Science and
Technology
The Minister of Arts, Culture, Science and Technology, Mr Lionel
Mtshali, on 19 January 1999, will host the unveiling of the Samora
Machel Memorial at Mbuzine, the site where the late President of
Mozambique was killed in a plane crash in 1986.
The Memorial is the result of a promise made by President
Mandela at the tenth anniversary of the death of the late President
Machel in 1996: that the governments of South Africa and Mozambique,
in a joint project, would erect a memorial to pay homage to the life
and vision of Samora Machel and those who lost their lives as a
result of the crash.
The memorial was designed by Dr Jose Forjaz, an eminent
Mozambican architect.
This memorial is one of eight new commemorative structures
planned by the Department of Arts, Culture, Science and Technology
as a part of its national Legacy Project and the second to be
unveiled. The national Legacy Project proposes to breath new life
into South Africa's heritage sector by promoting consultation,
redress and the development of community friendly public spaces.
These new monuments, museums and other symbolic structures will all
reflect the government's efforts to portray the full spectrum of
South Africa's history.
The ceremony on 19 January will be attended by President
Mandela, President Chissano of Mozambique, Cabinet Ministers,
Premiers and MEC's. Both heads of state will deliver addresses,
while President Mandela will unveil the memorial.
Representatives of the media are invited to attend the
unveiling, the particulars of which are the following:
Date: 19 January 1999
Time: 10:00
Venue: Samora Machel Commemorative Site, Mbuzini
Enquiries: Frans Basson 021 4654850/78
@ CRIME-BLAAUW
PRETORIA January 13 1999 Sapa
ASSISTANT POLICE COMMISSIONER WON'T BE PROSECUTED - FIVAZ
Western Cape assistant police commissioner Adam Blaauw would
not be prosecuted after an investigation into allegations of
perjury and an attempt to defeat the course of justice, national
police commissioner George Fivaz said on Wednesday.
Fivaz said the investigation, which started a few weeks ago,
had been completed and submitted to the Director of Public
Prosecutions for the Cape of Good Hope, who decided not to
institute any prosecution against Blaauw.
"We are satisfied that the process of investigation into this
matter was conducted in a professional way, according to the
required national standard of investigation," Fivaz said.
Blaauw was quoted in a Cape Town afternoon paper late last year
as saying the police service in the Western Cape was in a shambles.
He accused white officers of being racist and unwilling to serve
under black officers and commanders.
He said black officers with potential, including himself, were
the targets of a white-led campaign to prevent their promotion.
Blaauw's claims followed accusations against him of perjury in
a firearms case on which he declined to comment, at the time,
because the matter was being investigated.
Fivaz said it appeared that the negative publication in the
media probably resulted from incomplete information which, out of
context, created an impression of a contradiction.
"Unfortunately it is not uncommon for senior police officials
to fall victim to false accusations based on incomplete and
misleading information," Fivaz said.
He encouraged the media and the public to continue assisting
the police with information relating to the alleged commission of
crime by anyone, irrespective of their occupation status so that
police could investigate and get to the bottom of it in the
interest of justice.
@ HASHIMOTO
JOHANNESBURG January 13 1999 Sapa-AFP
JAPAN'S EX-PREMIER HASHIMOTO ARRIVES IN S.AFRICA
Japan's ex-premier Ryutaro Hashimoto flew into Johannesburg on
Wednesday at the start of a four-day visit that will focus on
establishing a partnership forum between his country and South
Africa.
Hashimoto, who became a senior foreign adviser to Prime
Minister Keizo Obuchi after resigning in July, arrived in the
country from Kenya where he was on a three-day official visit.
>From Johannesburg he was to fly immediately to Cape Town to
meet parliamentary speaker Frene Ginwala and Terror Lekota, head of
the second house of parliament, the National Council of Provinces,
an embassy official told AFP.
On Friday he is due to hold talks with Deputy President Thabo
Mbeki and Foreign Minister Alfred Nzo in Pretoria and will also
attend the first meeting of the Japan-South Africa Partnership, the
foreign ministry said.
The partnership is intended to be a forum for dialogue on
international issues and aims to strengthen bilateral cooperation.
The agenda, according to informed sources, is likely to include
a bid to persuade Japan to further open its markets to South
African goods and discussions of the two countries' respective bids
for permanent seats on the UN Security Council and Japan's role in
African development.
Mbeki, who is expected to take over from President Nelson
Mandela when he steps down as head of state later this year,
travelled to Japan twice last year for talks on building
cooperation between Japan and South Africa.
Japan is South Africa's strongest trade and investment partner
in East Asia and granted the country the single largest overseas
development assistance package in 1994.
During 1997, bilateral trade amounted to 19.3 billion rand (3.2
billion dollars).
According to South African government figures, Japanese
companies have invested 1.7 billion rand in the country since the
1994 democratic elections which brought Mandela's African National
Congress to power.
Hashimoto, who is accompanied by a delegation of officials from
his government, will deliver a paper on Japan's policy on Africa to
the South African Institute of International Affairs and hand over
medical equipment to a hospital in the town of Boksburg, east of
Johannesburg.
He will also address the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and
attend the launch of a massive water project, sponsored by the
Japanese government.
Hashimoto is due to leave South Africa on Saturday.
@ MOZAMBIQUE-MANDELA
CHIMOIO, Mozambique January 13 1999 Sapa-DPA
NELSON MANDELA ATTENDS MOZAMBICAN CONFERENCE
South African President Nelson Mandela arrived Mozambique
Wednesday to attend the second national conference of the
Association of Veterans of the National Liberation Struggle (ACLLN)
which started on Monday.
Mandela, who is also chairman of the Southern African
Development Community (SADC), is expected to discuss the war
situation in Angola and the Congo with President Joaqium Chissano
who is chairing the conference.
Chissano, deputy chairman of SADC, last week said that the
question whether SADC would send troops to Angola could only be
clarified once he had discussed it with Mandela in Chimoio.
Former Zambian president Kenneth Kaunda is also attending the
ACLLN conference.
@ ELECTION-GAYS
JOHANNESBURG January 13 1999 Sapa-AFP
GAYS TO CONTEST SOUTH AFRICAN ELECTION
For the first time ever, a gay party will contest general
elections in South Africa when voters go to the polls later this
year, a gay leader announced Wednesday.
Gay and Lesbian Alliance Party leader John Uys said the party
planned to register with the Independent Electoral Commission and
contest South Africa's second democratic elections at the national
and provincial levels in three of the country's nine provinces.
Uys told the Citizen newspaper here his party wished to attract
all gays and lesbians in the country to prove the power of the
homosexual community.
Among the aims of the party, he added, was to create a more
positive attitude towards homosexuals.
"We will use this political platform to pave the way for the
decriminalisation of all outstanding laws and laws based on sexual
preferences," Uys said.
"We will definitely oppose and condemn any discrimination
against homosexuals and fight any situation where people of the
same sex are refused permission to enter in a lawful marriage or
any other lawful agreement of any kind," he added.
South Africa's Constitutional Court in October decriminalised
consensual same-sex intercourse in a landmark case brought by the
National Coalition for Gay and Lesbian Equality.
The judgment overturned the common law offence of sodomy and a
section of the Sexual Offences Act which made sex between men a
criminal offence irrespective of whether it was consensual.
During the apartheid era, homosexuals were regarded by the
authorities as outcasts, but the position has changed radically
since President Nelson Mandela's African National Congress came to
power in 1994.
The rights of gay people, along with those of all minority
groups, are enshrined and protected by the country's new
constitution, one of the most liberal in the wrld. Sapa-AFP
@ ELECTION-ID
PRETORIA January 13 1999 Sapa
DEPARTMENT DENIES BACKLOG IN NUMBER OF IDENTITY DOCUMENTS
ISSUED
There was no backlog in the number of bar-coded identity
documents being issued, the Department of Home Affairs said on
Tuesday.
In a statement in Pretoria it said reports that the department
was lagging behind in processing applications were unfounded and
misleading.
"According to our records there is no backlog at all since
there is a positive correlation between applications at hand and
identity documents issued."
Stellenbosch demographer Jan Sadie on Monday claimed that
outstanding applications had risen 500000.
The department on Tuesday said: "We currently issue an average
of 8000 IDs a week. At this rate, there is no chance that a
backlog might develop."
@ CRIME-ARMY
JOHANNESBURG January 13 1999 Sapa
JOINT ARMY AND POLICE OPERATION NETS R16 MILLION IN GOODS
Joint police and SA National Defence Force crime fighting
operations in the West Rand and Vaal areas last year led to the
recovery of over R16 million in stolen and illegal goods.
At a press conference held at SANDF unit Group 17 in Lenz,
commanding officer Colonel Pieter Vosloo said the unit's positive
relationship with the Vaal and West Rand police was largely
responsible for the unit being awarded Best Operational Group in
Gauteng for 1998.
Group 17's area of operations covers 15000 square kilometres
from Vereening to Gatsrod, Roodepoort and Meyerton.
Vosloo said the unit last year in joint operations with the
police and the SA Air Force, confiscated 111 weapons, over 8355
kilograms of dagga, about R3 million in gold, stolen goods valued
at over R2 million and 53 stolen vehicles.
Ammunition, handgrenades and drugs were also confiscated.
The crime fighting operations of the unit are carried out
largely by its part-time soldiers.
"Our main reason for existing, as far as I am concerned, is to
ensure operations are planned and executed with the SA Police
Services to stem the tide of violence in the area," Vosloo said.
The unit has won the award for best operational unit five times
in the last seven years.
"We are very fortunate in that we have very dedicated part-time
members who are always willing to take part in operations."
Vosloo said the unit planned to encourage greater co-operation
between the community and the army this year, and to inform people
about security measures to enable them to protect themselves and
their houses.
He said Group 17 would also be actively recruiting people from
the community.
Crime Prevention and Response Services spokesman,
Superintendent Martin Aylward, said co-operation between the SANDF
and police was not a new approach to crime fighting but had become
more effective after the 1997 formation of a liason body, the
National Operational Co-ordinating Committee.
"SANDF is deployed throughout the country to help with crime
prevention, depending on the various provinces and the needs of the
areas."
Aylward said the extent of the army's involvement was dependent
on its limited budget, "crime prevention is still its secondary
function".
The SANDF is mostly deployed to rural areas where they are used
to combat farm murders and political killings. It has been
successfully deployed in Richmond in the KwaZulu-Natal midlands
where political violence has claimed several lives.
@ CRIME-MOTSHEKGA
JOHANNESBURG January 13 1999 Sapa
MOTSHEGKA PRAISES POLICE FOR SERIAL KILLER ARRESTS
Gauteng Premier Mathole Motshekga on Wednesday congratulated
police on the arrest of two suspected serial killers wanted for
murders in the Nasrec area near Johannesburg and near Capital Hill
in Pretoria.
In a statement Motshekga said the arrest of the two showed the
deterimination of police to make the province's streets safer.
Motshekga however warned people living in the two areas not to
become complacent in observing safety procedures.
He warned criminals operating in Gauteng that his government
would soon implement proposals from the anti-crime summit held in
Midrand last year.
"We are going to ensure that violent crimes, which scare
investors away from our province, are reduced significantly," he
said.
@ ELECTION-UDM
JOHANNESBURG January 13 1999 Sapa
UDM UNHAPPY WITH IEC'S LACK OF FUNDS
The United Democratic Movement on Wednesday voiced its concern
at Independent Election Commission chairman Judge Johann Kriegler's
statements that the body did not have enough money to conduct the
elections properly.
"Government needs to provide the IEC with the necessary funding
to ensure that the IEC can without a shadow of a doubt conduct its
tasks, and with credibility be able to declare the 1999 elections
free and fair," UDM deputy national secretary Annelize van Wyk said
in a statement.
The UDM expressed scepticism about how efficiently the IEC had
spent its allocated budget to date, and called for it to make
public its income and expenditure.
The UDM said the fact that the election date had still not been
announced made it difficult for the IEC, political parties and
other organisations to plan properly.
The party urged President Nelson Mandela to rectify the
situation in the interests of democracy.
@ NNP-FA
JOHANNESBURG January 13 1999 Sapa
NNP MEMBER RESIGNS TO JOIN FEDERAL ALLIANCE
The New National Party's secretary for the East Rand regional
and district council, Nelia Pluddemann, resigned on Tuesday saying
she would join Louis Luyt's Federal Alliance.
Pluddemann, a 40-year-long member of the NNP, said in a
statement on Wednesday her resignation came at a time when the NNP
had seemed to reach a political crossroads and was lacking in
strong leadership.
The Federal Alliance tried to bring together smaller parties,
including the NNP, to establish an alternative government - not
only alternative opposition on the political front, she told Sapa.
@ HOUSING-SYNDICATE
JOHANNESBURG January 13 1999 Sapa
MOFOKENG TO EXPOSE HOUSING SCAM
Gauteng housing MEC, Dan Mofokeng, is poised to reveal details
of a syndicate with international links, which has been issuing
fraudulent housing guarantees worth millions of rands.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, Mofokeng said he would
present a report to journalists at a press conference on Thursday.
"This exposure will go a long way in ensuring the eradication
of criminality within the housing sector and enhance our drive
towards good governance and service delivery to the needy
communiies.
"This revelation will also help set the record straight as to
who is responsible for criminal acts so that stern measures can be
taken by law enforcement agencies," Mofokeng said.
@ CRIME-BOMB
JOHANNESBURG January 13 1999 Sapa
BOMB EXPLODES AT EAST RAND RAILWAY EXCHANGE NEAR GERMISTON
A bomb exploded and a second device was defused by police
experts at a railway exchange near Germiston on the East Rand at
about 4pm on Wednesday afternoon.
Police spokesman Sergeant Jan Roodt said nobody was injured,
but that the damage caused by the explosion has been estimated at
R50000.
"Police forensic experts are still combing the scene for
possible clues to the identity of the bomber," he said.
The second bomb was discovered by sniffer dogs not far from the
scene of the first explosion, and was defused without incident.
Roodt said commuters would not be affected by the incamage any part
of the railway line.
Police had no idea at this stage about who could have been
behind the bombing, Roodt said.
@ OBIT-BABENIA
DURBAN January 13 1999 Sapa
ANC LEADERS TO ATTEND SERVICE FOR ANC STALWART BABENIA
Deputy Defence Minister Ronnie Kasrils will be among African
National Congress leaders at a memorial service on Saturday for
former anti-apartheid activist Natoo Babenia, who died in Durban on
January 1 at the age of 75.
On Wednesday the ANC said Babenia was a member of the ANC, the
SA Communist Party and the ANC's former armed wing Umkhonto we
Sizwe.
Babenia, who was born in 1924, left for India in 1936 but
returned to South Africa in 1949 and joined the struggle against
apartheid. The ANC described Babenia as a saboteur and disciplined
underground worker who operated successfully under the nose of
fascism. He documented his life in his autobiography, "Memoirs of a
Saboteur".
@ NAMIBIA-BOTSWANA
WINDHOEK, January 13 1999 Sapa-AFP
NAMIBIA REDUCES FORCES IN 'CALM' CAPRIVI: MINISTER
Namibia has reduced the number of its troops deployed in the
northeastern Caprivi region against a secessionist group and the
area is calm, Home Affairs Minister Jerry Ekandjo told AFP
Wednesday.
The minister denied claims by Caprivi residents who have fled
to Botswana that they were being harassed by police Special Field
Forces (SFF) bidding to flush out the secessionists.
Since October, nearly 2,000 people have left Caprivi, a finger
of land lodged between Angola, Zambia and Botswana, to seek asylum
in Botswana.
Many of them have complained to the UN High Commissioner for
Refugees (UNHCR) in the South African capital Pretoria of brutal
treatment and intimidation by SFF members.
Ekandjo said: "There is no harassment. Now most of the SFF have
withdrawn. There are only a couple of hundred troops to guard the
border" with Angola.
According to the UNHCR, most of the refugees have no connection
with the secessionists and are being held at the UNHCR-run Dukwe
camp in northern Botswana.
Ekandjo said: "They are all free to come back. Nothing will
happen to them."
However, the roughly 100 people linked to the seccessionist
Caprivi Liberation Movement (CLM), also seeking asylum from
Botswana and under guard in Gaborone, must face Namibian law,
Ekandjo said.
The government wants the leaders of the movement, including its
apparent head and former opposition leader Mishake Muyongo, to face
charges of high treason.
"They must come back and face the law," said Ekandjo, adding
that he would travel to Botswana at the end of the month for
discussions on the matter.
The two neighbours have no extradition treaty.
In support of their charges against the secessionists, Namibian
authorities claim to have discovered a paramilitary "training camp"
in Caprivi on an island on the River Chobe, which forms the border
between Namibia and Botswana.
@ MOTSHEKGA-DP
JOHANNESBURG January 13 1999 Sapa
PSC REQUESTED TO INVESTIGATE GAUTENG MISMANAGEMENT
The Democratic Party has asked the Public Service Commission to
probe management and staffing problems in the office of Gauteng
premier Mathole Motshekga.
Gauteng DP leader Peter Leon on Wednesday said he had written
to commission chairman Professor Stan Sangweni, asking him to
investigate allegations in documents he received from an anonymous
source on fraud and maladministration in Motshekga's office.
Leon said he had also referred the documents to the Heath
special investigative unit.
Leon said he had written to Gauteng director-general Lulamile
Mbete, asking him what action had been taken to prosecute two
officials who defrauded the premier's office, and to recover the
money that was squandered. He also queried what action had been
taken against two officials whose alcoholism Mbete admitted was
common knowledge in the office.
On Monday Mbete rejected allegations of mismanagement, and
alleged that the documents were authored by a person on the DP's
payroll, or by Leon himself.
Leon said these comments were defamatory and inaccurate.
@ DRCONGO-CHINA
LUSAKA January 13 1999 Sapa-AFP
CHINA DENIES SELLING ARMS TO DR CONGO
China on Wednesday denied selling arms to the Democratic
Republic of Congo (DRC) government to use against the rebellion
there.
Visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan told reporters
that he was not aware that China was selling arms to the DRC and
had learned of the allegations only through media reports charging
that his country, Libya and France were supplying arms to President
Laurent Kabila.
"I have no knowledge that China is siding with the DRC
government. China can only provide arms to legitimate governments
for self-defence and not business," he said.
The minister, who arrived here Tuesday for a three-day working
visit, also denied his country had sold arms to the rebels fighting
Kabila.
"We can never sell arms to anybody who has the intention of
undermining a legitimate government as this would be contrary to
what we believe in," Tang said.
He said his government believed in a negotiated settlement in
the DRC conflict.
Tang, who is expected to hold talks with President Frederick
Chiluba and senior Zambian government officials later Wednesday, is
set to leave for China on Thursday.
@ DRCONGO-MBEKI
PRETORIA January 13 1999 Sapa
MBEKI SCHEDULED FOR DRC TALKS IN LUSAKA
Deputy President Thabo Mbeki is scheduled to travel to Zambia's
capital, Lusaka, later this week for the Southern African
Development Community heads of government meeting on the Democratic
Republic of Congo peace process.
His office said it could not confirm when he would leave, but
his aide, Ronnie Mamoepa, on Wednesday said Mbeki was scheduled to
attend the meeting.
Zambian President Frederick Chiluba will host his counterparts
in peace efforts to end the raging war between DRC President
Laurent Kabila, his allies, and the rebels.
Foreign Minister Alfred Nzo will on Thursday lead a South
African delegation to the two-day SADC foreign and defence
ministers meeting, scheduled for Lusaka later in the day.
Representatives of the rebel movement have also been invited to
the talks, which will attempt to chart a path for the signing of a
ceasefire, a troop standstill, and withdrawal of foreign troops.
The ministers are expected to report back on developments over
possible face-to-face talks between Kabila and rebel leaders.
@ ANC ON ALLEGATIOSN OF CORRUPTION IN MPUMALANGA
Issued by: African National Congress
The ANC has noted media reports about allegations of corruption
and maladministration levelled against the provincial leadership in
Mpumalanga.
The ANC National Working Committee was made aware of allegations of
maladministration and corruption within the Mpumalanga government
and the Provincial legislature at a meeting with the Provincial
Working Committee on the 12th October 1998.
At face value the allegations against members of the ANC
Provincial Executive Committee appear to be without any substance.
However, the NWC was concerned about the allegations and thus
decided to institute a probe to establish their veracity. The NEC
Sub -Committee on Mpumalanga was then instructed by the National
Working Committee to investigate the allegations. The probe is not
directed at a specific member of the provincial leadership as
suggested in media reports. The NEC sub-committee commenced its
work at the beginning of January and will report its findings to the
National Working Committee which would then forward the report to
the National Executive Committee.
The probe by the NEC Sub-Committee is an ANC initiative
established in terms of the constitution of the organisation and
does not seek to replace or duplicate other initiatives by
government to probe allegations of maladministration and
corruption.
Issued by ANC Department of Information and Publicity
For further information contact Thabo Masebe at 082 551 4945
13 January 1999
@ FEATURE-SA-BANKS
JOHANNESBURG January 13 1999 Sapa-IPS
BANK'S POLICIES CREATE POVERTY, STIFLE JOBS
Employment creation should be at the centre of any successful
poverty alleviation programme, says a World Bank economist, but
South African analysts argue that the Bank's own policies have done
little to stimulate employment in Africa.
"Employment has to be at the centre," says Joseph Stiglitz,
chief economist of the World Bank when he addressed a three-day
Inter Faith/World Bank poverty conference which began in
Johannesburg on Tuesday. "It is absolutely important and it is
often forgotten as a key message."
The conference's findings will be incorporated in the UN's
forthcoming World Development Report.
Stiglitz says in the past, poverty alleviation strategies
focused mainly on economic growth and employment creation was less
emphasised.
There is now a need to add new measures of poverty, such as
mobility in income positions in a country, measures of opportunity,
such as access to education, and measures of risk, how often and
how easy it is for a family to fall below or above the poverty
line, Stiglitz adds.
Over the years, the World Bank has made several prescriptions
for the alleviation of poverty, the most widely implemented being
Structural Adjustment Programmes (SAPS) in developing countries.
But there have been little returns.
"Many of the opinions of the World Bank are the old ones," says
ruling African National Congress (ANC) parliamentarian and economic
thinker Ben Turok. "There is no one message."
World Bank orthodoxies emphasising economic stability above all
else have influenced South Africa, yet stabilisation often leads to
job losses and increased poverty, Turok adds.
"In many countries in Africa, the stabilisation programme has
worsened the situation and brought greater poverty without creating
jobs," Turok told IPS.
South Africa's government is saddled with the problem of 50
percent of the population living below the poverty line. The
country has been a faithful disciple of World Bank-led macro-
economic policies, clipping its budget deficit from 10.2 percent of
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 1993/94 to the current 3.5 percent.
With further discipline, it aims to bring it down to three percent.
Under the Growth, Employment and Redistribution (GEAR)
strategy, a pseudo structural adjustment programme, government aims
to achieve growth rates of six percent per annum and to churn out
600,000 jobs annually by the year 2002.
Turok recommends a strategy that couples such stabilisation
with targetted infrastructural spending and investment.
South Africa's unemployment rate has grown from 17 percent in
1995 to 23 percent last year, according to 'Statistics South
Africa'. Independent analysts put it as high as 50 percent among
the majority Black population.
The country's economy, on the other hand, has not been growing
handsomely. It is expected to improve by half a percentage point in
1999, hardly anything to savour given a population growth rate of
above 2.5 percent.
Talk of poverty alleviation without talk of debt cancellation
is meaningless, says the Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town
Njongonkulu Ndungane.
"One of the contributing factors to poverty is the astronomical
debt that is owed to developed countries by developing countries,"
says Ndungane, who is championing debt- forgiveness.
"The cancellation of these unpayable debts will go a long way
towards improving the quality of life and restoring dignity in
developing countries," he adds.
"A first step would be for the Group of Eight (G8) countries
and financial institutions, when they meet in June in the German
city of Cologne, to make an unequivocal commitment of intent to
cancel the developing world's unpayable debts."
G8 groups the industrial nations of Germany, Italy, France,
Japan, the United States, Britain, Canada and Russia.
Another factor that has been identified as a key contributor to
growing world poverty is globalisation.
While it has positive aspects, such as new information
technologies, deregulation in money markets and a significant
growth in global trade, it also has hit national economies through
the whim of multi-national decision makers and international
capital.
Government's no longer wield power and real power is now in the
hands of those who have money - the multinationals who shift
intensive employment around the globe to where wages are lowest.
Worldwide, according to UN statistics, 1.3 billion people live
in extreme poverty(on less than one U.S. dollar a day), and about
70 percent of them are women. By 2020, the number of malnourished
children is set to grow to 200 million from 193 million and most of
them will be in Africa.
Increasingly, however, there have been important voices,
including that of the World Bank, conceding the flaws of the
present free market ideology.
@ ANGOLA-UN
LUANDA January 13 1999 Sapa-AP
U.N. MULLS ITS PEACEKEEPING ROLE IN ANGOLA AMID RENEWED WAR
The United Nations fears accusations of promoting genocide in
Angola if it abruptly abandons peace efforts this southwest African
nation, where a civil war has resumed, a senior U.N. official said
Wednesday.
Issa Diallo, the U.N. special representative in Angola, said
that in reviewing its role here, the United Nations was sensitive
to concerns about the credibility of its peacekeeping role
worldwide and memories of 1994 massacres in Rwanda after it mostly
withdrew from that central African country.
"We cannot leave by the back door at midnight on the pretext
that we have no security for our people," Diallo said in an
interview. "We have to show we're not fleeing, that we'll assist
in humanitarian terms and on the political side" in trying to
stitch Angola's 1994 peace accord back together.
The Angolan government and UNITA rebels returned to war last
month, shattering the U.N.-brokered peace deal that took more than
a year to negotiate.
Two U.N.-chartered planes carrying a total of 23 people have
crashed as they flew over war zones since the fighting restarted.
No survivors have been found. The United Nations is investigating
whether they were shot down.
The international community has spent dlrs 1.5 billion over the
past four years on implementing the accord, which replaced a 1991
deal that collapsed the following year.
U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan is due to report to the
Security Council by the end of this week on the situation in Angola
where the fighting has displaced hundreds of thousands of people.
"It's a brainstorming phase on what to do to preserve the
credibility of the United Nations," Diallo said.
A decision has to be made before the current U.N. mandate in
Angola expires Feb. 26.
In Rwanda, more than 500,000 Tutsis were slaughtered by their
Hutu neighbors after the United Nations scaled down its presenc,
and many Rwandans accused the United Nations of not doing enough to
prevent the genocide.
Analysts here predict the United Nations will maintain some
presence, including humanitarian operations, in Angola so that they
can pick up the threads of the frayed peace deal and knit it back
together once the fighting has blown itself out.
Neither the government nor UNITA has the military strength to
deliver a knockout punch, according to analysts. The foes likely
will fight to a stalemate, then renegotiate the terms of peace,
they say.
Diallo said the United Nations still believes the 1994 accord
is "a good compromise and the shortest route to peace."
"Unfortunately, we have not been successful in getting this
message through," he said.
Diallo lamented that the government and rebels had not
demonstrated enough "political will" to overcome their
differences and pursue peace.
The United Nations "can still do more but if the effort is not
accompanied by the political will of Angola's leaders, we're going
nowhere," he said, admitting that the 34 nations that contribute
troops to the U.N. observer mission were becoming exhausted with
attempts to secure peace.
Diallo defended the progress made in the peace process, like
the establishment of a unity government and amending the
Constitution to establish a multiparty democracy.
"The U.N. observer mission has nothing to be ashamed of," he
insisted.
However, lingering mistrust and hostility between the
government and UNITA stymied the peace process for the past four
years and the two sides are now battling throughout most of the
country of 10 million people.
Civil war first broke out after Angola's 1975 independence from
Portugal.
@ ANGOLA-ICRC
JOHANNESBURG January 13 1999 Sapa
RED CROSS TO STRENGTHEN RELIEF OPERATIONS IN ANGOLA
The International Committee of the Red Cross on Wednesday said
it would strengthen its relief operations in Angola.
A statement from the the ICRC's office in Luanda said essential
relief supplies were distributed to 2400 families in the country's
Benfica area near Huambo on Wednesday.
The supplies consisted of tarpaulins, blankets, soap and
medical supplies, ICRC spokeswoman Marjorie Martin said.
"Since January 5 the ICRC has also delivered several thousand
litres of drinking water daily for around 20,000 people living in
the Sao Jose neighbourhood."
Two special flights were chartered from Nairobi on January 8
and 9 to replenish stocks and additional volunteers would be
deployed in the area to assist with relief efforts, Martin said.
"The ICRC is also preparing to send a survey team to Kuito in
the next few days. If conditions allow, delegates will also visit
other conflict areas."
@ EDUC-SAPUPILS
EAST LONDON January 13 1999 Sapa
SA PUPILS BOTTOM OF THE CLASS
Poor performances by South African pupils in the Third
International Mathematics and Science Study has been blamed on poor
resources and the language barrier.
The survey, which was released on Wednesday, took in more than
a million learners in more than 40 countries, and found that South
African pupils had scored the lowest in the world.
It was carried out in South Africa by the Human Sciences
Research Council and was participated in by 15000 South African
pupils from more than 400 primary and secondary schools.
The survey analysed the curriculum and used achievement tests
and specifically designed tasks for Std 5 and Std 6 (Grade 7 and 8)
pupils in the Eastern Cape. A total of 1 061 Eastern Cape pupils,
or nine percent of 10 680 nationwide, returned samples.
The pupils' scores were weighted so that the study's final
average score would be an unbiased estimate of the population
average. Performance in the tests was measured on an 800 point
scale for each country.
South African mathematics pupils performed poorly when compared
with the same age groups in other countries, achieving the lowest
score of 354 points compared to the international average of 513.
Singapore was the top performing country with 643 compared to
the USA with 500 points and, among developing countries, South
Africa was even lower than Colombia which scored 385.
Eastern Cape maths pupils scored ower than the SouthAfrican
average, and way below the international average, with 341.
The difference between the South African Std 5 and Std 6 maths
pupils was very small - a mere six points - and was also the lowest
score increase from Std 5 to Std 6 of all the countries taking part
in the survey.
In science, South Africa once again achieved the lowest average
score of 326 points compared to the international average of 516.
Singapore was once again tops with 607, compared to the USA with
534 and even Colombia with 411.
At 307 points, Eastern Cape pupils scored even lower than the
national average and far below the international average. The
difference between the performance of the South African Std 5 and
Std 6 pupils was again very small - nine points - and once again was
the smallest improvement between the two years of all the countries.
The HSRC described this as "alarming" for both maths and science.
The HSRC said reasons for the poor show were that nearly all
the schools in the provincial samples were from disadvantaged
areas; large numbers of Eastern Cape pupils are 16 years and older
in Std 6 and "particularly alarming when compared to the national
average of 15"; especially in science, Std 6 pupils speaking the
language of instruction at home (10 percent) did better than those
who seldom did (68 percent); and the level education of parents in
the Eastern Cape was below that of the national average.
The HSRC also said 54 percent of the Eastern Cape pupils had
electricity in their homes, compared with 63 percent nationally,
and that electricity was among three essentials for effective home
study.
Those pupils having all three - their own room to study, a
table or desk, and an electric light for study at night - achieved
higher maths and science scores. Girls appeared to be more
sensitive to home-study conditions than boys.
@ LABOUR-JUSTICE
JOHANNESBURG January 13 1999 Sapa
NUPSA WILL MEET ON THURSDAY TO DISCUSS NEXT PHASE OF PROTEST
The National Union of State Prosecutors (Nupsa) is meeting on
Thursday to decide on strategies to take their protest against 6
percent pay increases into a new phase.
Nupsa president Eduard van der Spuy on Wednesday said the union
was looking at legal action and would consider proposals to
approach the National Economic Development and Labour Council on
what form of protest to take within the Labour Relations Act.
Van der Spuy said it was too early to talk of a stalemate.
Prosecutors around the country began a work-to-rule after the
cash-strapped Justice Department stopped overtime pay last year and
awarded them a 6 percent pay increase in December, which they said
was well below expectations and promises made.
Many prosecutors are refusing to work overtime and cases are
being delayed, clogging the court roll and the criminal justice
system. The Justice Department cannot compel prosecutors to work
overtime and their action is not illegal.
Justice Minister Dullah Omar's spokesman, Paul Setsetse,
confirmed this and said the department was relying on the goodwill
of prosecutors: "They must put the interests of the country first."
Setsetse said that on Omar's return from a trip to India, the
minister would set up a forum with representatives of prosecutors
and state advocates to take the salary discussions forward.
The national director of public prosecutions, Bulelani Ngcuka,
was also pursuing the reintroduction of overtime, according to his
spokesman, Sipho Ngwema.
"We are hoping to reintroduce overtime, and then in the next
financial year renegotiate prosecutors' salaries," Ngwema said.
Van der Spuy said if there was no money to further increase
prosecutors' salaries, the reinstatement of overtime pay was the
only option.
Ngwema said according to reports most Johannesburg courts were
operating normally, with some prosecutors taking cases home to
prepare them after hours.
"If the work-to-rule spreads, then the situation could reach
crisis proportions."
The protest was mostly in Durban, Cape Town and some parts of
Gauteng. In Pretoria and Soweto two to three-hour court delays had
been reported, he said.
@ DRCONGO-TALKS
LUSAKA Jan 14 Sapa-AFP
CHANCES OF PEACE IN DRC HAZY AHEAD OF PEACE TALKS
A long-postponed regional summit to seek peace in the
Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is due to kick off Saturday amid
mixed opinions over its chances for success.
President Frederick Chiluba, the convener of the summit, was
upbeat on Sunday, saying that parties to the conflict had expressed
high-level commitment to the peace process and wanted the matter
concluded.
"There is a lot of commitment as we go around consulting.
Everybody wants this matter to come to a close," Chiluba said.
But regional analysts and players in the conflict say the
involvement of too many other countries outside those directly
participating in the conflict could complicate matters.
15 countries are sending leaders to the talks, which were twice
postponed last month: Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Chad, the DRC,
Gabon, Kenya, Libya, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, South Africa,
Tanzania, Uganda and Zimbabwe.
By Wednesday, Chiluba had visited Rwanda and Uganda, which back
the rebels, and Zimbabwe, which supports DRC President Laurent
Kabila.
Planned consultations with South Africa did not take place at
the weekend, with officials there saying the talks were postponed
to allow Chiluba to conclude talks with other leaders within the
Southern African Development Community (SADC).
But Chiluba himself said he was not going to South Africa
because President Nelson Mandela was away.
Observers say South Africa, which has sought to mediate with
the rebels, has come up with an alternative proposal to be
presented in Lusaka, and fear that it could take the process
backwards.
An agreement framework exists that has been reworked several
times at various summit venues.
On Sunday after seeing Chiluba off at Harare airport, President
Robert Mugabe lamented the involvement of so many players in the
process, implying that it impeded the reaching of a ceasefire
agreement.
He suggested that the negotiations be limited to the forces
directly involved in the fighting - the DRC and its allies
Zimbabwe, Angola, Namibia and Chad, and the rebels' backers Rwanda
and Uganda.
He said he had told President Chiluba that "the more we
restrict our discussions to those that have already been part of
the endeavour, the better".
Mugabe even suggested that the belligerents meet separately
ahead of the Lusaka summit.
The level at which the rebels will participate - a thorny
issue which has been blamed for the failure of previous attempts at
peace
- remained unclear as of Wednesday.
A spokesperson for DRC rebels in Pretoria, Thomas Nziratimana,
told AFP that they had received no official invitation to the
Lusaka summit as of Wednesday.
He insisted that they "get guarantees that they will be
directly included in the negotiations."
African diplomats in Harare said that if Kabila's allies
maintain the attitude that rebels be kept at arm's length, the
prospects of peace were far off.
South Africa sees the rebels as an integral part of the
process.
Chiluba said at the weekend that for the meeting to succeed
participation should be as broad as possible, but that the level of
rebel participation remained to be decided.
"We want the meeting to succeed by engaging every party to the
conflict in the talks," Chiluba said.
One regional specialist on the DRC, professor Mwegisha Baregu,
who coordinates the peace and security programme of the Southern
Africa Institute of Policy Studies (SARIPS), was cautious on the
chances of a ceasefire agreement.
He said that if the parties to the conflict had used the time
ince talks sponsored last year by the Organization of African
Unity (OAU) in Ouagadougou to create common ground, chances for a
ceasefire would have been boosted.
But if South Africa, which has insisted on the direct
participation of the rebel Congolese Rally for Democracy, comes up
with new proposals, then peace will continue to evade the central
African nation.
"I think at this stage one would say the chances (of success)
are 50-50," Baregu told AFP.
@ ZIMBABWE-EDITOR
HARARE Jan 14 Sapa-AFP
DETAINED ZIMBABWEAN EDITOR COULD BE TORTURED: AMNESTY
The British-based human rights body Amnesty International
expressed fears Wednesday that a Zimbabwean editor in military
custody for running a story alleging a coup plot could be facing
torture.
Mark Chavunduka, 34, editor of the Sunday Standard, is being
held at Cranborne barracks in Harare and his wife, mother and
lawyers have all been denied access to him.
"Mark Chavunduka's detention in a military barracks, without
access to his lawyer or family members, could increase the risk of
him being ill-treated," Amnesty said in a statement faxed to AFP.
People who saw him Wednesday morning when he was escorted to
his offices by military police said he appeared to have been
deprived of sleep on his first night in military detention.
"If true, this could amount to torture or cruel, inhuman and
degrading treatment under international human rights standards,"
the rights watchdog said.
Amnesty said that Chavunduka's arrest and detention without
charge or warrant appeared to be illegal under both Zimbabwean and
international law.
Lashing out at the independent press in Zimbabwe Tuesday,
Defence Minister Moven Mahachi warned: "The paper cannot be allowed
to get away with it, appropriate action will be taken."
Mahachi was reacting to the Standard's story that 23 army
officers had plotted to oust President Robert Mugabe, which he said
was a fabrication.
Amnesty said that if the editor's arrest was politically
motivated, he could be considered a prisoner of conscience.
The Newspaper's publisher, Clive Wilson, earlier confirmed the
editor was still being held and that it appeared that the military
police were also after the paper's senior reporter Ray Choto.
Amnesty claimed that seven military officers later Wednesday
threatened to arrest Wilson if he did not reveal the whereabouts of
Choto.
Wilson could not be immediately reached to confirm allegations
that he was also under threat of arrest.
Wilson said Chavanduka was brought by military police to the
paper's offices early Wednesday, telling one of the cleaners that
he had come to collect his national identity card.
The cleaner, according to Wilson, described Chavunduka as
having red eyes and a puffy face.
The paper's lawyers have already lodged an urgent application
seeking a court order.
"It's a completely illegal arrest, illegal detention," Wilson
said.
+-----------------------------------------------------------+
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A N C D A I L Y N E W S B R I E F I N G
FRIDAY 15 JANUARY 1999
PLEASE NOTE: This News Briefing is a compilation of items from South
African press agencies and as such does not reflect the views of the
ANC. It is for reading and information only, and strictly not for
publication or broadcast.
To unsubscribe from the ANC Daily News Briefing mailing list send a
message to 'list...@wn.apc.org'. In the body of your message put
'unsubscribe ancnews'.
@ DFA ON SA's PARTICIPATION IN LUSAKA
Issued by: Department of Foreign Affairs
MEDIA STATEMENT ON SOUTH AFRICA'S PARTICIPATION IN LUSAK FROM 14 -
16 JANUARY 1998 ON THE SITUATION IN THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE
CONGO
Foreign Minister Alfred Nzo, together with Deputy Defence
Minister Ronnie Kasrils, will lead a South African delegation to the
DRC crisis talks of regional Foreign and Defence Ministers in
Lusaka, Zambia on 14 and 15 January 1999. The South African
Government has been invited by President Frederick Chiluba of Zambia
to attend the talks in an effort to end the conflict in the DRC.
The intended talks, chaired by Zambia, is a further step in the
process to end the DRC crisis and will include non-SADC states. It
is understood that representatives of the OAU and the UN, and of
governments of the DRC, Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia, Tanzania,
Kenya, Angola, Zimbabwe, Gabon, Rwanda, Uganda, Burkina Faso, Chad
and the Libya have been invited to attend. Following the Ministerial
talks, a Heads of State and Government Summit will take place on 16
January 1999 in Lusaka in order to consider proposals made by the
Ministerial meeting.
The Government remains convinced that the outcome of the
Pretoria SADC Summit of 23 August 1998, provided the framework for a
negotiated solution to the conflict. The Summit called for a
cease-fire; a cessation of hostilities; the withdrawal of all
foreign forces involved in the conflict; and negotiations among all
inhabitants of the DRC aimed at re-establishing a democratic
government in the country. Within that context, the South African
Government continues to be fully supportive of the efforts of
President Chiluba of Zambia, in accordance with the mandate given to
him by the SADC Summit held in Mauritius during September 1998, to
bring about a cease-fire in the DRC. The South African Government
has been actively involved in previous talks held in Lusaka and
Gaborone aimed at achieving consensus among all parties to the
conflict - including the rebel forces - for the terms of a
cease-fire and the modalities of its implementation.
ISSUED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
PRETORIA
14 JANUARY 1999
@ HEALTH-LAB
JOHANNESBURG January 14 1999 Sapa
GOVERNMENT TASK TEAM TO INVESTIGATE NATIONAL HEALTH LABORATORY
Health Minister Dr Nkosazana Zuma has appointed a task team to
investigate and make recommendations for a National Health
Laboratory Service.
The task team was appointed on Monday at the launch of the SA
Institute of Medical Research and would investigate all activities
associated with pathology laboratories, Health Department spokesman
Khangelani Hlogwane said on Thursday.
The director of the Department of Health, Ray Mabope, was
appointed as one of the task team members, Hlogwane said.
@ CRIME-KWANATAL
DURBAN January 14 1999 Sapa
956 ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS ARRESTED IN KZN IN JANUARY
About 956 illegal immigrants were arrested in KwaZulu-Natal
during Operation Hotel from January 1 to 10, police spokesman
Captain Vishnu Naidoo said on Thursday.
The operation was conducted by the tracing unit together with
the Department of Foreign Affairs.
Naidoo said the immigrants were from Mozambique, Burundi,
Swaziland, Somalia and Lesotho.
Several passports, identity documents, permanent residential
permits, 60kg of dagga and two firearms were recovered during the
operation.
He said some of the immigrants were detained for being in
possession of drugs and firearms.
KwaZulu-Natal police are looking for two women they believe can
assist in the investigation into the murder of Venketsamy Naidoo in
1990.
Naidoo said Julatharipal Jane, who previously resided at the
deceased's house in Chatsworth outside Durban, and Deshni Mohadeo
were believed to be in Gautng or Pretoria.
Anyone who knows the whereabouts of the women can contact
police at (031) 360-4769 during office hours or (031) 705-6923
after hours.
@ DRCONGO-NZO
JOHANNESBURG January 14 1999 Sapa
NZO HOPEFUL DRC CEASEFIRE WILL BE SIGNED
Foreign Minister Alfred Nzo on Thursday said he was hopeful
this week's Lusaka summit would succeed in its aim of bringing
about a ceasefire in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, but he
was unable to say whether DRC President Laurent Kabila would meet
face-to-face with the rebels fighting to overthrow him.
"As far as we know everyone will be there including the
rebels," he told journalists in Vanderbijlpark, south of
Johannesburg, shortly before departing for the summit.
The gathering hopes to prepare a broad-based platform of
Congolese representatives who would work towards a democratic
government in the DRC, and is part of an ongoing effort to bring a
lasting resolution to the conflict there.
Fifteen countries are sending leaders to the talks in the
Zambian capital. The countries are Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Chad,
the DRC, Gabon, Kenya, Libya, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, South
Africa, Tanzania, Uganda and Zimbabwe.
In an address to South African heads of diplomatic mission who
have have gathered in Vanderbijlpark for a 10-day conference, Nzo
said: "We remain fully committed to contribute towards the
attainment of durable peace, particularly in Angola and the DRC.
"We will continue to take a firm stand on all matters relating
to arms proliferation and disarmament as part of our contribution
to global peace and security," Nzo said.
@ DRCONGO-FIGHTING
NAIROBI January 14 1999 Sapa-AP
CONGOLESE REBELS SAY THEY LOST THREE NORTHERN TOWNS
A Congolese rebel commander said Thursday government troops
loyal to President Laurent Kabila had retaken three towns in
northwestern Congo after a week of aerial bombing.
Jean-Pierre Bemba told The Associated Press by satellite
telephone that on Wednesday Sudanese-registered Antonov aircraft
dropped six bombs on Lisala, a Congo River port 1,400 kilometers
(870 miles) northeast of the capital, Kinshasa, killing one person
and destroying houses.
The air attack followed a week of bombing of Gemena, Businga
and Libenge which forced the Ugandan-backed rebels to pull back to
Lisala, 400 kilometers (250 miles) to the southeast.
On Sunday, 17 people were killed, including five children, when
government allies bombed Kisangani on the Congo River, the largest
city in rebel hands. The government in Kinshasa confirmed the
attack on Kisangani.
"We made a strategic withdrawal from the northern towns,"
said Bemba, whose units are allied with the main rebel Congolese
Democratic Coalition.
Kabila is receiving military support from Angola, Zimbabwe,
Namibia and Chad. The rebel coalition of ethnic Congolese Tutsis,
disaffected Congolese soldiers and opposition politicians took up
arms Aug. 2 with backing from Rwanda and Uganda.
The rebels also claim Sudan is helping Kabila's forces, a
charge Sudan denies. Bemba said the Antonov transport planes,
equipped to carry bombs, carried the Sudanese registration code,
SR, on their tails and said his troops had intercepted
communications between Russians piloting the aircraft.
The rebels accuse Kabila of misrule and inciting ethnic hatred.
Kabila has so far refused to meet with the rebels, and it is not
clear whether the latest round of cease-fire talks, scheduled for
Monday in Lusaka, Zambia, would yield results.
The rebels say they will only negotiate with Kabila.
Bemba also said that up to 300 civilians may have been
massacred by government forces when they retook the three towns.
"They are taking revenge on people who welcomed us," Bemba
said.
The Rome-based Italian missionary news agency, MISNA, reported
that 200 had been killed in Libenge on Jan. 9. There was no
independent confirmation.
Both the rebels and the government troops have been accused of
killing civilians.
@ JUSTICE-PARAMILITARY
PRETORIA January 14 1999 Sapa
DEPARTMENT ANNOUNCES BAN ON SOME PARAMILITARY ACTIVITIES
Certain actions related to military and paramilitary operations
would be outlawed from Friday, the Department of Justice said on
Thursday.
Using or manufacturing weapons, ammunition and explosive
devices for certain purposes would also be banned, it said in a
statement in Pretoria.
It said the prohibitions were contained in the Judicial Matters
Amendment Act passed late last year. Three sections of the Act
would come into effect on January 15.
The first section reads in part: "Certain acts relating to the
instruction or training in military, paramilitary or similar
operations... are prohbited."
The same would apply to "the construction, manufacture or use
of any weapon, ammunition, explosive or other explosive devices for
certain purposes".
The department said the two other sections that would come into
force on Friday dealt with contraventions of the Act. They provided
for courts to impose a fine they deemed fit and/or imprisonment of
not more than five years.
Written authority of a director of public prosecutions would be
a prerequisite for prosecution to proceed.
Exemptions from the Act included members of the SA National
Defence Force, the SA Police Service, the Department of
Correctional Services, traffic and security officers, and employees
involved in armaments development and production at arms
manufacturer Denel.
A fourth section of the Act, dealing with applications for
exemptions, would come into effect on April 1, the department said.
Such applications could be made by an employer using the
services of employees exclusively for the purpose of protecting or
safeguarding his staff, property or business interests.
The Minister of Justice could consider exemptions in
consultation with the Minister of Safety and Security.
Applications should be addressed to the Minister of Justice,
Private Bag X276, Pretoria, 0001, the department said.
A spokeswoman declined to say whether the timing of
prohibitions was linked to recent incidents of urban terrorism in
Cape Town.
On Wednesday it was reported that members of the vigilante
group People Against Gangsterism and Drugs might have been trained
at a KwaZulu-Natal farm by a security firm with rightwing
connections.
An instructor was quoted as saying Pagad members had since 1996
been trained how to use firearms and manufacture pipe bombs.
@ ANGOLA-FIGHTING
LUANDA January 14 1999 Sapa-AFP
ANGOLAN ARMY KILLS EIGHT REBELS IN MALANJE
Fighting between the Angolan army and UNITA rebels raged
Thursday in the north-central town of Malanje, where the army said
it had killed eight rebels.
A number of the town's inhabitants, mostly women, were reported
missing after fighting that lasted more than an hour on Tuesday,
followed by shelling of the town centre blamed on the rebels.
"We believe that there were many dead," a local radio station
reported Thursday, adding that shelling also hit the Azul and
Catepa districts of Malanje, which is 380 kilometres (235 miles)
east of the capital Luanda.
The government daily Jornal de Angola reported Thursday that
the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA)
rebels had set up a military base at Cazundo, around eight
kilometres (five miles) from the centre of Malanje, which was
supplying reinforcements to attack army positions.
"The rebels are trying at all costs to break the rear base of
the government forces," the daily said, adding that the town's
hospital was acutely short of supplies despite a recent delivery by
Angolan relief organisations.
Fighting entered a sixth day in the southeast coastal region of
Benguela for control of Balombo, state radio said.
The Jornal de Angola said the army held the town centre, while
regional authorities gave a provisional toll of 10 people injured.
The army said it had seized a host of weaponry from the rebels,
including an air-aircraft gun, two RPG-7 grenade launchers, 12 AKM
machine guns, two PKM guns and ammunition.
In the town of Huambo, 600 kilometres (370 miles) from the
capital, 10 people were killed and two seriously wounded on
Wednesday when the lorries they were travelling in drove over a
landmine.
The Angolan government on Monday began a programme of mass
conscription by ordering a census of the country's men aged 18 to
20.
@ QIBLA-MARCH
CAPE TOWN January 14 1999 Sapa
POLICE TO STOP PLANNED MUSLIM MARCH ON PARLIAMENT
Police and the Muslim organisation, Qibla, are squaring up for
a showdown over a planned illegal protest and march in central Cape
Town on Friday.
The City of Cape Town council on Monday turned down an
application by Qibla to hold peaceful demonstrations at parliament
and the United States and British Consulates.
The march and protest is held annually on El-Quds Day, the last
Friday of the Moslem holy month of Ramadan, to protest against the
Israeli occupation of the Masjidul Quds mosque in Jerusalem.
Council spokeswoman Leonara de Souza said permission for the
march was turned down after police made representations. They
claimed Qibla had a history of militant actions and that the march
could threaten public safety.
Qibla leader Imam Achmad Cassiem did not want to comment on the
planned march but said a prayer meeting would be held in The Muir
Street mosque in town at 2pm on Friday.
Police spokesman Wicus Holtzhaseun said police would monitor
the prayer meeting, but would be forced to act should the meeting
decide to march.
"No permission has been granted for the march. The police will
be in the same position as last week when Muslim organsations held
illegal marches. We will be forced to act," he said.
Five people were shot on Cape Town's Grand Parade on Friday
after a meeting at the same mosque and an illegal march by Muslim
group, People Against Gangsterism and Drugs, to protest the
presence of British Prime Minister Tony Blair in South Africa and
the bombing of Iraq by Britain and the United States.
Pagad member Yusuf Jacobs, who was shot in the head by a rubber
bullet in the protest, died in Groote Schuur Hospital on Tuesday,
raising fears of retaliatory violence from militant Muslims.
@ FOREIGNAFFAIRS
JOHANNESBURG January 14 1999 Sapa
FOREIGN AFFAIRS IN FOR A REVAMP
South African diplomats will have to sign codes of conduct and
performance agreements as part of a programme to transform the
Foreign Affairs Department into a more efficient and focussed
entity.
Details of the revamp are to be hammered out at a 10-day
conference in Vanderbijlpark, south of Johannesburg, attended by
South African heads of diplomatic missions from more than 90
countries.
The conference got under way on Thursday.
In his opening address, Foreign Affairs Minister Alfred Nzo
said the core business of the department needed to be redefined and
its focus areas reprioritised - with the aim of realising
government's domestic priorities.
"I cannot emphasise enough that the transformation process is
not only about redressing past gender and race imbalances, nor is
it merely a question of minor adjustments to the structures we have
inherited.
"Transformation goes to the heart of empowering the
department's officials by enabling them to develop a better
understanding of South Africa's national interests and priorities,
and how best to promote these."
Effective financial, personnel and other modern management
practises had to be implemented, Nzo said.
Foreign Affairs director-general Jackie Selebi told delegates
domestic policy had to be translated into foreign policy.
Among the proposals he mooted were:
- A code of conduct for diplomats to be finalised and
implemented as soon as possible;
- Doing away with the distinction between bilateral and
multilateral relations;
- Analysing and refocusing South Africa's diplomatic efforts
to reflect government priorities; and
- Making all diplomats sign a performance agreement which
would serve as measure of what they were achieving.
Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Aziz Pahad later told
journalists one challenge facing the department would be to
increase its contribution towards promoting trade and tourism.
The untapped potential of India, China and the Latin American
countries would targetted.
Pahad said there were no plans for South Africa to redefine its
relationship with the Southern African Development Community, but
it would look at how the vision of integrating the 14-nation
trading block could be strengthened.
South Africa had to take steps to ensure tariff barriers were
not detrimental to the region's integration, he said.
Delegates to the conference are to be briefed by the Trade and
Industry Department, the Independent Electoral Commission and the
South Africa Football Association on South Africa's efforts to host
the 2006 soccer World Cup.
@ DRCONGO-ZAMBIA
LUSAKA January 14 1999 Sapa-AP
MEDIATOR IN BID TO SAVE CEASE-FIRE SUMMIT FROM COLLAPSE
The chief mediator in the Congo war, Zambian President
Frederick Chiluba, on Thursday launched a bid to bring Congo's
president to the table at a weekend peace summit.
Chiluba flew to the southeastern Congolese city of Lubumbashi
to see Congolese President Laurent Kabila.
Earlier, Zambian officials indicated Kabila was unwilling to
attend talks on a cease-fire in the five-month civil war because
rebel leaders were invited.
Chiluba told reporters he spoke with Kabila by telephone
Thursday.
"He rang me this morning and said that he did not get an
invitation. I am going to meet him," he said.
Chiluba said the participation of Congolese rebels at the
summit might now have to be reviewed.
Regional foreign and defense ministers were to meet in Lusaka
on Friday to prepare for the summit. Zambian officials said at
least 15 African leaders were expected to attend.
Before leaving for Lusaka, South African Foreign Minister
Alfred Nzo said that "as far as we know," the rebels will attend.
South Africa is backing rebel involvement in the talks.
During their preliminary talks, the ministers would discuss the
role of the rebel delegation, Chiluba told reporters at the main
Lusaka airport.
Chiluba said it was "over-ambitious" to expect the regional
officials to finish their preparations by Saturday. "It seems that
there are more consultations" needed, he said.
The Zambian foreign ministry said Libyan leader Col. Moammer
Gadhafi was expected. Also expected were Burkina Faso President
Blaise Campaore, current chairman of the Organization of African
Unity; South African Vice President Thabo Mbeki and regional
leaders linked to the conflict in the central African nation.
Gadhafi was asked in December to help mediate a cease-fire by
President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe, whose nation has 8,000 troops
backing Kabila in his war against a rebel coalition of ethnic
Tutsis, disaffected soldiers and opposition politicians. The rebels
took up arms Aug. 2, accusing Kabila of misrule, corruption and
ethnic warmongering.
Angola, Chad and Namibia have also sent troops and munitions to
support Kabila.
The summit is the fourth attempt to gather regional leaders to
craft a cease-fire. Three previous summits, the last scheduled in
Lusaka Dec. 28, have been postponed after Kabila refused to meet
with rebel leaders.
In previous peace talks, Kabila refused to meet with the rebels
and insisted instead on negotiating only with Rwanda and Uganda,
the rebels' main backers.
@ CRIME-FF
PRETORIA January 14 1999 Sapa
STATE SHOULD FOOT THE MEDICAL BILL OF CRIME VICTIMS: FF
It was time for the government to foot the medical bill of
crime victims, Freedom Front leader Constand Viljoen said on
Thursday.
"We cannot accept the present situation where the state is
responsible for medical costs of injured criminals in detention,
while the victims of violent crime have to carry such expenses
themselves," he said in a statement in Pretoria.
He said the children of the victims of a recent farm attack
told him that the medical bill of their parents amounted to
thousands of rands.
Two men attacked Kotie van der Merwe, 62, and his wife Elsie,
58, with a steel pipe on their farm Oskraal near Betlehem in the
Free State on January 3.
Van der Merwe's skull was cracked and his wife suffered broken
ribs. She was recently discharged from hospital but her husband was
still unconscious after extensive brain surgery.
Viljoen said if the government fulfilled its responsibility to
curb violent crime, the medical costs of crime victims would not
have been a major issue.
"But it is failing to do so, and should therefore be
accountable for medical expenses resulting from criminal attacks,"
he said.
@ ELECTION-YOUTH
PRETORIA January 14 1999 Sapa
IEC AND NYC LAUNCH CAMPAIGN TO GET YOUTH INTERESTED IN ELECTION
The Independent Electoral Commission and the National Youth
Commission on Thursday launched a campaign to get youth interested
in voter registration.
NYC chairwoman Mahlengi Bhengu told reporters in Pretoria the
campaign would focus on informing the youth about the advantages of
registering.
The campaign included handing out posters and pamphlets, road
shows to schools and universities, young role models speaking to
the youth, radio slots, and informing the youth where and how to
register for this year's general election.
Bhengu said the Government Communication and Information
Service would be used to reach young people in rural areas.
IEC chief electoral officer Mandla Mchunu said money to run the
campaign would be supplied by the IEC and the NYC.
"In next year's financial year the IEC will have to look at the
relocation of money in the budget for campaigning," he said.
NYC chief executive officer Lwazi Mboyi said the campaign would
be carried out by IEC and NYC provincial commissioners, and youth
groups.
The second round of registration will take place throughout the
country over the January 29 to 31 weekend. A date has not yet been
set for the election.
@ RIGHTS-COMMISSIONERS
JOHANNESBURG January 14 1999 Sapa
SA HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION INTRODUCES TWO NEW MEMBERS
The South African Human Rights Commission announced on Thursday
the appointment of Thomas Manthatha and Leon Wessels as members of
the commission.
"After election by Parliament on September 23, the President
has now formally appointed them until September 30, 2002. The third
candidate appointed by the President, Ms Marlene Bossett has since
withdrawn," an SAHRC statement said.
Both assumed duty on January 1.
Manthatha of Soweto was for many years a field worker for the
Dependants Conference of the South African Council of Churches.
"His responsibility was to look after the welfare of political
prisoners and their families and to support those who were detained
or were on trial for their resistance to apartheid," the SAHRC
said.
Manthatha left the teaching profession when he was banned in
the 1970s. He has since received post-graduate degrees from England
in development and management.
Advocate Leon Wessels comes to the Commission from private
practice in the Johannesburg Bar. He left parliament in 1996
immediately on the adoption of the final constitution.
He had served since 1994 as Deputy Chairman of the
Constitutional Assembly.
Wessels served for many years as a National Party MP for
Krugersdorp and held a number of ministerial positions, the SAHRC
said.
"He brings to the commission experience in government and
expertise in constitutional law. He serves as commissioner for the
Provinces of Northern Cape and Western Cape. He will also take
responsibility on behalf of the Commission of the Open Democracy
process which is expected to start after the elections. He assumed
duty on 1 January 1999.
"The Commission commends the two new members and looks forward
to their contributions in the common endeavour of developing a
culture of human rights in South Africa."
The SAHRC said there were two vacancies in the commission: a
part-time position caused by the retirement of Mrs Helen Suzman and
another due to the fact that Ms Marlene Bossett did not accept her
appointment.
@ PRODUCTION-NOVEMBER
JOHANNESBURG January 14 1999 Sapa-INet-Bridge
NOV MANUFACTURING PRODUCTION +2.0% M/M, -0.6% Y/Y
Manufacturing production in November 1998 rose by 2.0% after
seasonal adjustment on October, but was down by 0.6% on November
1997, Statistics South Africa said today.
For the 3 months ended November, manufacturing was up 0.4% on
the prior 3 months after seasonal adjustment, but 3.5% lower than
the same period last year.
Manufacturing production for the first 11 months of 1998 and
the 3 months up to November 1998 reflected decreases of 3.2% and
3.5% respectively compared with the same periods of 1997.
However, manufacturing production for the 3 months up to
November 1998 reflected an increase of 0.4% after seasonal
adjustment compared with the previous 3 months.
Higher productiwas reported by 14 of the 27 manufacturing
major divisions.
The slight increase could be attributed to higher production
reported by the chemical and motor vehicle manufacturers for
October and November 1998 while strike action took place in these
sectors during August and September 1998.
The major contributors to the increase of 0.4% were the basic
chemical (0.4 of a percentage point), other chemical products (0.2
of a percentage point) and motor vehicle (0.2 of a percentage
point) divisions. However, a decrease was reported by the basic
iron and steel division (-0.4 of a percentage point).
The total value of sales of manufactured products for the last
3 months up to November 1998 reflected an increase of 1.7% (1.535
billion rand) after seasonal adjustment compared with the preceding
3 months.
The largest increases were reported by the basic chemical
(11.7% or 437 million rand), the other chemical products (4.6% or
269 million rand) and the food (1.8% or 261 million rand)
divisions.
@ DEFECT-VOS
CAPE TOWN January 14 1999 Sapa
NNP YOUTH LEADER DEFECTS TO DP
New National Party federal student youth leader James Vos on
Thursday announced his defection from the NNP to the Democratic
Party.
Speaking at a press conference in Cape Town, he said that for
five years there had been no youth commission in the (NNP-held)
Western Cape province.
"The NP does not recognise the youth and consequently we are
not given the opportunity to contribute towards building and
developing the party or the province."
The NNP as an organisation was in state of collapse, Vos said.
The DP was the only party which could govern the province.
He said he felt comfortable joining the DP because it was a
"growing party".
DP Western Cape leader Hennie Bester said Vos' defection was
evidence that his party was the fastest-growing one and was
attractive to the youth.
"James represents a young leader who has recognised that the DP
is a party with a bright future, geared to enter the new millennium
with a proud history and a huge growth potential."
@ ANGOLA-UNITA
LUANDA January 14 1999 Sapa-AFP
UNITA DISSIDENTS END CONGRESS, VOW TO WORK FOR PEACE
Some 700 dissident members of Angola's UNITA movement ended a
congress here Thursday pledging to work for peace in the southern
African country, which has seen more than two decades of civil war.
Eugenio Manuvakola, former secretary general of the National
Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA), was elected to
head the dissident group, which disavowed historic leader Jonas
Savimbi last September.
In an acceptance speech, Manuvakola said his group would work
towards open debate and a return to peace in Angola, where all-out
civil war between Savimbi loyalists and government forces resumed
in mid-November.
The dissidents, who include former UNITA military chief
Demostenes Chilungutila and former Savimbi spokesman Jorge
Valentim, vowed to "correct the doctrine of war" imposed by
Savimbi.
Manuvakola, who signed peace accords on behalf of Savimbi in
Lusaka, Zambia, in 1994, emphasized the need to create jobs and
eliminate mines which have killed or maimed more than 100,000
people.
The Luanda government, which broke off all dialogue with
Savimbi in October, has recognized the dissident faction of as the
only valid partners in the southern African country's moribund
peace process.
The participants said the complete demilitarization of UNITA
military wing was a matter of urgency, as was the recovery of all
areas still under the control of Savimbi loyalists.
In an offensive launched in March last year, Savimbi's fighters
recaptured more than 300 towns and cities that had earlier been
handed over to central control in line with the peace accords.
Government forces launched a counter-offensive in mid-November,
since when fighting has raged in the central plateau and in several
other parts of the country.
"Let's not seek other reasons for a worsening of the situation
in Angola. There is only one: Mr. Savimbi refuses to demilitarize
UNITA; he will not agree to hand over the places under his control
to the state; and moreover he does not want UNITA to develop and
coexist peacefully with other Angolan political parties," they said
in a final declaration entitled "Peace and National
Reconciliation."
The statement added: "The fundamental cause of our unhappiness
is simple: Doctor Savimbi wants to be president at all costs. He
won't accept any other position."
Savimbi rejected the vice presidency offered him in the
Government of Unity and National Reconciliation (GURN), which
emerged in April 1998 under the 1994 peace accords.
The dissident group concluded at the four-day congress that
UNITA's representatives in the GURN - four ministers, seven deputy
ministers and several high-ranking officials - should remain in
their positions.
As a result of the fighting, the United Nations has suspended
its operations, pulling its observers from areas of conflict after
two planes it had chartered crashed in the central Huambo area in
late December and early January.
Savimbi created UNITA in 1966, when Angola was still a
Portuguese colony. In 1975, it rebelled against the Marxist
government of Luanda.
@ TRAFFIC
PRETORIA January 14 1999 Sapa
209 PEOPLE DIE ON SA ROADS SINCE JANUARY 1
Road accidents in South Africa have claimed the lives of 209
people since January 1, the Arrive Alive campaign said in a
statement on Thursday.
In 155 crashes, 64 drivers, 101 passengers and 44 pedestrians
died.
Four pedestrians were killed over the 24-hour period ending at
noon on Thursday, and two vehicles overturned which resulted in
three deaths.
Most deaths - 40 - were in the Eastern Cape, followed by
KwaZulu-Natal with 34, Western Cape 32, Free State 27, Gauteng 24,
Northern Province 23, Northern Cape 13, Mpumalanga 8, and North
West 8.
Most drivers died in the Western Cape, and most passenger
deaths were in the Eastern Cape.
@ MOKABA-DP
JOHANNESBURG January 14 1999 Sapa
DP DEMANDS EXPLANATION ON MOKABA'S NOISY BIRTHDAY PARTY
Gauteng Democratic Party leader Peter Leon on Thursday demanded
an explanation from the Johannesburg area police commissioner why
police failed take action against Enviromental Affairs and Tourism
Deputy Minister Peter Mokaba for allegedly disturbing the peace in
Morningside last Sunday morning.
Claiming Mokaba held a rowdy party in the early hours on Sunday
morning to celebrate his 40th birthday, Leon said Morningside
residents had complained to the DP that excessive revelling was
audible from several kilometres away from the party venue.
Despite receiving many complaints from irate members of the
public, police were allegedly unable to persuade Mokaba to quell
the noise until 5am.
"This behaviour is not acceptable from a Deputy Minister who
should set an example to the public by his conduct. I have today
requested Commissioner (Izak) Pretorius to inform me what action
the SAPS now intends taking in this matter including whether the
SAPS intends charging Mokaba with breaching the peace," Leon said.
"By treating his neighbours and the police in such a
contemptous manner does Mokaba believe he is above the law?" he
asked.
Mokaba was unavailable for immediate comment on the DP claims.
@ LABOUR-JUSTICE
JOHANNESBURG January 14 1999 Sapa
FEDUSA PLANS PROTEST OVER JUSTICE SYSTEM
The Federation of Unions of South Africa has informed the
National Economic Development and Labour Council that it is
planning protest action over the poor state of the country's
justice system.
The labour federation's secretary-general Chez Milani on
Thursday said the federation intended launching a public awareness
campaign and to hold pickets to highlight the poor state of the
criminal courts, poor working conditions and excessive demands
being placed on public prosecutors.
Milani said it was still hoped Fedusa's concerns could be
thrashed out within Nedlac so the protest action could be called
off.
The law requires that Nedlac attempts to resolve the problem,
and that it must convene a meeting within 14 days with a view
towards doing so.
Nedlac said on Thursday it had written to Justice Minister
Dullah Omar requesting that he meet Fedusa.
The National Union of State Prosecutors, which is protesting
over poor pay increases for its members, is one of Fedusa's
affiliates.
Milani said should the protest action go ahead, prosecutors
would not engage in work stoppages, although protests may be
planned outside court buildings. All civil service regulations
would be adhered to.
Fedusa claims to have 540,000 members, and Milani said some of
them may join the prosecutors in their protests.
Prosecutors around the country began a work-to-rule after the
cash-strapped Justice Department stopped overtime pay last year and
awarded them a six percent pay increase in December, which they
said was well below expectations and promises made.
Many prosecutors are refusing to work overtime and cases are
being delayed, clogging the court roll and the criminal justice
system. The Justice Department cannot compel prosecutors to work
overtime and their action is not illegal.
@ DRCONGO-TALKS
LUSAKA January 14 1999 Sapa-DPA
AFRICAN LEADERS SUMMIT POSTPONED
The African leaders summit, to have been held in Lusaka
Saturday in an attempt to revive a ceasefire plan for the
Democratic Republic of Congo, has been rescheduled for next week,
President Frederick Chiluba of Zambia said Thursday.
Chiluba said this was to allow for broader consultations among
the foreign and defence ministers whose meeting on Friday and
Saturday will culminate in a solid agenda for the summit.
He did not announce a specific date for the summit, however.
Chiluba was speaking at Lusaka airport before his departure to
Lubumbashi in the DRC for talks with President Laurent Kabila on
the DRC conflict. He is expected back in Lusaka later Thursday.
Chiluba also clarified earlier reports, saying that the rebels
fighting Kabila's government would not be involved in direct talks
during the heads of state summit.
He said the rebels would not be allowed to sit with the heads
of states but added that the rebels' position would be clearer
after broader consultations had been made among the heads of state
and government.
Chiluba said South African Deputy President Thabo Mbeki would
attend the heads of state and government summit.
Meanwhile, a spokesman for the rebels said the forthcoming
heads of state summit in Lusaka did not mean the halting of
fighting in the DRC.
@ CRIME-HOUSING
JOHANNESBURG January 14 1999 Sapa
MOFOKENG REVEALS MULTI-MILLION RAND SCAM
Gauteng housing and land affairs MEC Dan Mofokeng on Thursday
revealed that his officials have uncovered a scam involving
fraudulent guarantee documents with a face value of R120 million,
issued in the name of the department.
"These documents were printed on what appeared to be the
department's letterhead and purported to be issued in favour of
Group Six Project CC, in American currency, with maturity dates in
the year 2000" Mofokeng said.
According to Mofokeng, Group Six is a registered company and
employees at the company have been interviewed by police.
A number of bodies are investigating the scam, including the
South African Reserve Bank, the Heath Investigative Unit, the South
African police and local and international intelligence agencies.
The fake guarantees were offered to various stockbrokers.
However, all had refused to deal with them and the department was
alerted.
"None of the guarantees were accepted, and at this stage
neither the department, nor any other entity has suffered losses as
a result of such documents being in the normal commercial traffic,"
Mofokeng said.
"These guarantees were said to be transferable and assignable
without presentation or notification to the Department."
The department appointed Gobodo Chartered Accountants to
conduct a forensic investigation in August last year.
"Gobodo established that the guarantees did not originate in
the department, although the possibility that individual officials
of the department may be involved was not excluded.
Ursula M'Crystal, who conducted the investigation for Gobodo,
said the investigation had covered a lot of ground and she hinted
that the scam could be linked to scams in other provinces.
Investigators are currently probing the issue of fraudulent
promissory notes in the name of the Mpumalanga government worth
R1,3 billion.
International links are also being probed.
"Gobodo has recommended that this matter be included in a
co-ordinated investigation by all those bodies currently executing
investigations of a similar nature," Mofokeng said.
A 25-page report on the findings of the investigation has been
presented to the department, but not released publicly.
"Due to the sensitivity of the information contained in the
Gobodo report and the possible prejudice that the release of such
information can cause to other investigations in progress, the
department cannot release the Gobodo report at this stage, nor
disclose the details of such findings," Mofokeng said.
He said police expected to make arrests soon.
Mofokeng reiterated that the documents were not issued by the
department, saying his department was prevented by the constitution
from issuing such guarantees and had never done so.
@ MOKABA-LD-DP
JOHANNESBURG January 14 1999 Sapa
MOKABA REJECTS DP'S CLAIMS THAT HE DISTURBED PEACE
Deputy Enviromental Affairs and Tourism Minister Peter Mokaba
on Thursday afternoon rejected Democratic Party claims that he had
disturbed the peace in Morningside last Sunday by making a noise
during his 40th birthday party.
He further dismissed Gauteng DP leader Peter Leon's claims that
the DP office was inundated with calls from irate residents. He
said the DP did not represent the majority of people residing in
the suburb.
Mokaba said local police officers were notified of the party,
adding that more than 60 policeman and members of Coin Security
also attended.
"Although the party was full, it went on very well... without
any incident," Mokaba told Sapa.
He said the DP and "the white racists" should begin to accept
that blacks had moved into the formerly secluded suburbs and that
they came with their culture, which was part of the South African
culture.
"If there were any complaints from my neihgbours, I would have
dealt with them as we deal with all any other problems in the
neighborhood."
Mokaba said the DP was jealous that none of its members or
leaders could enjoy the kind of support African National Congress
leaders were getting - whether it was a political or a social
gathering.
"They can never dream of organising a party as big as this
one," he remarked.
@ POVERTY-WORLDBANK
JOHANNESBURG January 14 1999 Sapa
SCRAPPING THIRD WORLD DEBT AN EXTENDED PROCESS: WORLD BANK
The writing off of debt for Third World countries would be an
extended proess, the World Bank said in Johannesburg on Thursday.
Responding at a press conference to an appeal by the Anglican
Archbishop of Cape Town, Rev Njongonkulu Ndungane, to write off
unpayable debts by developing countries, World Bank representative
Fyez Omar said only a small percentage of these countries' debts
were in fact owed to the World Bank.
The bulk of the debt, about 65 percent, was owed between
countries.
World Bank representatives are attending a two-day conference
in Kempton Park to gather information for the World Bank World
Development Report 2000/1, which is to focus on the reduction of
poverty.
Also attending the first of a series of consultations to be
held worldwide were members of WorldFaiths Development Dialogue -
representing several religious denomentations - and community
organisations representing African interests, such as Inter Africa
Group.
Ndungane in his keynote address at the start of the conference
appealed to the World Bank to write off unpayable debts incured by
poorer countries.
Omar said the World Bank was considering an initiative for debt
reduction among developing countries.
"This is a decision that would have to be taken at the highest
level," he said, adding that it was part of an extended process
which started a long time ago.
Omar said debt could not simply be cancelled: "Initiatives in
debt relief have to be done in a responsible way."
The World Bank poverty report, which looks not only at
consumption and income, but people's perception of poverty, could
influence the bank's future lending policy, Omar said.
The bank's move towards a more consultative process, making use
of community organisations and civil society, was started a few
years ago by World Bank senior vice president and chief economist
Joe Stigleitz.
"What arises from this report will impact on World Bank
policies and may influence who receives loans and how much," Omar
said.
He added, however, that it was still the bank's policy to
provide loans to governments rather than to individual
organisations.
WorldFaith spokeswoman Wendy Tyndale said: "It is now
recognised that the analysis of poverty must be rooted in poor
people's own experiences and perceptions of poverty."
"While fulfilment of basic material needs was a first priority,
other dimensions, such as the breakdown of community, the lack of
meaningful control over one's own life and a lack of hope must also
be taken into account in the fight against poverty."
The World Bank has been given a copy of the report from the
poverty hearings conducted last year in South Africa.
The organisation will meet next in Bangladesh, and is expected
to return to Africa in about 15 months to present the draft report
for approval.
@ COURT-NNP
CAPE TOWN January 14 1999 Sapa
NNP SUMMONSES HSRC IN BAR-CODED ID COURT CASE
The New National Party this week summonsed the Human Sciences
Research Council to give evidence, if necessary, in its case
against the government over bar-coded identity documents.
This followed the contesting by the Home Affairs Department of
the HSRC's finding that between 4,7 million and 5,3 million
enfranchised South African citizens were not yet in possession of
the green bar-coded IDs that would enable them to vote in this
year's general election, the NNP said in a statement on Thursday.
Independent Electoral Commission chairman Judge Johann Kriegler
last week stated in a sworn affidavit that the IEC had accepted the
HSRC's figures as the most reliable information available, the NNP
said.
Through the summons served on the IEC's chief executive officer
on Wednesday, the NNP said it wished to give the HSRC the
opportunity to confirm that its figures were indeed correct and
reliable.
The case has been set down for February 5 before a full bench
of the Cape High Court.
@ RIGHTS
JOHANNESBURG January 14 1999 Sapa
NEW LAW MOOTED TO PROHIBIT DISCRIMINATION
South Africa's Constitution does not go far enough to guarantee
equality or prohibit unfair discrimination in all spheres of
society and specific legislation is needed to ensure this.
This is proposed in a discussion document drawn up by the Human
Rights Commission which explores the idea of introducing laws aimed
at addressing various forms of discrimination South Africans
experience in their daily lives.
"The problem of discrimination in South African society is
deep-seated, multi-faced and pervasive," the document says.
Discrimination based on racism, sexism and other grounds occur
for many reasons. These are related to a range of pyschological and
sociological factors, including religion, morality or fear.
The document questions whether the law is an appropriate
mechanism to address these factors.
"Is there not a danger in relying on legal rules and remedies
to combat discrimination, to the extent that other ways to
reconstruct a society and to create an ethos of respect for human
dignity might be ignored or overseen?"
Although the Constitution guarantees equality and prohibits
discrimination it does not go far enough. It is public knowledge
that a constitutional guarantee is by nature too general and
unspecified to provide practical remedies for day-to-day problems
of discrimination and inequality, the document says.
The same can be said about other constitutional rights which
are expanded upon in more specific legislation.
The document says discrimination and inequality are more deeply
imbedded in the fabric of society. Their practical manifestation
often occurs in the private sphere where constitutional protection
is not easily available.
Allegations of human rights violations are normally argued in
courts and need to be substantiated. This particular process is
usually characterised by denials, arguments, counter-arguments and
the passing of judgement.
The document says discrimination is difficult to prove in the
courts.
"Therefore legislation which specifically deals with
discrimination should provide more useful remedies and speedy
procedures," the document says.
@ PROSECUTORS-NNP
CAPE TOWN January 14 1999 Sapa
OMAR TO BLAME FOR CRISIS IN COURTS, SAYS NNP
A consistent failure by Justice Minister Dullah Omar to address
prosecutors' justifiable grievances lay at the centre of the crisis
in South Africa's courts, New National Party Justice spokeswoman
Sheila Camerer said on Thursday.
The fact that Omar had in November last year summarily
abolished overtime pay until the end of March had made the
work-to-rule action being implemented already in Gauteng, North
West Province, the Western Cape and parts of the Free State all the
more understandable, she said in a statement.
If Omar could not find a way to accommodate prosecutors and get
his government to fund his department properly, he should "fall on
his sword and make way for a new broom".
@ AMENDMENT OF CRIMINAL LAW SECOND AMENDMENT
Issued by: Government Communications (GCIS)
PRESS RELEASE: AMENDMENT OF THE CRIMINAL LAW SECOND AMENDMENT ACT,
1992 (ACT 126 OF 1992) TO PROHIBIT CERTAIN ACTS IN RELATION WITH
MILITARY, PARAMILITARY, OR SIMILAR OPERATIONS AND WEAPONS,
AMMUNITION, EXPLOSIVES OR OTHER EXPLOSIVE DEVICES: APPLICATION FOR
TEMPORARARY EXEMPTION - 15 JANUARY 1999.
The Department of Justice herby announces that with effect from
15 January 1999, section 11 of the Judicial Matters Amendment Act,
1998 (Act 34 of 1998) (the Amendment Act) will amend the Criminal
Law Second Amendment Act, 1992 (Act 126 of 1992) with the insertion
of chapter 4 A (section 16 A - 16 D), in order to provide for the
following:
(1) Subject to certain exemptions, inter alia, by members of the
Sout African National Defecne Force, the South African Police
Service and the Department of Correctional Services, employees of
the Armaments Development and Production Corporation of South Africa
of Denel, traffic officers and security officers, no person shall -
(a) in any manner train any other person or undergo any training
- (i) in the conduction of any military, paramilitary or similar
operation; or (ii) in any tactical or other procedure applicable to,
or required in the preparation of any such operation or the
execution thereof;
(b) instruct or train any other person or undergo any
instruction or training in the construction, manufacture or use of
any weapon, ammunition, explosive or other explosive device -
(i) for the purpose of endangering life or causing serious
damage to property;
(ii) for the purpose of promoting any political objective; or
(iii) for military, paramilitary or similar purposes;
(c) assist in any such instruction or training, or equip any
other person who is so instructed or trained or intended to be so
instructed or trained with any such weapon, ammunition, explosive or
explosive device or organise or employ two or more such other
persons, whether they are so equipped by him or her or not -
(i) for the purpose of endangering life or causing serious
damage to property;
(ii) for the purpose of promoting any political objective; or
(iii) for military, paramilitary or similar purposes.
(2) The contravention of the above-mentioned provisions are
being made an offence and on conviction, a court may impose such
fine as the court may deem fit to impose or imprisionment not
exceeding five years, or both such fine and such imprisonment
(section 16 B).
(3) The Minister of Justice may, in consultation with the
Minister of Safety and Security on written application by an
employer, exempt:
(a) any employer who uses the services of any employee
exclusively for the purposes of the protection or safeguarding of
the personnel, property or business interests of that employer and
(b) any employee or group of employees whose services are so
used, from the provisions of section 16 A (section 16 C).
(4) The written authority of a director of public prosecutions
is a prerequisite before a prosecution can be instituted in terms of
section 16 B (section 16 D).
(5) Section 16 A, C, and D of the Criminal Law Second Amendment
Act, 1997, will come into operation with effect from 15 January
1999. Section 16 B, however, will only be put into operation from 1
April 1999, in order to give interested parties the opportunity to
take cognizance of the provisions of the Act in this regard and
apply for the necessary exemption.
(6) Application for temporary exemption from chapter 4 A of the
Criminal Law Second Amendment Act, 1992, must be directed to:
MINISTER OF JUSTICE
PRIVATE BAG X276
PRETORIA
0001
ISSUED BY THE CHIEF DIRECTORATE: COMMUNICATION SERVICES OF THE
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
14 JANUARY 1999
PRETORIA
ENQUIRIES: Johan Geldenhys tel: (012) 323 9302 x2164
Rasiga Naicker tel: (012) 323 9302 x2189
@ KWANATAL-GAMBLING
DURBAN January 14 1999 Sapa
20 ARRESTED FOR CONTRAVENING THE GAMBLING ACT IN KWAZULU-NATAL
Police in KwaZulu-Natal have arrested 20 people in connection
with contraventions of the Gambling Act, police said on Thursday.
Spokesman Director Bala Naidoo said 429 gambling machines, a
substantial amount of money, liquor and other items were seized by
police acting against casino and other amusement centre operators
contravening the Act.
Naidoo said operators conducting lawful operations need not
fear police action or the closure of their businesses.
"However, if investigations (which are continuing) show that
the law is being transgressed or a crime is committed, further
steps will be taken against the offending party or parties."
@ POVERTY-CURRENCY
JOHANNESBURG January 14 1999 Sapa
CURRENCY FLUCTUATIONS WILL LEAD TO INCREASED POVERTY: WORLD
BANK
The World Bank on Thursday said fluctuations in currency like
those presently affecting Brazil could undo a decade of work to
reduce poverty in a country.
Speaking at a press conference in Kempton Park following a
two-day conference to gather information for the World Bank
Development Report 2000/1 on the reduction of poverty, project
director Professor Ravi Kanbur said countries needed to have
measures in place to protect the poor when fluctuations in currency
took place.
"Currency fluctuations, such as those in Asian countries like
Indonesia, can undo as much as a decade of poverty measures," he
said.
Kanbur said the opening up of capital accounts and
international financial market liberalisation would have to be
handled in a much more prudent and responsible manner.
He said he was not suggesting countries should not attempt such
measures, but that it could leave a country's economy vulnerable to
the fluctuations of international markets.
It was often the poor who were hardest hit by a drop in
currency rate, he said.
The World Bank report examines the poor's perception of
poverty, education and employment opportunities and access by the
poor to information. It will also look at the effect of the
devaluation of currency on various countries.
The South African World Bank representative Fyez Omar said the
findings of the report may influence the bank's distribution of
international aid.
A copy of the report on poverty hearings conducted in South
Africa last year was presented to the World Bank at the conference.
Attending the conference was Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town
Njongonkulu Ndungane, members of WorldFaiths Development Dialogue
- representing various religious denominations - and community
organisations representing African interests, such as Inter Africa
Group.
A draft report is expected to be completed in about 15 months.
@ BOTSWANA-REPO
GABORONE January 14 1999 Sapa
BOTSWANA: INTRODUCTION OF REPOS TO FINE TUNE MONEY SYSTEM
The Bank of Botswana has introduced Repurchase Agreements
(REPOs) to deal with increasing excess liquidity in the financial
system, the Bank said in a statement Thursday. The instruments were
introduced effective January 4.
"They will enable us to fine-tune the system," a spokesman
said.
In its 1997 economic review the Bank projected that excess
liquidity would rise to more than 8,600 million pula by 2002, the
end of the current National Development Plan 8.
"That will not now necessarily hold, given that the mineral
sector might not hold up," the spokesman said.
Growth over the years until now in diamond exports has resulted
in substantial balance of payments surpluses, and although these
have been partially offset by 14 years of government budget
surpluses, the money supply has been growing faster than the
economy.
However, this was before 1998's 28 percent slump in diamond
sales by the Central Selling Organisation (CSO) and an increase in
Government spending which, it is expected, will lead to Budget
deficits for 1998/99 and 1999/2000. There have been no detailed
predictions.
Botswana supplies 33 percent of the diamonds sold by the CSO.
The market in the existing instrument used by the Bank to mop
up excesss liquidity, the Bank of Botswana Certificate (BoBC), was
2,815 million pula as at end 1996 from 774 million in December
1991. It was forecast to be 4,530 million by the end of 1997, but
was cut back to 1,310 billion by non-government foreign currency
holdings and a 1996/97 Budget surplus four times that expected.
Bank statistics show that foreign currency accounts at the end
of 1997 were 482 million pula; at the end of September 1998, 942
million pula. The 1996/97 Budget outturn was a 1,302 million pula
surplus against the forecast 335.6 million, 1997/98 is forecast to
result in a 1,270 million surplus.
@ TRC WILL HOLD AN AMNESTY HEARING IN PORT ELIZABETH
Issued by: Truth and Reconciliation Commission
14 JANUARY 1999
The Amnesty Committee of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission
will hold an amnesty hearing in Port Elizabeth early next week from
Monday to Friday January 22.
Twelve people are applying for amnesty for crimes ranging from
assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm, robbery to murder,
some of which were committed in the late '80s. Two members of the
disbanded African National Congress aligned-Self Defence Unit
Tamsanqa Mali and Lulamile Stemele are applying for amnesty for
murdering a farmer in Ado. Another applicant Lumko Mnkumanda is
seeking amnesty for robbing a bakery killing a security guard Mr
Norman Beaton of Kok Street, Port Elizabeth.
In terms of the law governing the operations of the TRC, victims
or their next of kin have the right to attend, adduce evidence and
be legally represented at the hearing.
The hearing at the Centenary Hall, Ntsehekisa Street, Port
Elizabeth will be chaired by Acting Judge Sisi Kampempe.
Media inquiries : Phila Ngqumba, 082 458 8463
@ EDITORS-HRC
JOHANNESBURG January 14 1999 Sapa
HRC OUTLINES PARAMETERS FOR INVESTIGATION INTO RACISM IN MEDIA
The Human Rights Commission on Thursday indicated it was ready
to start with its investigation into racism in the media with the
release of draft procedures allowing for the examination of all
media, regardless of size or media producer.
The commission said in a statement that the investigation would
provide an objective and honest assessment of the incidence and
effects of racism in the media.
Commission spokesman Robert Nkuna said he could not give a date
when the commission would start its investigation.
"By Monday we might be able to give an indication as to when
the investigation will start. It will have to be very soon because
we do not have much time or resources.
"We have started the process and we must finish it as soon as
possible," Nkuna told Sapa.
The investigation will examine the manifestations of racism in
all media including newspaper articles and television and radio
broadcasts.
"While the investigation will not focus on examining racism in
the structure and workplace of the media, the investigation will
explore those issues if they are cited as causes of racism in the
products of media," the commission said.
It said outside experts would be called on to assist in the
investigation.
The draft procedures allow for a four-stage investigation:
- An invitation of written submissions from all interested
parties and concurrent commissioning of independent research;
- The analysis of submissions;
- The convening of public hearings; and
- The publication of the findings.
"The commission hopes that a clear understanding of the
investigation's parameters will foster an environment of goodwill
and cooperation which will ensure the investigation's success," the
statement said.
Comments from concerned parties received by January 22 will be
considered before the publishing of the final terms of reference in
the Government Gazette in February.
The SA National Editors' Forum on Thursday said the HRC's
investigation might help eliminate racism in society.
The HRC briefed Sanef on the investigation on Wednesday.
Sanef chairman Mike Siluma said that, based on assurances from
the HRC, the Sanef executive believed there may have been a
misunderstanding on the reason for the inquiry.
"If the inquiry is successful, we believe the findings could
help the media in their capacity to be responsive and sensitive to
the needs of all the people of South Africa."
The matter would be fully discussed by Sanef's national council
at its meeting in Cape Town next month, when it would adopt an
official position on the inquiry.
@ ZIM-EDITOR
HARARE January 14 1999 Sapa
HIGH COURT JUDGE ORDERS RELEASE OF ZIM EDITOR
A Harare High Court judge has issued an order for the immediate
release of Mark Chavunduka, editor of the independent Standard
newspaper, saying his detention by military authorities early in
the week was illegal.
Judge George Smith issued the order at 4pm on Thursday.
He also ordered the defence force to refrain from harassing
Chavunduka and from making any contact with him.
Chavunduka, 43, was arrested by military police on Tuesday
following his paper's report on Sunday that 23 soldiers had been in
prison since December 17 for inciting a coup to overthrow President
Robert Mugabe.
The orders have to be served on defence headquarters and the
military police before the authorities free Chavunduka from
Cranborne barracks where he is being held, the newspaper's
proprietor, Clive Wilson said.
It was not clear if they would be able to reach the officials
in time, or whether Chavunduka would have to spend his third night
in the illegal custody of the military police.
@ DRCONGO-REBELLEADER
HARARE January 14 1999 Sapa-AFP
DRC REBEL COMMANDER MAY HAVE BEEN INJURED IN AIR STRIKE
Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) rebel commander Jean-Pirre
Ondekane may have been seriously injured during a weekend air raid
in the northeastern town of Kisangani, pro-government sources said
Thursday.
"Intelligence indicates that . . . Ondekane may have been
seriously injured in the air strike, together with other senior
commanders of the invading forces," said a statement by forces
backing DRC President Laurent Kabila under the aegis of the
Southern Africa Development Community (SADC).
The statement was released in the Zimbabwean capital by a
government spokesman.
A spokesman for Ondekane told AFP on Tuesday that many people
were wounded in the attack, and that a number of them would likely
die of their injuries.
The SADC statement said "successful air strikes on known enemy
positions" left the airstrip at Kisangani so damaged that it was
rendered unusable.
Kisangani, the DRC's third city and capital of Orientale
province, is the site of the rebels' military headquarters.
The statement claimed forces backing Kabila had recaptured
several towns from rebel control.
Rebels on Wednesday said the air strike had left 17 people
dead, among them five children, eight women and a pastor.
On Monday, the Rome-based MISNA missionary news agency said the
bombardment on Sunday had killed around 50 people.
@ ZIM-LD-EDITOR
HARARE January 14 1999 Sapa-AP
MILITARY DEFIES COURT ORDER TO RELEASE DETAINED EDITOR
The military defied a court order Thursday to release a
newspaper editor detained for reporting an alleged coup attempt by
army officers.
The publisher of the independent Standard newspaper and lawyers
for editor Mark Chavunduka, 34, served the order by a High Court
judge on Defense Secretary Job Whabira.
But Whabira said the military was not bound by Judge George
Smith's order to release Chavunduka immediately.
"Any civilian who meddles in military matters is subject to
military law," Whabira told lawyer Simon Bull, said publisher
Clive Wilson.
Whabira said Chavunduka, detained at a barracks in southern
Harare since Tuesday, was still under investigation.
"The judge cannot direct us. We will move at our own pace,"
Whabira told Bull.
Wilson said the newspaper will return to the court Friday to
report that the military was ignoring the order and denying him
access to his lawyer and to family members.
The High Court order was issued on grounds the military has no
jurisdiction over civilians who must be charged by civilian police
for any alleged offense and brought to court within 48 hours of
their arrest.
On Tuesday, Defense Minister Moven Mahachi described the
Standard report on Sunday of a foiled coup as "treasonable" and
said the newspaper aimed to undermine the morale of the Zimbabwe
military.
He denied the paper's report that 23 soldiers, including seven
officers, were arrested Dec. 17 for plotting to overthrow the
government for its involvement in the civil war in the distant
Congo and claims of economic mismanagement.
Zimbabwe has 8,000 troops fighting in Congo, where they, along
with troops from Angola, Namibia and Chad, are backing Congolese
President Laurent Kabila against rebels backed by Rwandan and
Ugandan troops.
After Chavunduka was detained Tuesday, reporter Ray Choto, a
co-author of the coup report, went into hiding.
Military police in unmarked vehicles and civilian clothing have
staked out the newspaper's offices since Tuesday.
The human rights organization Amnesty International criticized
Chavunduka's detention and said it sent letters of protest to
Mahachi and President Robert Mugabe.
Chavunduka's arrest and isolation violated international law
and his constitutional rights "as he was carrying out his
legitimate peaceful activities as a journalist and exercising his
right to freedom of expression as guaranteed by the Zimbabwe
constitution," Amnesty said in a statement.
@ TRUTH-PE
JOHANNESBURG January 14 1999 Sapa
TRC TO HEAR AMNESTY APPLICATION IN PE FOR VARIOUS CRIMES
The amnesty committee of the Truth and Reconciliation
Commission will hear amnesty applications at Port Elizabeth in the
Eastern Cape next week for crimes committed during the eighties,
the TRC said in a statement on Thursday.
Twelve people are applying for amnesty for crimes ranging from
assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm to robbery and
murder.
Two members of an disbanded African National Congress-aligned
self-defence unit, Tamsanqa Mali and Lulamile Stemele, are applying
for amnesty for murdering a farmer in Ado.
Lumko Mnkumanda is seeking amnesty for robbing a Port Elizabeth
bakery and killing security guard Norman Beaton.
In terms of the law governing the operations of the TRC,
victims or their next-of-kin have the right to attend and be
legally represented at the hearing.
The hearing at Centenary Hall, Ntsehekisa Street, Port
Elizabeth will be chaired by Acting Judge Sisi Kampempe. It will
take place from Monday to Friday next week.
@ CRIME-NSC
JOHANNESBURG January 14 1999 Sapa
SPORTSPERSONS GUILTY OF CRIME WON'T REPRESENT SA: NSC
The National Sports Council (NSC) on Thursday evening said a
sportsperson guilty of serious crime would not be permitted to
represent South Africa in sport.
The statement came in the wake of media reports that a top
cricketer allegedly raped a woman.
"The sports community and athletes, in particular, should lead
exemplary lives as they are role models, not only to youngsters,
but the entire nation," the statement read.
"If a top sportsperson commits a crime, especially as serious
as rape, such action will not be tolerated and he or she should not
be permitted to represent this country in sport. The action taken
by the sports community must be as severe as that."
"However, it is important to ensure that the lives of innocent
individuablished. To this end, we do not wish to provide any
further comment specifically about the cricketer accused of rape
until the courts have ruled on the matter."
@ EDUC-GAUTENG
JOHANNESBURG January 14 1999 Sapa
GAUTENG SCHOOL ADMISSIONS GOING SMOOTHLY: MEC
Admissions to Gauteng schools for the first three days of this
week had mostly gone smoothly, Gauteng MEC for education Mary
Metcalfe said on Thursday.
Metcalfe said in a statement that Grade 1 admissions went
"exceptionally well", and general admissions at most schools went
well because the majority of them completed their registrations
last year.
School management teams at schools attempting to exclude
children who had not paid registration fees had been reminded of
regulations making this illegal.
Metcalfe said district officials were notified of some cases
where principals turned away pupils without providing reasons in
writing. These cases were dealt with and agreements were reached.
Schools with insufficient vacancies referred parents to other
schools which could accommodate their children.
Parents were encouraged to take their children to schools in
their local zones, but no child would be turned away from a school
with vacancies which was outside their zone, she said.
Matriculants who failed their examinations and wanted to repeat
were referred to the district offices, which were compiling a
database of facilities for those wanting a second chance at
completing matric.
Metcalfe said the provision of learning material was on track,
with materials having been delivered to schools during the vacation
and further deliveries expected this month at some schools.
Schools were certain they could begin teaching with the
materials they had now, she said.
@ DRCONGO-REFUGEES
BANGUI, Central African Republic January 14 1999 Sapa-AP
NEARLY 5,000 REFUGEES FLEE FIGHTING IN NORTHERN CONGO
Fighting between government and rebel forces in northwestern
Congo has driven up to 5,000 refugees into neighboring Central
African Republic, the U.N. refugee agency said.
The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees also said it was
checking reports that Congolese troops massacred up to 300 people
in Zongo and nearby Libenge, 1,430 kms (650 miles) northeast of
Congo's capital, Kinshasa.
The refugees told aid workers in the capital of Bangui that
advancing rebels and looting by government soldiers during the
first week of January had forced them to flee Zongo, the agency
said in a statement issued Wednesday in Geneva.
It was the second major flight of refugees in recent weeks from
northern Congo, where government forces and insurgents seeking to
oust President Laurent Kabila are fighting for control of key
towns.
In early December, clashes between rebels and government troops
in northeastern Congo drove up to 3,000 Congolese Hutus into
Uganda. The refugee agency later said 2,000 of the refugees had
been forcibly repatriated by local Ugandan officials.
Uganda and Rwanda are backing the rebels while Zimbabwe,
Angola, Namibia and Chad are aiding Kabila's government.
@ WCAPE-FIVAZ
JOHANNESBURG January 14 1999 Sapa
NOT ENOUGH ARRESTS MADE TO CURB URBAN TERRORISM: FIVAZ
Police Commissioner George Fivaz on Thursday said police must
be honest about the fact that they were not arresting enough urban
terrorists.
Speaking on SABC TV news on Thursday about the gang situation
in the Western Cape, Fivaz said police were not at all saying they
were successful as far as controlling the situation in the Western
Cape was concerned.
"As a matter of fact I think we must be absolutely honest about
the fact that we are not making the arrests we would like to see on
urban terrorists."
Fivaz said not enough pipe bomb related arrests were made. As
far as other crime in the Western Cape was concerned, the
statistics looked fairly well.
"We are lagging behind as far as the pipe bomb explosions are
concerned, but we have very good evidence in terms of intelligence
in hand and sooner or later we are going to break the back of this
thing.
"We have to establish a rule of law in the Western Cape," Fivaz
said.
He said the police command structure in the Western Cape could
not be blamed for this failure as various other factors such as
lack of community cooperation and political and social problems
also contributed to the problems in the area.
He said police were working towards getting the support of the
community.
@ ANGOLA-POLITICS
LUANDA January 14 1999 Sapa-AFP
ANGOLAN HEALTH MINISTER SACKED OVER LOYALTY TO SAVIMBI
Angolan President Eduardo dos Santos sacked his health minister
on Thursday at the request of dissident members of the National
Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA).
Ruben Sikato had refused to join the dissidents, who in
September disavowed UNITA leader Jonas Savimbi, splitting the
movement.
The Luanda regime has broken off relations with Savimbi and now
says it recognises the dissidents as the government's sole partner
in the peace process following peace accords signed in 1994.
Angola's civil war has resumed in earnest in recent months,
with both sides vowing not to give in to the other's aggression.
@ ZIM-N/L-EDITOR
HARARE January 14 1999 Sapa
COURT ORDER TO FREE EDITOR IGNORED AS MILITARY FLEXES MUSCLES
Zimbabwe appeared to be on the brink of a constitutional crisis
on Thursday after military authorities scoffed at a judge's orders
to free the editor of an independent newspaper who has been in
illegal custody in an army barracks for the last three days.
Lawyers for the weekly Standard newspaper won an order from
High Court judge George Smith for the immediate and unconditional
release of its editor, Mark Chavunduka, 34, who was arrested on
Tuesday after his newspaper reported that 23 soldiers had been in
prison since mid-December for inciting other troops to overthrow
President Robert Mugabe.
Minutes later, after handing the order to defence ministry
permanent secretary Job Whabira on the steps of defence
headquarters in central Harare, they were told, according to
Standard proprietor Clive Wilson: "The judge cannot direct us. We
are moving at our own pace."
Told that the judge had ruled that the military had no powers
of arrest over civilians, Wilson said Whabira replied: "Any
civilian who meddles in military matters is subject to military
law."
Being told that Judge Smith had warned that failure to carry
out his orders would be "a serious contempt" made no impression on
Whabira, Wilson said.
Lawyers are to apply on Friday for an order of contempt against
Whabira and Defence Minister Moven Mahachi.
"It has been a very, very depressing chain of events," Wilson,
62, told a press conference. "It is quite clear that there is a
part of the executive that feels it is not subject to the law."
The affair has already drawn international attention to the
sudden rise in influence of the military in Zimbabwean political
and civil life, which began in August when Mugabe ordered the
country's best troops and military weaponry to fight for President
Laurent Kabila in his war against Tutsi rebels.
The country is already beset by its worst economic crisis, the
strain of a war in a foreign country, ineffective law and order,
rampant corruption and badly incompetent government, observers say.
They warn that the volatility of the situation may be seen by
the powerful elite of Mugabe's ruling ZANU(PF) party as an
opportunity to impose martial law or a state of emergency.
"The Standard story has been self-fulfilling," remarked a
veteran Harare journalist. "The military is in control. There (has)
already been a coup."
Chavunduka has not been given access to lawyers or to his
family. He was arrested without a warrant by soldiers with no
powers of arrest and there is no suggestion of charges.
"This is kidnapping," Wilson said.
Only reluctantly did military authorities agree yesterday to
hand over medication for Chavunduka from his wife, Abigail.
Earlier on Thursday Trevor Ncube, editor of the Zimbabwe
Independent, the Standard's sister paper, telephoned the office of
a colonel in the military police at Cranborne barracks in Harare's
southern suburbs where Chavunduka is being held.
He was able to speak very briefly to Chavunduka by pretending
that he was Ray Choto, the Standard reporter believed to have
helped write the Standard's story on the December arrests of the 23
soldiers.
Chavunduka quickly recognised Ncube's voice and told him he was
fine, Ncube said.
Choto has gone into hiding since military policeman came to
arrest him at the newspaper's offices yesterday, but were turned
away by Wilson.
On Tuesday Mahachi launched an enraged attack on the Standard
and the country's handful of independent newspapers that provide
critical coverage of the country's stormy political affairs, in
contrast to the diet of propaganda by the state-owned newspapers.
The Standard was "an enemy of the state," he fumed. "They
cannot be allowed to get away with it."
@ NNP-SUSPENSION
CAPE TOWN January 14 1999 Sapa
MP PAULINE CUPIDO SUSPENDED FROM NEW NATIONAL PARTY
The New National Party on Thursday said it decided to suspend
MP Pauline Cupido over statements to journalists alleging racism in
the selection of candidates to contest the May 1999 general
election.
"The accusations against Cupido were made after she allegedly
gave unfounded statements to the media that the New NP had acted
unfairly towards her husband during the prioritisation process,"
said an NNP statement.
"It should be noted that the selection committee (of which the
Cupidos were members) sat after all aspirant candidates signed an
agreement to not only endorse the prioritisation process, but also
its outcome."
Cupido's husband, Henry joined the DP after the New NP's
Western Cape selection committee ranked him in the lower half of
their provincial candidate's list.
@ UNITA-DIAMONDS
STRASBOURG, Jan 14, Sapa-AFP
EU CALLS FOR HALT IN UNITA DIAMOND SALES
The European Parliament on Thursday called for a halt to the
diamond sales funding the war effort of rebels in the Southern
African state of Angola.
In a resolution, the parliament also advocated an in-depth
investigation by the European Commission in order to stem the
diamond trade.
Angola's civil war has been rekindled in recent months, with
both the government and the National Union for the Total
Independence of Angola (UNITA) refusing to back down to the other's
aggression.
@ CRIME-NECKLACE
JOHANNESBURG January 14 1999 Sapa
FOUR ARRESTED FOR NECKLACING OF MOZAMBICANS
Police on Thursday arrested four suspects in connection with
the death by necklacing of four Mozambicans at Ivory Park on
January 6, North Rand police said.
Superintendent Eugene Opperman said six Mozambicans were
abducted by a group accusing them of theft.
Two died on the spot after the necklacing. Three were admitted
to hospital with severe burns and one escaped the mob. Two of those
in hospital died from their wounds.
@ CRIME-WCAPE
CAPE TOWN January 14 1999 Sapa
WESTERN CAPE POLICEMAN DIES AFTER FIFTEEN SHOTS FIRED AT HIM
Fifteen shots were fired at the Western Cape detective who died
on Thursday night when gunmen opened fire on him with 9mm pistols,
Western Cape police said.
Superintendent Wicus Holtzhausen said eight shots hit Captain
Bennie Lategan in the back. He was also hit once in his left side
and his left arm.
Lategan was gunned down when he assisted at the scene of a car
accident on the corner of Vanguard Road and the R300 highway.
Holtzhausen said three men in a blue Toyota Corolla pulled up
next to him and fired 15 shots at him. The blue Toyota was later
found burnt out in Athlone. It had no number plates and police
suspect it was stolen.
Holtzhausen said police received information about an arms
cache on a Strandspruit farm close to Mitchell's Plain shortly
before Lategan was killed.
Lategan was one of the police officers who went to investigate.
When they arrived at the farm, they only found a practice grenade
which Holtzhausen said indicated that the call could have been a
false alarm.
On their way back to the office the policemen were notified of
the accident on the R300 and Lategan went to assist.
He was waiting for the vehicle to be towed away when the gunmen
pulled up next to him.
Commenting on the possibility that the call could have been
part of an ambush, Holtzhausen said this was doubtful unless the
perpetrators followed Lategan all the time. Police were
investigating all possibilities.
National Police Commissioner George Fivaz earlier on Thursday
night condemned Lategan's killing as shocking.
Lategan was part of the team investigating People Against
Gangsterism and Drugs.
He was also involved in the investigations into pipe bomb
explosions in the Western Cape.
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A N C D A I L Y N E W S B R I E F I N G
MONDAY 18 JANUARY 1999
PLEASE NOTE: This News Briefing is a compilation of items from South
African press agencies and as such does not reflect the views of the
ANC. It is for reading and information only, and strictly not for
publication or broadcast.
To unsubscribe from the ANC Daily News Briefing mailing list send a
message to 'list...@wn.apc.org'. In the body of your message put
'unsubscribe ancnews'.
@ CRIME-POLICEMAN
CAPE TOWN January 15 1999 Sapa
WILEY SHOCKED AT KILLING OF COP INVESTIGATING PAGAD
Western Cape community safety and security MEC Mark Wiley on
Friday said the province would play a more proactive role in the
prevention of attacks and crime such as that which occurred on
Thursday night when a policeman was gunned down.
Captain Bennie Lategan, a detective in the People Against
Gangsterism and Drugs task team was driving home from a police raid
in Strandfontein when he was attacked at the intersection of
Vanguard Drive and the R300.
Witnesses said they saw three men in a Toyota pull up alongside
Lategan. One of its occupants opened fire before the car sped off.
Police found Lategan bleeding profusely. Ten of the 15 bullets
the attackers fired were lodged in his back, two in his hand and
arm and the rest in the side of his body.
"I am absolutely abhorred and shocked by this callous killing,"
Wiley said.
"We will not be intimidated by this type of act. The Western
Cape community is sick and tired of such terrorist attacks."
"The Western Cape will play a more proactive role in the
prevention of such attacks and crime," Wiley said.
He expressed his sympathy and condolences to the policeman's
family and colleagues.
The African National Congress in the Western Cape said it was
deeply shocked by the killing.
Spokesman Cameron Dugmore on Friday said it was clear those who
killed Lategan did not want the truth to come out concerning the
wave of terror on the Cape Flats.
"Organisations like Pagad, through their actions, have created
an atmosphere in which people like Yusuf Jacobs and now Captain
Lategan have died," Dugmore said.
Jacobs was shot when police fired rubber bullets at an illegal
anti-Tony Blair protest on the Grand Parade last Friday. He died in
Groote Schuur Hospital on Tuesday.
"The ANC calls on our community to give their full support to
Operation Good Hope (announced by George Fivaz this week) under the
leadership of Superintendent Ganief Daniels,
"It is only through the full community's participation and
committed policing that successful arrests, prosecutions and
convictions will follow. We appeal for calm and urge people not to
consider the option of retribution," Dugmore said.
National police commissioner George Fivaz described the killing
of Lategan as shocking.
"I am absolutely dismayed," he said.
Police spokesman Superintendent Wicus Holtzhausen on Friday
confirmed there were witnesses, adding: "But we don't want to go
further into that."
Holtzhausen said police raided the homes of Pagad's national
co-ordinator Abdus-Salaam Ebrahim and another member after the
shooting. No-one was arrested.
Holtzhausen said police were confident they would track down
the killers of Lategan.
"We are very concerned about the attack but we will not be
intimidated," Holtzhausen said.
@ GCIS PARLIAMENTARY MEDIA BRIEFING WEEK HAS BEEN EXTENDED
Issued by: Government Communications (GCIS)
MEDIA ADVISORY
The GCIS Parliamentary Media Briefing week has been extended by
two days. It will now start on Monday, 8 February 1999 and end on 16
February 1999. No briefings take place over weekends. This briefing
is open to all members of the national media as well as the foreign
media stationed in South Africa. A schedule of the briefings will be
made available during the first week of February 1999.
Queries may be directed to: Petra Wiese. Tel: (012) 314 2911
Issued by the Government Communication and Information System
15 January 1999
@ TRANSFORMATION AND RESTRUCTURING FISHING INDUSTRY
Issued by: Government Communications (GCIS)
The Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism recently
experienced a technical problem arising out of a legal challenge to
the West Coast lobster allocations and associated exemptions.
This meant that the Department had to reconsider the exemptions
issued while legal advice was being obtained.
Having obtained advice, the Department is now in a position to
proceed with the issuing of permits to companies in the deep sea
sector.
With regard to the West Coast Lobster issue specifically, this
matter is sub-judice and the Department will present its case in
court.
The Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism remains
undaunted in its intention to restructure the fishing indstry
according to its policy and the legislation on Marine Living
Resources, enacted last year.
ENQUIRIES: Dr Tanya Abrahamse
Tel: (012) 3103664
@ HOUSING-SARDA
JOHANNESBURG January 15 1999 Sapa
BIGGER LOW-COST HOUSES NOT UNREALISTIC: SARDA
The South African Residential Developers Association (SARDA)
has refuted claims by the Building Industries Federation of SA
(BIFSA) that only 10m B2 houses could be built using the R15000
government subsidy for low-cost housing.
SARDA president Chris Cudmore said on Friday it was possible to
meet the 30m B2 requirement in most areas, the exceptions being
areas where steep topography, poor founding conditions or specific
climatic conditions required higher than average infrastructure
costs.
Another exception was areas where local and provincial
authorities imposed unrealistic servicing standards.
Tens of thousands of houses around the country have been
delivered between 20m B2 and 40m B2 with a few projects delivering
houses greater than 40m B2, and delivery was continuing.
He said the key issue in any social housing project was to have
an understanding of the appropriate level of services and top
structure.
He welcomed the recently announced increase of the subsidy
amount to R16000 but noted that the additional R1000 did not fully
compensate for inflation.
@ NHLANHLA STATEMENT ON THE MURDER OF BENNY LATEGAN
Issued by: The Ministry for Intelligence Services
STATEMENT BY MR JM NHLANHLA MP, DEPUTY MINISTER FOR INTELLIGENCE
SERVICE, ON THE MURDER OF POLICE INVESTIGATOR BENNY LATEGAN
The Ministry of Intelligence Services would like to extend its
heartfelt condolences to the family of Bennie Lategan, the police
detective on the Pagad Task Team who was brutally murdered last
night.
We would also like to extend our condolences to all members of
his unit, dedicated to eradicating the urban terrorism that plagues
the Western Cape, and trust that they will leave no stone unturned
in finding his killers.
We would like to ssue a very stern warning to those elements
bent on rendering the Western Cape ungovernable. Their action serves
no cause as South Africans are united in their opposition to
instability and violence. The majority of our people have fought for
decades to establish peace and democracy, and will not countenance
it being disrupted.
I have instructed our intelligence operatives to assist the SAPS
in every manner possible in bringing the perpetrators of this
callous and dastardly deed to book. In light of the growing close
relationship between the SAPS and the intelligence community and the
resulting successes. I have no doubt that this will be achieved in
good time.
ISSUED BY THE MINISTRY FOR INTELLIGENCE SERVICES,
15 JANUARY 1999
@ FEATURE-WORLDBANK
JOHANNESBURG January 15 1999 Sapa-IPS
WORLD BANK'S POLICIES STIFLE JOBS IN AFRICA: ANALYSTS
Employment creation should be at the centre of any successful
poverty alleviation programme, says a World Bank economist, but
South African analysts argue that the Bank's own policies have done
little to stimulate employment in Africa.
"Employment has to be at the centre," says Joseph Stiglitz,
chief economist of the World Bank when he addressed a three-day
Inter Faith/World Bank poverty conference in Johannesburg this
week. "It is absolutely important and it is often forgotten as a
key message."
The conference's findings will be incorporated in the UN's
forthcoming World Development Report.
Stiglitz says that in the past, poverty alleviation strategies
the majority black population.
The country's economy, on the other hand, has not been growing
handsomely. It is expected to improve by half a percentage point in
1999, hardly anything to savour, given a population growth rate of
above 2.5 percent.
Talk of poverty alleviation without talk of debt cancellation
is meaningless, says the Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town,
Njongonkulu Ndungane.
"One of the contributing factors to poverty is the astronomical
debt that is owed to developed countries by developing countries,"
says Ndungane, who is championing debt-forgiveness.
"The cancellation of these unpayable debts will go a long way
towards improving the quality of life and restoring dignity in
developing countries," he adds.
"A first step would be for the Group of Eight (G8) countries
and financial institutions, when they meet in June in the German
city of Cologne, to make an unequivocal commitment of intent to
cancel the developing world's unpayable debts."
G8 groups the industrial nations of Germany, Italy, France,
Japan, the United States, Britain, Canada and Russia.
Another factor that has been identified as a key contributor to
growing world poverty is globalisation.
While it has positive aspects, such as new information
technologies, deregulation in money markets and a significant
growth in global trade, it has also hit national economies through
the whim of multi-national decision makers and international
capital.
Government's no longer wield power and real power is now in the
hands of those who have money - the multinationals who shift
intensive employment around the globe to where wages are lowest.
Worldwide, according to UN statistics, 1.3 billion people live
in extreme poverty (on less than one US dollar a day), and about 70
percent of them are women. By 2020, the number of malnourished
children is set to grow to 200 million from 193 million, and most
of them will be in Africa.
Increasingly, however, there have been important voices,
including that of the World Bank, conceding the flaws of the
present free market ideology.
@ FISH
CAPE TOWN January 15 1999 Sapa
RESTRUCTIONING OF FISHING INDUSTRY: PERMITS TO BE ISSUED SOON
The Department of Environmental Affairs on Friday said it was
determined to restructure the fishing industry according to its
policy and the legislation governing marine living resources.
In a statement, the Department said it would soon start issuing
permits to companies in the deep sea sector, following the
cancellation of all exemption permits.
Trawlermen, affected by the trng the green light to put to sea
again pending new quota announcements from Sea Fisheries.
About 80 percent of the affected trawlers are long liners that
target hake and kingklip. They were, in the past, granted exemption
permits which allowed them to fish while quotas were being
allocated.
The Department said it recently experienced a technical problem
arising out of a legal challenge to the West Coast lobster
allocations and associated exemptions, which meant it had to
reconsider the exemptions issued while legal advice was being
obtained.
Having obtained advice, the Department was now in a position to
issue permits to companies in the deep sea sector.
With regard to the West Coast lobsters specifically, this
matter was sub-judice and the Department would present its case in
court.
@ ZIM-EDITOR
HARARE January 15 1999 Sapa-AFP
ZIMBABWEAN LAWYERS SEEK DEFENCE MINISTER'S ARREST
Lawyers acting for a Zimbabwean editor detained by the military
applied to the courts on Friday for the arrest of Defence Minister
Moven Mahachi if the journalist is not freed immediately.
The ministry on Thursday defied a High Court order for the
release of Standard editor Mark Chavunduka, who was detained four
days ago after running a story about an alleged military coup plot.
The managing director of the Standard, Clive Wilson, told AFP
on Friday that the paper was making an urgent application to the
High Court to jail Mahachi, secretary of defence Job Whabira, and a
military police major involved in the arrest if Chavunduka is not
released.
He described the military's refusal to abide by Thursday's
order as "a gross contempt of court".
Defence secretary Whabira refused to carry out the order
saying: "The judge cannot direct us. We will move at our own pace.
Any civilian who meddles in military matters is subject to military
law."
Wilson said, however, this was "absolute bloody nonsense.
"The Defence Act says that military personnel may not arrest,
detain or question civilians."
Wilson said Chavunduka's arrest was "a very dangerous assertion
of extra-legal rights by the ministry of defence at a time when
they are cock-a-hoop at having persuaded the president and
everybody else to take on board this ridiculous war in the
(Democratic Republic of) Congo (DRC)."
The Standard reported last Sunday that 23 Zimbabwean military
officers had been arrested for inciting colleagues in the army to
topple President Robert Mugabe.
The paper said the harsh economic conditions in the country and
Zimbabwe's intervention in the DRC's civil war in support of
President Laurent Kabila were the source of discontent that led to
the alleged plot.
Mahachi labelled the story as completely false, before military
police moved in to arrest Chavunduka, who is being held at a
military barracks and has been denied access to his lawyers and
family.
Wilson told AFP he believed he was being followed, saying his
son had seen a vehicle tailing him as he travelled from his
suburban home to work Friday morning.
Lawyers say Chavunduka's arrest has sparked a constitutional
crisis, with the military pitting its power against that of the
judiciary.
@ MOZ-SA
MAPUTO January 15 1999 Sapa-AFP
MOZAMBIQUE ANGRY OVER TREATMENT OF ITS CITIZENS BY SOUTH AFRICA
The Maputo government wants urgent talks with Pretoria over the
harsh treatment of Mozambican illegal immigrants in South Africa, a
senior immigration officer said Friday.
"Contacts are being made at all levels so that the issue is
discussed and settled once for all," national director of
immigration Miguel Chissano told AFP.
Officials at the Mozambican border town of Ressano Garcia
report that many of the hundreds of Mozambicans dumped there by
South African trains each week show signs of having been assaulted
and mauled by police dogs.
They say the Mozambicans are not given time to collect their
belongings when they are picked up on the streets or at their
workplaces.
Some of the deportees accuse white farmers of using them as
illegal labour and then reporting them to police when the time
comes to pay several months' worth of back wages.
Chissano, who is President Joaquim Chissano's brother, said
also that South Africa regularly dumps any illegal African
immigrants into Mozambique.
"We have come across several cases of non-Mozambican deportees
in recent weeks", said Chissano.
Chissano said all the non-Mozambicans, who are from countries
such as Tanzania, Nigeria, Togo, Mali, Rwanda and Burundi, are
immediately turned back so the South African authorities can
repatriate them properly.
@ ANC REJECTS THAT THERE IS JOCKEYING FOR POSITIONS
Issued by: African National Congress
The ANC in Gauteng rejects with contempt, allegations in the
media that there is jockeying for positions in the province. The
article is inaccurate and misleading, as the Gauteng Provincial List
Committee has already submitted the list to the Provincial Executive
Committee which adopted it last year in November.
The ANC wants to reiterate its full support of the National
Deployment Strategy. It is therefore not true that the visit by the
National Executive Committee in Gauteng, led by the President, Cde
Thabo Mbeki, is coming to intervene. The decision to visit provinces
was taken last year by the National Working Committee to discuss and
reflect on the state of the organisation and assist in preparing for
the elections campaign.
The NWC will be meeting with ANC branches, the PWC, the Leagues
and regions including councillors in various meetings throughout the
two days.
For more information, please contact:
Obed Bapela - 082 570 3601
Issued by the ANC Gauteng Province
P.O. Box 8299
Johannesburg
2000
@ HASHIMOTO
JOHANNESBURG January 15 1999 Sapa
AFRICAN STRIFE THREATENS DEVELOPMENT, WARNS TOP JAPANESE
ADVISER
Regional conflicts in Africa were becoming stumbling blocks to
development on the continent, former Japanese premier Ryutaro
Hashimoto said on Friday.
Addressing a South African Institute for International Affairs
luncheon in Johannesburg, Hashimoto, the current senior foreign
policy adviser to Premier Keizo Obuchi, said the conflicts also
indicated that Africa stood at a turning point in history.
He hoped African countries could unite, overcome the turmoil
that always accompanied change and achieve an "African
Renaissance."
"Japan is determined, together with other Asian countries and
the international community, to support the self-help efforts of
Africa toward renewal and restoration," Hashimoto said.
He added that amid the trend toward globalisation, the further
marginalisation of Africa would be unfortunate for the
international community as a whole and would not benefit anybody.
Hashimoto said Africa was blessed with energetic and vigorous
people and rich natural resources and had immense potential for the
21st century.
He was encouraged by a new trend in Africa in which people were
making the utmost efforts to eliminate corruption and dictatorship
to build people-oriented nations based on sound economic policies
and under outstanding leadership.
@ NNP-WEAPONS
JOHANNESBURG January 15 1999 Sapa
NNP WELCOMES LAW PROHIBITING PARAMILITARY TRAINING
The New National Party on Friday welcomed the introduction of
the Judicial Matters Amendment Act, which prohibits paramilitary
training and the unauthorised productions of weapons.
The law came into effect on Friday.
NNP deputy justice spokesman Roelie Groenewald said in a
statement that although not a new law, its implementation would
surely contribute to the fight against crime amd the unlawful
actions of paramilitary groups in South Africa.
"With the run up to the 1999 general elections one can expect
tensions to rise, and this law will give the SAPS (South African
Police Services) the necessary legislative backing to act against
those elements who wish to disrupt the country's election for
selfish gains," he said.
@ VOS-NNP
CAPE TOWN January 15 1999 Sapa
VOS WANTED MONEY: NNP
Former New National Party federal youth leader James Vos had
sacrificed his principles for money when he defected to the
Democratic Party this week, Western Cape NNP youth action
chairwoman, Beulah Smith said on Friday.
She said it had been known for some time that he was looking
for a position which offered permanent remuneration.
"It's a pity that principles can be sacrificed so easily for a
short-term benefits or remuneration," Smith said in a statement.
"It is a known fact that the DP has decided to keep its lists
open as late as possible in order to accommodate dissatisfied
individuals in the Western Cape."
Vos claimed when he announced his defection on Thursday that
the NNP's provincial head office was in a state of collapse, and
that the NNP did not give the youth a chance to help build the
party.
@ YFM-NNP
JOHANNESBURG January 15 1999 Sapa
NEW NP YOUTH CONDEMNS ATTACK AND ROBBERY ON YFM DJ
The New National Party youth movement on Friday condemned the
assault of YFM's late night DJ, Msizi Shembe, during a robbery at
the station's offices in Bertrams, Johannesburg on Thursday night.
Ten armed men demanding money held up Shembe and his producer,
Desmond Mashaba, at 11.30pm, forcing the station off the air for
about 30 minutes.
Shembe was pistol whipped during the robbery.
NNP youth spokesman Riaan Aucamp said the attack on the youth
radio station was indicative of the utter state of lawlessness in
Gauteng, and South Africa as a whole.
"No South African can feel safe anymore, whether at home or at
work," he said.
Aucamp called on the community to assist the police in
apprehending the robbers.
YFM said on Friday afternoon that Shembe would be expected to
host his show as usual.
The robbers apparently waited for DJ Paul Msizi to drive out of
the premises after his shift ended and then walked through the
gates.
The robbers fled with the two men's wallets, bags and cellular
telephones, as well as CDs, studio equipment, a microwave and
kettle.
@ PRIVILEGE
PARLIAMENT January 15 1999 Sapa
MPS EXAMINE PARLIAMENTARY PRIVILEGE
The issue of freedom of speech in Parliament, and the powers
the institution should have over its own members and outsiders, may
come under close scrutiny during its coming short session.
A parliamentary committee met on Wednesday to discuss an
interim report on the powers and privileges of Parliament, an area
that covers Parliament's ability to discipline its members and
issues such as the rights of members of the public who are defamed
in speeches made in Parliament.
The committee agreed members should take the report back to
their party caucuses for further input during the seven-week
parliamentary session starting on February 5.
A parliamentary official said on Friday the MPs intended to
compile a final report before the end of the session, and to hand
it on to the new Parliament for action.
This week's report, funded by the European Union, was compiled
under the direction of University of Cape Town law professor
Christina Murray.
It says contempt of Parliament should be governed by
legislation which scraps the 1963 Powers and Privileges of
Parliament Act, and provides a general definition of contempt of
Parliament plus a list of particular contempts.
Parliament should retain its power to define new contempts in
its rules but any new one would have to fall within the general
definition.
The general definition, the report suggests, should read:
"Contempt of Parliament consists in unlawfully and intentionally
obstructing or impeding either House in the performance of its
functions, or any member or officer of the House in the discharge
of his or her duties."
The report says the most important parliamentary privilege is
freedom of speech.
The Constitution protects members' freedom of speech; Murray
suggests this protection be extended to the National Assembly and
National Council of Provinces as institutions.
Constitutional protection could also be extended by defining
the ambit of privilege to cover a wider range of parliamentary
proceedings than just speeches in a House and its committees.
The report says that when freedom of speech is abused, for
instance to defame members of the public, the question arises
whether such members of the public should have some form of
recourse.
It notes that the Australian Parliament allows a response to be
published in Hansard.
The report says the common law protecting reporting on
parliamentary proceedings will develop in line with the
Constitution.
A new Powers and Privileges Act need not deal with the matter
but should retain the protection of parliamentary reporting found
in the current Act.
@ JAPAN - SOUTH AFRICA PARTNERSHIP FORUM HELD IN PRETORIA
Issued by: Government Communications (GCIS)
The first-ever session of the Partnership Forum agreed upon
between Deputy President Thabo Mbeki and then Japanese Prime
Minister Ruytaro Hashimoto in Tokyo in April 1998, was held in
Pretoria on 13 and 14 January 1999, on the occasion of Mr Hashimoto
is currently Senior Foreign Policy Adviser to the Prime Minister of
Japan.
The Japanese delegation was headed by Mr Kaoru Ishikawa, Deputy
Director-General of Middle East and African Affairs, Ministry of
Foreign Affairs, and the South African delegation was headed by Ms
Thuthu Mazibuko, Deputy Director-General, Asia and Middle East,
Department of Foreign Affairs. Officials from the
Department/Ministries dealing with Foreign Affairs, Trade and
Industry, Arts and Culture, Science and Technology, Education and
Sport also attended the Partnership Forum meeting.
The two sides discussed the Asian financial crisis and the
Japanese side gave a briefing on their actions to stimulate the
Japanese economy and to resolve the financial crisis. The situation
in Southern Africa, including the DRC, was also discussed and both
shared the view that notwithstanding certain negative developments
in Africa, a great deal that was positive was also taking place on
the African continent which was not receiving due attention
internationally. Both sides were also in agreement that there should
be a follow-up to the Second Tokyo International Conference on
African Development (TICAD II), which took place in Tokyo in October
1998.
Reform of the UN system and disarmament issues were also
discussed and on these two matters Japan and South Africa shared
many similar viewpoints. Both countries agreed on closer cooperation
in the area of demining, taking advantage of South Africa's
experience and unique technology in this field.
Both sides agreed on closer cooperation in various sectors,
including the development of products for which there would be a
market in Japan, the promotion of tourism from Japan to South
Africa, the development of SMMEs in South Africa, and science,
culture and sport. Japan will send several delegations to South
Africa to follow up on the discussions.
The discussions of the Partnership Forum meeting took place in a
cordial and constructive atmosphere and both agreed that the
momentum of the Partnership Forum should be maintained.
ISSUED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
PRETORIA
15 JANUARY 1999
@ MEETING OF DIRECTORS-GENERALS ON THE REGISTRATION PROCESS
Issued by: Office of the Deputy President
Directors-General of National and Provincial government
departments today, Friday 15 January met in Pretoria under the
leadership of Frank Chikane, to discuss the role of government
departments in assisting the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC)
to register voters on 29, 30 and 31 January.
The meeting was also attended by the Chief Electoral Officer
Mandla Mchunu.
The meeting today, expressed its gratitude to public servants at
national, provincial, local governments, members of the SANDF and
other parastatals for their invaluable contribution in last year's
registration process. As a result and estimated 9.7 million voters
registered for the second democratic elections scheduled for later
this year.
The meeting received reports from all departments on their state
of readiness to deploy members of the public service to the IEC for
the last round of registration. In this regard the meeting expressed
its confidence that on the basis of experience gained in the first
phase of registration last year, the final round of registrations
will be accompanied by much more effective deployment of resources.
The Directors-General further agreed that deployment of members
of the civil service will be effected at provincial level. Members of
the public service thus deployed will remain under the direction of
and accountable to the IEC.
For more info contact Ronnie Mamoepa at 082-990-4853
Issued by the Office of Deputy President T.M Mbeki
P/Bag X955
Pretoria
0001
15 January 1999
@ QIBLA-MARCH
CAPE TOWN January 15 1999 Sapa
PEACEFUL MARCH BY QIBLA THROUGH CAPE TOWN STREETS
Members of the Muslim organisation Qibla held a peaceful
El-Quds Day march through the steets of Cape Town on Friday to
protest against Israeli occupation of the Masjidul Quds mosque in
Jerusalem.
Permission for the march was refused by the Cape Town local
council on Monday, but the Cape High Court on Friday overturned the
decision and allowed a two-hour march between 3pm and 5pm.
Qibla leader Imam Achmat Cassiem, who led the march, told
protesters at the Muir Street mosque that Isarel was established
through terrorism in 1948 and was being maintained through
terrorism with the the support of the United States.
Chanting "Death to Israel", "Death to America", "One Zionist,
one bullet", several hundred protesters took to the streets, but no
incidents were reported.
They regrouped at the Grand Parade after the march and
dispersed peacefully.
The marchers were sandwiched between police vehciles
throughout, with the police helicopter hovering above.
@ EDUC-JAPAN
PRETORIA January 15 1999 Sapa
JAPAN TO GIVE R48 MILLION FOR ECAPE SCHOOL BUILDINGS
Japan would give about R48 million for the construction and
repair of schools in the Eastern Cape, the Japanese Embassy said on
Friday.
An exchange of notes for the grant would be signed in Pretoria
later in the afternoon by Education Minister Sibusiso Bengu and
Japanese Ambassador to South Africa, Atsushi Hatakenaka, the
embassy's statement said.
"The government of Japan recognises the extreme shortage of
educational facilities in South Africa, and the importance of
affording the opportunity of education to so many disadvantaged
students as possible," the embassy said.
President Nelson Mandela requested the aid about two years ago
from former Japanese Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto, who is
currently on a three-day visit to South Africa.
Hashimoto became senior adviser to Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi
after resigning in July last year.
The Department of Education said a team from Japan and Eastern
Cape education authorities last year listed 44 schools that needed
repair.
"The province has a massive backlog of school buildings. Many
schools are decrepit and dilapidated," the department said in a
statement.
@ IFP-ANC
DURBAN January 15 1999 Sapa
IFP CONDEMNS ALLEGED INTIMIDATION OF ITS MEMBERS BY ANC
The Inkatha Freedom Party in KwaZulu-Natal has condemned the
alleged intimidation of four of its youth brigade members by a
senior African National Congress member in the Midlands.
At a press conference in Durban on Friday, IFP Midlands leader
David Ntombela claimed the ANC's Dumisani Khuzwayo on Thursday
intimidated the four - Sibongiseni Dlamini, Nkosinathi Mnguni,
Mandla Shezi and Sifiso Khubani of the Egqumeni area - and forced
them to join his party.
"He intimidated the youths and threatened that he would
fabricate stories about them and that they would be killed if they
did not join the ANC," Ntombela said.
Khuzwayo resigned from the IFP to join the ANC in November
after accusing some IFP members of siding with the United
Democratic Movement.
Ntombela said the IFP would take legal action against Khuzwayo.
"I believe this is Khuzwayo's strategy to prove to his new
party that he has support in the area," he said.
Midlands ANC leader Zweli Mkhize said the party condemned the
IFP's action.
"We condemn the IFP's action of hijacking our members. These
guys joined the ANC early in December and we have written proof."
The ANC did not intimidate the youths, they were members of the
party, Mkhize said.
@ NAMIBIA-ANGOLA
SWAKOPMUND, Namibia January 15 1999 Sapa-AFP
NAMIBIA CONCERNED ABOUT DETERIORATION OF SITUATION IN ANGOLA
Namibian Prime Minister Hage Geingob on Friday expressed his
concern at the deteriorating security situation in Angola and
called on the United Nations to be "more effective" in trying to
resolve the conflict.
"The situation in Angola is serious, Angolans have suffered for
too long," Geingob told AFP in an interview at his home in this
coastal town.
"The situation is deteriorating, the war has escalated,
something has to be done," he added.
"I think the UN has been a little bit too quiet. They want to
keep their role as peace-keepers and observers. Why don't we do big
things? In some cases, the UN bombs other countries, but in Angola,
the UN does not want to step into the war."
Geingob said there were "many ways" the war could be stopped,
including strict imposition of sanctions against the rebel National
Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA).
The UN has already slapped sanctions on UNITA after the rebel
movement last year took up arms against government troops in
contravention of Lusaka peace accords of November 1994.
These include an oil and arms embargo, a travel ban and a ban
on diamond sales from areas under UNITA control.
"I don't see the implementation (of the sanctions)," Geingob
said. "Some countries are still buying diamonds, some are still
receiving UNITA on their territory, some are providing bases ... It
is a question of selective morality."
The renewed conflict in Angola has had little impact on
Namibia, its southern neighbour, he added, though Namibia had taken
precautions.
"There has always been activities along the border, and we had
to send some reinforcements there," Geingob said, however.
There has been no significant influx into Namibia of refugees
from Angola, according to local officials of the UN High
Commissioner for Refugees.
But surveillance of Namibia's 1,500 kilometre (950 mile) border
with Angola has been stepped up in recent months, notably in the
north-western Caprivi region, where, according to Windhoek, UNITA
has been backing Caprivi secessionists.
Geingob said Namibia was not involved in assisting the
government of Angola against the UNITA rebels.
"Angola is a sovereign country, they have not asked us to come
and help them," he said. "They have not asked for our assistance".
Namibia in August sent troops to the Democratic Republic of
Congo, along with Angola and Zimbabwe, to support President Laurent
Kabila in his fight against Tutsi-led rebels trying to overthrow
him from the east.
One of the official reasons given for the intervention is fears
of a "domino effect" in the region.
Since October, Namibia has been one of 10 non-permanent members
of the UN Security Council. Windhoek is using its position to push
actively for a radical overhaul of the international body.
@ COURT-ALIENS
PRETORIA January 15 1999 Sapa
CHARGES WITHDRAWN BECAUSE 'PROSECUTOR NOT READY'
Charges against nine members of the police aliens investigation
unit were provisionally withdrawn in the Pretoria Magistrate's
Court on Friday.
The nine policemen - Captains Blackie Swart and David Noah,
Inspector Aubrey Greeff, Sergeants Kenny Moreme, Lucas Chabalala,
Gerhard Fourie and L Mashigo, and Constables Colin Monaledi and WH
Makuleka - and Home Affairs senior immigration officer Andre
Manser made a brief appearance in court.
They were originally accused of fraud, corruption, theft,
bribery, defeating the ends of justice, intimidation and the use of
state vehicles without permission.
Anti-corruption unit head, Director Stefan Grobler, said
through his spokeswoman Welma Nortje the charges had been withdrawn
because the prosecutor was not ready.
"It seems the Department of Justice is at fault because the
charge sheet was not ready. Director Grobler is very unhappy about
the latest developments (in the case)," Nortje said.
Grobler is to meet the Director of Public Prosecutions on
Monday to discuss the matter.
The original or new charges could be brought against the 10 at
any time, she said.
Some of the policemen have indicated that they would be suing
the state for wrongful arrest.
@ ANGOLA-DISPLACED
CAXITO, Angola January 15 1999 Sapa-AP
THOUSANDS FACE HUNGER, DISEASE AFTER FLEEING ANGOLAN FIGHTING
More than 5,000 people, driven from their villages by fighting
between the government and rebels, have arrived in the past 20 days
at a makeshift camp, placing a huge strain on local resources.
The new influx has increased the number of displaced people at
the grass-hut camp to 23,000, officials said Friday. The camp is on
the outskirts of this northern town.
Recent arrivals say thousands more are coming behind them as
fierce fighting continues between the army and UNITA rebels in a
vast forest, called Piri, about 200 kilometers (120 miles) to the
north. Angola's civil war restarted last month, shattering a
U.N.-brokered peace accord in this southwest African nation.
"We've got space to take more, but we hope we don't get many
more mouths to feed," said Isabel Pegado, the top government aid
official in Caxito, 60 kilometers (37 miles) north of the capital,
Luanda.
The World Food Program delivers up to 500 tons of food - mostly
corn, beans and cooking oil - here each month, but that will have
to be increased if more people arrive, Pegado said.
Manuel Primeiro, 54, said he and his family fled their village
in Piri forest on Dec. 25 when the rebels attacked at 4 a.m.
"We just ran. We brought nothing. Nothing except the clothes
we were sleeping in," he said, sitting beneath a dirty tarpaulin
with his year-old granddaughter Lena.
Primeiro, his wife, daughter and two grandchildren walked for
over a week across country to reach the camp, sometimes resting for
a day to let their bare feet heal.
A steady stream of women and children make their way in the
sticky heat to a river about a kilometer (mile) away and fetch
water in plastic buckets balanced on their head. A warm breeze
sweeps across the plain, stirring the dusty soil.
The men build or repair their huts which are made of branches
tied together with supple bark and then covered with abundant tall
grass.
Small children, dehydrated and undernourished after their
cross-country trek, are fed a special diet of milk and vitamins at
a nutrition center in an abandoned church. Some only have the
strength to whimper. Others scream.
At the camp hospital in a crumbling single-story former office
block, Angolan and Italian volunteer doctors tend about 50 adults
and children, many of them suffering from sleeping sickness which
is a prevalent local illness.
The hospital beds, supplied by Italian aid agency Intersos, are
new, but flies buzz through the broken window panes and crawl
around the eyes and mouths of the patients.
A feverish teenager, contorted and with hollow cheeks, coughs
weakly on his bed, then suddenly laughs loudly and convulsively.
Two severely dehydrated babies breath uneasily, watched by their
expressionless mothers.
At the moment, camp official say they are managing to cope with
the influx.
Angolan officials have long experience in dealing with the
plight of displaced people. The civil war first began after the
country's 1975 independence from Portugal. A 1991 peace deal
collapsed the following year, and now the 1994 accord has
unraveled.
The rainy season is due to arrive next month. Officials say the
rains will crush the grass huts, turn the site to mud, and trigger
a rise in cholera and acute diarrhea.
No one expects the war to have stopped before then.
@ DRCONGO-TALKS
LUSAKA January 15 1999 Sapa-AP
CONFUSION INTENSIFIES OVER TROUBLED CONGO PEACE SUMMIT
Acrimony among Congo, its ally, Angola, and Congo civil war
mediator Zambia appeared Friday to have scuttled a peace summit
scheduled for the Zambian capital, Lusaka.
A senior Zambian official, speaking on condition of anonymity,
confirmed a new obstacle to the Lusaka summit - already postponed
three times - arose Friday over allegations Zambia supports Angolan
rebels, an acuusation Zambia denies.
"We understand Angola and Congo have objected to coming to
Zambia," he said.
Earlier Friday, Namibia said it planned a weekend summit of
countries involved in the five-month Congolese civil war.
The presidents of Zimbabwe, Angola, Zambia and Chad will be
attending in Namibia, government spokeswoman Wilma Deetlefs said.
Namibia has sent troops along with Zimbabwe and Angola in support
of Congolese President Laurent Kabila.
"Presidents Yoweri Museveni and Pasteur Bizumungu of Uganda
and Rwanda will also attend as representatives of the rebels, but a
small rebel delegation may also be expected," Deetlefs said.
Kabila had yet to confirm whether he will travel to the
Namibian capital, Windhoek.
All the heads of state were expected to start arriving Saturday
in Namibia, with talks tentatively scheduled for Sunday, Namibian
officials said.
Talks by heads of state had been scheduled for Lusaka on
Saturday, but were delayed to Monday because Zambia said more
"consultations" were needed.
Defense and foreign ministers from eight nations began talks
Friday in Lusaka aimed at preparing a Congo cease-fire and finding
ways to include Congolese rebels in the talks.
The Zambian official said Angola sent only a junior official to
Friday's ministerial meeting.
There was no immediate word from Chiluba's office on his
reaction to the change of summit venue.
Congolese rebel leader Bizima Kahara headed a rebel delegation
in a luxury hotel about a kilometer (less than a mile) from the
venue of the ministers' meeting in Lusaka.
Kabila has repeatedly refused to meet with rebel leaders and
insisted instead on negotiating only with Rwanda and Uganda,
backers of the rebels.
Kabila's allies have favored "proximity" talks outside the
main summit with the rebel coalition of ethnic Congolese Tutsis,
disaffected Congolese soldiers and opposition politicians who took
up arms Aug. 2.
Last year the United Nations Security Council committee on
sanctions against rebels of UNITA - the Portuguese acronym for the
National Union for the Total Independence of Angola - cleared
Zambia of backing UNITA after allegations rebel weapons were being
ferried through remote western Zambia into neighboring Angola.
UNITA has has intensified attacks on government forces in
Angola in defiance of a 1994 peace accord, putting intense pressure
on forces severely stretched by Angola's involvement in Congo.
@ ZIM-ECONOMY
HARARE January 15 1999 Sapa-DPA
ZIMBABWE STOCK MARKET SHUTS, INFLATION REACHES RECORD HIGH
Zimbabwe's crumbling economy suffered two heavy blows Friday when
its usually busy stockmarket stopped trading because of confused new
tax laws and official figures showed inflation for last year hit its
highest ever level of 46.6 per cent.
"There were no call-overs today," said Peter Marriott, a director
of major broking firm HSBC Securities. "There was no trade on the
exchange at all."
Brokers boycotted the exchange, the biggest in Africa after South
Africa's Johannesburg Stock Exchange, after the government brought
in new laws to force brokers to deduct five per cent from all share
transactions and 10 per cent unlisted security dealings.
Marriott pointed out that the deductions - called a withholding
tax - are on all transactions, whether or not they make a profit.
The laws say investors can claim back refunds on tax they have
paid on loss-making business at the end of each tax year. The moves
were brought in without warning.
Observers say it is a sign of government desperation to raise
finance for a budget devastated by currency that has crashed by
about 90 per cent in the last year and general economic collapse.
Bungled policy decisions, ineptitude and rampant corruption under
President Robert Mugabe's rule are blamed for causing the startling
decline of one of Africa's most diverse and robust economies.
Also Friday, the state Central Statistical Office announced that
year-on-year inflation up to the end of December reached 46.6 per
cent, overtaking the previous record high of 45.1 percent recorded
in 1993.
A statement said the main contributors to the unprecedented rise
in the cost of living were the cost of food, transport, clothing and
power, all of which went up by over 60 percent in the year.
The week also saw the currency sink over 15 percent after a three-
month steady run, and break the psychological barrier of the
Zimbabwe dollar falling in value to more than 40 to the U.S. dollar.
It fell to 45 Thursday but recovered slightly Friday at 42.50.
Currency dealers said the sudden fall was the result of an
announcement by the International Monetary Fund that a 176 million
U.S. dollars loan that was expected to be disbursed now - and to
trigger the release of another 800 million from other OECD countries
- was being delayed until March because of the bank's concern over
Mugabe's controversial plans to confiscate white-owned farms.
Economists warn that the new crisis facing the stock market
threatens to dry up a major source of investment, and a major draw
for foreign investment cash.
The stockmarket's turnover last year was was 1.7 billion shares
worth 3.7 billion Zimbabwe dollars now worth 90 million U.S. dollars
at Friday's exchange rate).
Market analysts said that three-quarters of the 11 stockbroking
companies risk going out of business. Marriott said officials of the
Zimbabwe Stock Exchange had applied to the finance ministry formally
to suspend trading from Monday next week until the confusion over
the new taxes had been resolved, without response.
Requests for discussions with the ministry and the tax department
had also gone unanswered. The 50 per cent fall in the market's index
to 6400 in the last two months meant that there "is not a lot of
profit around" that investors could afford to pay tax on.
The tax - backdated to the beginning of the year - would cause
"severe distortions" in the market and drive up share prices.
"We don't believe they (the tax department) have staff to police
this, or to make the refunds (on losses) in time," Marriott said.
"It will be about two years before we get any money back."
By then, inflation would have made the refund paid back almost
worthless against the money paid as tax two years earlier.
@ HEATH
EAST LONDON January 15 1999 Sapa
ANTI-CORRUPTION UNITS DISCUSS CO-OPERATION PACT
Nationwide anti-corruption agencies on Friday came together
with the Heath special investigative unit in East London to discuss
a co-operation pact.
Judge Willem Heath and national super attorney-general Bulelani
Ngcuka were among the high-level grouping. The co-operation
agreement will be taken forward at an anti-corruption conference in
Cape Town in March.
Heath said the pact could be called upon to help in the unit's
probe into provincial welfare pension scams.
He said the unit was dealing with close to 100,000 cases from
eight provinces besides Gauteng. They are due to start
investigating Gauteng next month.
There alone, the unit is likely to deal with the same number of
cases as the rest of the country, he said. At the moment, Heath
said, the unit is probing up to R8billion of corruption.
He said: "Up until now there are loopholes and people are
getting away with corruption."
@ ZIM-N/L-EDITOR
HARARE January 15 Sapa
EDITOR TO SPEND THREE MORE DAYS IN BARRACKS AS JUDGE MISSES
DATE
The editor of an independent newspaper was on Friday set to
spend another three days in illegal detention in an army barracks
after the Zimbabwean High Court judge due to hear an urgent appeal
for his release failed to turn up.
Lawyers for the weekly Standard newspaper made an second urgent
application in two days to the high court in Harare for Mark
Chavunduka, editor of the weekly Standard newspaper, to be brought
before the court and freed there by top defence ministry officials
who yesterday scorned a High Court order to release him from
Cranborne barracks in Harare's southern suburbs.
The lawyers said Job Whabira, the permanent secretary for
defence, and Defence Minister Moven Mahachi should be arrested for
contempt of court if they again failed to obey the court.
But Judge Paddington Garwe failed to turn up for Friday
afternoon's appointment with the paper's lawyers, said Clive
Wilson, the paper's proprietor.
Instead, Garwe sent a message saying that he would hear the
application in his chambers on Monday at 4 pm. No explanation was
given for the delay, Wilson said.
Chavunduka, 34, was arrested by military police on Tuesday over
a report in his newspaper on Sunday that 23 soldiers had been in
prison since December 17 for allegedly inciting other troops to
rise against President Robert Mugabe.
Constitutional experts confirm that military police have no
right to arrest or question civilians. Chavunduka has been denied
access to lawyers and his family throughout. He was arrested
without a warrant and there is no suggestion of charges.
An angry Wilson said Garwe had "sentenced Mark to another three
days' incarceration in the hands of someone who, by common cause,
has ignored a high court order and is breaking the law."
When Whabira was presented on Friday with an order from Judge
George Smith, he said that the court "cannot direct us." He
declared that "people who meddle in military matters are subject
to military discipline."
The weekly Zimbabwe Independent, the Standard's sister
newspaper, published a free special edition late on Friday devoted
solely to Chavunduka's illegal arrest.
On the front page was a cartoon of a military policeman bending
down with his trousers around his ankles and showing his shiny
bottom to the judge sitting at a high court bench.
The affair has aroused widespread condemnation. Zimbabwe
Lawyers for Human Rights said in a statement that Chavunduka's
continued illegal detention "is a serious threat to the rule of law
in Zimbabwe."
It said the affair "is a clear example of the government's
disregard for legal process and such conduct must be censured."
@ TANZANIA-BURUNDI-SANCTIONS
DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania January 16 1999 Sapa-AP
SUMMIT TO DISCUSS BURUNDI SANCTIONS, LIFTING EXPECTED
Leaders from east and central Africa are expected to discuss
lifting sanctions they imposed on Burundi 30 months ago when they
meet next week in northern Tanzania, an official involved in the
event said Saturday.
Judge Mark Bomani, of the Mwalimu Nyerere Foundation which has
been mediating peace talks on Burundi, said heads of state from
Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Zambia
and Rwanda, as well as Burundi President Maj. Pierre Buyoya, have
been invited to the one-day summit Jan. 23 in Arusha.
Bomani said former Tanzanian President Julius Nyerere, who has
been mediating the talks, will present a report on Burundi's
compliance with the sanctions to the meeting.
He did not reveal the conclusions of the report, but it is
widely believed that Nyerere will call for at least a partial
lifting of the sanctions imposed on Burundi five days after Buyoya
took power in a bloodless coup on July 25, 1996.
At the time, Buyoya, a Tutsi, claimed the action was necessary
to stanch the bloodshed that had been tearing the tiny central
African nation apart since October 1993 when Tutsi paratroopers
killed the country's first democratically elected president, a
Hutu, in a botched coup attempt.
But Burundi's neighbors slapped on economic and travel
sanctions to force Buyoya to negotiate with Hutu rebels and restore
democratic institutions.
For the past year and a half, most of the countries have
increasingly ignored the sanctions, but they remain officially on
the books.
The United Nations Security Council has called for a lifting of
the sanctions, saying that Buyoya's government has met the
conditions and has entered into good faith talks with rebels.
An estimated 200,000 people, most of them civilians, have been
killed in the politically motivated violence in Burundi since
October 1993.
Tutsis, who represent about 14 percent of the country's 6
million people, have controlled Burundi since independence in 1962
despite that fact that Hutus make up about 85 percent of the
population.
Leaders of Tanzania, Kenya and Burundi will meet prior to the
broader summit to prepare the way for Rwanda to join the East
African Cooperation, their attempt to revive the East African
Community, a regional economic organization created at independence
in the early 1960s but which fell apart as the three countries
followed widely divergent economic paths.
@ UN-ANGOLA
UNITED NATIONS January 16 1999 Sapa-AFP
UN CHIEF POSTPONES PUBLICATION OF ANGOLA REPORT
UN chief Kofi Annan has postponed the publication of a report
on Angola which was due to be put to the UN Security Council on
Friday, a UN spokesman said.
The report, which will rule on the fate of the UN mission to
Angola (MONUA) in the light of the resumption of heavy fighting
between UNITA rebels and government forces, is now expected to be
released this weekend or early next week.
"There was a lot of political pressure," said one UN official.
Angolan President Jose Eduardo dos Santos has questioned the
impartiality of the United Nations in the Angola conflict and said
he hoped the mandate of the UN mission in Angola would not be
renewed when it expires in February.
But the troika of observers monitoring the country's peace
process (Portugal, Russia and the United States), the Security
Council and other African states oppose a UN withdrawal.
However, Annan favours pulling out MONUA on the grounds that UN
personnel are not in a position to carry out their mission.
UN forces cannot guarantee the security of the thousand
observers who have pulled back from areas of conflict to major
towns and the capital, Luanda, for safety.
Renewed fighting in the country's civil war between the UNITA
armed opposition forces of Jonas Savimbi and government troops has
broken out in the north, south and center of the country.
Luanda accuses UNITA of reneging on its obligations under a
peace agreement signed in Lusaka in November 1994.
@ DEKLERK-MANDELA
JOHANNESBURG January 16 1999 Sapa-AP
MANDELA SPOKESMAN DENIES ATTEMPT TO HUMILIATE DE KLERK
Responding to allegations in a new book, a spokesman said
Saturday that President Nelson Mandela never meant to humiliate his
predecessor, F.W. de Klerk, South Africa's last apartheid-era
leader.
Mandela, rather, has always gone out of his way to point out de
Klerk's contribution to ending apartheid, said Mandela spokesman
Parks Mankahlana.
De Klerk says in his soon-to-be-released autobiography, "The
Last Trek: A New Beginning," that he at times felt humiliated and
angered by Mandela as the two negotiated the transition from racist
rule to democracy.
Excerpts of the book were published in the Mail and Guardian
newspaper Friday.
"Its the nature of an autobiography that the author
subjectively reviews the past and makes his own conclusions,"
Mankahlana said.
"Certainly it was not the case that the president wanted to
humiliate Mr. De Klerk. Despite their differences, the president
never failed to point out the contributions made by Mr. De Klerk to
transformation of the country."
De Klerk describes a speech by Mandela at the outset of peace
talks between the African National Congress and de Klerk's
government.
"He accused me of being the head of an illegitimate
discredited minority regime and of being incapable of holding moral
standards," de Klerk wrote.
De Klerk's National Party devised and carried out the policy of
apartheid, in which South Africa's white minority denied human and
political rights to the overwhelming black majority for more than
four decades.
"As he piled insult on insult I found it difficult to control
my fury," he wrote. Afterwards, de Klerk said he managed to shake
Mandela's hand.
"But (I) felt that there was no longer any possibility of our
ever having a close relationship."
De Klerk also criticized Mandela for what he claimed were
disparaging comments to interviewers from the ANC leader in Oslo
before the two were to receive their Nobel prizes. And he said he
endured "humiliation" when Mandela inspected what was to became
de Klerk's official residence as vice president.
De Klerk resigned from the post, and Mandela remains as
president and one of the world's most beloved leaders. He will step
down after South Africa's second all-race elections, likely in May.
@ ZAMBIA-DRCONGO
LUSAKA, Zambia January 16 1999 Sapa-AP
MINISTERIAL TALKS BREAK UP AMID ACRIMONY, RECRIMINATION
Talks by regional officials aimed at drafting a ceasefire in
the Congo war ended in recrimination and confusion on Saturday when
Congo accused foes Rwanda and Uganda of refusing to observe a
minute's silence for Congolese war victims.
Defense and foreign ministers from 15 nations began leaving
Lusaka with little to show after overnight talks that broke up
acrimoniously shortly before 6 a.m. (0400 GMT).
In a brief statement, the officials said they set up two new
working groups to study the implementation of a proposed cease-fire
to end the five-month Congo civil war and address "security
concerns" of Congo and its neighbors.
Many of the officials were headed for Namibia after it
announced its own round of talks scheduled Sunday.
A Lusaka summit of the leaders of the Congo, their military
allies and Rwanda and Uganda, the main backers of Congolese rebels,
due to begin Monday was postponed for the fourth time, throwing
further doubt on the future role of Zambian President Frederick
Chiluba as chief mediator in the conflict.
Zambian officials had difficulty concealing their
disappointment Saturday.
"At least the parties are still talking and momentum for
continued negotiations has not been lost," said one Zambian
official who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Congolese Foreign Minister Jean-Charles Okoto refused, however,
to endorse Chiluba's continued place as the main mediator.
He said he expected Chiluba "to take what we have discussed to
Namibia" and ask if it could be incorporated into that meeting.
Asked if Chiluba's own peace summit was now effectively dead,
he said: "I cannot give an answer here. I am a guest in Zambia."
Congo and its ally, Angola, accused Zambia Friday of supporting
anti-government UNITA rebels in neighboring Angola, charges Zambia
denies.
In a letter released in Lusaka by Angolan officials Saturday,
Angolan Foreign Minister Venancio de Moura expressed "profound
disgust" over what he described as "a large involvement" by
Zambia inside Angola "to perpetuate the war and suffering of the
Angolan people."
Okoto told reporters Saturday Congo was offended during the
overnight talks when Rwandan and Ugandan ministers rebuffed a
tribute honoring pro-government civilians killed by rebel forces.
"They did not stand up. Everybody stood when we asked for a
minute's silence except these two countries," he said.
Zimbabwe, meanwhile, criticized Zambia for its arrangements in
Lusaka and for seeking too hasty a peace deal.
"It hasn't been well organized. More work has to be done,"
said Zimbabwe Defense Minister Moven Mahachi.
Zimbabwe has 8,000 troops in Congo backing Kabila's forces
against a rebel coalition of ethnic Congolese Tutsis, disaffected
Congolese soldiers and opposition politicians backed by Rwandan and
Ugandan troops.
Namibia, Angola and Chad have also sent troops to back Kabila.
Previous peace efforts have failed mainly because Kabila has
refused to meet with rebel leaders, insisting they are pawns of
Rwanda and Uganda.
@ DRCONGO-NZO
LUSAKA January 16 1999 Sapa
SA FOREIGN MINISTER SATISFIED WITH DR CONGO PEACE MEETING
South African Foreign Minister Alfred Nzo on Saturday said he
was happy with the Lusaka meeting on the Democratic Republic of
Congo peace process.
The meeting ended on Saturday with a positive communique on
ending the war.
Speaking in an interview after the communique was read in
Lusaka, Nzo said the Southern African defence and foreign
ministers' meeting had taken the DRC peace process a step forward.
Delegates at the Lusaka meeting unanimously accepted the
ceasefire accord drafted by the Organisation of African Unity.
"This is a step in the right direction to stop the bloody war
and restore peace in the DRC," said Nzo.
He said two powerful committees had been established to oversee
the implementation of the ceasefire agreement.
The committee on security concerns of the DRC and its
neighbours, particularly Rwanda and Uganda, would be chaired by
Zambia and include representatives of Botswana, Kenya and
Mauritius.
The SADC, United Nations, OAU and Zambia will supervise the
committee on the ceasefire accord.
@ WATER-MBEKI
KWAMHLANGA, Mpumalanga January 16 1999 Sapa
PAY FOR WATER AND ELECTRICITY SERVICES: MBEKI
Deputy president Thabo Mbeki on Saturday appealed to South
Africans to pay for their water and electricity services.
He was speaking at a celebration in KwaMhlanga in Mpumulanga to
mark the provision of water services to the three millionth person
in South African since 1994. The recipient is Mama Lenah Mtsweni.
Mbeki also launched the KwaNdebele Moutse Moretele Water
Augmentation Project, the biggest water supply project in the
Reconstruction and Development Programme.
Mbeki urged the public to pay for municipal services, saying he
knew of some newly-established water projects that had stopped
functioning owing to non-payment.
"In one project I know in the Eastern Cape the water stopped
not long after the work finished. The people decided that they were
not going to pay for the diesel to run the pipe, although they were
happy to buy diesel for their bakkies when it was time to buy
beer," he said.
Mbeki said the success of the water project depended on the
communities that it would serve.
Water Affairs and Forestry Minister Kader Asmal said the
project was co-funded by a loan by the Japanese Overseas Economic
Co-operation Fund.
He said the water scheme, which was in its second phase, would
eventually cost R185 million, benefiting more than one million
people in about 50 villages.
"For the people this means no longer the back-breaking hardship
of having to find and carry water over long distances and looking
for water in muddy, polluted streams and rivers," Asmal sid.
He said there were about 12 million South Africans without a
proper water supply in 1994 and about 50,000 villages did not have
water.
He said his department would supply water to another million
people by 2000 and provide water within 200m of all homes in South
Africa.
Former Japanese Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto conveyed his
happiness about Japan's involvement in the project and said Japan
was co-funding another three projects in South Africa.
Mbeki and Mpumalanga premier Mathews Phosa urged the crowd of
more than 1000 to register for this year's general election.
"The most important challenge you face this year is to register
and vote for the government of your choice," Mbeki said.
The celebration ended with Mtsweni giving Mbeki a mug of water,
which he drank while the crowd cheered.
@ ZIM-PROTEST
HARARE January 16 1999 Sapa
PROTESTERS DEMANDS EDITOR'S RELEASE FROM ARMY BARRACKS
About 2000 people on Saturday marched through central Harare in
support of their demand that newspaper editor Mark Chavunduka be
released from an army barracks and denounced President Robert
Mugabe's government.
The demonstrators held "free Chavunduka" banners and sang
"There is weeping in the Congo while Mugabe and Grace (his wife)
live it up at home".
No incidents were reported during the hour-long march that was
joined by hundreds of onlookers as it wound through the city centre
under police escort. The demonstration was organised by the
National Constitutional Assembly, an alliance of about 40 civic
organisations to call for a new national constitution to check
abuse of power by Mugabe's regime.
Chavunduka, 34, editor of the weekly Standard newspaper, is
spending his fifth day under illegal detention in Cranborne
barracks in Harare's southern suburbs as military authorities
continue to defy a high court order on Thursday for his release.
He was arrested on Tuesday over a report in the newspaper that
23 soldiers had been in jail since mid-December for "inciting"
other soldiers to stage a coup to overthrow Mugabe.
Zimbabwean law gives military personnel no right to arrest or
question civilians. Chavunduka has been denied access to lawyers
and his family.
He was arrested without a warrant and there is no suggestion of
any charges being brought against him.
The Zimbabwe Independent, the Standard's sister newspaper,
printed 80,000 copies of special edition devoted solely to
Chavunduka's arrest and handed out copies free of charge during the
demonstration.
It said the army's special investigations branch wanted to
force Chavunduka to reveal who the sources of the report of the
alleged coup plot were.
"The coup story has been confirmed. It is the soldiers who are
now ruling," Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions secretary-general
Morgan Tsvangirai told the cheering crowd.
Chavunduka is from one of Zimbabwe's most distinguished
families. Gordon Chavunduka, his uncle, a former vice-chancellor of
the University of Zimbabwe and once a respected supporter of Mugabe
and his ruling Zanu (PF) party, addressed the crowd at the end of
the march.
"This is the beginning of a journey towards demanding a
government of the people," he said.
"In 1980 (when Zimbabwe became independent) we thought we had
chosen a government for the people, but we have just realised we
were mistaken.
To a roar of applause, he said if his nephew had committed any
crime, "let him be charged by police, and not by the soldiers."
Members of Chavunduka's family said he was under severe
psychological stress and there were widespread fears that he may be
undergoing torture.
On Thursday the Defence Ministry refused to obey a high court
order to release Chavunduka, saying that the court "cannot direct
us".
On Friday the Standard's lawyers lodged a second urgent court
application for his release, but Judge Paddington Garwe failed to
turn up for a hearing with the lawyers. He sent a message saying he
would hear the matter on Monday at 4pm.
Clive Wilson, the Standard's proprietor, said Garwe's move had
"sentenced Mark to another three days incarceration in the hands of
someone who - by common consent - has ignored a high court order
and is breaking the law".
@ ANGOLA-UN
LUANDA January 16 1999 Sapa-AFP
ANGOLA SEEKS CONSCRIPTS TO FIGHT REBELS AS UN REDUCES ROLE
Hundreds of UN peacekeepers in Angola have withdrawn from areas
of conflict to the capital, the United Nations said Saturday, as
the government moved ahead with plans to conscript youths to fight
UNITA rebels.
The very future of the UN Angola Mission (MINUA) was thrown
into question after Presidend Eduardo dos Santos called Friday for
the departure of UN personnel, blaming the escalation of civil war
on "foreign interference."
Dos Santos said the United Nations had "now lost control" of
the peace process and had jeopardised it by putting rebels of the
National Union for the Total Liberation of Angola (UNITA) on an
equal footing with the government.
"This has facilitated serious interference by third parties in
the country's internal affairs and has led to the derailing of the
peace process," the president said during a new year's address to
the diplomatic corps.
At the beginning of the month MONUA began redeploying its 1,000
personnel, which include 650 peacekeepers, military observers,
police and civilian volunteers.
Between January 3 and 13, some 60 peacekeepers left nine
Angolan towns, including Malenje, 380 kilometers (235 miles) east
of the capital. They had been trapped by fighting in the area.
Late last year, 200 MONUA staff, including 100 peacekeepers,
were pulled back to Luanda after the UN Security Council said it
would reduce its presence on the ground if there was no visible
progress in the peace process.
At the United Nations in New York, Secretary General Kofi Annan
postponed the publication of a report on Angola which was due to be
presented to the Security Council on Friday.
Annan reportedly favours pulling out MONUA, whose mandate
expires next month, on the grounds that it cannot carry out its
mission.
The Angolan government has moved ahead with plans to carry out
a census of men aged 18 and 19 in order to integrate them into the
army.
In a televised debate Friday evening featuring military
officials such as deputy defence minister General Monteiro Ngongo,
the army said it intended to urgently strengthen its manpower.
State media Saturday dedicated programmes to the census
programme and the country's only daily newspaper, Jornal De Angola,
published a special supplement on the subject.
"The defence of the fatherland is an indispensible and most
important right and obligation of every citizen," splashed the
front page of the paper.
"No citizen, according to the law will be eligible for
employment in state institutions ... or be allowed to attend a
school without doing their duty: military service," the paper
continued.
"Only military service backed by young citizens can lead the
state to destroy the war machine of (UNITA) leader Jonas Savimbi, a
bandit, a criminal," national radio said.
In late December, the government launched an offensive against
UNITA, accused of reneging on peace accords signed in 1994 in
Lusaka.
"The people of Angola, want to, can and will defeat the enemies
of peace," dos Santos said in his new year's address.
Over last week police arrested five UNITA parliamentary
deputies loyal to Savimbi accusing them of complicity in fighting
taking place in Malanje in the north and in Huambo and Bie in the
centre of the country.
The government has broken off all dialogue with Savimbi and has
chosen to recognise only those members of UNITA who have publicly
renounced Savimbi as their leader.
On Friday, the independent press reported that UNITA had
shelled Malanje.
The Roman Catholic radio station Ecclesia said there were
several casualties in the town, where fighting has already claimed
200 lives since mid-November.
@ HASHIMOTO
JOHANNESBURG January 16 1999 Sapa-AFP
JAPAN'S EX-PREMIER HASHIMOTO LEAVES S. AFRICA
Japan's ex-premier Ryutaro Hashimoto left Johannesburg Saturday
after a four-day visit to South Africa that an embassy official
said was "very successful."
"He met the deputy president (Thabo Mbeki) twice ... and felt
very welcome. It was quite a business-like visit," the Japanese
official said of the visit, focused on deepening ties between the
countries.
Hashimoto, now a senior foreign policy advisor to Prime
Minister Keizo Obuchi, arrived in South Africa on Wednesday after a
short stay in Kenya.
His visit coincided with the launch of the South Africa/Japan
Partnership Forum, a body designed to improve relations between the
two countries and boost trade.
Mbeki and Hashimoto held private talks Friday and met again
Saturday at a ceremony to launch a project that will see the
provision of water to the third millionth person since the African
National Congress (ANC) government took power in 1994.
The project, in the KwaNdebele area northeast of the capital
Pretoria, was partly funded by a loan from the Japanese government.
Mbeki, due to take over from President Nelson Mandela after the
next general election later this year, travelled to Japan twice
last year to boost ties between the countries.
Hashimoto told the Star newspaper that Japanese private
investors find South Africa "very promising" because of its rich
natural resources and good future.
"But, having said that, it is natural that Japanese companies
will want to invest where infrastructure is properly established
and traditional investment is properly done," he said in an
interview published Saturday.
"I am not going to be judgmental, but if South Africa wants
more investment, it must provide more appropriate protection for
investment."
He also touched on Japan's support for debt relief to
sub-Saharan African countries, which amounts to 30 billion yen so
far.
Japan is South Africa's strongest trade and investment partner
in East Asia and granted the country the single largest overseas
development assistance package in 1994.
During 1997, trade between the two countries amounted to 19.3
billion rand (3.2 billion dollars).
@ HEALTH-TRAIN
CAPE TOWN January 16 1999 Sapa
HEALING TRAIN SETS OFF FOR THE CAPE ON MONDAY
The Transnet Phelophepa "miracle" train will start another
healing journey on Monday, this time through the Cape province, a
spokeswoman said on Saturday.
Alrika Hefers said the Phelophepa train - a combined Xhosa and
seTswana word meaning good health - will draw 16 coaches
containing a health education clinic, an eye clinic, a dental
clinic and a psychologist.
The health clinic will offer free consultations and will charge
R5 for medicines, while the eye clinic will offer eye tests at R10
and will charge between R30 and R40 for made up spectacles.
The dentist will charge between R5 and R15 for extractions and
fillings.
There will be free counselling workshops on stress, abuse,
coping with problems, conflict and parenting.
The train will stop at Oudtshoorn from January 18 to 22,
Robertson from January 25 to 29, Gouda from February 1 to 5, Elgin
from February 8 to 12, Bredasdorp February 15 to 19, De Doorns from
February 22 to 26, Touws River from March 1 to 5 and Beaufort West
from March 8 to 12.
Hefers said over 450,000 adults and school children were seen by
Phelophepa practitioners since its launch in 1994.
One third of the train is funded by money paid by patients
while the rest is paid for by Transnet with donations from several
big businesses.
Final year students and graduates and trainees from overseas
also work on the train and teachers and community leaders assist in
arranging transport to the train, Hefers said.
@ CRIME-ANC
BILANYONI, Kwazulu-Natal January 17 1999 Sapa
ANC BRANCH SECRETARY SLAIN IN KWAZULU-NATAL
The situation was reported to be tense at Bilanyoni in northern
Kwazulu-Natal following the assassination of the African National
Congress's branch secretary in the area, according to SABC radio
news.
Dan Nkosi was killed at his home on Saturday night when a
gunman opened fire with a heavy calibre weapon.
He had just returned from an ANC meeting at Newcastle.
The chairperson of the Malahleni region of the ANC, Rev James
Mthethwa, said Nkosi was due to adress a public meeting on fight
housing corruption in the area on Sunday.
Mthethwa called on the political and religious leaders to
restore calm to the area.
@ DRCONGO-TALKS
WINDHOEK January 17 1999 Sapa-AFP
LEADERS OF ZAMBIA, RWANDA, UGANDA EXPECTED AT DR CONGO SUMMIT
The presidents of Zimbabwe, Uganda and Rwanda were expected
here on Sunday to attend a mini-summit on the conflict in the
Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a Namibian official said.
However, the leaders of the DRC, Angola, Chad and Zambia, will
not be at the meeting organised by Namibian President Sam Nujoma,
the presidential official told AFP.
Nujoma announced the mini-summit on Friday, saying the
intention was to convene the Kinshasa government and its allies -
Namibia, Zimbabwe and Angola and Chad - and DRC rebels who began
an uprising last August, with their backers, Uganda and Rwanda.
The Namibian foreign ministry said in a statement that
"consultations among the core group of countries which are
militarily involved in the war in the DRC" were expected to start
at 3:30 p.m. (14H30 GMT).
Zambia, which has been mediating in peace talks, was due to
have attended. The Windhoek gathering comes the day after a meeting
in Lusaka of foreign and defence ministers from 15 African
countries, who failed to finalise the terms of ceasefire to end the
five-month-old war.
The presidential official here said that DRC President Laurent
Kabila and Chadian President Idriss Deby were "not invited" and
presidents Frederick Chiluba of Zambia and Jose Eduardo Dos Santos
of Angola had declined the invitation.
This meant only Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, Ugandan
President Yoweri Museveni and Rwanda's President Pasteur Bizimungu
were expected to come to Windhoek for the meeting.
@ LAWYERS-SOCIETY
JOHANNESBURG January 17 1999 Sapa
TRANSVAAL LAW SOCIETY COUNCIL RESTRUCTURED
The Law Society of the Transvaal has decided to establish a new
transformed council on which the Black Lawyers' Association and the
National Association of Democratic Lawyers would each have
representation of 25 percent - or five members.
The society said in a news release on Sunday that of the other
10 members on the council, four were from Gauteng, and two each
from the Northern, North-West and Mpumalanga provinces.
"This development follows a milestone in the history of the
organised legal profession reached on March 16 1998 when the
Association of Law Societies was transformed into the Law Society
of South Africa, incorporating representatives of the BLA and
Nadel," the statement said.
All indications were that the development had been received
positively and that the Law Society of the Transvaal and the
profession would benefit from the enlargement of the council.
@ TUTU-CAMBODIA
PHNOM PENH, January 17 1999 Sapa-AFP
TUTU TO BE CALLED UPON TO HELP WITH KHMER ROUGE LEADERS TRIAL
The expertise of South Africa's Archbishop Desmond Tutu could
be called upon to help with plans to put on trial leaders of the
Khmer Rouge, according to Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen.
"We are looking at the South African example of a Truth and
Reconciliation Commission as an interesting one, where they have
the end of apartheid and a level of justice and peace," he told AFP
and the French daily Le Monde in an exclusive interview late
Saturday.
"We are deciding if we should to invite Archbishop Desmond Tutu
to Cambodia to help us, or if we should send a delegation to meet
him," he said, adding that any tribunal "must be linked both to
justice and reconciliation."
But Hun Sen warned that any judicial process must not fracture
Cambodia's fragile peace.
"Even if 300 or 500 men rebel against us, it is a problem," he
said, calling for "justice and not revenge."
"We have to be very careful in how we proceed," Hun Sen said,
noting the complications surrounding the fate of General Augusto
Pinochet, and division over whether the former Chilean dictator
should face charges at home or abroad.
In the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission, those
accused of crimes against humanity were given amnesty in exchange
for giving detailed accounts of their role in crimes committed
during the brutal apartheid regime.
Backing a trial on Cambodian soil, Hun Sen said the model was
"just one of many options, and one possible answer to the many
questions that have been raised."
There have been mounting calls for a trial for Khmer Rouge
leaders following last month's defection of nomimal leader Khieu
Samphan and ideologue Nuon Chea, both architects of the 1975 to
1979 Pol Pot regime that claimed up to two million lives through
torture, execution, overwork and starvation.
@ ANC MEMBERS COERCED BACK TO IFP
Issued by: African National Congress
ANC PRESS CONFERENCE HELD IN DURBAN ON ANC MEMBERS COERCED BACK TO
IFP HELD IN DURBAN
NOTES:
1. Free political activity means also the right to recruit
members of any organisation or community into your organisation. The
ANC will continue to use this right and will not seek permission
from anybody to exercise this right.
2. Each time an IFP member joins the ANC, a political storm
follows. Peace and stability is threatened. Why? This does not
happen with other parties.
3. The persons who had recently joined the ANC did that on an
entirely voluntary basis. They were never forced to join the ANC.
The ANC has neither the desire nor the capacity to force people into
joining the ANC.
These people have even been interviewed by the media and surely
the ANC was not pointing a gun at them when they were being
interviewed. The area they are coming from, eGqumeni near Bulwer,
remains a stronghold of the IFP.
4. It is clear that these persons were threatened by the IFP to
change their minds . The ANC is aware that David Ntombela came to
the area accompanied by the Police from the Bulwer Police Station.
What was the role of the police in intimidating these persons? The
ANC is also aware that these persons were summoned to meet with
Chief Nyanga Ngubane is also an MEC for Safety and Security. What
was being discussed there? Unlike the ANC, the IFP has the capacity
to intimidate these persons because they live in its stronghold.
5. The ANC fears for the lives of these persons. Surely, the IFP
will never again trust them for it knows that it coerced them back
to its fold.
6. The ANC is aware that Chief Nyanga Ngubane summoned some
senior black officers into his Durban office. As they were entering
his office, they were turned back. Instead Police Commissioner,
Serfontein and the controversial Assistant Commissioner, Trutter,
had a meeting with Nyanga Ngubane. In Ngubane's offices there were
Phillip Powell and Arthur Konigkrammer. What was being plotted. The
ANC is aware that a senior officer of the rank of a superintendent
has been put on this case.
It is strange that such a senior officer is put in such a case.
Serfontein has refused to meet with the ANC claiming that he was not
allowed to meet with political parties.
7. It is clear that Serfontein has taken the side of the IFP.
The ANC is calling for the immediate removal of Chris Serfontein as
the commissioner. In any case, he has no control over the police in
the province. It seems a white IFP MP takes the final decision on
police matters.
8. The characters involved in this saga were identified by the
Military Intelligence Report as having together with S'fiso Nkabinde
having been responsible for the training of persons in the Natal
Midlands. David Ntombela has recently threatened to pull out of the
peace structures without the mandate of the IFP. He was denounced by
the IFP. Who is handling him and for what reason? We are aware that
those elements within the IFP and police who are threatened by peace
moves between the ANC and IFP will try every trick in the book to
scupper these peace moves. But they are late. Peace has found roots
among our people.
Issued by the ANC KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Leadership
17 January 1999 Contact Dr Zweli Mkhize at 082 555 3551
@ REGISTER-MBEKI
JOHANNESBURG January 17 1999 Sapa
THOUSANDS OF CIVIL SERVANTS TO ASSIST IN VOTER REGISTRATION DRIVE
The government was planning to deploy thousands of public servants to
assist in the second round of the voter registration process scheduled for
the end of this month, Deputy President Thabo Mbeki's office said on Sunday.
"The deployment of these civil servants will take place through all
provincial administrations," Mbeki's aide Ronnie Mamoepa told Sapa.
The deployment decision followed a meeting on Friday of all
directors-general, led by Frank Chikane, director-general in Mbeki's office,
in Pretoria.
The meeting received reports on the voter registration process so
far, and also assessed the state of readiness of local, provincial
and national departments in assisting the IEC in the final round of
registration.
IEC chief electoral officer Mandla Mchunu attended the meeting.
Thousands of public servants from all tiers of governments, as well as
parastatals, were last November requested to assist in the registration
process, and this resulted in more than nine million potential voters
registering for the 1999 general elections.
Mamoepa said deployed public servants would be under the direction
of accountable to, the IEC.
In response to IEC head, Judge Johan Kriegler's reported complaints
of budget cuts and constraints, Mamoepa said, "at this stage the government
believes it has given the IEC enough funds to run the elctoral process."
The Sunday Times quoted Kriegler as saying it would be impossible to
conduct one national and nine provincial elections on its R550
million budget.
@ IFP-ANC
DURBAN January 17 1999 Sapa
ANC TO CONTINUE EXERCISING RIGHT TO RECRUIT FROM OPPOSITION
The African National Congress would continue to exercise its
political right to recruit members from other parties, the party
said on Sunday in answer to allegations that it coerced four
Inkatha Freedom Party members into joining its ranks.
ANC Midlands leader Zweli Mkhize said free political activity
included the right to recruit members of any organisation or
community into another organisation.
"The ANC will continue to use this right and will not seek
permission from anybody to exercise this right."
IFP Midlands leader David Ntombela on Friday claimed local
senior ANC member Dumisani Khuzwayo had intimidated four of its
youth brigade members from the Egqumeni area, and forced them to
join the ANC.
Ntombela said Khuzwayo told the four he would fabricate stories
about them and that they would be killed if they did not join his
party.
Khuzwayo resigned from the IFP to join the ANC in November
after accusing some IFP members of siding with the United
Democratic Movement.
Ntombela said the IFP would take legal action against Khuzwayo.
Mkhize on Sunday said the four joined the ANC voluntarily, and
the area they came from, eGqumeni, near Bulwer, remained a
stronghold of the IFP.
"Each time an IFP member joins the ANC, a political storm
follows. Peace and stability is threatened. Why? This does not
happen with other parties," he said.
Mkhize told Sapa that the four new ANC members were forcibly
removed their homes early on Friday and made their allegations of
coercion against the ANC under duress.
"The ANC fears for the lives of these persons," he said in the
statement.
The ANC knew that Ntombela visited the area accompanied by
Bulwer police, and that the four were summoned to meet MEC for
Safety and Security Chief Nyanga Ngubane.
He said the ANC was also aware that Ngubane met regional police
commissioner Chris Serfontein and his assistant, and that a
superintendent had been put on this case.
"Serfontein has refused to meet with the ANC claiming that he
was not allowed to meet with political parties.
"It is clear that Serfontein has taken the side of the IFP,"
Mkhize said.
The ANC wanted the immediate removal of Serfontein as
commissioner.
@ ANC STATEMENT ON MZWAKHE MBULI'S COMMENTS
Issued by: African National Congress
The ANC has taken note of comments attributed to Mzwakhe Mbuli,
contained in an article in the Sunday Times - 17 January 1999.
Mbuli's claim that the ANC has sent its Youth League President,
Malusi Gigaba to visit him in prison is devoid of any truth. Malusi
Gigaba has never visted Mbuli in prison, and has never attempted to
visit him. The ANC has never instructed Gigaba or any other member
of the organisation to visit Mbuli on its behalf.
The ANC has nothing to do with the criminal charges Mbuli faces.
As it applies to any body else, the principle that any one accused
of crime is presumed innocent until proven guilty applies to Mzwakhe
Mbuli. Mbuli's innocence or guilt will be determined by the judicial
process, whose independence the ANC respects.
Issued by ANC Department of Information and Publicity
For further inquiries contact Thabo Masebe at 082 5514945
17 January 1999
@ HOUSING-MOFOKENG
JOHANNESBURG January 17 1999 Sapa
COMMUNICATORS SHOULD COOPERATE, SAYS HOUSING MEC
Gauteng MEC for housing and land affairs Dan Mofokeng on Sunday
called on government communicators, financial institutions, the
business sector, community organisations and the media to cooperate
with regard to informing communities about housing matters.
"Our entire society, including the media, has a common
patriotic duty, namely to make sure that we enhance a better
quality of life for all, that we reconcile, reconstruct and
develop," he told the Communications Indaba for the Housing Sector
at Shumba Lodge north of Johannesburg.
"We jointly have a duty to inform, educate and therefore
empower our communities, especially the poor and the
disadvantaged."
Representatives from financial institutions, housing
developers, national, provincial and local government structures,
the Provincial Housing Advisory Board, the Landlord and Tenant
Dispute Resolution Board, and from civic structures attended the
indaba.
@ NNP-LANDCLAIMS
JOHANNESBURG January 17 1999 Sapa
NNP REJECTS DP'S CALL FOR LAND CLAIM SUBMISSION EXTENSION
The Democratic Party's call for a one-year extension to the
deadline for land claim submissions, was a further setback for
private ownership and farmers' certainty of land ownership, the New
National Party said on Sunday.
NNP land affairs spokesman Willem Odendaal said if the
government heeded the DP's request, uncertainty in the property
market would be exacerbated because landowners' "credit-worthiness"
would be affected.
"Farmers in particular will be affected as the value of their
land will decrease even further, thus preventing them from offering
the same security for purchasing agricultural land and providing
production credit to credit institutions," he said.
Private ownership was a cornerstone of a successful market
economy in South Africa and certainty of land ownership was a
prerequisite for successful production systems in commercial
agriculture.
"Tampering with property rights - something the ANC (African
National Congress) is already gambling with - and which is now
being encouraged by the DP, can, as is the case in Zimbabwe, have
serious detrimental consequences for the ability of the country's
economy to grow and to create new job opportunities," Odendaal said
in a statement.
Odendaal's DP counterpart, Joe Seremane, said the deadline for
submissions to the Land Affairs Commission should be extended to
accommodate the thousands of potential claimants who were unaware
of their right to claim land.
Seremane was recently fired as chief land claims commissioner
by minister of land affairs Derek Hanekom, then appointed a
National Council of Provinces member by DP leader Tony Leon,
Odendaal said.
@ DEKLERK
JOHANNESBURG January 17 1999 Sapa-AFP
DE KLERK 'SHOCKED' TO LEARN OF ARMY TERRORISM: AUTOBIOGRAPHY
South Africa's last apartheid president F.W. de Klerk was
"deeply shocked" to learn that the army was engaged in terrorism
while he was in power, an autobiography extract published Sunday
said.
De Klerk, who has always said he never sanctioned the often
brutal underground actions of the army, said he only became aware
that the army was involved in illegal and criminal activities after
an investigation in 1992.
Following allegations against the army, De Klerk appointed then
army chief of staff Lieutentant General Pierre Steyn to carry out
an "in-depth investigation" into the South African Defence Force's
(SADF's) intelligence functions.
"What he had to tell me was deeply shocking," De Klerk says in
a part of his autobiography, The Last Trek - A New Beginning,
published in the Sunday Times newspaper.
Steyn's report showed a "defence force in which a number of
units were no longer under effective control were actively pursuing
their own political and criminal agendas."
At a hurriedly convened meeting of the cabinet, according to De
Klerk: "We listened dumbfounded, while General Steyn unravelled a
complex web of unauthorised, illegal and criminal activities within
some units of the defence force.
"He alleged that some units had been stockpiling weapons in
South Africa and abroad; that they had been providing arms and
assistance to elements within the IFP (the Zulu-based Inkatha
Freedom Party) ... "
The IFP was involved in a rivalry war against the now-ruling
African National Congress (ANC) which left about 20,000 people dead
over a decade.
Steyn reported some units "were involved in the instigation and
perpetration of violence; and that they were involved in activities
to discredit the ANC and to sabotage the negotiation process."
The then-ruling National Party and other political parties were
at the time in talks to end white minority rule.
"One particularly shocking allegation was that elements of the
defence force had been involved in carrying out a chemical attack
on Frelimo soldiers in neighbouring Mozambique," De Klerk said.
The ruling Mozambique Liberation Front (FRELIMO) had close
links with the ANC.
De Klerk has told the Truth and Reconciliation (TRC),
investigating human rights abuses during apartheid, that he knew
nothing of state-sponsored terrorism while he was president between
1989 and 1994.
The TRC has exposed the involvement of the security forces,
including high-ranking generals, in death squads, bomb attacks and
other crimes.
Last year De Klerk was successful in forcing the TRC to black
out sections of its final report, released on October 30, which
implicated him in such activities.
The matter will be contested in court on March 4.
@ CRIME-NNP
JOHANNESBURG January 17 1999 Sapa
GOVERNMENT FAILING TO ADDRESS KILLING OF POLICE OFFICERS: NNP
The government was failing in addressing the killing of police
officers, the New National Party safety and security spokesman Piet
Matthee said on Sunday.
"Despite serious appeals by opposition parties and the
country's citizens, the African National Congress government has
done nothing to alleviate the plight of the SAPS in terms of proper
funding, resources and more manpower," Matthee said.
In a country where criminals were terrorising law-abiding
citizens, the ongoing killing of police officers who were supposed
to protect the people, was the final nail in the coffin of
law-enforcement.
Instead of addressing the matter, the ANC government was hiding
behind political rhetoric and using national disasters like the
recent bomb at the Cape Town Waterfront development for political
gains.
"They also continue to ignore valid suggestions by the New NP
on how to effectively combat crime, including reprioritising the
budget, and reintroducing the death penalty for violent crimes.
This situation has now become intolerable," Matthee said.
A recent study published on the SAPS website revealed that a
total of 1400 police officers were murdered during the past five
years.
Last year alone nearly 500 policemen were killed. Of these,
almost 85 percent were black members working in the townships.
According to the report, the motives for police attacks have
shifted from being political to violent crimes and the general
breakdown of the respect for law and order in South Africa.
Matthee appealed to the government to take strong action
against these attacks.
"After all it are the very institutions upon which the
government builds its legitimacy that are being eroded daily."
@ SWAZI-LAW
MBABANE January 17 1999 Sapa-DPA
PUBLIC OUTCRY IN SWAZILAND OVER CONTROVERSIAL NEW LAW
Swaziland's law society, trade unions and pro-democracy forces
Sunday expressed shock Sunday over a new law giving traditional
chiefs of this small African kingdom powers to set up their own
courts and try criminal cases.
The amended Swaziland Administration Act published Sunday in a
special government gazette, empowered traditional chiefs to try all
types of criminal and other cases, except murder, witchcraft and
marital cases.
The traditional chiefs may arrest their subjects suspected of
criminal or other offences against the Swaziland traditional law and
custom.
Hauled before these courts, suspects would not be allowed lawyers
and if found guilty, they could be fined 1,500 dollars or jailed for
an unspecified term.
Civil courts would not be allowed to overturn or interfere in
these sentences passed by the chiefs.
Leading the outcry against the new law, secretary-general of the
Swaziland Law society Cyril Maphanga said lawyers were shocked that
an accused are to be denied lawyers to defend them.
The country's Human Rights Association expressed its shock and
dismay over the new law, saying that traditional chiefs, untrained
in law, were now in fact appointed judges by King Mswati III.
The Swaziland Federation of Trade Unions (SFTU) pledged to have
the law revoked at all costs, while the Peoples United Democratic
Movement (PUDEMO) president Mario Masuka said the new law has set
the country back a thousand years.
Political parties are banned in Swaziland.
@ MBULI-ANC
JOHANNESBURG January 17 1999 Sapa
ANC DENIES INVOLVEMENT WITH IMPRISONED 'PEOPLE'S POET'
The African National Congress on Sunday disputed claims by
imprisoned "People's Poet" Mzwakhe Mbuli that it had sent ANC
officials to visit him in prison.
The party said its youth league president Malusi Gigaba had not
visited Mbuli in prison, as Mbuli had claimed, and had never
attempted to do so.
The ANC had not instructed Gigaba or any other ANC member to
visit Mbuli on its behalf.
"The ANC has nothing to do with the criminal charges Mbuli
faces," it said.
"Mbuli's innocence or guilt will be determined by the judicial
process, whose independence the ANC respects," the ANC said in a
statement.
Mbuli claimed in this week's Sunday Times that the ANC sent
Gigaba to see him at the Pretoria Central Prison in December to
offer him support for his upcoming trial on bank robbery charges.
He said deputy president Thabo Mbeki's director-general Frank
Chikane had visited him twice and called him on Christmas Day with
the message that the "party" was thinking of him.
Mbuli said he had rejected the offers of support, claiming the
ANC had abandoned him.
Imprisoned since October 1997 and denied bail four times, Mbuli
is due to appear in the Pretoria High Court on January 26.
The state alleges Mbuli and two accomplices robbed a branch of
First National Bank near Pretoria of R15000 on October 28, 1997,
and that police found Mbuli with the money and some weapons from
the robbery. He has been linked to two other robberies.
Mbuli claims he was set up.
Mbuli promoted loyalty to the struggle in the 1980s and 90s in
recitals at funerals, political rallies and union meetings, earning
him the title of "People's Poet" and a reputation as a ANC
supporter.
He has released eight albums of poetry to music.
@ ZIM-EDITOR
HARARE January 17 Sapa
ANOTHER ZIMBABWEAN JOURNALIST HELD FOR REPORTING ON DRC WAR
Tension increased on Sunday between Zimbabwe's independent
press and the government when the weekly Standard newspaper
announced that another of its journalist had been detained for
reporting on the country's military involvement in the Democratic
Republic of Congo.
The journalist was released after an hour after refusing to
name his sources.
The newspaper, whose editor Mark Chavunduka has been held
illegally for six days at an army barracks in Harare, reported that
the national registry had formed a new section specifically to
certify deaths of Zimbabwean soldiers involved in the DRC conflict.
It said this had been done because of the high number of
fatalities in the DRC, where Zimbabwe has an estimated 6000 troops
fighting on President Laurent Kabila's side against Tutsi rebels.
The Zimbabwean defence ministry claims only 31 have been
killed, but military analysts say this figure is likely to be far
higher.
Journalist Daniel Manyandure went to check his information at
the registrar-general's office in Harare on Friday. He was detained
by civilian government officials and interrogated for an hour by
nine senior members of staff, the Standard said.
Registrar-general Tobaiwa Mudede told the senior officials, in
front of Manyandure, to establish how the newspaper had learned of
"the malicious lie".
The reporter refused to disclose his sources and was released.
Chavunduka was arrested on Tuesday last week over a Standard
report that 23 soldiers, including seven officers, had been
arrrested on December 17 for "inciting" other soldiers to overthrow
President Robert Mugabe.
The newspaper obtained an order for his immediate and
unconditional release on Thursday.
But defence ministry permanent secretary Job Whabira refused to
comply, warning that "people who meddle in military matters are
subject to military law".
An application is due to be heard on Monday in the High Court
to force the defence ministry to produce Chavunduka at court, and
for Whabira and defence minister Moven Mahachi to be arrested if
they failed to release him.
Chavunduka was arrested without a warrant and has yet to be
charged.
He has been denied access to a lawyer and to his family,
despite the law which does not allow military personnel to deprive
civilians of their freedom.
International human rights organisations fear Chavunduka may be
tortured.
Observers warn the affair may turn into a constitutional crisis
with the military assuming power over the running of the country
and abandoning the rule of law.
@ IFP-NGUBANE
ULUNDI January 17 1999 Sapa
NGUBANE DISMISSES RUMOURS OF RIFT IN IFP
Ben Ngubane, national chairman of the Inkatha Freedom Party, on
Sunday said there was nothing sinister about the possibility of he
being removed as KwaZulu-Natal premier after this year's general
election.
Ngubane was commenting on rumours that he may be axed as
premier because of a rift in the party over election tactics.
"Whether I am deployed in the province after the elections, or
elsewhere, that is the prerogative of my president and the party.
It happens all the time...it does not need to be built around
sinister motives," Ngubane told SABC television news at the
conclusion of the party's national council meeting in Ulundi.
Media reports suggest a rift in the party over the number and
seniority of its white members and some members' unhappiness over a
possible election alliance between the IFP and the African National
Congress.
+-----------------------------------------------------------+
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A N C D A I L Y N E W S B R I E F I N G
TUESDAY 19 JANUARY 1999
PLEASE NOTE: This News Briefing is a compilation of items from South
African press agencies and as such does not reflect the views of the
ANC. It is for reading and information only, and strictly not for
publication or broadcast.
To unsubscribe from the ANC Daily News Briefing mailing list send a
message to 'list...@wn.apc.org'. In the body of your message put
'unsubscribe ancnews'.
@ MEETING BETWEEN CHIKANE AND MBULI
Issued by: Office of the Deputy President
Rev. Frank Chikane, the Director-General in the Office of Deputy
President Thabo Mbeki, has noted with concern distorted media
reports regarding his meetings with Mzwakhe Mbuli at Pretoria
Maximum Prison.
The Director-General has visited Mzwakhe Mbuli on several
occasions at the prison in his capacity as a senior pastor of the
Naledi congregation of the Apostolic Faith Mission of South Africa
of which Mr. Mbuli is a congregant.
This pastoral responsibility is shared between Rev. Chikane and
the Assistant Pastor, Rev. Enoch Mbantsa.
Thus Rev. Chikane has never visited Mr. Mbuli in his capacity as
a member of the National Executive Committee of the ANC nor has he
ever been requested by the ANC to convey any message including on
Christmas Day to Mr. Mbuli from the organisation.
At no stage during his visits to the prison or conversations has
Mr. Mbuli ever conveyed to Rev. Chikane the suggestion that he was
no longer welcomed to visit or call him. This is a complete
fabrication.
Rev. Frank Chikane regrets the false reports and innuendo
contained in these articles and appeals to the media to double-check
their facts before printing falsehoods.
For more information contact Ronnie Mamoepa at 082-9900-4853
Issued by Office of Deputy President T.M.Mbeki Communications
Division P/Bag X955 Pretoria
@ SWAZI-CHIEFS
MBABANE January 18 1999 Sapa
CHIEFS' COURTS TO RESTORE DISCIPLINE: SWAZI KING
A new law allowing Swaziland's traditional chiefs to try people
for criminal offences in their own courts would restore discipline,
King Mswati III said over the weekend.
The law enables chiefs to fine offenders up to R300 or jail
them without the accused having legal representation.
Addressing more than 10,000 Swazi warriors at the Ngabezweni
Royal Kraal, Mswati said that respect for chiefs had been badly
eroded by civil courts interfering in their attempts to discipline
their people.
The Swaziland Law Society, the Swaziland Federation of Trade
Unions and progressive movements have condemned the legislation,
which they said was aimed at silencing those against the current
non-party traditional system of government.
@ PRETORIA AMNESTY HEARINGS
Issued by: Truth and Reconciliation Commission
A former captain in the Security Branch of the South African
Police will appear before the Amnesty Committee of the TRC in
Pretoria next week, applying for amnesty for the murder of his wife
whom he claims he killed in order to silence her, as she was about
to spill the beans about his illegal activities and also threatening
to make public information that would compromise the SAP.
Michael Bellingan will appear before a three-member amnesty
panel applying for the murder of his wife and mother of his two
children, Mrs Janine Bellingan, whose body was found at their home
in Gallo Manor near Sandton. She had been strangled and bludgeoned
to death on September 21, 1991. A break-in had been simulated to
create the impression that she was killed by robbers.
Her husband was subsequently arrested and was sentenced to 25
years imprisonment in March 1995 after a sensational trial that
attracted a lot of media interest at the time. He is presently
serving his sentence at the Johannesburg Maximum Prison.
Bellingan's hearing will be at the Idasa Centre in Prinsloo
Street in Pretoria. the hearing is scheduled for a week, from Monday
January 25 to Friday January 29.
In his application Bellingan admits to killing his wife saying
that she was about to expose, among other things, an elaborate scam
in which he was involved in with other senior police officers in
which they intercepted large sums of money intended for the National
Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA). He claims they stole
the money with the help of their contacts at a prominent bank.
Bellingan has also applied for amnesty for a variety of other
offences, including arson, housebreaking, blackmail, perjury and
invasion of privacy.
For more details contact TRC Media Director, MDU LEMBEDE on 082 458
8464
@ LATEGAN-DP
CAPE TOWN January 18 1999 Sapa
DP URGES COMMEMORATION FOR DEAD COP
Western Cape Democratic Party leader Hennie Bester on Monday
called on provincial premier Gerald Morkel to hold a non-partisan
commemoration meeting for the late Captain Bennie Lategan.
"The purpose of such a meeting would be for ordinary citizens
of our province to demonstrate their support for a rapid return of
peace to our streets and their rejection of extremist measures,"
Bester said in a statement.
Lategan, who was investigating recent pipe-bomb explosions, was
assassinated by gunmen on his way home last week.
Bester said such commemoration would also be a symbolic gesture
of public solidarity with police force during this difficult time.
"It would also indicate that the public is behind the police in
its fight against crime and violence in this province," he said.
Lategan will be buried privately at the Dutch Reformed Church
in Bellville on Tuesday.
@ TRUTH-IFP
NELSPRUIT January 18 1999 Sapa
TWO IFP MEMBERS TO SEEK AMNESTY FOR BUS ATTACK
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission on Monday appealed to
victims of a bus attack that took place at Heidelberg, near
Nelspruit, in 1992 to come forward before the amnesty hearings
start in Nelspruit in February.
Commission spokeswoman Ruth Faragher said two Inkatha Freedom
Party members were applying for amnesty for the bus attack on
September 28, 1992, which injured 12 people, African Eye News
Service reported.
The two applicants are Mzobona Leonard Hadebe and Raphael
Senzangakhona Sithomo.
"While the committee is in contact with some of the victims,
many of them hae changed places of residence or work and the
identity of others is impossible to establish from official
records," said Faragher.
In terms of the law governing the operations of the TRC, the
victims, next-of-kin or any interested party had the right to
attend the hearing, give evidence and be legally represented.
The victims of the bus attack were Granny Tsoari, Sipho
Johannes Mabuso, Sipho Gama, Nombusi Alinah Emily Nhlapho,
Zwelibanzi Fikile Nhlapho, Manuanu Mirriam Twala, William Thopa
Thabatha, Petrus Mfanufikile Nhlapho, David Hlongwane, Sophie
Mnguni, Meshack Malete and Philemon Mnguni.
The amnesty hearing, scheduled to last one week, will take
place at the Nelsville Community Hall from February 1.
@ ZIM-BANANA
HARARE January 18 1999 Sapa-AFP
ZIMBABWE'S FORMER PRESIDENT BANANA JAILED FOR SEX CRIMES
Zimbabwe's ex-president Canaan Banana, convicted for sex crimes
in a case which scandalised the nation, was sentenced Monday to 10
years in jail with labour, of which he must serve at least one.
Most of the sentence is conditionally suspended, but he will
serve a minimum of one year in prison, Judge President Godfrey
Chidyausiku told a packed High Court.
The white-haired, 62-year-old clergyman, wearing his trademark
Mao-style suit, closed his eyes briefly as it became clear that he
would have to serve a term in Zimbabwe's jails, which are notorious
for homosexual assault and the spread of AIDS among prisoners.
Prisoners sentenced to "labour" in Zimbabwe are usually
required to work in the prison fields growing crops and vegetables,
or to perform such other duties as sweeping and cleaning or sewing
mailbags.
Banana's lawyers immediately announced their intention to
appeal to the Supreme Court against the conviction and sentence.
The former head of state was convicted in November on 11
charges, mainly involving sodomy and indecent assault committed
against male aides, bodyguards, a cook and a gardener while he was
president between 1980-1987.
He had jumped bail and fled to neighbouring South Africa ahead
of the verdict, but returned last month to face sentencing after
the apparent intervention of President Nelson Mandela.
The evidence against Banana was that he abused his powerful
position to force men into sexual acts with him, and included lurid
accounts of how he fondled and sodomised aides whom he had invited
for a drink at State House.
According to testimony, Banana regularly made advances by
suggesting that he teach the aides to dance.
One aide said his soft drink was apparently drugged and he
awoke the next morning to find he had been raped.
Nine of the counts against Banana, mainly involving indecent
assault, were taken as one for the purpose of sentence.
On those counts he was given two years imprisonment with
labour, with one year suspended for three years on condition that
he does not commit a similar offence.
On the other two counts, involving sodomy and an unnatural act,
he was sentenced to eight years in jail with three years suspended
for three years on condition he does not commit a similar offence.
Another four years was suspended on condition Banana pays
half-a-million Zimbabwe dollars (about 15,000 US) in compensation
to one of his victims, Jefta Dube, and to the family of a man Dube
murdered.
The judge ordered that the two unconditional years of
imprisonment should run concurrently, meaning he would serve just
one year.
Dube, a former presidential aide, first blew the whistle on
Banana when he appeared in court on a murder charge two years ago.
He said he had been driven to drink and drugs by Banana's
predatory homosexual abuse, and had in a fit of rage killed a man
who referred to him as "Banana's wife".
The compensation money will be split equally between Dube, who
is still serving a jail sentence for the murder, and the family of
the dead man.
The prosecution pointed to Banana's history of running away
when it called for heavy bail conditions against him as he awaits
the appeal hearing.
The judge ordered that Banana, who has been under house arrest
in his luxurious suburban home since returning from South Africa,
should remain under the same conditions until the Supreme Court
rules on bail.
The former head of state indicated after his return that he had
fled because he was in fear of his life, saying his "political
assassins have been more brutal than Brutus."
There has been widespread speculation that he returned after
being given assurances, following a meeting between Mandela and
Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe, that he would not serve time in
jail.
Even if the Supreme Court upholds the sentence, Mugabe has the
power to pardon his predecessor or vary the sentence.
While Mugabe is internationally known for his hatred of
homosexuals, whom he has described as "pigs", the
government-controlled media has signalled that he may be prepared
to be lenient with Banana because of his past service as head of
state.
Since Mugabe took over the presidency in 1987, Banana has
played a role as an envoy for the Commonwealth and the Organisation
of African Unity in peace negotiations in countries including
Liberia and South Africa.
He is married and has four children.
@ MBULI-CHIKANE
JOHANNESBURG January 18 1999 Sapa
CHIKANE SAYS HE VISITED MBULI AS PASTOR, NOT AS ANC MEMBER
Reverend Frank Chikane, director-general in the office of
Deputy President Thabo Mbeki, visited "People's Poet" Mzwakhe Mbuli
at the Pretoria Central Prison in his capacity as pastor of the
church of which Mbuli is a congregant, a statement said on Monday.
Mbuli, accused of robbing a branch of First National Bank with
two accomplices on October 28, 1997, claimed in this week's Sunday
Times that Chikane had visited him twice and called him on
Christmas Day with the message that the "party" was thinking of
him.
Mbuli said he had rejected the offers of support, claiming the
African National Congress had abandoned him.
Reponding to this, a statement from Mbeki's office on Monday
said: "The director-general has visited Mzwakhe Mbuli on several
occasions at the prison in his capacity as a senior pastor of the
Naledi congregation of the Apostolic Faith Mission of South Africa
of which Mr Mbuli is a congregant."
Pastoral responsibilities for Mbuli were being shared by
Chikane and an assistant pastor, the Reverend Enoch Mbantsa, the
statement said.
"Reverend Chikane has never visited Mbuli in his capacity as a
member of the National Executive Committee of the ANC, nor has he
ever been requested by the ANC to convey any message...to Mbuli
from the organisation."
At no stage during his visits to the prison had Mbuli ever
conveyed to Chikane the suggestion that he was no longer welcome to
visit or call him and any suggestions to the contrary were a
complete fabrication, the statement said.
Imprisoned since October 1997 and denied bail four times, Mbuli
is due to appear in the Pretoria High Court again on January 26.
The state alleges Mbuli and two accomplices robbed a bank near
Pretoria of R15000, and that police found Mbuli with the money and
some weapons from the robbery. He has been linked to two other
robberies.
Mbuli promoted loyalty to the struggle in the 1980s and 1990s
in recitals at funerals, political rallies and union meetings,
earning him the title of "People's Poet" and a reputation as an ANC
supporter.
He has released eight albums of poetry to music.
@ ATTORNEYS - MATTERS RELATING TO RULES OF COURT
Issued by: Government Communications (GCIS)
The Department of Justice hereby announces that the Attorneys
and Matters relating to Rules of Court Amendment Act, 1998 is to be
put into operation today, 15 January 1999.
The primary objective of the Amendment Act is to, inter alia,
amend the Attorneys Act, 1979, so as to limit the liability of the
Attorneys Fidelity Fund (the Fund).
In terms of the present provisions of the Act, the Fund is
exposed to the risk of considerable loss. Attorneys administer
substantial sums of money entrusted to them by their clients for
investments purposes, which in itself creates an opportunity for
theft. The Amendment Act, hence, provides that money received by an
attorney for investment on behalf of his or her client, in the case
of theft, will not be covered by the Fund.
If the Fund has to cover the theft of moneys entrusted to
attorneys for investment purposes, the possibility exists that the
Board of Control of the Fund would not be able to meet its primary
obligation of protecting members of the public against loss of
moneys entrusted to attorneys in the ordinary course of their
practice.
The Attorneys Act is further amended to extend the jurisdiction
of the Fund to practitioners in the areas of the former Republics of
Bophuthatswana and Venda, Since no such Fund exists in these states.
The extension of the Fund will now offer protection to members of
the public in these former TBVC states as well.
The public is hereby advised to take note of these amendments.
ISSUED BY THE CHIEF DIRECTORATE: COMMUNICATION SERVICES OF THE
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE.
15 JANUARY 1999
PRETORIA
ENQUIRIES: Ms A Mokwena tel: (012) 362 1729 (Law Society of SA)
Rasiga Naicker tel: (012) 323 9302 x 2189 (Department of Justice)
@ TRUTH-BOIPATONG
VANDERBIJLPARK January 18 1999 Sapa
AMNESTY APPLICATIONS OF BOIPATONG ATTACKERS COULD BE SCRAPPED
The applications for amnesty by six former hostel dwellers who
have admitted taking part in the Boipatong masssacre in
Vanderbijlpark in 1992 could be struck from the roll if they cannot
explain their failure to appear at an amnesty hearing on Monday.
The six, who have applied to the Truth and Reconciliation
Commission for amnesty for their part in the attack, were due to
appear at the hearing in Vanderbijlpark on Monday together with 10
other applicants, but did not arrive.
The hearing began in July last year but had to be postponed to
this year when the committee ran out of time to hear the testimony
of all 16 applicants.
The chairman of the amnesty committee dealing with their
applicatons, Judge Sandile Ncgobo, told the legal representatives
of those absent that their applications would be struck from the
roll unless they arrived on Tuesday and offered acceptable reasons
for their failure to appear.
The six are Moses Mthembu, Sipho Buthelezi, Petrus Mdiniso,
Sibongeleni Mkhize, Richard Dlamini and Paulus Mbatha.
Four other applicants who are presently serving jail sentences
for their part in the massacre also did not appear at Monday's
hearing. They are Timothy Mazibuko, Sonny Mkwanazi, Tebogo Mazibuko
and Jack Mbele.
According to the TRC's evidence leader Paddy Prior, the prison
authorities had not complied with a request to transfer them to the
venue.
Ncgobo also asked that an explanation for this oversight be
sought. He said if it was found that a prison official had not done
his duty, this would be intolerable.
The rest of the 16 former hostel dwellers who have applied for
amnesty for the massacre were present at Monday's hearing.
The massacre took place on June 17, 1992 after tension between
Inkatha Freedom Party supporting hostel dwellers and the mostly
African National Congress supporting residents of the Boipatong
township erupted into violence.
The heavily armed party of IFP supporters entered the township
at night and carried out random attacks on residents, resulting in
46 people being killed and 21 injured.
@ SA-CAMBODIA
CAPE TOWN January 18 1999 Sapa-AFP
TRUTH COMMISSION COULD HELP CAMBODIA: NTSEBEZA
Archbishop Desmond Tutu and other members of South Africa's
Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) will help Cambodia
establish a similar process to deal with its past, a senior TRC
official said Monday.
Dumisa Ntsebeza told AFP that Tutu, who headed the commission
designed to establish the truth of atrocities committed under
apartheid and effect reconciliation, would be happy to teach
Cambodians what he has learned.
"If possible he will take the process we had in South Africa to
try and resolve the past in Cambodia in a way that would promote
peace and reconciliation in Cambodia."
Ntsebeza was reacting to a statement by Cambodian Prime
Minister Hun Sen that his government would call on the TRC leader
for advice on bringing Khmer Rouge leaders to justice without
compromising peace in Cambodia.
"I can say without fear of contradiction that the archbishop
does not support the idea of the International Criminal Court as
the only solution to such situations," Ntsebeza said.
"Though no two countries are the same and the TRC is not a
panacea for all other conflict situations, the archbishop takes
pride that this has been a process like no other before.
"So it would be safe to say that a lot can be gleaned and we
would give as much as they want to take," he said.
Ntsebeza, who headed the TRC's investigation unit, said he
would personally be happy to assist in the process and believed
other commissioners of the body, which completed most of its work
last year, would do the same.
"If I were approached I would give everything I think they
could glean from me," he said.
TRC spokesman Mdu Lembede said the TRC had not been approached
by the Cambodian government.
Calls have been mounting for Khmer Rouge leaders who helped
establish the Pol Pot regime - which claimed two million lives
through torture, execution, and starvation in the 1970s - to be
brought to trial.
Tutu is currently on sabbatical in the United States.
@ LAUNCH OF WHITE PAPER ON DISASTER MANAGEMENT
Issued by: Department of Constitutional Development
Minister M V Moosa, Minister for Provincial Affairs and
Constitutional Development will launch the White Paper on Disaster
Management on Tuesday, 19 January 1999.
The White Paper aims to, for the first time in the history of
South Africa, determine a national policy on disaster management.
Programme:
12:30 to 13:00: Arrival of guests
13:15 Welcome, Dr C Olver, Deputy Director General:
Local government.
13:20 Official launch: Minister Moosa
13:30 Address: Ms Janet Love, MP and Chair Person of
the White Paper Task Team.
13:40 Address by Minister G Fraser-Moleketi.
14:00 Acknowledgements and closure: Dr Olver.
Snacks and refreshments will be served
Venue:
Pretoria Municipal Training Centre (Premos)
11 Staatsartillerie Road
Pretoria West (opposite Technikon Pretoria)
Issued by the Ministry for Provincial Affairs and Constitutional
Development
Enquiries: JJ (Onkgopotse) Tabane at (012) 334 0681 or 082 465 6166
or: Peet Stopforth at (012) 3340709 or 082 808 9878
@ CONGO-MERCENARIES
ROME, Jan 18, Sapa-AFP
CUBAN MERCENARIES REPORTED IN CONGO TO BACK PRESIDENT
Some 300 Cuban mercenaries have arrived in Brazzaville to back
President Denis Sassou Nguesso, the Vatican news agency Fides said
in Rome on Monday.
Citing church sources on the ground, the agency said the Cubans
were "siding with government troops already backed by Chadians and
Angolans in their offensive in the southern Pool region, the
stronghold of rebels of (former prime minister) Bernard Kolelas."
A Paris-based human rights organisation, CERDEC, has denounced
the arrival in Brazzaville of "armed Cuban mercenaries" and claimed
they carried Congolese passports.
According to CERDEC, they were recruited by "the illegal regime
in Brazzaville".
"Despite their Congolese passports, there is no doubt about
their nationality. Checks on their travel itinerary and their
exclusive use of Spanish support this idea," CERDEC said.
Congolese Interior Minister Pierre Oba has "categorically"
denied the presence of Cuban soldiers in the country.
Cuba's foreign ministry has also formally denied the
allegation.
@ PHOSA
NELSPRUIT January 18 1999 Sapa
PHOSA TO TAKE LEGAL ACTION AGAINST GRAY
Mpumalanga Premier Mathews Phosa has instructed his lawyers to
bring legal action against suspended Mpumalanga Parks Board chief
executive Alan Gray, the premier's office said on Monday.
Phosa's threat came after Gray last week accused the premier of
lying about his role in the R25 billion Dolphin deal before it was
signed in November 1996.
The original deal gave Dolphin a 50-year monopoly in developing
some of Mpumalanga's key tourism sites, including the Blyde River
Canyon and historic Pilgrim's Rest, in exchange for financial
assistance for the Mpumalanga Parks Board.
Gray alleged that Phosa had approved the deal after making
direct input into some of the clauses. Gray also said Phosa had met
Dolphin president Ketan Somaia behind closed doors at an exclusive
Sandton hotel in September 1996 and again at two private dinner
functions days before the deal was concluded.
In the statement issued on Monday, Phosa did not deny meeting
Somaia but he said there was "nothing secret" about the meeting.
"My job description as premier requires that I meet with all
persons, including potential investors who want to do business in
our province," Phosa said. "That does not in any way give people
the right to ... defame my integrity towards the province and its
people."
Phosa said at no stage during his premiership had he "met
people for personal gains".
"I will not sit back and allow people to drag my name through
the mud in order to divert attention from ongoing investigations
into corruption in the province," Phosa said.
Phosa's spokesman Oupa Pilane told Sapa the premier's lawyers
had been instructed on Monday to write to Gray or his lawyer about
the matter within 14 days.
Phosa was quoted in The Sunday Independent as saying Gray made
the allegations against him because he was about to be arrested and
owed the government R6 million.
Gray's attorney, Pieter Swanepoel, declined to comment on
Phosa's threatened legal action, African Eye News Service reported.
Swanepoel did, however, indicate Gray would be applying to the
Pretoria High Court to set aside his suspension following Phosa's
decision to cancel a proposed commission of inquiry into his
misconduct and other alleged corruption at the MPB.
"Gray was suspended four months ago and still there are not
specific charges against him. How is he supposed to defend himself?
The High Court will be asked to declare the suspension invalid so
that Gray can get back to work and continue with his life," said
Swanepoel.
He confirmed Gray had backed down from his threat to return to
work on Monday after the MPB sent him a letter warning that he
would not be allowed onto any MPB property.
Gray was originally suspended on September 25 last year for his
role in the R1,3 billion promissory note scandal, for allegedly
filling senior MPB posts without following procedures and for
allegedly acting without board authority.
@ TRUTH-COP
JOHANNESBURG January 18 1999 Sapa
FORMER POLICEMAN TO APPLY FOR AMNESTY FOR KILLING HIS WIFE
A former Security Police captain will appear before the Truth
and Reconciliation Commission in Pretoria next week to apply for
amnesty for killing his wife.
Commission spokesman Mdu Lembede on Monday said Michael
Bellingan claimed he killed his wife to silence her.
In his amnesty application Bellingan said Janine Bellingan, the
mother of his two children, was going to reveal his illegal
activities. She also threatened to make public information that
would compromise the SAP.
Mrs Bellingan's body was found on September 21, 1991 at the
family home in Gallo Manor near Sandton. She had been strangled and
bludgeoned. A break-in was simulated to create the impression that
she was killed by robbers.
Bellingan was jailed for 25 years in March 1995 after a trial
that attracted a great deal of interest. He is serving his sentence
in maximum security at the Johannesburg Prison.
A three-member TRC amnesty committee panel will hear
Bellingan's application from January 25 to 29 at the Idasa Centre
in Prinsloo Street in Pretoria.
Bellingan says his wife was about to expose an elaborate scam
involving other senior police officers in which large sums of money
intended for the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa was
intercepted.
Bellingan claims they stole the money with the help of their
contacts at a prominent bank.He has also applied for amnesty for
other offences, including arson, housebreaking, blackmail, perjury
and invasion of privacy.
@ TRANSPORT-SARCC By Andrew Davidson
JOHANNESBURG January 18 1999 Sapa
SARCC ASKS FOR R300-MILLION STATE AID AFTER BUDGET SHORTFALL
The South Afican Rail Commuter Corporation, the government
agency responsible for providing rail commuter transport at
affordable prices, will go R300-million into the red should it not
receive further state aid before its financial year closes at
end-March.
This was disclosed in Johannesburg on Monday by Selomane
Maltisa, senior manager, communication of SARCC.
The situation could have been far worse.
In a bid to uphold services the SARCC, operator Metrorail and
Intersite, which is responsibe for the commuter rail stations,
managed to save R100-million on its 1998-99 budget mainly through
reducing several off-peak train services coutrywide. Other
cost-cutting measures were implemented.
Following SARCC representations another R100-million was
received from the state.
But Maltisa said this still left a shortfall of R300-million on
the 1998-99 budget.
She said: "Further representations to government were made late
last year and it is trusted that the funds to bridge the current
shortfall will still be provided by the fiscus."
But she warned that more reductions in the available subsidy
for commuter rail in the future might lead to the closure of
certain under-used rail lines and a further reduction in off-peak
services - especially where alternative means of transport were available.
The SARCC has also been charged with concessioning rail
commuter transport, in line with government transport policy.
Maltisa explained that Metrorail would be given a "get fit"
window to operate the commuter rail service for a maximum five
years. Following that period, the rail concession would be tendered
to private enterprise.
" The SARCC envisages a significant improvement in service to
commuters once concessioning is in place," said Maltisa.
She added: "To advance our commitment to rail commuter
development, the SARCC has initiated a programme of introducing new
trains and upgrading old rolling stock, as well as numerous capital
projects to improve the infrastructure and stations coutrywide."
More than two million passengers travel by commuter rail each
day.
@ REGISTER-IEC
JOHANNESBURG January 18 1999 Sapa
SPECIAL IEC REGISTRATION TO RUN UNTIL END OF FEBRUARY
The Independent Electoral Commission's special registration for
voters began on Monday, and the IEC said it would run until the end
of February.
Special registration covered people out of the country on
government service,and infirm or disabled citizens who could be
visited at home by registration officers, IEC spokesman Victor
Dlamini said.
The disabled could obtain an REC2 electoral form from their
local electoral officer through friends or family to apply to be
visited at home by electoral officers, he said.
@ NELSPRUIT-ELECTRICITY
NELSPRUIT January 18 1999 Sapa
A WEEK IN DARKNESS FOR 2000 NELSPRUIT RESIDENTS
Almost 2000 residents of KaNyamazane, Nelspruit, spent the past
week without electricity because they owed R590,000 in outstanding
bills, African Eye News Service reported on Monday.
The Transitional Electricity Distributor cut the power supply
to homes in KaNyamazane last Monday, warning residents not to
illegally reconnect the electricity or they would face fines of
R910, spokesman Patrick Fakude said.
Many residents owed money when the TED replaced the previous
electricity supply company four years ago. The government undertook
to pay half the arrears, with residents paying the other half,
Fakude said.
@ AGRIC-CRIME
BLOEMFONTEIN January 18 1999 Sapa
ABSOLUTE PREPAREDNESS ESSENTIAL FOR FARMERS' SURVIVAL: GOUS
Farmers must be absolutely prepared to defend themselves
against armed attacks to ensure their survival, Free State
Agricultural Union president Pieter Gous said in Bloemfontein on
Monday.
Armed attacks on farmers had increased countrywide in the past
few weeks and it appeared that the assailants were geared to kill
and to show no mercy.
The coldblooded attack in which the Brotherton couple of
Meyerton were shot in their mouths while asleep at the weekend was
a sign of the increased barbarity and mercilessness of the
attackers, said Gous.
He warned farmers to be continually on their guard and to
accept that attackers would be heavily armed and would show no
mercy.
They would deliberately kill or maim because they had been
trained to do this. In the circumstances, farmers must also show no
mercy.
Members of the farming community must act to ensure the
survival of themselves and those close to them. Their lives and
those of their families and farmworkers were worth more than those
of the rogues who were taking over the country.
@ ANGOLA-UN
LUANDA January 18 1999 Sapa-AP
Annan: UN PEACE MISSION SHOULD WITHDRAW FROM WAR-TORN ANGOLA
United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan has proposed that
the world body withdraw its peace verification mission from Angola,
where renewed civil war has shattered a U.N.-brokered peace accord,
a senior U.N. official said Monday.
"We are not here to observe war, but to observe peace," Issa
Diallo, the U.N. special representative to Angola, said in support
of Annan's proposal, adding that the U.N. mission is "no longer in
a position to fulfill its role due to the war."
However, in the report to the Security Council, Annan
recommended that the United Nations maintain its humanitarian
assistance operations in the southwest African country, Diallo
said.
U.N. military units could be kept in Angola to protect aid
workers, he added.
Annan's report, issued Sunday, proposed that the 1,000 U.N.
staff with the observer mission be evacuated by March 20.
Efforts to persuade the government and UNITA rebels to return
to the negotiating table would be conducted by a special
representative based in New York, Diallo said.
Diallo said the Security Council would make a decision based on
the report soon, but he could provide no specific date.
The details of a plan to keep aid staff in Angola would have to
be negotiated with the government and UNITA rebels, whose return to
war last month halted implementation of the already-delayed 1994
peace pact.
Both sides have blamed the United Nations for the failure to
secure peace. The government says the United Nations failed to
disarm UNITA, while the rebels said the United Nations couldn't
stop the government from attacking insurgent bases.
The renewed fighting in large areas of Angola's interior has
forced the evacuation of most U.N. staff back to the capital,
Luanda.
Two U.N.-chartered planes carrying a total of 23 people have
crashed as they flew over war zones since the fighting restarted.
No survivors have been found. The United Nations is investigating
whether they were shot down.
The crashes raised fears that U.N. personnel were being
targeted in an attempt to drive the United Nations out of the
country to let the warring sides settle their differences alone.
Diallo insisted that the United Nations had done "a good job"
in attempting to bring peace to Angola, where the international
community has spent dlrs 1.5 billion over the past four years and
initially deployed 7,000 peacekeepers.
A unity government was established two years ago, though the
rebels have complained that their ministers were sidelined in the
decision-making process.
As implementation of the peace pact neared its conclusion,
UNITA - a Portuguese acronym for the National Union for the Total
Independence of Angola - balked at the final hurdle, refusing to
hand over its last strongholds due to lingering hostility between
the two sides.
Civil war first broke out after Angola's 1975 independence from
Portugal. A 1991 peace agreement also collapsed after UNITA
rejected its defeat in 1992 elections.
@ KWANATAL-PREMIER
DURBAN January 18 1999 Sapa
KWAZULU-NATAL PREMIER DISPELS SPECULATION HE IS TO BE AXED
KwaZulu-Natal premier Ben Ngubane on Monday dispelled
speculation in weekend newspaper reports that he was to be axed
from the Inkatha Freedom Party.
A report on Sunday said Ngubane might lose his job after next
year's general election because of his alleged unwillingness to
reward IFP sponsors with a casino licence. The report quoted
reliable sources.
At a news conference in Durban, Ngubane, who is also the IFP's
national chairman, said there was no truth to the allegation.
He said he had had no indication from IFP president Mangosuthu
Buthelezi nor members of the national council that his job was in
jeopardy.
Ngubane said it was possible that the quoted sources had their
own agendas and were not acting in the interest of the party by
trying to secure their own positions within the IFP.
The rumours and allegations were setting the IFP back and were
harming the party, Ngubane added.
He said, however, that if the party leadership decided to
redeploy him in another position after the election, he would not
object. Similar moves had occurred in other provinces and there was
nothing sinister about it, Ngubane said.
The granting of casino licences and his future within the IFP
was not discussed at the national council meeting in Ulundi at the
weekend, he added.
@ CRIME-STATS
PRETORIA January 18 1999 Sapa
SA MURDER RATE DECLINING: CRIME REPORT
South Africa's murder rate declined from January to November
last year compared with trends over the preceding four years,
according to the latest crime report released in Pretoria on
Monday.
The number of murders per 100,000 of the population stood at 52
in the first eleven months of last year. This was down from a rate
of 53,1 in 1997, 56,7 in 1996, 59,8 in 1995 and 62,1 in 1994.
While this trend was heartening, Safety and Security Minister
Sydney Mufamadi said in a statement there was cause for concern
over a rise in some other types of crime.
These included short-term increases, which saw housebreaking
rising from a rate of 542,8 in the first eleven months of 1997 to
567,2 last year, and street robbery from 114 to 131,6.
The hijacking of cars between January and November in 1997
increased from 29,1 per 100,000 of the population to 32,7 in the
same period last year, and that of trucks from 9,4 to 12,6.
Mufamadi said the rise in some crimes over the past two years
was the most worrying aspect of the latest statistics.
"These are receiving attention," he said.
The overall pattern of the last five years showed a decline in
seven of the 20 most serious crimes, including common assault and
fraud. Nine types of crime had stabilised.
They included rape, of which the rate per 100,000 was 96,9 in
1994, 106,6 in 1995, 111,8 in 1996 and 113,2 in 1997 and 104,1 last
year.
Attempted murder was also stabilising at a rate of 64 in 1994
and 62,7 last year.
Increases were reported in four crime categories over the past
five years, including unarmed robbery and housebreaking.
"These are largely attributable to the current economic
climate," Mufamadi said.
He said crime statistics would no longer be released on a
quarterly basis as public confidence in these figures was found to
be low. The infrequent nature of quarterly reports was to blame for
this.
The new approach would be to make crime figures public on a
monthly basis. Such bulletins would contain statistics up to the
end of the preceding month because of a four to six week delay in
collecting figures from remote rural areas.
Provincial crime bulletins would also be issued from March.
"It must be recognised that this constitutes a more regular
release policy than is the international norm," Mufamadi said.
But it was believed this approach would help build greater
public confidence in the official crime statistics.
A detailed analysis of crime statistics and research findings
would be published every six months, Mufamadi said.
@ DOCTORS-NNP
CAPE TOWN January 18 1999 Sapa
ZUMA POLICIES MAKE MEDICAL PROFESSION LESS ATTRACTIVE: NNP
Health Minister Nkosazana Zuma's policies made any career in
the medical profession less attractive, the New National Party said
on Monday.
NNP spokesman on health Kobus Gous was reacting to a survey by
the Institute for Democracy in South Africa which showed South
Africa stood to lose about 35 percent of its doctors in the next
five years.
He said Zuma and her ministry had rendered the government's
health portfolio ineffective, and that surveys such as this should
set the alarm bells ringing.
Gous made an urgent appeal to the government and health
ministry to take the results of independent studies seriously and
address the grievances of medical doctors.
@ DEFECT
CAPE TOWN January 18 1999 Sapa
SENIOR NNP MPS DEFECT TO DP
Three senior coloured New National Party MPs - Pauline Cupido,
Chris Wyngaard and Glen Carelse - defected to the Democratic Party
on Monday.
DP leaders told a media confrence at Parliament that more
defections were in the offing at national and provincial levels.
The new recruits - who immediately lose their parliamentary
seats because of the anti-defection clause in the Constitution -
were welcomed by DP leader Tony Leon, who handed them their DP
membership cards.
Leon said he and his colleagues were especially pleased that
the new members would be contributing to the party's election
efforts in the Western Cape "where we know we will hold the balance
of power".
A strong factor attracting people to the DP was its
credibility, Leon said.
DP Western Cape leader Hennie Bester said current defections to
the party amounted to a "de facto realignment of opposition
politics around the DP".
Monday's defections followed those of Eastern Cape NP MP Donald
Lee and Western Cape NNP MPL Hendry Cupido (husband of Pauline)
last year, and an NNP youth leader, James Vos, last week.
Mrs Cupido said the DP had, because of its experience in
opposition, outmanoevred the National Party over the past four
years and "performed as the official opposition".
Wyngaard said one reason for his move was that the NNP was
"caught up in the past and has failed to cross its own Rubicon".
Carelse said that in his seven years in the NP, he had never
found the party to be establishing itself at grassroots level.
At an earlier media conference on Monday, the NNP in the
Western Cape said the DP would from now feel the full brunt of its
attacks.
The DP, which serves in the NNP's cabinet in the province, had
until now received preferential party treatment, Peter Marais, NNP
Health Minister and one of the party's senior leaders in the
Western Cape, said.
"As from today, the holiday is over. The DP will now feel the
edge of our swords," he said.
Responding at the DP media conference, Bester said there was a
political agreement between the NNP and the DP that the parties
could publicly disagree when they did not see eye to eye.
"Our loyalty is to the government in the Western Cape," he
said.
Bester said the NNP would never again obtain a majority in the
province.
NNP spokeswoman Juli Kilian said the trio's defection
demostrated opportunism and had more to do with personal positions
than principles.
She said Cupido's defection came as no surprise as her
situation in the party had become intorable after her husband's
opportunistic defection to the DP.
Cupido had been suspended from the party pending a disciplinary
hearing scheduled for 5pm on Monday.
"This formed part of an inquiry proceedings that were
instituted as a result of derogatory and conflicting statements Mrs
Cupido had made to the media about the NNP," said Kilian.
She said Wyngaard and Carelse had on Sunday pledged their
allegiance and affirmed their loyalty to the provincial premier,
Gerald Morkel, and the values upheld by the NNP.
"The New NP regards these defections as a flagrant disregard
for previously held values, and views it as nothing more than
ambitious attempts to improve their own careers at the expense of
their value system," said Kilian.
@ KWANATAL-FARMERS
DURBAN January 18 1999 Sapa
ATTACKS ON RURAL FARMERS ARE ESCALATING IN KWAZULU-NATAL
Incidents of crime and violence in rural areas in KwaZulu-Natal
were escalating, president of the KwaZulu-Natal Agricultural Union
Fred Visser said on Monday.
Visser was responding to the murder on Friday of Aletta
Vannenburg, 55, and the serious wounding of her husband Pieter on
their Woodford farm near Weenen.
In a statement from Pietermaritzburg, Visser said farmer Themba
Nyoka was also murdered in the Greytown area last week, bringing to
four the number of serious violent crimes committed in the Weenen
area since November last year.
He said the motive appeared to be the theft of cash and
firearms which was also the case in a spate of attacks on farmers
prior to the 1994 general elections. Visser urged the government to
do everything in its power to stop the senseless killings through
the implementation of the rural safety plan.
@ ZIM-CURRENCY
HARARE January 18 1999 Sapa
ZIMDOLLAR GAINS SIGNIFICANTLY
The Zimbabwe dollar gained significantly against major
currencies on Monday following last Friday's meeting between the
Reserve Bank and banks where it was recommended that the local
currency should trade below ZD40 to the US dollar, Ziana news
agency reported on Monday.
As a result of the fixed rate, the local unit gained 9,49
percent against the US dollar to trade at ZD39,6 up from Friday's
rate of ZD43,75.
Against the British pound the dollar gained 10,12 percent to
trade at ZD65,36 from ZD72,72 while versus the South African rand
it was pegged at at ZD6,62 representing a 6,08 percent appreciation
from Friday's zd 7,05.
Foreign exchange dealers said the move was an attempt by the
central bank to add value to the wobbly local currency.
Meanwhile, the industrial and mining indices remained at
Thursday's levels of 6558,42 points and 387,33 points respectively
as no trade was recorded on the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange.
Trading on the ZSE was suspended on Friday last week amid
confusion regarding the modalities of the capital gains tax on
marketable securities gazetted by the government this month.
@ CRIME-IFP
LOTHAIR, Mpumalanga January 18 1999 Sapa
IFP MPUMALANGA LEADER AND WIFE SHOT DEAD, HACKED WITH PANGA
An Inkatha Freedom Party branch chairman in Mpumalanga and his
wife were shot dead and hacked with pangas at their home in Lothair
on Sunday night in what the party believes was a politically
motivated attack, African Eye News Service reported on Monday.
Police spokesman Sergeant Leonard Hlathi said two men shot dead
Senzangakhona Cornelius Nkosi, 53, and his wife, Christina, 46, and
then hacked their bodies with pangas.
He said the men knocked at the couple's front door at about 8pm
and demanded to see Nkosi, who was sleeping at the time.
When Nkosi entered the room, one of the men drew a gun and
pointed it at him.
Nkosi's 17-year-old son, Collen, jumped out of a window and ran
for help, but his father was gunned down before he reached a
neighbour's house.
"When he arrived home with neighbours, he found his father and
mother lying in a pool of blood," Hlathi said.
IFP chairman in Mpumalanga, Maxwell Sibiya, said he believed
the attack was politically motivated.
He urged IFP members to remain calm and not to take the law
into their own hands, and said problems between the African
National Congress and the IFP should be resolved at meetings.
@ REGISTER-IDS
PRETORIA JAN 18 Sapa
HOME AFFAIRS TO POST UNCOLLECTED IDS BEFORE REGISTRATION
The Department of Home Affairs will post uncollected identity
documents to their owners before voter-registration at the end of
the month, it said in a statement on Monday.
Bar-coded IDs issued after June 1998 would be posted within the
next few days, said department spokesman Manase Makwela.
He said the exercise would ensure prospective voters were not
disenfranchised by not collecting their IDs.
The department also appealed to South Africans without
bar-coded identity documents to apply for temporary registration
certificates.
Mpumalanga premier Mathews Phosa in a statement on Monday said
70 percent of the public had not yet registered to vote.
He urged them to register on January 29, 30 and 31.
Federal Alliance leader Louis Luyt on Monday said his party
supported efforts to allow anyone with a legitimate identity
document to vote.
"It is absolutely unthinkable that millions of South Africans
can literally be disenfranchised through a shortsighted ANC
government decision to limit voting to only those with bar-coded
IDs, " he said.
He asked members of all political parties to monitor polling
stations to ensure a fair, authentic and legal registration
process.
@ MBEKI-EASTCAPE
UMTATA January 18 1999 Sapa
MBEKI LAUNCHES CONSTRUCTION OF NEW R350 MILLION HOSPITAL
The construction of a new R350 million academic hospital at
Umtata in the Eastern Cape was on Monday officially launched by
Deputy President Thabo Mbeki.
The 540-bed Academic Health Service Complex would provide
referral services which could eliminate the Eastern Cape's
dependence on other provinces for specialist health services, the
province said in a statement.
It and national government had jointly set aside R150 million
for the first year of construction.
Health MEC Trudy Thomas said at the launch she expected the
project to provide up to 1000 jobs over the 30-month construction
period.
The province said of the R350 million construction budget,
about R55 million was expected to benefit previously disadvantaged
individuals and affirmative (action) business enterprises.
Construction firm Murray and Roberts won the contract to build
the hospital, which is expected to be completed by November 2001.
It will be linked to the University of the Transkei and will
have 10 operating theatres.
It will cater for a number of specialities including
neurosurgery, opthalmology, surgery, internal medicine and
oncology.
Facilities will include a 14-bed intensive care unit, an
emergency department, trauma unit and specialist x-ray facilities.
Mbeki said the hospital would help fulfill the government's
goal of providing accessible and quality health services to
previously neglected areas of South Africa.
He praised foreign doctors for working in South Africa's rural
areas and expressed gratitude to the Cuban government for having
deployed about 500 doctors to assist government in providing basic
health services.
Earlir on Monday Mbeki officially opened the upgraded
Umtata-Alexander road, to be known as Nelson Mandela Drive.
The R10,5 million upgrading of the road - a section of the N2
freeway
- created about 100 construction jobs for the local community.
Mbeki said the project sgnalled government's committment to
developing areas that had been marginalised for decades, but warned
that it had limited resources to meet the backlog it faced.
"We will try and catch up with many years of under-development
and such a commitment can only be realised when communities take
the initiative and drive development," he said.
Mbeki urged communities to act to bring an end to the carnage
on South Africa's roads and to put a stop to taxi violence.
Heavy rain caused headaches for organisers of the launch of the
reconstructed road, which took place in a huge tent and was
attended by several hundred people.
Mbeki also met members of the local business community, the
management of the University of the Transkei and members of the
Umtata transitional local council.
@ MEDIA-RACISM
JOHANNESBURG January 18 1999 Sapa
TERMS OF REFERENCE OF PROBE INTO RACISM IN THE MEDIA ANNOUNCED
The South African Human Rights Commission on Monday announced
the terms of reference and procedures of its proposed investigation
into racism in the media.
The commission announced it would conduct the investigation in
November.
In a statement, the commission said the terms of reference
would be three-fold:
- to investigate the existence of racism in the media, with
the focus on the manifestation of racism in what was produced and
disseminated by the media rather than the existence of racism in
the structure and workplace of the media. However, the issues of
structure and workplace would be investigated if they were related
to the manifestation of racism in the media;
- to establish the causes of, the reasons for and the impact
of such racism; and
- to make appropriate findings and recommendations that would
contribute to the elimination of racism in the media.
Commission spokesman Robert Nkuna said the investigation would
cover the media in general.
Written submissions would be invited from organisations,
individuals and interested groups, including the media, and the
commission would also use its own resources and personnel or engage
the services of independent individuals or agencies to undertake
research.
Where appropriate, the submissions would be made available to
the public.
The commission could also convene public hearings at which
invited witnesses would give testimony. The hearings would be
"inquisitorial rather than adversarial in nature," the statement
said.
In conclusion, the commission would publish a report containing
its findings and recommendations.
@ ZIM-EDITOR
HARARE January 18 1999 Sapa-AP
JUDGE ORDERS ZIMBABWE EDITOR'S RELEASE FOR A SECOND TIME
A judge on Monday ordered the military to release a newspaper
editor it detained a week ago for reporting on a suspected coup
plot.
Judge James DeVittie said if the journalist was not brought to
his court chambers by 10 p.m. (2000 gmt) he would order the arrest
of the defense minister and his top aide, the defense secretary.
Court officials were to serve the papers on the minister, Moven
Mahachi, and Defense Secretary Job Whabira. The order would pit the
civilian police against the military.
It was the first time since independence in 1980 the High Court
threatened to arrest a government minister for contempt. Mahachi is
a close confidant of President Robert Mugabe.
Another judge had ordered Mark Chavunduka, editor of the weekly
Standard newspaper, released last Thursday, but the military
refused.
Chavunduka, 34, has been held since Tuesday in a barracks in
Harare after his paper said 23 soldiers, including seven officers,
were arrested Dec. 17 for plotting to overthrow the government over
its involvement in the civil war in the distant Congo and over
claims of economic mismanagement.
Mahachi has denied the Standard report, describing it as
"treasonable" and said the newspaper aimed to undermine military
morale.
Judge George Smith on Thursday ruled the military had no
jurisdiction over civilians and Chavunduka should have been
arrested by civilian police, given access to his lawyer and family
and brought to court within 48 hours of his arrest if suspected of
an offense by the government.
Standard publisher Clive Wilson said Chavunduka has not been
allowed to see lawyers, his wife and children or friends and
colleagues since he was detained early last Tuesday. The military
also refused to accept food taken to the barracks by his family.
Mahachi was expected back in Harare later Monday from a summit
of regional leaders on the Congo war in the Namibian capital,
Windhoek.
Court officials responsible for serving the release order on
the two defense officials had closed their offices by the time the
order was issued and would have to be brought from their homes,
Wilson said.
"If it is not possible to serve tonight, there's no
alternative but to wait until the morning. It is a disgraceful
situation in which the defense ministry has flouted constitutional
law," he said.
The human rights organization Amnesty International has
protested the detention.
@ On September 22, the SA National Defence Force, followed by the
Botswana Defence Force, crossed the border to quell mounting
protests after the results of the country's general election in
May.
Mamello Morrison, spokeswoman for the opposition alliance, told
Sapa: "I saw a commotion outside the prison on my way home. There
was a rumour that the alleged mutineers were supposed to be charged
today. Their lawyers apparently walked out because they were
opposed to the court proceedings taking place inside the prison
yard."
Makhoabe Mohaleroe, whose brother-in-law Warrant Officer
Makotoko Lerothole is among the alleged mutineers, said: "There are
about 11 SA National Defence Force armoured vehicles and 11
Botswana Defence Force vehicles outside the prison. There are about
40 troops on foot."
@ COURT-SANAB
PRETORIA January 18 1999 Sapa
PRETORIA NARCOTICS HEAD IN COURT ON THEFT AND OTHER CHARGES
The head of the Pretoria SA Narcotics Bureau, Superintendent
Hermanus Christiaan Dup du Plessis, on Monday appeared in the
Pretoria Magistrate's Court on charges of theft, fraud and
defeating the ends of justice.
Du Plessis made a brief appearence before Magistrate Renier
Boshof after his arrest by the anti-corruption unit at his Pretoria
office on Friday.
He was not asked to plead and was released on his own
cognisance. He was ordered to hand in his passport and firearm.
The magistrate also told him not to contact any potential
witnesses in the case.
The case was postponed to March 18 for further investigation.
Police management will decide next week whether to suspend him
pending the outcome of the trial.
Du Plessis was last year acquitted on charges of misconduct in
an internal police investigation into allegations against him.
The allegations, made by several Sanab members, included that
he had demanded that they work night shifts, that he had insulted
various officers, threatened them and made certain financial
demands.
The investigation found that while Du Plessis had made certain
mistakes in the handling of his unit, he had in certain respects
acted in the wider interests of the police and his unit.
It found that there was not substantive evidence to prove that
he was guilty of any serious misconduct or criminal offence.
@ CRIME-GUNS
PIETERSBURG January 18 1999 Sapa
NORTHPROV CONSIDERING RADICAL GUN CONTROL CAMPAIGN
The Northern Province legislature is considering radical
measures to clamp down on the abuse of legal firearms following the
death of at least eight people in domestic disputes over the
weekend.
Safety and security MEC Seth Nthai on Monday said increasing
numbers of people were murdering relatives or friends with
registered firearms during emotional arguments or drinking
sessions.
"A lot of these crimes simply wouldn't happen if people didn't
have weapons with them when they were upset. We need to find
radical ways of clamping down on the use of firearms without
infringing on the genuine rights of people," said Nthai.
Police commissioner Alfred Malete confirmed on Monday that at
least eight people were killed during separate domestic or
non-crime related incidents over the weekend.
These included the murder of two brothers at a funeral vigil by
an estranged relative and the murder by a student of three Tompi
Seleka Agricultural College lecturers on Friday.
The alleged killer, David Malebane, later committed suicide
when confronted by police.
Malete said a Pretoria policeman also used his service pistol
to murder his girlfriend, Francina Mojapelo, at their Mashashane
village home on Saturday.
The unidentified policeman later turned the pistol on himself
and killed himself.
Meanwhile, police were investigating the shooting of two
mourners at the funeral of a Bushbuckridge taxi operator on Sunday.
Unidentified gunmen opened fire on the funeral procession as it
moved past the Bushbuckridge taxi rank, seriously injuring a
23-year-old and 36-year-old mourner.
The two injured men were rushed to Mapulaneng hospital, where
they were reported to be in stable conditions.
"Firearms should only be used in extreme circumstances when you
are under direct physical threat. Anyone firing a firearm in any
other circumstances in this province will be dealt with very
severely by the law," warned Nthai.
@ DRCONGO-ANGOLA
LUANDA January 18 1999 Sapa-AP
ANGOLA, CONGO AND REP. OF CONGO DISCUSS THREE WARS
The leaders of Congo, the Republic of Congo and Angola said
Monday they would combine efforts to end the wars in each country
that pose a growing threat to regional stability.
"Only in a global framework can a final solution be found" to
end the conflicts in the central African region, the leaders said
in a statement released after a three-hour summit in the Angolan
capital, Luanda.
Details of how the three presidents - Jose Eduardo dos Santos
of Angola, Laurent Kabila of Congo and Dennis Sassou-Nguesso of the
Republic of Congo - will cooperate to contain the rebel movements
in their neighboring countries were not released.
According to the statement, the solution would imply a common
political and military strategy to "hasten the advent of peace and
stability in the region."
The Angolan army, fighting UNITA rebels at home in a bitter
civil war that resumed last month after four years of fragile
peace, already has about 400 troops in the Republic of Congo to
support Sassou-Nguesso against outlawed militia groups.
These groups are trying to oust the president, who seized power
in October 1997 after a brutal six-month civil war.
Angola, who helped Kabila oust long-time ruler Mobutu Sese Seko
in 1997, is also supporting the president against insurgents backed
by Rwanda and Uganda.
The statement also said the wars in the three countries were
intertwined and were "induced and supported from outside, moved by
interests beyond the African continent."
The Angolan president has condemned rebel forces in the three
countries for linking their war efforts in an attempt to
regionalize their action.
Dos Santos also accused a "neighbor" - an apparent reference
to Zambia - and two other African countries "engaged in
destabilizing central Africa," apparently referring to Rwanda and
Uganda, of backing the UNITA rebels.
Rwandan president Pasteur Bizimungu and his Ugandan counterpart
Yoweri Museveni met Kabila's backers - the presidents of Zimbabwe
and Namibia and Angola's defense minister - in Namibia Monday to
discuss Congo's five-month civil war.
@ ANC BEST WISHES TO MUSLIMS FOR EID
Issued by: African National Congress
EID MESSAGE
The day of Eid marks the culmination of a month of struggle by
Muslims - a struggle of self denial that makes us all proud.
The month of Ramadaan (fasting) is a month of discipline, a
month of caring for the less fortunate, a month of character
building - qualities that our nation solely needs in our quest for
reconciliation, reconstruction and renaissance.
Eid is a day of thanksgiving after this long struggle - not
dissimilar to our own struggle for freedom. The challenge for
Muslims and indeed for all South Africans is to take these
qualities, that we have nurtured in the struggle, forward in the
coming year and beyond.
Muslims, being part of the tapestry of our nation, all to the
richness and diversity of its texture. Muslims have contributed
significantly to our great African civilisation and our expectations
of their contribution to the African renaissance is no less.
I take this opportunity to wish our Muslim community, on behalf
the ANC, the best wishes for Eid. May you have a peaceful and
joyous day with your family and friends and may the coming year be
filled with success, prosperity and harmony.
ISSUED BY THABO MBEKI, PRESIDENT OF THE ANC
18 January 1999
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT THABO MASEBE : 0825753978.
@ DEPUTY PRESIDENT CONGRATULATES SA CRICKET TEAM
Issued by: Office of Deputy President T.M. Mbeki
I wish to congratulate the South African cricket team in its
very rare achievement in beating the West Indies in Centurion Park,
thereby winning the series five nil.
This emphatic victory was all the more historic in that it
happened so quickly after South Africa's readmission into
international cricket. By defeating the mighty West Indies on home
soil, South Africa attained a historic feat in that this was the
first comprehensive 5 nil win over a visiting team. I take this
opportunity of congratulating Hansie Cronje and his young team in
achieving this milestone in international cricket.
I would also like to wish the South African team success in the
coming World Cup and that it is hoped that they would emulate their
rugby counterparts in bringing back the World Cup.
For further information contact Ronnie Mamoepa on cell no: 082 990
4853
18 January 1999
@ ANC-EID
JOHANNESBURG January 18 1999 Sapa
MBEKI SENDS ANC'S BEST WISHES TO MUSLIMS FOR EID
African National Congress president Thabo Mbeki on Monday
wished the Muslim community well for Eid, the feast marking the end
of the holy fasting month of Ramadan.
"The day of Eid marks the culmination of a month of struggle by
Muslims - a struggle of self-denial that makes us all proud," Mbeki
said in a statement.
"The month of Ramadan is a month of discipline, a month of
caring for the less fortunate, a month of character building -
qualities that our nation solely needs in our quest for
reconciliation, reconstruction and renaissance.
"Eid is a day of thanksgiving after this long struggle - not
dissimilar to our own struggle for freedom.
"The challenge for Muslims and indeed for all South Africans is
to take these qualities that we have nurtured in the struggle
forward in the coming year and beyond," Mbeki said.
@ MBEKI-CRICKET
JOHANNESBURG January 18 1999 Sapa
MBEKI CONGRATULATES SA CRICKET TEAM ON 5-0 SERIES VICTORY
Deputy President Thabo Mbeki on Monday congratulated the South
African cricket team on what he termed "its very rare achievement"
in beating the West Indies at Centurion Park, Pretoria to score a
5-0 win in the Test series between the two countries.
"This emphatic victory was all the more historic in that it
happened so quickly after South Africa's readmission into
international cricket," he said.
He wished the South African team success in the World Cup,
expressing the hope that the cricketers would emulate their rugby
counterparts by winning the competition.
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A N C D A I L Y N E W S B R I E F I N G
WEDNESDAY 20 JANUARY 1999
PLEASE NOTE: This News Briefing is a compilation of items from South
African press agencies and as such does not reflect the views of the
ANC. It is for reading and information only, and strictly not for
publication or broadcast.
To unsubscribe from the ANC Daily News Briefing mailing list send a
message to 'list...@wn.apc.org'. In the body of your message put
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@ MANDELA ON THE OCCASION OF EID-UL-FITR
Issued by: Office of the President
It is my privilege and pleasure to convey on behalf of the
Government good wishes to Muslims in our country and the world-over
on the joyous occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr at the conclusion of Ramadaan.
Muslims throughout the world have been fasting daily from dawn
to sunset. I am confident that you have emerged from this period of
abstinence spiritually rejuvenated and fortified.
Fasting is a trial of physical endurance. It helps build
discipline and patience and is a time for deep reflection. But it is
also a means of developing empathy for the poor and destitute. It's
a bridge by which Muslims can reach out to the needy in all
communities.
Ramadaan and the celebration of Eid-ul-Fitr affords Muslims a
unique opportunity to strengthen the bonds of friendship and family
ties among themselves and with their fellow South Africans. As you
celebrate Eid together, I urge you to use the qualifies you have
strengthened during Ramadaan to help build a better life for all.
Let us all re-commit themselves to fight criminality, promote
development, spread justice and create jobs for the unemployed.
May I take this opportumnity of wishing you Eid Mubarak and a
prosperous future in our democracy.
Signature
NELSON MANDELA
PRESIDENT
REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA
@ MPUMA-PHOSA
NELSPRUIT January 19 1999 Sapa
PHOSA TO HAVE THIRD OPERATION ON LEG
Mpumalanga Premier Mathews Phosa returns to the Middelburg
hospital on Tuesday night for a third operation on his leg since
his car accident on the N4 highway near Belfast in June last year.
The aim of the operation, to be performed on Wednesday morning,
was to stimulate bone growth in the leg, Phosa said in a statement
on Tuesday.
He said the operation would be a small one and that he and the
doctors were very satisfied with the progress he had made. He hoped
to be back home by the weekend.
"The decision to operate again was a joint one taken by me and
my medical team.
"I want to be able to throw away my crutches soon and grab the
God-given opportunity of a second life."
Phosa was involved in the accident on the day he returned from
an investment-seeking trip to Germany.
@ LESOTHO-IPA
MASERU January 19 1999 Sapa
LESOTHO'S OPPOSITION ALLIANCE THREATEN TO WITHDRAW FROM IPA
The alliance of opposition parties in Lesotho on Tuesday
morning threatened to withdraw from the Interim Political Authority
because of what a party official dubbed "the worsening security
situation in our country".
The IPA is tasked with preparations for a new election in the
country, following allegations that the results of the election
held in May last year, overwhelmingly won by the Lesotho Congress
for Democracy, were rigged.
Opposition parties protested against the election results at
the palace gates for several weeks and on September 22 some
soldiers of the Lesotho Defence Force mutinied.
On Monday, soldiers on trial for the mutiny, allegedly took
warders' weapons and took them hostage to highlight the inhuman
conditions in which they were being held in prison.
"Yesterday's developments at the Maseru Central prison is an
indication of the worsening security situation in our country.
Believe you me...this body (the IPA), whose task - among others -
is to address the security situation, had failed to deal
effectively with the matter," a senior member of the opposition
alliance, who asked for anonymity, told Sapa from Maseru.
The 24-member IPA was scheduled to meet in Maseru on Tuesday
morning.
The alliance source said: "I think members of the opposition
alliance will withdraw their participation in the IPA until some
serious attention is given to security matters."
@ LAUNCH OF GOVERNMENT WEBSITE
Issued by: Government Communications (GCIS)
The Government Website, Gvernment Online, will officially be
launched in Pretoria on 28 January 1999 by the Government
Communication and Information System. One of the objectives of the
South African Government is to operate as an integrated entity with
a single corporate identity. Through the development of a
comprehensive Government Home Page, a mechanism is being created by
which the information of government departments, provinces and other
government bodies can be accessed from a one-stop gateway thereby
ensuring that government's image in cyberspace is seamless and
transparent. Dissemination of information by means of the Internet
will contribute towards the objective of government communications
as an integrated entity and will also facilitate quick navigation
and avoid duplication of government information on the Internet.
The development of the Government Website is in accordance with
the recommendations of the Comtask Report which was adopted by
Cabinet on 8 October 1996.
Government Online will provide and maintain links to Internet
pages of government departments, provinces and other government
bodies. It will publish information as it is delivered (where it is
not the direct line-functional responsibility of any government
departments; when it will enhance accessibility or when government
bodies do not yet have their own web-sites. Futhermore, it will
provide value-added features such as a search engine; maximum access
points to government information; feedback opportunity and the
functionality to request additional government communication.
Information currently covered includes:
- Organisational information
- Government documents and publications
- Speeches and press releases by government role-players
- Government Tender Bulletin
- Provincial and local government information
- Information on South Africa
- Links to a wide range of relevant web-sites covering topical
issues, including South African news sources.
The Government Web-Site can be found at http://www.gov.za
Further information regarding the website may be obtained from:
Tilde Eloff. Tel. (012) 314 2138.
e-mail: ti...@gcis.gov.za
Hilda Korsten. (012) 314 2140
e-mail: hi...@gcis.gov.za
Media queries may be directed to: Faizal Dawjee: Tel. (012) 314 2133
Petra Wiese: Tel. (012) 314 2452.
Issued by the Government Communication and Information Sytem
19 January 1999
@ EID-MANDELA
CAPE TOWN January 19 1999 Sapa
MANDELA SENDS GOOD WISHES TO MUSLIMS FOR EID
President Nelson Mandela on Tuesday wished the Muslim community
well for Eid, the feast marking the end of the holy fasting month
of Ramadan.
"I am confident that you have emerged from this period of
abstinence spiritually rejuvenated and fortified," Mandela said in
a statement.
Fasting was a trial of physical endurance which helped build
discipline and patience, and a time for deep reflection. But it was
also a means of developing empathy for the poor and destitute, he
said.
"It's a bridge by which Muslims can reach out to the needy in
all communities."
He said Ramadan and the celebration of Eid-ul-Fitr afforded
Muslims a unique opportunity to strengthen the bonds of friendship
and family ties among themselves and with their fellow South
Africans.
"I urge you to use the qualities you have strengthened during
Ramadan to help build a better life for all," Mandela said.
@ DRCONGO-TALKS
GOMA, DR Congo, January 19 1999 Sapa-AFP
REBELS WELCOME CEASEFIRE TALKS BUT NOT DIRECTLY CONCERNED
Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) rebels on Tuesday welcomed
progress towards a ceasefire made by five states fighting in the
country but said they were "not directly concerned" by the
development.
"This accord delights us even if we are not directly
concerned," Bizima Karaha, spokesman for the rebellion's political
wing, told AFP in Goma, a rebel stronghold in DRC.
In Windhoek on Tuesday, Angola, Namibia and Zimbabwe, who
support DRC President Laurent Kabila, and Rwanda and Uganda, who
back the rebellion, said they were ready to sign a ceasefire
document and, crucially, that they had devised a way for the rebels
to be more closely associated to the peace process.
This was "a good thing" according to Arthur Zahidi Ngoma, vice
chairman of the rebels' political wing.
But "since we were not there (in Windhoek) we are not concerned
by this accord for the moment. A second stage will perhaps involve
us and there it will be a question of negotiating conditions,"
added Ngoma.
Neither the rebellion nor a DRC government delegation were
present in Windhoek but are now considered as being under greater
pressure to move ahead with the peace process.
@ PETROLEUM-SALES
JOHANNESBURG January 19 1999 Sapa
PETROLEUM SALES GREW BY 1,5 PERCENT IN 1998
Major petroleum sales in South Africa grew by 1,5 percent in
1998 compared to 1997, the South African Petroleum Industry
reported Tuesday.
In 1997 sales grew 2,5 percent over 1996.
Petrol sales, which still accounted for more than half of total
sales, grew by 0,9 percent for the year. Sales of diesel, an
important agricultural, commercial and industrial fuel, grew by 1,5
percent for the year. Jet fuel sales grew by 5,5 percent.
Sales of illuminating paraffin, a product on which half of all
South Africans are dependent for cooking, heating, lighting and
refrigeration, grew by 8,1 percent. Sales of Bitumen, used in road
construction and maintenance, fell by 7,7 percent.
There was 3,7 percent growth in the fourth quarter of 1998 over
the same period in 1997. Illuminating paraffin sales grew by 10,7
percent while those of diesel grew by 4,6 percent. "Fears of an El
Nino drought reduced agricultural consumption during this quarter
of 1997, whereas in 1998 there has been good rainfall. It is again
hoped that the relative growth rates of diesel and paraffin do not
also reflect increased illegal use of paraffin in place of diesel
to avoid the Fuel Tax. Petrol sales growth in the fourth quarter
was 1,9 percent."
Sapia said the penetration of unleaded petrol as a precentage
of total petrol sales was about 10 percent which was below the 15-
to 20 percent target. "The planned introduction in May of 92 RON
octane unleaded Petrol in the inland area should have a beneficial
impact on penetration."
@ EDUC-BENGU
PRETORIA January 19 1999 Sapa
GOVT TO GIVE R390 MILLION FOR NEEDY STUDENTS THIS YEAR: BENGU
The government would give R390 million for needy students this
year, Education Minister Sibusiso Bengu said in Pretoria on
Tuesday.
He said in a statement this represented a 20-fold increase in
state financial aid to students since 1994.
The amount allocated for this year was in line with the annual
amount recommended by the National Students Financial Aid Scheme
last August.
More than 264402 awards had since 1994 been made to students
from R1,7 billion in state and donor contributions.
"This is... a clear indication of our unstinting commitment to
increasing the access to higher education of financially needy but
academically able students," Bengu said.
He said he expected a similar commitment from the other
parties. Students and the managers of tertiary institutions should
do their part to ensure that the financial aid scheme was
sustainable.
"I trust that students will accept that higher education is not
free, and ensure that they contribute to the cost of their
studies," Bengu said.
"Similarly, I trust that higher education institutions will
manage the resources at their disposal in a manner that promotes
institutional stability."
The state's contribution to the natonal financial aid scheme
was being managed by the Tertiary Education Fund of SA. Plans were
in the pipeline to convert this fund into an administratively
independent statutory agency with a board appointed by the
minister, Bengu said.
@ MBEKI-EID
CAPE TOWN January 19 1999 Sapa
MBEKI CALLS FOR TOLERANCE IN EID MESSAGE
Deputy President Thabo Mbeki called for political tolerance and
made a thinly-veiled attack on vigilante group Pagad when he
attended an Eid service at a Cape Town mosque on Tuesday morning.
Speaking at the Claremont Mosque, where he was given a chair so
that he did not have to sit on the floor, he said the Muslim
community in South Africa had a proud history of participation in
the liberation struggle.
It had not fought to overcome the use of force against
political opponents, such as shootings, hangings and
assassinations, so that other people could emerge "with guns in
their hands (and) pipe bombs" to ensure that an opinion different
from theirs was not expressed.
Mbeki also said it was important for people who decided to
fight crime not to set themselves above everyone else, as though
they alone were appointed by Allah to perform that task.
"We all of us need to join hands, not chase people away," he
said.
Mbeki said the coming general election had to be approached in
a spirit of tolerance.
There had already been reports of people being killed, and that
some political factions in the Western Cape were preparing a
campaign of intimidation.
The Muslim community should join hands to ensure that people
were allowed to campaign freely and without intimidation, and vote
as they wished.
"If they want to vote for Gerald Morkel, that's okay. I
wouldn't," he said.
"What has to underlie the recognition of our unity in diversity
is tolerance. If our country becomes characterised by intolerance,
then we are indeed in problems."
Mbeki said he was under pressure to write an autobiography, or
to allow other people to write a biography. One of the things he
would say in this was that some of the people who had taught his
generation in the struggle, who "gave us values we sustain", had
been Muslim activists.
Mbeki also rejected what he said were calls from within South
Africa for Yasser Arafat to be removed as leader of the Palestinian
Liberation Organisation.
He said Arafat was a recognised and proven leader, and deserved
continued support.
As an historic ally of the African National Congress, the PLO
had never sought to dictate how South Africans should conduct their
liberation struggle. South Africa in turn had never tried to tell
the PLO what to do.
"I believe we need to continue to abide by that position," he
said.
Imam Rashid Omar told the congregation that the African
Renaissance challenged Muslims' loyalties and allegiances in a
profound way.
Muslims in South Africa were all too ready to protest over what
was happening to their fellows in Palestine or Iraq, but were sadly
oblivious to the suffering of their brothers and sisters in Africa.
"Is African blood less sacred?" he asked.
Scholars should be encouraged to reinterpret Islam in the light
of an African reality.
@ ZAMBIA-ANGOLA
LUSAKA January 19 1999 Sapa-AFP
ZAMBIAN LEADER CHALLENGED TO REFUTE UNITA ARMS CHARGE
Former Zambian leader Kenneth Kaunda has challenged the
incumbent President Frederick Chiluba, to refute charges that he
has helped to arm UNITA rebels in Angola, press reports said
Tuesday.
"There is no smoke without fire, let them deny it convincingly
and effectively because Angola keeps coming back with the same
accusations," the Independent Post newspaper quoted Kaunda as
saying.
Angola has twice accused Zambia of facilitating the shipment of
arms to the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola
(UNITA).
Fresh allegations were made at the weekend during a meeting of
foreign and defence ministers from several African states trying to
map out a peaceful solution to the conflict in the Democratic
Republic of Congo.
Kaunda said the fact that Zambia has been accused twice raised
lots of questions which Chiluba had failed to address adequately.
Zambia has on several ocassions denied any involvement in the
alleged shipment of arms to UNITA and has been cleared by the UN
and the Organisation of African Unity (OAU).
@ DRCONGO-NNP
CAPE TOWN January 19 1999 Sapa
UDPS A LEGITIMATE ROLE PLAYER IN DRC: NNP
The New National Party on Tuesday called on the government to
acknowledge that the Democratic Republic of Congo's Union for
Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS) was a legitimate political
role player in the war-torn country.
Attempts by UDPS to get a hearing from the South African
government had fallen on deaf ears, NNP spokesman on foreign
affairs Boy Geldenhuys said in a statement.
He said UDPS leader Etienne Tshisekedi enjoyed huge popular
support in the DRC.
"No attempt has been made by the South African government to
ensure the free movement of the UDPS leadership, including Dr
Tshisekedi, to voice their constructive, peaceful solutions
internationally and to mobilise domestically," Geldenhuys said.
@ DRCONGO-NAMIBIA
WINDHOEK January 19 1999 Sapa-AFP
GLIMMERS OF PEACE IN DR CONGO FOLLOW WINDHOEK MEETING
The push for peace here by five African countries embroiled in
the conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has yielded
the first glimmers of a workable ceasefire.
Namibia, Angola and Zimbabwe - key military allies of Kinshasa
- and Uganda and Rwanda, who are backing a five month old
rebellion, agreed in the Namibian capital Windhoek Monday to sign a
regional ceasefire accord.
All had voiced their desire for peace before, but this time
they believe they have found a way of accommodating the DRC rebels,
who began their uprising in eastern DRC on August 2, in a ceasefire
agreement.
They also agreed to ask the Organisation of African Unity (OAU)
to deploy a peacekeeping force to the vast central African country.
In reponse, DRC President Laurent Kabila said in Kinshasa on
Monday that he had not yet been "officially informed" of the
outcome of the Windhoek conference and that "nothing has yet been
signed."
The rebels, who launched an offensive against Kinshasa in
August last year, were more positive and said the Windhoek
agreement was "a good thing" - a step in the right direction.
"Since we were not there (in Windhoek) we are not concerned by
this accord for the moment," vice-chairman of the rebels' political
wing Arthur Zahidi Ngoma said.
"A second stage will perhaps involve us and there it will be a
question of negotiating conditions."
The five belligerents in Windhoek said in a joint statement
Monday that they had made "significant progress" towards "achieving
greater mutual understanding between the core group of countries
involved in the conflict which should contribute significantly
towards a speedy signing of a ceasefire agreement."
They said the details of the ceasefire "will be worked out and
signed" once a summit of heads of African states involved in the
conflict could be convened in Zambia.
However, Kabila still has to be convinced to meet the rebels to
discuss the future of the former Zaire.
Informal contact has been made, and direct talks not ruled out
- but progress has been blocked by disagreement over a venue.
Kabila has refused to meet the rebels anywhere outside Kinshasa.
Namibia was on Monday optimistic about the Windhoek talks.
Foreign Minister Theo-Ben Gurirab said on national television:
"President Kabila has given the undertaking that whatever has been
agreed on here will be acceptable to him."
Namibian President Sam Nujoma also assured the press that "the
rebels have agreed to the ceasefire," and a top government official
said privately that if not, Rwanda would be able to convince them.
Whatever the fallout in Kinshasa and the rebel stronghold Goma,
the Windhoek conference made progress on two critical issues: the
necessity of including the rebels in the ceasefire pact and the
proposal that the OAU be trusted with supervising the peace
process.
A ceasefire was also announced in Paris last November, during
the France-Africa heads of state meeting, but was immediately
rejected by the rebels who were kept at the fringes of the
conference.
It was decided in Windhoek that the opposing factions will sign
separate ceasefire documents, a diplomatic formula already used for
the signing of independence agreements.
For Namibia, the conference on its soil also went some way in
assuaging public unhappiness over the country's costly military
intervention in the DRC.
Last year, the desert nation of about 1.6 million people spent
close to 10 million dollars on the war effort - this from a
country unable to fund its education budget.
At least 10 Namibian soldiers have been killed in the DRC since
their deployment in August.
The government in Zimbabwe, also in economic turmoil, has faced
similar public criticism.
For several weeks Angola has been battling an upsurge in
fighting on its own terrority as the rebels of Jonas Savimbi's
National Union for the Total Independence (UNITA) launched a new
offensive against the government.
Uganda and Rwanda been involved in war in the DRC since 1996 -
first backing Kabila in his bid to depose long-time despot Mobutu
Sese Seko, then rounding on him.
They have said several times that they are ready for peace,
especially since the war is hampering hopes for sustained
prosperity across mineral-rich central Africa.
@ DEFECT
CAPE TOWN January 19 1999 Sapa
ANOTHER SENIOR NNP POLITICIAN DEFECTS TO DP
Another senior New National Party politician has defected to
the Democratic Party - the fourth this week.
Antoinette Versfeld, a Western Cape MPL and until late last
year chairman of the NNP's caucus in the provincial legislature,
announced on Tuesday she was joining the DP.
She told a media conference in Cape Town she believed the time
was ripe for an alternative in South African politics.
She was also "very impressed" with the quality of the DP's MPLs
in the province and of its provincial leadership.
Versfeld, who comes from Darling on the Cape's West Coast, said
she was being accused from NNP quarters of disloyalty and "sour
grapes".
But this would ultimately be for the voters to decide, and not
for the NNP's executive committee.
Welcoming her, DP Western Cape leader Hennie Bester described
her as"one of the jewels in South African politics".
No-one in the Western Cape legislature, not even DP members,
was as dedicated to their electorate as Versfeld, he said.
He predicted that the NNP's failure to acknowledge her worth
would be one of the party's biggest mistakes in the run-up to this
year's general election.
Bester said the DP's main aim was not to destroy the NNP, but
to create an alternative for the province and the country.
On Monday, three senior NNP national MPs from the Western Cape
- Pauline Cupido, Chris Wyngaard and Glen Carelse - defected to
the DP.
Last month Cupido's husband Hendry, until then an NNP MPL in
the province, did the same.
@ MANDELA'S SPEECH AT UNVEILING OF THE SAMORA MACHEL MEMORIAL
Issued by: Office of the President
Mbuzini, Tuesday 19 January 1999
Your Excellency, President Chissano of Mozambique;
Premier Matthews Phosa;
Cabinet Ministers from Mozambique and South Africa;
Ms Graca Machel and members of the Machel family;
Nkosi Mahlalela;
Distinguished guests;
As we struggled, twelve years ago, to comprehend the tragedy
that had befallen us all, our only certainty was that the peoples
of Mozambique, South Africa, Africa and beyond, had been robbed of
a giant.
We mourned with Mozambique for the loss of a statesman, soldier
and intellectual who we claimed as our leader too. He was taken
from us even as a new Southern Africa was struggling to be born
amidst the death throes of the colonial and apartheid order.
And we grieved with all who were bereaved by the loss of loved
ones.
As South Africans who loved freedom - whether we were
underground; in exile; in prison; in our work-place or our
communities - we woved then that we would never forget, and that a
fitting memorial would be created when South Africa became a
democracy.
Today, we redeem that pledge.
We have gathered on the soil of a democratic South Africa, at
the site that was drenched with Mozambican blood. We have come to
unveil a monument that will forever declare our homage to the life
and vision of Samora Machel and to all those who lost their lives
on that fateful day.
It is painful that our quest to understand the causes of the
crash remains unfinished. The work of the Truth and Reconciliation
Commission, imperfect as it may be, has laid a foundation on which
South Africans can work to forge a common understanding of their
past. In the same measure, it has taken us further towards our goal
of bringing a legitimate and credible conclusion to the
uncertainties about the event on this hillside some twelve years
ago. It is up to all those who share our concern for the memories
of those we lost, to take this matter forward.
It grieves us, even today, to recall the shocking suffering
that our oppressors inflicted upon the people of Mozambique because they
dared to liberate themselves and to cherish our freedom as if it
were their own.
The emergence of an alternative non-racial and democratic
society in the liberated zones and countries of the region induced
fear and brutal anger int he apartheid regime. But it inspired the
region induced fear and brutal anger in the apartheid regime. But
it inspired the majority of South Africans with confidence. Today
these values are taking deep root as we reconstruct and develop our
countries, at peace with one another and as partners. Day by day
the peoples of our region are giving concrete shape to the vision of
development through co-operation which inspired Samora Machel and
others to found SADC.
This monument is a tribute to the men and women who lost their
lives on that night. Visitors and tourists to this site will not be
able to forget the names of Samora Machel, his colleagues and
comrades.
Because of the kind of people they were, and the principles
that inspired them, it will do more than that.
The Samora Machel Memorial, as part of our national Legancy
Project and along with similar efforts throughout our region, helps
affirm a history that was distorted and neglected under the old
order. By giving lasting life to these memories and recalling the
noble principles that gave birth to our democratic societies, they
help build our new nations and strengthen the unity of our region.
This monument in particular attests to the bonds between
Mozambique and South Africa. Standing at this crossroads between
three countries, int he path of the Maputo Development Corridor, it
bears witness to the fact that those who shared the trenches of
struggle have become partners for peace and prosperity.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank President
Chissano and his government for their contribution and support to
this collaborativ effort. I would like too to congratulate the
architect, Dr Jose Fortaz. We should also thank Nkosi Mahlalela for
the donation of the land upon which the monument could be built.
It is our intention as government to consult the community of
Mbuzini on ways of ensuring that this part of our heritage should,
in accordance with the principles of our reconstruction and
development programme, bring benefit to the communities int he
area.
Ladies and gentlemen;
If I may speak directly to those of you who lost loved ones at
this place. South Africa cannot take away your grief nor can we
amend what was taken from you.
Through our part in creating this memorial we are doing all we
can to ensure that our children's children and future generations
will remember those who opened the way for their freedom, as well
as
the principles which inspired them.
Accordingly I would like in conclusion to recall the words of
Samora Machel as he reflected on our shared aspirations:
"When we took up arms to defeat the older order, we felt the
obscure need to create a new society: strong, healthy and
prosperous, in which people free from all exploitation would
co-operate for the progress of all.
"In the course of our struggle we came to understand our
objectives more clearly - we felt especially that the struggle
to create new structures would fail without the creation of a
new mentality".
May this memorial serve as a beacon of the new morality that
must emerge strong if we are to bring lasting improvements in the
lives of our peoples.
May it impress upon us that the greatest homage we can pay to
Samora Machel and those who perished with him, is to work together
for peaceful and prosperous societies based on the principles of
justice and equity to which they dedicated their lives.
It will now be my privilege to unveil the Samora Machel
Memorial.
@ GRACA MACHEL SPEECH AT MEMORIAL UNVEIING
Issued by: Office of the President
SPEECH BY MRS. GRACA MACHEL AT THE
UNVEILING OF THE SAMORA MACHEL MEMORIAL.
MBUZINI, 19 JANUARY 1999
Your Excellency, President Mandela;
Your Excellency, President Chissano;
Premier Matthews Phosa;
Distinguished guests;
On behalf of the Machel family, I would like to begin by
expressing our thanks to all those who have made this monument
possible;
To the community who offered this plot of land where Samora and
his companions died, which is essential to the power of this
memorial;
To the local authorities who have always been supportive;
To the government of Mpumalanga province who have been closely
involved,
And of course the national Governments of South Africa and
Mozambique. We thank you all, most sincerely.
It is what we wanted as a family from the beginning, that the
significance of this small plot of land and what happened here
should be understood and preserved and kept alive.
But there is even more to it than that.
We wanted, in a very real sense, to keep Samora himself alive.
The only way to do that is to sustain the values and te
principles which were the passion of his life and the lives of those
who died here with him.
Samora is part of a generation of Mozambicans that brought
independence to Mozambique.
They contributed to the independence of Zimbabwe and to freedom
in South Africa.
Indeed through their example and their solidarity they helped
deepen freedom in Southern Africa as a whole, in Africa and the
world.
It is only the generations to come that can keep alive the
values for which they fought.
As part of Samora's generation, I want my son to be imbued with
the understanding that there can be no freedom or prosperity for
Mozambique except as an integral part of Southern Africa.
I want all the children of those who died on this spot to share
their parent's conviction that the freedom, peace and prosperity of
any country in our region depends on the other countries enjoying
these same things.
My wish is that all of my son's generation throughout the
region, orphaned and brutalised and ravaged by apartheid as they
have been, should acquire a passionate sense of their common destiny
and of a common citizenship beyond that of the nation.
And my most fervent wish is that as citizens and patriots of a
shared Southern Africa, they would be unshakable in their resolution
that never, never again should differences in political approach be
allowed to lead to violence in our region.
They should know that those thirty-five men and women, and many,
many others died because our opponents failed to open the way to the
peaceful resolution of differences.
The plane in which those men and women died was bringing them
back from a mission of peace.
White and black of every shade; young and old; men and women;
drawn from every region of Mozambique and every walk of life, they
were in their diversity and in the principles for which they stood,
a microcosm of the alternative civilisation based on non-racialism,
justice and respect for one another.
We do understand the anger of my son's generation at having been
caught up in such a senseless apparatus of injustice, oppression and
inhumanity.
If they should channel that anger into the building of peaceful
and prosperous societies based on the principles of social justice
for which their parent's generation fought, then the triumph over
oppression and injustice will be complete.
As a family we deeply appreciate the creation of this memorial.
It is a link in the chain of history, helping the torch of humanity
pass from our generation to the next, so that they in turn can pass
it on to their children.
I thank you!
@ DUKUDUKU
DURBAN January 19 1999 Sapa
COMMUNITY OCCUPYING DUKUDUKU FOREST AGREE TO RESETTLE
More than 900 families illegally occupying Dukuduku forest near
St Lucia in northern KwaZulu-Natal agreed to resettle on
alternative land acquired by the government, Minister of Water
Affairs and Forestry Kader Asmal announced in Durban on Tuesday.
At a news conference Asmal said this was the beginning of a
long process of resettlement and development which had to ensure
that the community was relocated in a peaceful and sustainable
mannner.
Police and the army had been requested to assist with
resettling the community.
Asmal said once the resettlement proceeded and rehabilitation
of the forest began, no one would be allowed to remain illegally in
the forest.
Registration of those living in the forest would start on
Tuesday afternoon and only those who registered would be allowed to
resettle on the land provided, Asmal said.
@ STORM-MOOSA
PRETORIA January 19 1999 Sapa
STORM-HIT ECAPE REGION MIGHT BE DECLARED DISASTER AREA: MOOSA
The Eastern Cape region that was hit by a severe storm might be
declared a disaster area, Provincial Affairs and Constitutional
Development Minister Valli Moosa said on Tuesday.
He said in Pretoria the cabinet committee on disaster
management would meet early on Wednesday to assess the impact of
the disaster, which claimed at least 21 lives.
Ten children were among those who died when the storm hit the
Mount Ayliff and Kokstad areas.
"Initial reports indicate that we may well have to consider
declaring Tabankulu and the surrounding areas a disaster area,"
Moosa said at the launch of a White Paper on Disaster Management.
Welfare and Population Development Minister Geraldine
Fraser-Moleketi said it was ironic that the release of the White
Paper came in the wake of the Eastern Cape disaster.
She said the cabinet committee would ensure that appropriate
action be taken to alleviate the plight of communities that
suffered because of the storm.
Such measures were likely to include declaring the districts
affected a disaster area.
@ ELECTROCOM
CAPE TOWN January 19 1999 Sapa
DISCUSSION PAPER ON ELECTRONIC COMMERCE TO BE READY BY JUNE
A discussion paper on electronic commerce in South Africa would
be available by June this year, Communications director-general
Andile Ngcaba said on Tuesday.
Government had to create an enabling legal and regulatory
environment in electronic commerce and support technological
developments that would lead to the establishment of global
connectivity, he said in a statement.
"Government also has to promote education to increase
information literacy among all citizens in order to allow operators
and consumers to reap the full benefits of electronic commerce."
The communications department was currently in the process of
establishing a policy framework for electronic commerce for South
Africa.
In reviewing and developing policies on electronic commerce,
government, with all stakeholders, would embark on a process that
would result in the legislation being effected by around mid-2000.
"We expect the policy process will take around two years to
complete", Ngcaba said.
@ SACOB-SUMMIT
JOHANNESBURG January 19 1999 Sapa
BLACK BUSINESS MUST EMBRACE CHALLENGE OF CHANGE
Black busiess leaders should embrace the challenge of change,
seek better ways of enhancing the performances of firms and
institutions, and recognise the need for working with other
organisations and interest group across the colour line.
This was said by Humphrey Khoza, president of the South African
Chamber of Business (Sacob) when he addressed the Black Business
Summit in Johannesburg on Tuesday.
He stated: "The required changes will result in a
transformation of unprecedented dimensions and will prove a turning
point for black business. The first step in the task of transition
management is accepting that transformation begins with letting go
of something."
He said organisations and institutions would be forced to
rethink how they were organised for the delivery of quality and
valued service.
"Therein lies the devil for black business and the challenge of
promoting the interests of all our citizens," he added."Such a
situation increasingly puts pressure on leaders and executives to
conduct strategic changes."
Khoza said that after widespread neglect and skewed roles as a
result of apartheid, black business was now required to remodel its
basic capabilities, controls and cultures to help rebuild the
economy and infrastructure.
He said to play a new role, business must unlearn the old ways
and "learn a new way of doing."
Khoza went on: "As South Africans we are only too aware of the
injurious effects of the apartheid system, let alone its adverse
effect on institutional efficiency and innovation. It also
alienated organisations and people who operated outside those
settings.
"Add to that a structural tendency towards inequity in the
distribution of rewards and access to facilities as well as
technocratic reluctance to address moral issues in decision-making,
then you have the makings of a solid indictment of bureaucracy. A
key challenge for black business in exploring strategic change is
to seek better ways of enhancing the performance of firms and
institutions," he said.
Khoza said both black and white people derived social
misunderstandings from institutions such as schools, professions
and unions that "propogate anachronistic views of how to organise".
He said MBA students were taught to scorn operational
activities and to hold out for the more alluring, promotion-filled
jobs.
"We shower our best graduates with power and glory when they
take jobs in investment, banking or in consulting and nod with
scarcely disguised scorn when they take staff jobs in personnel
departments.
"After all," continued Khoza," who can argue with seven figure
salaries? With jobs in which the size of a car establishes status
in the corporate pecking order."
He said black business needed nothing less than radical change
in terms of its mental models of management if it was to
re-orientate its institutional effectiveness as well as enhance its
ability to attend to questions of efficiency, entrepreneurship,
equity and ethics, which he called the four E's of corporate
performance.
Khoza said the formation of a United Black Business Front to
promote a focused economic empowerment programme without addressing
critical cultural issues was an ill-conceived notion.
The Sacob president also said that for business organisations
to become more effective there was no room for wasteful rivalry.
He added: "The business organisation landscape needs to be
better clustered in South Africa. Business leadership must
recognise the need for reciprocity with other organisations and
interest groups across the colour line."
@ GAUTENG-HEATH
JOHANNESBURG January 19 1999 Sapa
NO DECISION ON HEATH'S GAUTENG PROBE
Gauteng premier Mathole Motshekga and Heath Special
Investigative Unit head Judge Willem Heath on Tuesday discussed
allegations of mismanagement and fraud against the province, but
delayed taking a decision on whether the unit would formally
investigate them.
Motshekga said it was agreed further interaction between his
office and the unit was necessary to determine whether there was
substance to the allegations.
"The judge and myself will not act on things that have no
substance," he told journalists after a meeting with Heath that
lasted more than two hours.
Heath said mere allegations were insufficient for him to ask
the president's office for a proclamation authorising an official
investigation.
Asked what form the interaction would take, Motshekga said his
officials would interact with Heath's, exchange information and
make recommendations as to how to proceed from there. If necessary,
documentation would be made available to unit investigators.
Motshekga said if the unit decided to formally probehis
administration he would not stand in its way.
Heath said Motshekga's commitment to working with the unit was
evidence of his commitment to rooting out corruption, and Gauteng's
example was one other provinces should follow.
Asked how long it would take to determine whether an
investigation was necessary, Heath said that would depend on the
complexity of the issues, but the unit believed in acting
expediently.
The unit is expected to look into the controversy surrounding
the granting of low-cost housing subsidies and the issuing of
gambling licences in Gauteng, as well as allegations that
Motshekga's office was mismanaged and several of his staff were
incompetent or dishonest.
@ LAUNCH OF WHITE PAPER ON DISASTER MANAGEMENT
Issued by: Government Communications (GCIS)
Minister M V Moosa, Minister for Provincial Affairs and
Constitutional Development today launched the White Paper on
Disaster Management which outlines Government's new thinking in
relation to disaster management, in view of the recent disasters
related to the abnormal weather patterns, the timing of the launch
of the White Paper is especially significant. The White Paper
proposes a number of tools to implement to objectives of the policy
set out therein, most significant being a legislative programme
which will culminate in a new Disaster Management Act.
In line with international trends, priority is given to the
prevention of disasters. Unlike previous policies that focused
predominantly on relief and recovery efforts, this White Paper
underscores the importance of preventing or mitigating human,
economic and property losses, and avoiding environmental
degradation. Although preparedness and measures for more efficient
rescue operations will remain a necessity, much greater attention
must be directed to the introduction of preventative strategies.
Previously, scarce resources were diverted for disaster relief
at the expense of growth and developmental opportunities, resulting
in the worsening of the plight of poverty-stricken communities. The
plight of the most vulnerable sections of our population was ignored
and the very cause of their vulnerability - namely poverty - was
obscured. In line with Government's priorities, this White Paper
pays specific attention to the pressing needs of poor communities in
relation to both natural and human disasters.
The new approach is in keeping with the Government's commitment
to alleviate the plight of poor communities through its national
efforts in poverty reduction, land reform, housing, employment
creation, and service expansion and delivery.
Disaster management is furthermore not the exclusive preserve of
Government. The private sector and civil society have crucial roles
to play. The fostering of partnerships between government and the
private sectors is a prerequisite in order for sustainable and
effective disaster management to take place. Similarly, the spirit
of partnerships and co-operative governance between government
agencies is equally important due to the crosscutting nature of
disaster management.
Many organisations can play a role in reducing the impact of
disasters on the community and can contribute towards mitigating the
effects of a disaster which, traditionally, has been considered the
responsibility of the emergency services. These, amongst other,
include town planners (who determine appropriate land-use
development), organisations such as the tourist industry and the
media (which increase people's awareness of disasters) government
agencies and business (which provide funding for mitigation
measures) and importantly, actions taken by individuals and the
community to reduce their own risks.
The proposed legislation following the White Paper will, inter
alia, address current legislative gaps and clarify and allocate
responsibilities within Government for disaster management. The
importance of drafting such legislation in a manner that continues
to build on the participation of all stakeholders who were involved
int he Green Paper and White Paper processes cannot be
over-emphasised.
If we are to meet the unprecedented challenges that we face in
all fields in order achieve sustainable development, it is essential
for us to revise our patterns of thinking. This White Paper provides
the framework not only to go forward with the necessary legislative
programme and implementation, but also to interact with other
countries in Southern Africa and the rest of the world.
Issued by the Ministry for Provincial Affairs and Constitutional
Development on 19 January 1999
Enquiries: JJ (Onkgopotse) Tabane at (012) 334 0681 or 082 465 6166
or: Peet Stopforth at (012) 3340709 or 082 808 9878
@ RACISM-DEDEUR
JOHANNESBURG January 19 1999 Sapa
SAHRC TO TAKE STEPS ABOUT RESORT OWNER EXCLUDING BLACKS
The SA Human Rights Commission will take steps to ensure that a
resort owner who excludes black people, conducts his business in
accordance with the Constitution, the SAHRC said on Tuesday.
Spokesman Robert Nkuna in a statement said a delegation from
the commission visited the Louw's Resort on Monday and had talks
with the owner, Albert Michau, following the exclusion of a black
SABC journalist from the resort.
"After the SABC news report the commission decided to
intervene, given the racial undertones informing the exclusion of
blacks, and also informed by the commission's programme and mandate
of eliminating racism in society," Nkuna said.
He said throughout the discussion with the SAHRC delegation
Michau insisted that he did not see anything wrong with the
exclusion of blacks.
"He further argued that as the owner of the resort he was
entitled to do as he pleases, and that blacks were excluded because
they are not affiliated to the caravan clubs."
The SAHRC delegation had told him that the exclusion of people
on racial grounds was unconstitutional and unacceptable.
Nkuna said Michau was urged to change the manner in which he
ran his business, failing which the SAHRC would take steps to
ensure changes that conformed with the provisions of the
Constitution.
The commission delegation also visited the De Deur local
council to meet officials responsible for issuing licenses, who
informed them that the council would deal with the issue at their
meeting on Tuesday.
Nkuna said developments at the resort would be constantly
monitored and where necessary, the commission would take
appropriate steps to ensure redress.
"The Commission is of the opinion that this kind of practice
undermines the human rights culture that the Constitution and the
Human Rights Commission Act seek to promote and protect," he said.
Michau is to meet representatives of the Association of Caravan
Owners this weekend to discuss the issue.
@ TRUTH-BOIPATONG
VANDERBIJLPARK January 19 1999 Sapa
DRAMATIC NEW VERSION OF BOIPATONG GIVEN TO AMNESTY COMMITTEE
A dramatic new version of the events of the Boipatong massacre
in the Vaal Triangle in June 1992 was given to the Truth and
Reconciliation Commission's amnesty hearing in Vanderbijlpark on
Tuesday.
A former inmate of KwaMadala hostel, who has admitted being
part of the attack on the Boipatong community, on Tuesday handed in
a statement to the TRC's amnesty committee implicating the police
and senior Inkatha Freedom Party officials.
Andries Matanzima Nosenga, 25, handed in a separate amnesty
application to those of 16 former hostel dwellers who have applied
for amnesty for the massacre.
In a statement to the committee on Tuesday he outlined a
different chain of events to those given by the other applicants.
Nosenga has appealed to the TRC for protection because he
claims he has received death threats. He has also asked to be kept
in a different prison from the other applicants. His request is
being considered by TRC officials.
The other 16 applicants have repeatedly denied police
involvement in the attack, and claim it was carried out because of
attacks on them by residents of Boipatong. They applicants have
also denied the involvement of senior IFP officials in the planning
and execution of the attack.
Nosenga claims he joined the IFP and moved into KwaMadala
hostel after a fallout with African Naional Congress members in
Evaton in the Vaal Triangle.
He said that during the two years he spent at the hostel he was
taught to use a firearm and was told to attack the nearby community
of Boipatong, which was largely ANC-supporting.
He said IFP Gauteng leader Themba Khoza was a frequent visitor
to the hostel, and played a major role in planning the Boipatong
massacre.
Describing a meeting at the hostel shortly before the massacre,
Nosenga said Khoza and former murder and robbery police sergeant
Pedro Peens were present.
"During the meeting we were told to go to Boipatong and kill
the dogs. Khoza said a certain insect should be killed..." He said
hostel leaders at the meeting agreed that the residents should be
killed because they were not human.
Peens agreed to supply police Casspir vehicles for the attack.
Nosenga said that during the night of the attack he saw about
four Casspirs in a field near Boipatong, and also saw Peens
shooting at residents. He said he killed eight or nine people
himself during attack and fired off about 120 rounds from an AK47
rifle. Peens has been supoenaed to testify at the hearing, and is
expected to appear on Wednesday.
Nosenga said on the following day Khoza returned to the hostel
to collect the weapons used in the attack, and praised the people
who took part. About a month later he attended a rally held in
Ulundi in KwaZulu-Natal to celebrate the success of the attack.
"The leader of the IFP (Mangosuthu) Buthelezi held a speech in
which he thanked us for the good job we carried out in Boipatong,"
Nosenga said.
Earlier, six of the applicants were reprimanded by committee
chairman Judge Sandile Ncgobo for not appearing at the hearing on
Monday. The six, who faced the possibility of having their
applications for amnesty rejected because they were not present on
Monday, claimed there had been confusion about the date and the
venue for the hearing.
Ncgobo said the applicants should have taken it upon themselves
to establish the time and place for the hearing.
The massacre took place on June 17, 1992 after tension between
Inkatha Freedom Party-supporting hostel dwellers and the residents
of the Boipatong township erupted into violence.
The heavily-armed party of IFP supporters entered the township
at night and carried out random attacks on residents, resulting in
the death of 46 people and 21 injuries.
The hearing will resume on Wednesday.
@ PUPILS SENT HOME AMID REDEPLOYMENT
GRAHAMSTOWN (ECN) - The new school year started in chaos for
many schools in the Eastern Cape when promised stationery failed to
arrive and the government's redeployment programme was still not
finalised. Many schools sent their pupils home. Some schools, such
as Mary Waters Senior Secondary School in Grahamstown, told the
pupils only to return on Monday. Telephone interviews with
principals in the Eastern Cape and visits to schools in Grahamstown
revealed that redeployment was causing the most headaches as
teachers had yet to receive final allocation lists. This meant that
schools still did not know which teachers would be available to
teach and what classes they would teach. Schools anxious not to have
teachers chopped were also packing their classes to capacity.
In Grahamstown, a tale of two schools on opposite sides of
Raglan Road bore testimony to the indiscriminate bungling of the
Education Department. Both schools were constructed at the same time
and have exactly the same architecture. Yesterday, a visit to the
schools showed that one of the schools had received stationery,
while the other school had received none. The school with stationery
had also received some clarity on redeployment while the other
school was still in the dark. Samuel Ntsiko Primary School acting
deputy principal Nombulelo Kolita said the school had not received
exercise books and pens. She said: "We can't start teaching until
they arrive." She said: "The redeployment of teachers hampers
everything as you don't know how many pupils to admit and teachers
also don't know where they will be."
Last year the school had 1 000 pupils with 28 teachers and a
pupil ratio of 40 to 1, although with redeployment this ratio is
expected to increase. The school has yet to be told how many
teachers they will lose, but in many ways, as Kolita said: "In our
case no news is good news." Just across the road at Fikizolo Primary
School, stationary in the form of exercise books was received in
December, but no pens or pencils arrived for the children. Principal
Nontsikelelo Makupula said that five of their 28 teachers for nearly
1 000 pupils would be redeployed. Pointing at a complicated sum on a
blackboard in the staff room which calculates how many teachers the
school will get, she said: "I don't know what it means ... nobody
understands it."
Further up Raglan Road at Tem Mrwetyana High School, principal
Lindelo Ramokolo was battling water and electricity cuts. When the
school needed to use the photocopier, they had to send an extension
cord to the nearest house and beg for power. There were no ablution
facilities as the toilets were locked because there was no water.
Good news was that the school would receive an extra 17 teachers
through redeployment although Ramokolo does not know when they will
arrive or where they will go to the toilet. He said because
redeployment lists had not arrived it was "difficult" to start
teaching because teachers could not be allocated to subjects. The
school did receive stationary although Ramokolo said the wrong books
were sent and they had to be sent back. He said: "The department
don't know what they mean about transformation and don't have a
vision for change in education."
South African Democratic Teachers Union (Sadtu) Eastern Cape
deputy secretary Bruce Damons said: "As an organisation we can say
the process needs to be concluded, but schools must adopt their own
contingency plans and use provincial timetables." - ECN Tues 19\1\99
@ DISASTER-WHITEPAPER
PRETORIA January 19 1999 Sapa
MINISTER UNVEILS NEW POLICY ON DISASTER MANAGEMENT
A new government policy to manage disasters more effectively
was unveiled in Pretoria on Tuesday.
"The wait-and-see policy is something of the past," Provincial
Affairs and Constitutional Development Minister Valli Moosa said at
the launch of the White Paper on Disaster Management.
"The focus now is a proactive one, so as to minimise the impact
of disasters."
Moosa said the need for a new approach was underlined by this
week's disaster in the Eastern Cape, where at least 21 people died
when a severe storm struck several districts.
Another recent example was last month's floods in the Overberg
in the Western Cape that caused damage of R15 million, and left 650
people homeless. Two people died.
Also in December, thunderstorms destroyed 236 houses in
Vryheid, KwaZulu-Natal, leaving structural damage of R10 million.
"These events are ... a warning to everybody that disasters can
no longer be merely characterised as 'acts of God' about which
little can be done," Moosa said.
"It is true that the consequences of a disaster can never be
completely prevented, but the impact can be greatly reduced."
He said the White Paper would culminate in legislation to bring
the government's approach in line with international trends.
The document calls for a strategy to reduce the vulnerability
of especially poor and disadvantaged communities to disasters. This
will require development initiatives to be integrated with efforts
to reduce the risk and impact of disasters.
Minimum building standards should, for example, be set for
low-cost housing to ensure that such structures will withstand
extreme weather.
Transportation, telecommunication and electricity networks in
all communities, including those in remote and rural areas, should
also be sound to make them less vulnerable to natural forces.
The White Paper proposes that a national centre be set up to
co-ordinate disaster management. It should involve all spheres of
government and non-government bodies.
This centre should be a government structure and should - at
least as an interim measure - be managed by the Department of
Constitutional Development.
It should compile a comprehensive disaster management
information system on matters such as meteorological forecasts,
hydrological data and available emergency response resources.
The White Paper says the centre should provide a 24-hour
service, and should be able to respond rapidly and effectively to
emergencies.
In quiet periods, it should focus on longer-term risk reduction
and maintain links with other essential service organisations.
The White Paper proposes that the three disaster funds
currently administered by the Department of Welfare be merged into
a single disaster and emergency fund.
"This fund should be able to provide immediate relief directly
to people affected by disasters."
The disaster management centre hould be funded by the
government to ensure that it functions effectively, the White Paper
says.
It says the proposed new legislation should also provide for
provincial and local disaster management structures, funded by the
government.
Moosa called for strong regional co-operation in dealing with
disasters.
"This can lead to joint standards of practice in the region to
develop early warning systems to reduce the impact of possible
cross-border events," he said.
@ ANGOLA-US
LUANDA January 19 1999 Sapa-AP
UNITED STATES PRESSES ANGOLA TO RELEASE UNITA LAWMAKERS
The United States asked the Angolan parliament Tuesday to press
the government to release five lawmakers of the UNITA rebel group
who were detained last week.
The government took five UNITA lawmakers into custody last week
for alleged complicity in rebel attacks against three central
highland cities after last month's return to civil war that
fractured a 1994 U.N.-brokered peace accord.
"My country is interested in seeing lawmakers' rights, in my
country or any other country, fully respected," said U.S.
ambassador Joseph Sullivan after meeting Roberto de Almeida,
president of Angola's parliament, known as the National Assembly.
UNITA, the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola,
has 70 lawmakers in the 240-seat parliament.
The U.S. ambassador said they had also discussed U.S.
opposition to possible U.N. sanctions on the rebels'
telecommunications.
"What we need right now are effective sanctions," he said in
the Angolan capital, Luanda.
Despite U.S. concerns, the U.N. Security Council last week
voted unanimously to consider imposing the sanctions on UNITA after
the downing of two U.N.-chartered planes in a rebel-held area.
Civil war erupted after Angola was granted independence from
Portugal in 1975, becoming a proxy war between the United States
and South Africa, which were backing UNITA, and Cuba and the Soviet
Union helping the then-Marxist government of the MPLA, the Popular
Movement for the Liberation of Angola.
The war, which followed a 14-year fight for independence, was
halted by a 1991 peace deal that collapsed the following year when
UNITA leader Jonas Savimbi rejected his defeat in the country's
first elections and returned to war.
@ IDS-NNP
CAPE TOWN January 19 1999 Sapa
ID BOOKS POSTED BECAUSE OF COURT APPLICATION, CLAIMS NNP
The New National Party was convinced its court application
against the government on the bar-coded ID issue forced the Home
Affairs department to post thousands of bar-coded ID books to their
owners, the party's legal adviser, Andre Gaum, said on Tuesday.
It was clear the department now accepted that its decision to
withhold the books, while thousands of voters were confused about
where their books were, had been wrong, he said in a statement.
"It also confirms that the New NP's decision to approach court
in the interests of the voters to ensure a free and fair election
has been correct."
The party's attorneys had been instructed not to waive the
section in the application related to the return of IDs by home
affairs since it wanted to ensure that the department adhered to
its promise of posting them, Gaum said.
The application is to be heard before a full bench of the Cape
High Court on February 5.
@ DTI AND FINANCE BICKERING STALLING EL'S IDZ
GRAHAMSTOWN (ECN Business) - The development of South Africa's
Industrial Development Zones (IDZs) is being hampered by the
Department and Trade and Industry (DTI) and the Department of
Finance's failure to agree on incentive schemes.
This was said by recently-appointed East London IDZ Implementing
Authority CEO Peter Miles. Miles used to head up the Border-Kei
Chamber of Business in East London.
The IDZ Implementing Authority is a Section 21 company
established and jointly funded by the national and Eastern Cape
governments.
Its brief is to develop the IDZ, which is centred around East
London's harbour, to a stage where it can run profitably on its own.
At that stage management and marketing of the IDZ will be handed
over to a profit-seeking joint venture between the East London
municipality and as-yet-unidentified private sector companies.
The municipality will give the land on which the IDZ will be
developed as its equity contribution.
Miles said because the IDZ would not have to buy its land,
significant cost savings would be made which cold be passed on to
investors.
The company also had to market the greater East London area to
investors.
Miles, who took up his post on January 1, said that until the
IDZ legislation and incentive schemes were in place attracting
investors would be impossible.
He said SA's investment incentive schemes were inadequate and
needed special attention, especially those aimed at attracting
foreign direct investment (FDI) into IDZs.
Not knowing what investment environment would prevail was
offputting to potential investors - not only in East London but also
at Ngqura (Coega) near Port Elizabeth and Richards Bay in
KwaZulu-Natal.
Miles said he hoped the required legislation would be passed by
Parliament in its first session and by March 1.
However he had heard rumours that the bill had been pushed out
of the first session which cause for "grave concern".
Miles said his organisation was pushing for "worldwide-best
practice incentives" such as tax-holidays of up to 15 years for
investors and shortening depreciation periods.
Other non-financial incentives needed to be offered to
investors.
These included industrial relations, employment, skills and
training assistance and infrastructure and customs support.
Constraints facing the development of the IDZ included the fact
that skills levels in the local workforce needed to be assessed and
upgraded in terms of globally competitive standards.
Infrastructure such as roads, power, telecommunications and
water would also have to be provided and issues relating to safety
and security dealt with. - ECN Business zone 19/1/99
@ WATERFRONT
CAPE TOWN January 19 1999 Sapa-AFP
CAPE TOWN'S WATERFRONT IN DOLDRUMS SINCE CAR BOMB
The car bomb which shattered the peace at Cape Town's
Waterfront on New Year's Day sounded the death knell for tourism at
the popular complex, traders said Tuesday.
Owners of Waterfront businesses canvassed by the Cape Times
newspaper complained that their turnovers since the explosion had
plunged between 30 and 80 percent.
The blast only slightly injured two people but left deeper
emotional scars on Capetonians still coming to grips with the
August bombing of the Waterfront's Planet Hollywood restaurant,
which killed two people and hurt 25.
The newspaper said upmarket restaurants have been all but
deserted in recent weeks, while fast-food outlets reported a sharp
dip in trade.
A pub owner, Mark Abrahams, said business was down 80 percent
since the blast.
"On Saturday, there was no one in the pub except two staff
members and one customer," Abrahams said.
"Business was peaking. We were just about on top of the wave
and then the plug was pulled. It was our record New Year but since
(January 1) we've had nothing."
Some traders claimed the heightened security at the Waterfront
is affecting trade.
"Whenever people come here they think something is wrong," said
one restaurateur. "I don't think they are aware that that the
police are here to search cars and protect them."
Other traders bemoaned the falloff in trade in what is usually
their busiest season.
"From December 16 to January 16, trade is supposed to be at its
best," said retailer Val Oron. "But this year it has been an
absolute disaster.
"The blast has had a tremendous impact on business - even
worse than that at Planet Hollywood. And the Caspirs (armoured
police vehicles) at the entrance don't help either."
Police have not yet arrested anyone in connection with the
car-bomb or the Planet Hollywood blast, but say they suspect
radical Moslems could be behind the attacks.
@ FUNERAL-LATEGAN
CAPE TOWN January 19 1999 Sapa
WATERFRONT BOMB INVESTIGATOR WHO WAS SHOT DEAD IS BURIED
The funeral of Captain Bennie Lategan, shot 11 times when he
stopped at a Cape Flats intersection last Thursday, was held in
Bellville on Tuesday.
The service was attended by Western Cape premier Gerald Morkel,
his MEC for safety Mark Wiley and members of the police general
staff, including Western Cape commissioner Leon Wessels.
Lategan, who led the investigation into the Waterfront
pipe-bomb explosions, told Wessels shortly before his murder that
he was making good progress with the investigtaion.
The autopsy report revealed that at least three different
weapons were used in the attack. Police found 10 spent 9mm
cartridges at the scene and it was established that at least 15
shots were fired into Lategan's car.
He was hit 11 times and was rushed to hospital, where he died.
The shots were closely spaced and police believe the gunmen
must have been well trained.
After the coffin, draped with the South African flag, was
carried into the NG Moederkerk in Bellville, police chaplain Erik
van Heerden said it was only natural to experience some fury with
the sadness of Lategan's murder at the age of 35.
It was important, however, to work through the fury and to seek
new life, born out of death.
Senior-Superintendent Grant Smit, Lategan's commander at the
murder and robbery unit, said Lategan was investigating the most
sensitive cases in the Western Cape and would be greatly missed.
@ CRIME-PE
JOHANNESBURG January 19 1999 Sapa
GANG VIOLENCE DOWN 49% IN PORT ELIZABETH
Gang violence in Port Elizabeth's northern areas dropped 49
percent in 1998 compared to 1997, Eastern Cape police spokeswoman
Superintendent Miranda Mills said on Tuesday.
In a statement Mills said the city's gang problem was closely
linked to drug pushing.
"The success can be attributed to the fact that the (police)
tackled the drug-dealing problem holistically," she said.
In 1998 the police seized 120 firearms, 925 rounds of
ammunition, 90 magazines, 3650kg of dagga, 26185 Mandrax tablets,
105g of cocaine and 14 cocaine rocks. Mills said 682 suspects were
arrested for gang activities.
"Gangsterism is not new to the northern areas, and will
probably continue as long as the community at large shows tolerance
with regard to illegal acts committed by gangs," she said.
@ ANGOLA-CALLUP
LUANDA January 19 1999 Sapa-AP
UNDER ARREST THREAT, ANGOLAN MEN REGISTER FOR MILITARY SERVICE
Hundreds of young men lined up outside municipal offices
Tuesday to register for compulsory military service after the
government cracked down on draft dodgers due to the country's
renewed civil war.
Men between the ages of 20 and 22 have one week to register
with the authorities and receive a registration slip they must
carry with them at all times.
Men eligible for military service will be called up at a later
date. Those caught without a registration slip face immediate
arrest.
Registration for military service is mandatory. However, during
implementation of a U.N.-brokered peace deal between the government
and UNITA rebels over the past four years, the government relaxed
its recruitment drive.
The civil war between the foes resumed last month, shattering
the 1994 peace accord, and the government launched a widespread
media campaign to warn against attempts to dodge the draft.
In the suburb of Samba, one of nine municipalities in the
capital where registrations were taking place, dozens of young men
waited in the hot afternoon sun outside the municipal head office.
Officials said about 200 men had registered, handing over their
identity card to be photocopied and a photograph. Officials slowly
filled in the registration forms by hand.
Two men, both age 20, said they had brothers in the army and
did not mind being called up.
"We've got to go, so we've got to go," they said, shrugging.
They asked not to be identified by name.
Officials said they did not know how many men might be
registered over the coming week.
The army has about 100,000 troops, though only about 30,000 of
them are believed to be well-trained.
The rebels have an estimated 30,000 soldiers.
The 1994 peace agreement halted a two-decade civil war that
started after Angola's 1975 independence from Portugal.
Both the government and UNITA - a Portuguese acronym for the
National Union for the Total Independence of Angola - blame each
other for failing to comply with the deal.
@ LEGAL-AIDS
PRETORIA January 19 1999 Sapa
CRIMINAL LAW SHOULD CURB DELIBERATE SPREADING OF AIDS
Criminal law should protect society against people spreading
Aids deliberately, the SA Law Commission said in Pretoria on
Tuesday.
It, however, stopped short of recommending the introduction of
a new statutory offence to this effect, saying such a move should
be carefully considered and required more debate.
The commission said in a statement that its latest discussion
paper on the role of the state with respect to Aids contended that
the epidemic was first and foremost a public health issue.
Criminal law was not pre-eminently the means by which to combat
the spread of the disease.
But the commission said it also accepted that some individuals
deliberately exposed others to the risk of HIV infection by acting
irresponsibly.
"Where HIV-related behaviour results in harm to others... the
criminal law undoubtedly has a role to play in protecting the
community and punishing those who transgress."
The commission said there were two ways to do this - the
existing common law could be applied or a HIV-specific statutory
offence could be created.
None of the two alternatives was without complications.
"The issues need to be debated thoroughly, and all parties who
feel they have an interest in the matter are invited to comment,"
the commission said.
Written suggestions should reach the commission by February 28.
@ CRIME-LUYT
JOHANNESBURG January 19 1999 Sapa
LUYT CALLS FOR MUFAMADI TO RESIGN
Former rugby strongman Louis Luyt, who now heads the Federal
Alliance, on Tuesday said Safety and Security Minister Sydney
Mufamadi had the blood of 18000 crime victims on his hands and
called for his resignation.
"This is the number of people who were murdered last year while
his ministry was upposed to protect them," Luyt said.
Luyt said crime was reaching crisis proportions in South Africa
and challenged the statistics released on Monday by Mufamadi's
office which pointed to a decrease in crime.
"Sydney Mufamadi has failed South Africa and he has failed the
police force. He needs to be replaced with a more competent person
who understands the fear and anxiety of the average South African,
who is not protected by a horde of bodyguards and drive around in
bulletproof cars."
Luyt called for the urgent reintroduction of the death penalty
for crimes such as murder, rape and armed robbery.
"It is time that the government accepts that human rights
cannot only be extended to criminals, but that every citizen has
the right to basic protection, which this government has failed
dismally to provide," Luyt said.
"We need to adopt a zero tolerance towards crime and not be
concerned about the rights and privileges of prisoners."
@ ASPECTS OF LAW RELATIONS TO AIDS (PROJECT85)
Issued by: Government Communications (GCIS)
MEDIA STATEMENT BY THE SOUTH AFRICAN LAW COMMISSION ON ITS
INVESTIGATION INTO ASPECTS OF THE LAW RELATING TO AIDS
(PROJECT85): THE NEED FOR A STATUTORY OFFENCE AIMED AT HARMFUL
HIV-RELATED BEHAVIOUR
The South African Law Commission has released a discussion paper
on the need for a statutory offence aimed at harmful HIV-related
behaviour for general information and comment. The Commission has
been assisted in this task by a project committee representative of
divergent interests under the leadership of Mr Justice Edwin
Cameron.
The Commission in 1995 in its Working Paper 58 inter alea
considered the role of the State in respect of HIV/AIDS. In this
context it investigated the desirability of the application of
criminal law measures against the spread of the disease. The
Commission at the time came to the preliminary conclusion that the
criminal law is not pre-eminently the means by which to combat the
spread of HIV-related harmful behaviour. The main reason given for
this was that conduct by persons with HIV which merits punishment
remains punishable under the existing common law crimes.
Recently however, prominent reports of incidenses of the
deliberate transmission of HIV country wide resulted in public calls
for the deliberate transmission of HIV to be made the subject of
criminal sanction, and for some measures to alleviate the plight of
women who fall prey to the deliberate spread of HIV. Various
political parties during the past 18 months submitted that
deliberate transmission of HIV should be the subject of criminal
sanction and the Commission was formally approached by the Justice
Portfolio Committee to investigate the need for logislation with
regard to the criminalisation of acts by persons with HIV/AIDS who
deliberately or negligently infect others, and the compulsory HIV
testing of sexual offenders. The Commission deals incrementally with
these two issues. The current discussion paper addresses the issue
of harmful behaviour by persons with HIV/AIDS the administrative and
criminal law measures available to address such behaviour, and the
need for statutory intervention. A subsequent paper deals
incrementally with these two issues. The current discussion paper
addresses the issue of harmful behaviour by persons with HIV/AIDS,
the administrative and criminal law measures available to address
such behaviour, and the need for statutory intervention. A
subsequent paper will deal with the question of HIV testing of
sexual offenders and persons accused of having committed sexual
offences.
In the current discussion paper the Commission on a preliminary
basis confirms its 1995 promise that the criminal law is not
pre-eminently the means by which to combat the spread of HIV. The
AIDS epidemic is first and foremost a public health issue and it is
internationally accepted that non-coercive measures are the most
successful means through which public health authorities can reduce
the spread of the disease. However the Commission also accepts that
there are individuals who, through their irresponsible and
unacceptable behaviour, deliberately place others at risk of HIV
infection. Where HIV-related behaviour results in harm to others (ie
exposure to or transmission oF HIV), public health measures in
themselves are insufficient and the criminal law undoubtdly has a
role to play in protecting the community and punishing those who
transgress. The Commission is of the preliminary opinion that this
limited role is not necessarily incompatible with any public health
strategy against the disease. Just as other individuals in society
are held responsible for behaviour outside the criminal law's
established parameters of acceptable behaviour, persons with HIV who
knowingly or recklessly conduct themselves in ways that harm others
must be held accountable. In this sense the criminal law must
obviously prove a measure of protection in the form of deterrence
and can also reflect society's abhorrence of such behaviour.
The question arises what route should be taken in realising this
role of the criminal law. Two possibilities exist: Applying the
existing common law crimes or creating an HIV-specific statutory
offence. The Discussion Paper comprehensively sets out the issues
regarding the application of the common law crimes as well as
arguments for and against the creation of a new statutory offence.
The Commission emphasises that the lack of prsecutions under the
common law crimes complicates the issue and contributes to the
current lack of clarity as regards the viability of utilising the
common law. It also draw attention to certain dangers in enacting a
new offence which should be carefully weighed against the benefit to
be derived from legislative intervention systems. In order to
facilitate a conclusion on the issues in question, the Commission
invites comment on a range of questions highlighting the crucial
issues to be debated. These include questions regarding the possible
prosecutorial difficulties is applying the common law crimes; the
counter-productive effect the creation of a new offence may have on
public health efforts in curbing the spread of HIV; the viability of
utilising public health measures as an alternative to taking
recourse to the criminal law; as well as specific questions relating
to the formulation of a statutory offence should it prove to be
indicated.
The issues in question need to be debated throughly and all
parties who feel that they have an interest in this matter or may be
affected by the debate are invited to comment on the questions
posed.
Written comments or suggestions should reach the Commission by
28 February 1999 at the address given below. The discussion paper is
available on request and free of charge.
The Commission's offices are on the Twelfth Floor Sanlam Centre,
corner of Pretorius and Schoeman Street, Pretoria. The telephone
number is (012) 322-6440 (requests for the discussion paper: Mr
Jacob Kabini); the fax number is (012) 320-0936; and the postal
address is Private Bag X668, Pretoria, 0001; E'mail:
law...@salawcom.org.za .The document is also available on the
Internet at www.law.wits.ac.za/salc/html .
ISSUED BY THE SECRETARY, SA LAW COMMISSION, PRETORIA
DATE: 19 JANUARY 1999
CONTACT FOR ENQUIRIES ABOUT MEDIA STATEMENT: (Mrs) A M HAVENGA
(021) 322-6440
@ EDUC-HEADS
PRETORIA January 19 1999 Sapa
HEDCOM ANNOUNCES NEW HEADS OF EDUCATION FOR FREE STATE AND
NWEST
The Education Department in Pretoria on Tuesday named the new
heads of education for the Free State and North-West.
They are Luki Nkonka and Anis Mahomed.
@ DUARTE
JOHANNESBURG January 19 1999 Sapa
DUARTE HEADS FOR SHOW-DOWN WITH MOTSHEKGA OVER LEGAL FEES
Former Gauteng safety and security MEC Jesse Duarte has
threatened legal action against Gauteng premier Mathole Motshekga
should he fail to pay R113000 in legal costs she incurred while
appearing before the Moerane Commission last year.
The threat was made in a letter - written by Duarte to African
National Congress Gauteng deputy chairman Paul Mashatile - which
was distributed to the media on Tuesday by the Democratic Party's
Gauteng leader Peter Leon.
Leon said the letter was leaked to him, but declined to say by
who.
In the letter Duarte states: "I am requesting a final decision
regarding the sum of R113000... owed to (lawyer) Ismail Ayob for my
legal costs pertaining to the Moerane Commission.
"I was told by yourself (Mashatile) and (ANC Gauteng secretary)
Obed Bapela that a decision had been made by the PEC (provincial
executive committee) of the ANC that I would be assisted by
yourself and the chairperson of the province with this amount."
Duarte wrote that Motshekga had given a public undertaking to
pay her legal costs, which she could not afford.
"The premier did make an undertaking and I think at this time I
may find my options limited to take some form of legal action to
hold him to his word. Mr Ayob is in the meantime adding interest to
my account."
Motshekga set up the Moerane Commission, led by advocate Marumo
Moerane, to probe allegations of mismanagement in the safety and
security department while it was headed by Duarte.
The commission found there was "a strong suspicion" that Duarte
was involved in covering up an accident she had while driving
without a driver's licence. Motshekga referred several of the
commission's enquiries to the attorney-general to investigate.
When approached for comment by Sapa, Duarte on Tuesday said
Leon had publicised a private letter and accused him of playing
"filthy political games".
"He is insane. He needs help. I have nothing to say to you
about this letter," she said.
Duarte threatened legal action against Leon and Sapa if it
published the letter.
Leon said the matter was in the interest of the public, as
taxpayers' money was used to fund the Moerane Comission to the tune
of R1,5 million.
If the Gauteng government was paying Duarte's legal fees, the
taxpayer had a right to know, and if the ANC was to pay, then its
members should be aware of this, Leon said.
Bapela told Sapa the issue had nothing to do with the province.
"The matter was raised with the ANC in Gauteng and it took a
decision to assist with fundraising to settle the amount after
being approached."
The funds were still being raised, he said.
"We find it silly and unprofessional that the DP finds it
worthwhile to intercept a communication between two government
employees and later use it to score political points."
In a statement Leon also questioned when Duarte would repay
R48357 she owed to the government when she took a personal
companion along on an official trip to Portugal nearly two years
ago.
Leon also reacted with disbelief to reports that officials in
the Gauteng safety and security department had refused to testify
at a departmental disciplinary hearing for former departmental head
Mkhabela Sibekoand and other senior officials implicated in the Moerane
report.
"This is just a further example of the department's current
disarray under the non-existent political leadership of Paul
Mashatile, who devotes most of his time to running the Gauteng ANC
rather than his disfunctional department."
@ REGISTER-DAYS
PRETORIA January 19 1999 Sapa
SPECIAL "APPLY FOR YOUR ID" DAYS DECLARED IN REGISTRATION DRIVE
January 20 to 22 have been declared "apply for your ID" days in
a bid to afford potential voters still without bar-coded identity
documents a chance to apply for them, the Department of Home
Affairs said in a statement on Tuesday.
Special attention would be paid to receiving and processing
applications for identity documents and temporary registration
certificates on these days, the department said.
It urged potential voters who are not in possession of
bar-coded identity documents to use the opportunity to apply for
the documents in view of the second round of voter registration at
the end of January.
@ FIVAZ-ANC
JOAHNNESBURG January 19 1999 Sapa
FIVAZ SERIOUS ABOUT NEED FOR POLICE TRANSFORMATION: RASOOL
The African National Congress in the Western Cape on Tuesday
said it was convinced that national police commissioner George
Fivaz was serious about the need for transformation in the service.
"I believe we have succeeded in convincing commissioner Fivaz
that rapid transformation of the police service is a precondition
for Operation Good Hope to succeeed," said ANC provincial chairman
Ebrahim Rasool in a statement sent to Johannesburg.
Rasool said the ANC was confident that Fivaz would give serious
attention to the party's transformation plan of the police service.
The ANC presented a memorandum to Fivaz on Tuesday during a
meeting which was held in Cape Town regarding Operation Good Hope,
an initiative envisaged to curb urban terrorism and violent crimes
in the Western Cape. The operation was launched last week.
The memorandum, amongst others, called on Fivaz to dispand the
People Against Gangsterism and Drugs task team and Operation
Saladin as they had failed to curb violence in the province.
The ANC also called on Fivaz to release all those police
officials who had applied for severence packages. An interim
provincial management team should be established to take the
responsibility of managing the day-to-day running of the police and
oversee the transformation process.
"Special focus should be given to the manner in which public
protests take place in the province, which should include measures
to ensure that weapon searches take place before the commencement
of the protest marches, and that no march begins if participants
are masked," the momorandum said.
The ANC told Fivaz it would recruit 500 police reservists by
April 1 to help in the fight against crime.
Fivaz in a statement said all parties which attended the
meeting, including the New National Party, Anti-Crime Forum and
Community Police Forums, committed themselves to supporting
Operation Good Hope.
"I wish to express my sincere thanks and appreciation for the
support and encouragement received from the respective delegations.
It is most heartening to see the positive manner in which this
initiative has been approached," he said.
@ MACHEL
MBUZINI, Mpumalanga January 19 1999 Sapa
MANDELA UNVEILS SAMORA MACHEL MEMORIAL IN MPUMALANGA
President Nelson Mandela on Tuesday promised that everything
would be done to find out what caused the 1986 aircrash in
Mpumalanga which claimed the life of then Mozambican president
Samora Machel.
Mandela was speaking at a ceremony in Mbuzini in Mpumalanga to
unveil the Samora Machel Memorial commemorating the peace and
freedom for which Machel and 34 others who died with him in the
crash, had fought.
"The matter is enjoying a serious investigation by a team which
is committed. If perpetrators are found to be guilty, they will be
brought before the law and severely punished," Mandela said before
unveiling the memorial.
Machel and the others were travelling from Zambia to Mozambique
on October 19 on a peace mission when his presidential Tupolve
aircraft crashed into mountainous terrain near Mbuzini, south of
Komatipoort.
In 1996, Mandela promised that the memorial would be built to
honour the 10th anniversary of Machel's death.
The site of the plne crash - an area of 629 square metres -
was declared a national monument in November 1998. The memorial was
a joint project between South Africa and Mozambique, and was
designed by Mozambique architect Jose Forjaz.
Standing on a hill, the memorial consists of 35 steel pipes
through which the wind howls at different pitches. Next to the hill
is a pit containing some wreckage from the plane.
In his prepared speech, Mandela said Machel's death had robbed
the people of Mozambique, South Africa, Africa and beyond of a
giant.
Mandela said South Africa could not take away the grief nor
loss of those who had lost loved ones in the crash, but the
memorial would help ensure future generations would remember those
who paved the way for their freedom and the principles which
inspired them.
Mandela's wife, Graca Machel, said at the ceremony to honour
her late first husband that her most fervent wish was that Southern
African people would never again let political differences lead to
violence in the region.
"They should know that those 35 men and women, and many, many
others died because our opponents failed to open the way to the
peaceful resolution of differences," she said.
Freedom, peace or prosperity could not be achieved for
Mozambique unless other countries in the region enjoyed the same.
Samora Machel was part of a generation of Mozambicans who
brought independence to Mozambique and contributed to the
independence of Zimbabwe and to freedom in South Africa.
She hoped her son's generation, who had been orphaned,
brutalised and ravaged by apartheid throughout the region, would
acquire a sense of their common destiny and common citizenship
beyond that of the nation.
Mozambican President Joachim Chissano said the memorial was a
living example of a man who sacrificed himself for his people and
the ideals he had accomplished would never die.
"Machel died like he lived, in a mission of reconciliation and
peace."
He said Machel helped to create a dimension of a man free from
racial, religious and tribal prejudice.
Mpumalanga premier Mathews Phosa, who received a R26 million
cheque from the government to upgrade a road leading to the
memorial sight, said the monument should become a pilgrimage to
people seeking peace.
Arts, Culture, Science and Technology Minister Lionel Mtshali
said the Machel memorial was one of eight commerative structures
which formed part of his department's national legacy project.
The new monuments and memorials would portray the full spectrum
of South Africa's history, he said.
Others attending the service included Public Works Minister
Jeff Radebe, Home Affairs Minister Mangosuthu Buthelezi and Foreign
Affairs Minister Alfred Nzo.
@ CONGO-SECURITY
BRAZZAVILLE January 19 1999 Sapa-AFP
CONGOLESE ARMY LIFTS BLOCKADE ON VIOLENCE-TORN NEIGHBORHOODS
Congo's army on Tuesday lifted a blockade of southern parts of
the capital Brazzaville, a month after hundreds of people were
killed in fighting between government troops and rebels.
Many residents who had taken refuge in northern areas of the
capital in December were seen returning to their homes in the
Bacongo and Makelekele neighborhoods to recover belongings which
had escaped looters.
However, few of them stayed in their homes for fear of renewed
violence and for lack of water and electricity. Electricity was
partially restored on Tuesday but the homes were still without
water.
Taxis and buses resumed service as military vehicles patrolled
the streets.
Heavy fighting gripped the city from December 18-20 when the
Ninja militiamen of former prime minister Bernard Kolelas clashed
with the army, whose artillery pounded Bacongo and Makelekele where
more than 200,000 people live.
On Thursday, the mayor of Brazzaville said 415 bodies had been
discovered in these neighborhoods following the fighting and
looting, carried out mainly by the Cobra militiamen of President
Denis Sassou Nguesso's regime.
On December 31, Sassou Nguesso said the clashes in Brazzaville
and in the neighboring area of the Pool, Kolelas' home region, had
left "several hundreds dead".
According to a military source, between 1,000 and 1,500 people
died in the fighting in the southern neighborhoods alone.
Since December 10, the Pool area has been cordoned off by the
army, backed by Angolan troops which is leading attacks against the
Ninjas.
@ FIVAZ SERIOUS ABOUT THE NEED FOR TRANSFORMATION IN SAPS
Issued by: African National Congress
The ANC this morning met with SAPS Commissioner George Fivaz
arising out of allegations of racism within the SAPS, the security
situation and Operation Good Hope in the Western Cape.
The ANC delegation presented a three-page memorandum to
Commissioner Fivaz.
Recommendations were made to ensure the success of Operation
Good Hope and a detailed transformation plan was also tabled.
The ANC committed its resources to the fight against crime and
terror. In addition to continued involvement in CPF's and
Neighbourhood Watches, the organisation informed the Commissioner it
would recruit 500 police reservists by 1 April this year.
The meeting agreed that Operation Good Hope should be a
partnership between the SAPS, Correctional Services, Justice,
Welfare, SANDF, the Directorate of Prosecutions and the community.
It was emphasised the team selected has to enjoy the confidence of
especially the Cape Flats community.
Operation Good Hope distinguishes between Strategic management
and Operational management. Strategic management involves the
national and provincial commissioners, divisional commissioners and
relevant branch commissioners. They deal with matters such as the
budget, equipment and allocation of resources.
The Operational management command rests with Ganief Daniels. He
can select his own team and draw people from outside the Province.
Fivaz admitted that confidence in the police is low and that we
have win back the trust of the community by showing results.
He responded positively to the ANC's call that no weapons and
masks be allowed in any protest.
Commenting on the meeting, ANC Western Cape Leader Ebrahim
Rasool said:
" I believe we have succeeded in convincing Commissioner Fivaz
that rapid transformation of the Police Service is a precondition
for Operation Good Hope to succeed. We are confident that the
Commissioner will give serious attention to our transformation plan.
I believe there is no place for finger pointing and blaming. The
time for bickering is over. We must all embrace the need for the
transformation of the Western Cape Police Management.
It is a disgrace that in a province where the majority are
Coloureds and Africans, the police management is almost 90% white."
ATTACHED FIND THE MEMORANDUM HANDED TO COMMISSIONER FIVAZ
FOR MORE COMMENT ON THE MATTER, CALL
CAMERON DUGMORE 082-894-7553, OR
SHAUN BUYNEVELDT 082-690-5200
19 January 1999
FOR ANY MEDIA ENQUIRIES, CALL PROVINCIAL MEDIA OFFICER
MEMORANDUM TO COMMISSIONER FIVAZ FROM ANC WESTERN CAPE DELEGATION
19/1/99
INTRODUCTION
The situation in our province has become a desperate one. Our
people continue to experience ongoing crime and terror. The scourge
of urban terror has not only begun to impact on the daily pattern of
peoples lives but also on the lifeblood of our provincial economy.
The holy period has been marked by almost daily bombings, murder
and violent crimes against women and children.
Arrests are often not made. Convictions are few. There is a very
real danger that communities lose hope that the police service is
able to deal with the crisis.
Allegations of racism and corruption within the SAPS are rife
further eroding public confidence.
An unrepresentative police management is in place which does not
inspire confidence. This directly impacts on the ability of the
intelligence structures to gather credible information and secure
the co-operation of witnesses.
In this context finger pointing, blaming and point scoring is an
easy option. But it is an option we cannot afford. We need to act in
a way which gives the Western Cape real hope. This means confronting
the problem head on and working together for solutions.
We must put bickering behind us.
ANC SUPPORTS OPERATION GOOD HOPE
As the ANC in the Western Cape we will do everything in our
power to make sure that operation Good Hope, under the leadership of
Hanief Daniels, succeeds. Success will not be achieved without the
rapid fast tracking of transformation within SAPS provincial
management.
Operation Good Hope must represent a clean break from the
disastrous failures of the PAGAD task team and Operation Saladin. We
believe that these operations failed because;
* there was a complete lack of theoretical comprehension of the
threat
* the nature of the threat had not been analysed
* intelligence in past operations has essentially been an
information gathering exercise
* detective work has ben case driven not project driven
Operation Good Hope cannot therefore simply be a continuation in
new name of past operations. This is because;
* past operations were headed by persons who failed to
understand the nature of the threat
* the PAGAD task team is a discredited structure in the eyes of
the community
* the PAGAD task team fell under director Knipe a person who
does not enjoy an ounce of credibility in the very community that he
needs to win over in order to win this battle
* Operation Saladin, like all other operations in the past has
not produced a single bit of information that has led to successful
prosecution.
In regard to operation Good Hope we therefore recommend the
following;
1. That all previous operations and task teams such as the PAGAD
task team and operation Saladin be disbanded immediately
2. That the new representative task team be established by
Commissioner Daniels with the ability to select the team without
interference
3. That operation Good Hope be project based and thus be located
in the unit headed by Percy Sonn
4. That a campaign be launched to popularize Operation Good Hope
and ensure that community ownership and support is won
5. Clear mechanism's are created whereby community structures at
a provincial level have constant and controlled access to the
operation centre to ensure rapid response to the situation on the
ground
6. A mechanism is created whereby the operation can be monitored
and performance assessed
7. That a system to encourage the community to come forward with
information and also to protect witnesses is put in place
A TRANSFORMATION PLAN
As we have said, operation Good Hope cannot succeed without the
transformation of the police management itself. In this regard we
make the following recommendations, many of which were made at our
march against crime and terror on 24th September 1998;
1. That a provincial commissioner be identified immediately to
ensure continuity once Commissioner Wessel's contract expires in
April
2. That those who have applied for packages are released with
immediate effect and an interim provincial management be put in
place to take responsibility for the day to day running of the
police and to oversee the transformation plan
3. That such interim management be placed under the direct
control of a senior police officer from outside the province
4. That all pending senior appointments be put on hold until
these mechanism are put in place
5. That a concrete plan be developed to ensure the adequate
deployment of resources to areas most in need from available police
resources - such plan should specifically focus on the 11 stations
which have been identified as in urgent need of additional support
6. Special focus should be given to the manner in which public
protests take place in the province which should include measures to
ensure that weapon searches take place before the commencement of
the protest marches and that no march begins if participants are
masked
7. A specific strategy to resource neighbourhood watches and
community police resources is put in place
8. Special interventions are made in regard to the SAPS
intelligence structures in the province
9. A strategy is put in place to ensure that potential flash
points in the Western Cape are identified and stabilised in a
preemptive fashion
We will not be found wanting. We will inform your office of the
practical assistance we can provide. We make an initial commitment
to recruit 500 police reservists by 1 April 1999.
@ RELIEF FROM ALBANY ANC AND COSATU
GRAHAMASTOWN (ECN) - The Albany regional executive committee
of the ANC has welcomed the decision of the provincial executive
committee of the ANC to retain Grahamstown as the seat of the
supreme court in the Eastern Cape.
Cosatu East Cape regional secretary Pinkie Ntsanage also
welcomed the decision.
Ntsanage said: "Cosatu has always supported keeping the seat in
Grahamstown, due to the devastating impact the move would have on
jobs. There is no alternative planned and it would make no sense to
move it."
"This decision can be seen as a victory for Grahamstown, the workers
and their families."
ANC Albany regional secretary Mzukisi Mpahlwa said the decision
bought to an end four years of anxiety and had averted an "economic
catastrophe".
Research conducted by Rhodes University showed it would cost
R250m to move the court and up to 400 jobs would be lost.
Mpahlwa said apart from the visit by President Nelson Mandela in
1997, no other issue had united the people of Grahamstown such as
their resolve to retain the seat.
Mpahlwa praised the role of the media and the town's "Supreme
Court committee" for highlighting the issue and being at the
forefront of the campaign.
The Daily Dispatch reported yesterday that the decision to retain
the seat of the high court had been taken four years ago but was
never communicated to the national Department of Justice. The
newspaper said this meant the department was under the impression
that the province wanted to abide by Justice Minister Dullah Omar's
decision to have the court moved to Bisho.
Democratic Party provincial leader Eddie Trent said yesterday he was
"shocked" to learn that the decision had been taken "some time ago".
He said this indicated that the province, and Grahamstown, had been
"kept on a string" by the ANC.
Trent said a lot of anxiety could have been avoided and the
long delay in announcing the decision had also had a negative impact
on Grahamstown's economic development.
He called on Premier Makhenkesi Stofile to ensure that the
decision was implemented into law as soon as possible.
Black Sash Albany regional director Mrs Rosemary Smith said of the
ANC's decision: "Great! Wonderful! But there still seems to be a bit
of confusion between the government and the provincial government
which must be cleared up." - ECN
@ ANC ASKS SCHOLARS TO FOCUS ON ACHIEVING EXCELLENCE
BISHO (ECN) - The provincial ANC yesterday called for nothing less
than excellence in Eastern Cape schools this year. ANC provincial
spokesman Mcebisi Bata said the ANC had already begun to talk to
teacher and student organisations to "impress upon them the
importance of devoting the entire school year on matters of learning
and teaching and nothing else".
Bata said the 1998 matric results were disappointing but said
enough comment had been passed on them.
He also welcomed those children who were starting school for the
first time.
"We hope that their entry into formal education will further
enhance our capacity as a province in all spheres and that in the
coming years they will learn to become worthy and responsible
citizens of our province."
He said 1999 was election year and many of those involved in
education, both teachers and pupils, would take part in the election
campaign.
However, he warned that this contribution should not be made at
the expense of academic programmes.
"Whilst students and teachers who are members of the ANC will be
expected to do organisational work, they will at the same time be
required to attend to their academic programmes."
He said the ANC would continue engaging both learners and teachers
in the election campaign.
"We will especially target the student sector for the
registration period of January 29, 30 and 31 to ensure that all of
them register so that they can immediately attend to their academic
programmes." - ECN Tues 19/01/99
@ LABOUR-JUSTICE
JOHANNESBURG January 19 1999 Sapa
PROSECUTORS TO APPLY FOR INTERDICT TO REINSTATE OVERTIME PAY
The National Union of Prosecutors of South Africa will apply
for an urgent interdict on Wednesday to compel the Justice
Department to reinstate overtime pay for prosecutors.
Union president Eduard van der Spuy said on Tuesday the
prosecutors had not received a response from the Department to its
demands for overtime pay, and would now apply to the Labour Court
in Pretoria in this regard.
Prosecutors refused to work additional hours after overtime pay
- an interim measure used to supplement their "unprofessional"
salaries - was scrapped at the end of November last year.
Their hopes were pinned on the announcement of a salary hike,
but a six percent increase announced last month drew outrage from
prosecutors and a work-to-rule action spread to major centres
throughout the country.
Prosecutors at the Johannesburg Magistrates' Court demonstrated
outside the court buildings this week to protest against the
increase.
Court proceedings have begun late for the past month, as
prosecutors used office hours to prepare for cases.
Paul Setsetse, spokesman for Justice Minister Dullah Omar,
confirmed that the Justice Department had not responded to the
dispute declared by NUPSA on Friday last week.
He said it was the prosecutors' constitutional right to take
legal action but, he added, they were misguided.
Overtime pay in special circumstances such as after-hours bail
applications had not been scrapped, he said.
"The Minister believes that salaries must be improved but no
promises are being made," Setsetse said.
@ ZIM-EDITOR
HARARE January 19 1999 Sapa
ZIM EDITOR GIVEN ACCESS TO LAWYERS, REPORTER SURRENDERS
The editor of Zimbabwe's Independent Standard newspaper was on
Tuesday allowed to see his lawyers, family and employers for the
first time since his arrest by military police last Tuesday.
Mark Chavunduka, 34, was transferred to civilian police on
Monday night, shortly before the expiry of a court order demanding
his immediate release and appearance in court.
The managing director of the weekly newspaper, Clive Wilson,
saw Chavunduka at Harare's central police station. He confirmed the
editor was in good health. He said Chavunduka's visitors were only
allowed brief conversations with him.
The editor was arrested when the newspaper reported that 23
soldiers were detained in December last year for inciting others to
overthrow President Robert Mugabe.
Standard reporter Ray Choto, who wrote the report, gave himself
up to police on Tuesday after managing to evade a military police
anhunt.
He presented himself at Harare central police station with
Standard lawyer Simon Bull.
Both journalists will be charged with "causing alarm and
despondency" under 1960 legislation.
Wilson hoped the journalists would appear before a magistrate
on Wednesday to apply for bail.
@ STORM-AYLIFF
KOKSTAD January 19 1999 Sapa
INJURY TOLL INCREASES AS MOPPING UP BEGINS AFTER STORM
Twenty-one people were killed and 309 injured when a storm
swept through Kokstad, Mount Ayliff and Tabankulu on Monday,
destroying homes and disrupting telephone and electricity services.
Ten children, including one-month and a four-month old infants,
were among the dead, according to police spokeswoman Superintendent
Nondumiso Jafta.
The storm struck first on farms near Kokstad in KwaZulu-Natal
around 4.30pm on Monday before moving south into the Eastern Cape,
hitting Mount Ayliff and Tabankulu.
Jafta said most of the dead were crushed when the walls of
their homes collapsed. Others were hit by flying corrugated iron
while fleeing their houses.
Three critically injured people were rushed to Kokstad
Hospital, where they were apparently still in a coma on Tuesday
night. Others were being treated at Mount Ayliff Hospital and
hospitals in Umtata, Lusikisiki and Rietvlei.
Police estimated about 95 percent ofthe people living in the
Mount Ayliff and Tabankulu areas had been left homeless.
The Red Cross is working with other agencies to provide
temporary shelter as well as food and clothing for those affected.
The army has also offered tents for the homeless.
Most of the tents are apparently being taken to Tabankulu where
there is the greatest need.
Many of the people from Mount Ayliff, left homeless, have found
shelter with neighbours. Some are staying in local schools.
In Mount Ayliff, some businesses lost their roofs and the town
hall roof was partly ripped off. Garages at the police station were
also damaged. The cells, garages and residences of the local police
station were damaged.
Ten blocks of the Mount Ayliff Comprehensive School and two
administration blocks were badly damaged, while one block was
destroyed.
An informal settlement next to the school was destroyed, but
no-one was injured, Jafta said.
On the outskirts of Mount Ayliff on Tuesday night, some areas
near Siphundu and Dutyini townships were without electricity.
The Mount Ayliff hospital was receiving electricity, although
most houses around it was in darkness, according to a Sapa
correspondent.
Township residents were on Tuesday night trying to clear the
area which was littered with strips of corrugated iron and debris.
Dutyini resident Jabulani Mgcwaba, 29, told Sapa the storm
started with heavy winds and thunderstorms which continued for
about two hours.
Mgcwaba was struck on the head and on legs and arms by flying
bricks while rescuing his six children from their home.
Mgcwaba, who is unemployed, said the interior of his house was
destroyed by rain. He and his family are staying with neighbours.
Tenants of cottages in the area which lost their roofs, Zinto
Jobe, 47, who lives with his wife, and Mamtinge Ngoyo, 35,
expressed concern about a further storm in the area, where on
Tuesday night it was cold and windy.
They told Sapa they would continue to live in their homes
provided it did not rain.
Mopping up operations began in Kokstad on Tuesday, where the
storm was believed to have damaged property worth about R130000.
Kokstad police spokesman Gabriel Mdlophane told Sapa late on
Tuesday afternoon that three farms in the Korgpost valley were
affected and about 11 houses at Bongweni township were destroyed. A
number of houses in the township were damaged.
An old-age home in the area was also damaged during the storm
and the residents had to be moved to temporary accommodation in the
area.
Families affected by the storm were provided with temporary
shelter in the form of tents and large containers.
Kokstad Hospital matron Nolindela Letta Mathe said 14 people
were admitted to the hospital on Monday night. They included two
teenagers and a five-year-old child who suffered head injuries and
were unconscious.
Mathe said more people, some of them possibly in a critical
condition, were expected at the hospital later on Tuesday
afternoon.
Kokstad veterinarian Dieter Nischk was tending cattle on his
farm Utopia around 4.30pm when he saw "a huge dark green and grey
cloud" approaching the farm.
"We rushed to the house and battened down the hatches.
"It wasn't just wind ... it was swirling around the house with
rain and hail," Nischk said.
"My children were terrified. They were in their bedrooms when
the storm hit and popped the windows out of their frames."
He said the wind pulled down 100-year-old trees on his property
and destroyed his entire maize crop. He said the damage to his farm
could be as high as R150000.
The winds tore off the roof of neighbouring farm, Elsenham, and
knocked out electricity and telephone lines.
The high winds played havoc in the area with at least one
motorist reported dead. Police said a Kokstad woman was killed on a
secondary road between the N2 highway and Tabankulu when the wind
flipped her car over.
And on the N2, a bus was blown over while offloading passengers
at the roadside. Several people were injured.
Provincial Affairs and Constitutional Development Minister
Valli Moosa on Tuesday said the Cabinet committee on disaster
management would meet early on Wednesday to decide whether the
region should be declared a disaster area.
The Weather Bureau in Pretoria confirmed there had been
thunderstorms in the area but could not confirm that it was a
tornado that had caused the loss of life and damage in the area.
@ UN-ANGOLA
UNITED NATIONS January 19 1999 Sapa-AP
ANNAN DEFENDS ANGOLA REPORT AMID AFRICAN CONCERNS OF PULLOUT
Secretary-General Kofi Annan summoned African ambassadors to
U.N. headquarters Tuesday to explain his decision to recommend the
withdrawal of U.N. military observers from Angola.
In meetings last week with Annan's advisers, several African
nations expressed concern about the implications of a pullout and
voiced their hope that the mission could be sustained - despite the
resumption of civil war, diplomats said.
Tuesday's meeting was intended to "walk them through the
reasoning that he laid out in his report of why he felt he had no
choice but to shut down the mission and hope to get their
understanding and support," said Annan's spokesman, Fred Eckhard.
Confronted with the collapse of a 1994 peace accord and clear
indications that both sides wanted the United Nations out, Annan
recommended in a report Sunday that the 1,000-member U.N. observer
mission in Angola be phased out by March 20.
The decision was significant because of the investment the
United Nations has made in Angola - dlrs 1.5 billion in the last
four years alone - but also because it came after several U.N.
pullouts in recent months.
The starkest example is in Iraq, where U.N. weapons inspectors
were withdrawn before U.S.-British airstrikes in December and
haven't returned because of Baghdad's defiance of U.N. resolutions
and indecision by the Security Council. In past months, the United
Nations has also pulled its international aid workers from
Afghanistan and peacekeepers from Sierra Leone because of security
concerns.
The Security Council must take the next step and either adopt
Annan's recommendation, reject it and extend the mission beyond its
Feb. 26 mandate, or come up with an alternative that would maintain
some limited presence in the southwestern African nation.
It is highly unlikely that the council will reject the
recommendation outright since the Angolan government itself has
said it doesn't want the mandate renewed.
In addition to several African states, the troika of nations
overseeing the now-failed 1994 peace process - the United States,
Portugal and Russia - has said it wanted to keep a U.N. presence in
Angola.
The United States and Russia are permanent, veto-weilding
members of the Security Council, which on Wednesday will begin its
first consultations on the matter.
In defending the report to the media Tuesday, Eckhard said
Annan had no choice but to recommend the pullout. He said the
downing of two U.N.-chartered planes, a media campaign in Angola
blaming the United Nations for the resumption of war, and the
government's refusal to let U.N. personnel meet with rebels killed
any chance for the United Nations to make peace.
"If you can't speak to both sides, how can you do your job?"
Eckhard said. "So on both the peacekeeping and the peacemaking
sides, we ran out of options."
Annan, he added, "is responsible for the peacekeepers which
are loaned to him to accomplish a political objective, which in
Angola was based on a peace agreement that neither side had any
remaining commitment to."
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