Indholdsfortegnelse for 2022-10-11 i Cape Argus

Grandparents and parents proudly hoisted banners on the Cedar High School gates in Mitchells Plain to announce the return of their gold trophy winners – the 2022 Cedar High Gymnastics Team. Despite a long journey from Centurion since Sunday evening following their triumph at the SA Gym Games 2022, the team returned yesterday in high spirits and in song, with a tight grasp on the gold trophy. Cedar High Gymnastics Club consists of primary and high school learners from schools that are mostly in Mitchells Plain. It was the first time the team had participated in the Gym for All category of the competition, ultimately winning gold in addition to a few individual silver and bronze medals and team trophies. Head coach Riyaanah Dirks said the win was a first…

Against the background of reports of babies being dumped with the most recent headline, “Don’t judge me, mother who ‘dumped’ baby says in note”. Such cruel acts must be condemned in the strongest terms. Dumping a baby for whatever reason is an inhuman action, illegal and a criminal offence. I am conscious of the fact that often the causes that lead mothers to dump their babies can be complicated, but abandoning a child without any affection or respect for its physical well-being and safety is against the law and cold-hearted. Mothers, parents or even families experiencing difficulties such as financial or personal issues and are unable to take care of their babies or their personal well-being should seek guidance from their nearest clinic, hospital or contact the Department of Social…

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has revealed mind-blowing political hypocrisy. I am not talking about the fact that Nato poked and pushed Putin until he reacted like a Russian bear, with violence and vulgarity. I am talking about the impact the war has on the environment. Reports suggest that Europeans are returning to coal. And Europe, which hindered South Africa from coal mining, is desperate to buy our coal. The message is clear: poor Africans cannot use coal as it harms the environment but rich Europe can use coal because Putin is a bastard. Somebody sabotaged the Nord Stream gas pipeline from Russia to Europe under the Baltic Sea. Russia and its European partners spent billions of dollars building the pipeline, thus the likely suspect is the US. Currently, billions…

National Assembly Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula commended transformative legislation aimed at improving women’s participation and involvement in politics and the economy. She, however, said the translation of legislation into pragmatic, meaningful changes in women’s lives had not been forthcoming. Mapisa-Nqakula was speaking during the keynote address on the last day of the two-day summit of speakers of G20 countries from across the world, hosted by the Speaker of the Indonesian House of Representatives in the parliamentary precinct in Jakarta. She said although there was an improvement in the representation of women in recent years, there was still a long walk to achieving gender equality across the socio-economic spectrum. “Women have come a long way in their struggles, not only for equality but to also have their voice and inputs heard, both…

AN international security and risk company recently warned visitors to South Africa to avoid “non-essential travel to lower-income areas of Cape Town”. The alert, posted on the Crisis 24 website – following the kidnapping of a woman outside a factory owned by her husband – added: “Maintain a low public profile and do not show outward displays of wealth, particularly if travelling alone and in higher-risk locations.” Local authorities and tourism bosses were quick to dismiss the alert as reckless and damaging to the sector. Yet, there was an element of truth to the advisory – and common sense as well. The kidnap victim – Ukrainian national Anichka Penev – had been driving a gaudy yellow Audi R8 when she was ambushed by armed men in two vehicles. Not that…

World Homeless Day 2022 has come and gone, but I would like you all to remember that we don’t need one day in the year to address homelessness. This is something that has to be addressed every day, and it starts with us as a society. This is what you can do to make a difference: 1. Acknowledge a homeless person today, tomorrow and whenever you feel comfortable doing so in the future. It’s the one thing truly homeless people value the most: a sense of belonging. Remember that every homeless person has a story, and somewhere in that story is something tragic, sad or shocking that resulted in a chain of events without a support network that ultimately led to the condition and situation of that person before you.…

In the past, the ANC was a leading and respected liberation movement. It had good leaders who inspired many a youth to join the Struggle against apartheid. Two of its leaders received a Nobel Peace Prize. The former liberation movement was known for its strengths rather than its weaknesses. It was able to mobilise the masses to confront apartheid head on. It brought hope to the hopeless and oppressed. During the first democratic elections, the masses voted the ANC into power, giving it a majority rule at national, provincial and local government. Voters continued entrusting their votes to it for more than 20 years. Today, the ANC has become a shadow of its former self. Poor leadership and greed have taken over. The party is known more for its scandals…

Cederberg municipal workers are demanding that the municipality pay them in accordance with a previous agreement. The Cederberg Municipality and its 345 employees in 2020/21 entered into a 3-year wage deal that saw workers pocket a 4.9% increase, but the municipality reneged on the deal, leading to an arbitrator ordering the municipality to pay up. Cederberg applied for exemption from paying the salary increases for the 2022/23 financial year. The application was heard on August 19, with the arbitrator ruling in the union’s favour and ordering the municipality to implement the wage increases from July 1. The Independent Municipal and Allied Trade Union (Imatu) said yesterday that the municipality had not obeyed the order and that the union would take up the matter through an application to the SA Local…

The death of South Africa’s Zulu king, King Zwelithini kaBhekuzulu, in March 2021 refocused attention on the role of royal women in Zulu leadership. After the official mourning period, and to the surprise of many observers, the late king’s will appointed his senior wife, Queen Mantfombi Dlamini Zulu, to hold the throne for his successor. Queen Mantfombi died six weeks later. Her will named her son, Misuzulu kaZwelithini, as the heir. In response, Zwelithini’s first wife, Queen Sibongile Dlamini Zulu, and her daughters, Ntombizosuthu kaZwelithini and Ntandokayise kaZwelithini, challenged the late king’s will in court. They tried to prevent Misuzulu’s installation. These contestations are only the latest episodes in a long history of royal women’s agency in the affairs of the Zulu kingdom. Since 2010, the South African government has…

Seoul: North Korea’s recent missile tests involved “tactical nuclear” drills to simulate hitting the South, and were overseen by leader Kim Jong-un in response to US-led joint military exercises in the region, state media said yesterday. Kim made acquiring tactical nukes – smaller, lighter weapons designed for battlefield use – a top priority at a key party congress in January 2021, and this year vowed to develop North Korea’s nuclear forces at the fastest possible speed. The country revised its nuclear laws last month to allow pre-emptive strikes, with Kim declaring North Korea an “irreversible” nuclear power – effectively ending the possibility of negotiations over its arsenal. Since then, Seoul, Tokyo and Washington have ramped up combined military exercises, including deploying a nuclear-powered US aircraft carrier to the area…

There was an abiding moment from the Lions’ shock win over Edinburgh that sums up both the health of South African rugby, and also the resilience of a Johannesburg-based team that is punching above its weight despite having zero big-name players. Actually, maybe that is what is so good about the Lions at the moment — they are the journeymen of SA rugby, the everyman team that is drawing strength from being perpetually written off. But back to that moment ... Or rather moments because it was a series of body blows from an unknown youngster called Ruan Venter that removed British & Irish Lions flank Hamish Watson from the field in Edinburgh. Ruan who? Precisely! He is a 19-year-old product of Paarl Boys High and is making his way…

THE executive mayor of a Northern Cape municipality who has been accused of fleeing from a petrol station without paying has denied the claim. ZF Mgcawu District Municipality executive mayor Maryna Basson is accused of leaving an Engen petrol station earlier in October without paying for the fuel in her official vehicle. The municipality said a “misunderstanding” occurred between the driver and a petrol station attendant, resulting in the account not being settled.The incident occurred on October 2. “In a misunderstanding between the driver of the vehicle and the gas station attendant, the account was not settled, as the driver was under the impression that the incumbent (mayor) in the car paid and the attendant was under the impression the driver paid inside. “Once this error was noticed by the…

The death of fearless Struggle icon Cheryl Roberts has gripped the nation and the sporting world with a deep embrace of shock. As we grieve, we thank Almighty God for the memorable years that she gave to our nation as a purveyor of justice and humility. Her death gives us cause to ponder how she touched our lives. Her commitment to social justice and reconciliation, to human rights and the dignity of the human person, will be gratefully remembered. The nation pays tribute to her immense and unique contribution to peace and justice and this emphasis on the dignity and worth of every individual from conception to the grave. Her courage in denouncing racism over the past 60 years will be remembered by many generations to come. We are devastated…

The ink has barely dried since the election of the newly-elected ANC Boland region’s leadership and the structure is already facing a threat. The losing camp has filed a dispute with the ANC and is believed to have prepared legal papers to have the conference declared null and void. The dispute and the legal threat prompted a meeting between senior officials, MP Qubudile Dyantyi and ANC Interim Provincial Committee (IPC) chairperson Lerumo Kalako late yesterday, according to sources. Dyantyi referred questions about the meeting to provincial spokesperson Sifiso Mtsweni. The Cape Argus recently reported that CMB Attorneys on September 29 wrote a letter to delegates on the eve of conference asking them to halt it on October 1. CMB was acting on behalf of Owenita Simpson, Richard Simpson, Reginald Badela,…

CULTURAL appropriation is enabled by power and is an expression of power. How is the South African band Die Antwoord a good example of this? Die Antwoord means “the answer” in Afrikaans, the language associated with the dominant white minority rulers of apartheid South Africa. The band has two members, Ninja and Yolandi. They created a hip hop outfit using Kaaps as a basis for their lyrics, and styling Ninja as a Cape Town gangster. A privileged white man, Waddy Jones, created Ninja after previously crafting other hip hop personas such as Max Normal. Jones is neither “black”/“coloured” nor “white working class”. He’s no gangster either. Stereotypically, speakers of Kaaps have been presented as “mixed race” or “coloured” people. They were segregated from other categories of black South Africans in…

Russia fired cruise missiles at cities across Ukraine during rush-hour yesterday morning, killing civilians and knocking out power and heat, in what President Vladimir Putin declared to be revenge for Ukrainian attacks, including the blast on a bridge to Crimea. The missiles tore into busy intersections, parks and tourist sites in the centre of downtown Kyiv with an intensity not seen even when Russian forces attempted to capture the capital early in the war. Police said at least five people had been killed and 12 wounded in Kyiv Explosions were also reported in Lviv, Ternopil and Zhytomyr in western Ukraine, Dnipro and Kremenchuk in central Ukraine, Zaporizhzhia in the south and Kharkiv in the east. In a televised address, Putin said he had ordered “massive” long-range strikes against Ukrainian energy,…

Some may point to a fortuitous result for Kaizer Chiefs thanks to three penalties in a 3-1 Premiership away win over Stellenbosch FC at the weekend, but there’s no denying that Amakhosi have shown consistent improvement of late. Chiefs failed to score a goal in open play during regulation time, nevertheless, their gangly Burundian striker, Caleb Bimenyimana, netted a hat-trick after referee Tshidiso Maruping awarded three penalties. A search of the archives reveals that this was a first for SA professional football as no team has previously scored three penalties in a match. Maruping entered the history books as this is the first time in the PSL era that a referee had awarded three penalties to the same side. Bimenyimana’s scoring ability can be directly linked to Chiefs’ success. Last…

AmaZulu’s appointment of Romain Folz as their new coach epitomises a major problem that exists in South African football. Many clubs are willing to entrust unknown European coaches ahead of aspiring young coaches and even international coaches from outside Europe. There is no problem with clubs hiring international coaches. Having an international presence allows for more ideas to come into SA football and it also makes the league more interesting. However, it is noticeable that there has always been a big presence of fairly little known European coaches in the Premiership with a much smaller presence from other African nations and continents. Folz, a 32-year-old Frenchman, may have good managerial ideas but does not yet have a good record. His recent stint with Marumo Gallants was only the second full-time…