Indholdsfortegnelse for 2022-10-17 i Cape Argus

Intelligence information was gathered about a woman who boarded a flight from Brazil to South Africa via Doha, and upon arrival she was found with 3.6kg of cocaine valued at around R1.4 million. Police spokesperson, Lieutenant- Colonel Robert Netshiunda said the 23-year-old was arrested after she landed at the OR Tambo International Airport in Kempton Park at the weekend. “Police officers attached to the monitoring and interception section of the Gauteng Crime Intelligence Unit have arrested a 23-year-old foreign woman who allegedly attempted to smuggle drugs into the country. The suspect was arrested at the OR Tambo International Airport on Saturday, October 15, 2022,” said Netshiunda. “Intelligence information was gathered about the suspect who boarded a flight from Brazil to South Africa via Doha. During the search police found…

On SATURDAY, I attended the Cape Flats Book Festival organised by Athol Williams and Taryn Lock, the founders of Read to Rise. The event hosted an amazing collection of local authors, book collectors and ordinary Cape Town people. Located in the heart of Mitchells Plain, it raised a banner for literacy, reading and storytelling. The festival itself tells a story of a community that refuses to be defined by a simplex narrative of crime and drugs. Its storytelling and writing abilities are far more powerful than the drugs and gangs it crosses paths with daily. In 1948, when the National Party came to power and forced its doctrine of apartheid down the throats of the country, it systematically tried to undermine the education of black people. From separate educational amenities…

The Western Cape Education Department investigated 11 unregistered independent schools that were operating illegally. This was part of a report that was shared with members of the standing committee on education and the public on Friday where the Education Department annual report was discussed. Education MEC David Maynier said that despite the challenges brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic “the department during the period under review, I think, delivered some excellent results, if you look at the NSC exams, an 81.2% pass, a 45.3% Bachelor’s pass, and of course the highest maths and science exam pass rate at 71.6% and 76.2% respectively”. WCED head of department Brent Walters said the department had more than 1.1 million children in the system, 44 000 staff with 40 000 within…

Mental health is the state of mental well-being that contributes to individual and population health. This state of mental well-being sustains national output and labour force productivity. But governments around the world haven’t been investing resources into addressing mental ill-health. This is despite acknowledging that economics and mental health are intertwined. It’s documented that cannabis consumption erodes mental well-being. It has adverse effects on school, work, and social life. The consumption of cannabis has also been linked to increases in domestic violence. The 2019 Africa Regional Hemp and Cannabis report indicates that Africa contributed US$37 billion to the cannabis global market. This figure demonstrates the potential in targeting the cannabis sector for special excise taxes to fund African mental health prevention programmes. Some developing countries have opted to legalise the…

No civilians were killed in the attack at a military base in Russia’s Belgorod region, but many soldiers were killed or wounded, the governor of the region Vyacheslav Gladkov said yesterday. “A terrible event happened on our territory, on the territory of one of the military units,” Gladkov said in a video post on the Telegram messaging app. “Many soldiers were killed and wounded ... There are no residents of the Belgorod region among the wounded and killed.” Gladkov did not say how many soldiers were killed. The state RIA news agency cited the defence ministry as saying 11 people were killed and 15 others were wounded when two men shot at a group who had volunteered to take part in the war against Ukraine. It said the two assailants…

JOHANNESBURG: Zimbabwe is in talks with the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) on how to clear its debts with international financial institutions, finance minister Mthuli Ncube has said at an IMF press conference. He said Zimbabwe had begun issuing bonds with maturities of between two and 20 years in order to honour its debt to creditors, and was looking at how these can be traded, while it was also looking to issue bonds to compensate white former farmers over time. Zimbabwe has more than $10 billion (about R184bn) in external debt, mostly in arrears. Ncube said IMF staff would visit Zimbabwe in December. |…

London: Britain’s Prime Minister Liz Truss insisted on her devotion to “sound” economics heading into crisis talks yesterday with her all-powerful new finance minister, and a tense week of plotting by Conservative critics. With even US President Joe Biden joining in attacks on her economic agenda, Truss admitted it had been a “wrench” to fire her friend Kwasi Kwarteng as chancellor of the exchequer. She appointed Jeremy Hunt as the new finance minister. Writing in the Sun on Sunday newspaper, she said: “We cannot pave the way to a low-tax, high-growth economy without maintaining the confidence of the markets in our commitment to sound money.” |…

Kaizer Chiefs suffered a shock 2-1 defeat to Chippa United at Moses Mabhida Stadium on Saturday, putting an end to their seven-game unbeaten run. A new-look Amakhosi team appeared to be heading in the right direction following an impressive run of performances. However a poor display against Chippa saw them suffer their first defeat at home this season. A huge chunk of coach Arthur Zwane's problems this season have been his side's inability to convert the simplest of chances in front of goal. It was a similar case on Saturday as some of the club's most clinical finishers were guilty of spurning numerous chances against Chippa. Zwane was a disappointed figure at the post-match press conference. The 49-year-old however vowed to not lose hope in his players as fixtures come…

The prestigious ninth annual Simon ‘Mabhunu’ Sabela Film and Television Awards in July came under fire as complaints racked up against the Best Newcomer Actress in a Film award. According to a statement from the KwaZulu Natal Film Commission, complaints followed after the award was given to newcomer actress Thulisile Dlamini from the movie Help. It was found that Dlamini’s name was not listed on the actual nominee board. After months of reviewing the complaints, the commission has provided feedback saying Dlamini remains the winner of the category and the omission of her name was due to a “human error”. “After reviewing the judging reports provided by the overall judges and confirmed by the external independent auditor, it was noted that the nominee, Thulisile Dlamini, was indeed the correct winner…

Stephen Mokoka won the Cape Town Marathon yesterday morning, and the defending champion achieved victory in fine style. Mokoka, who has now won the Cape Town Marathon three times, crossed the finish line in a time of 2:09:58. The South African walked away with a whopping R250 000 winner’s cheque. Mokoka, who set a course record (2:08:33) last year, came into the race as the fastest participant. The win was a great boost for Mokoka, who had had a generally disappointing year, with injuries forcing him to miss the IAAF World Championship. The race was run in almost perfect weather, on a partly sunny day that saw 13 000 runners, and many supporters turn up for the annual event, which took a break during the Covid-19 pandemic. Meanwhile, Ethiopia’s Meseret…

A member of the VIP protection unit assigned to Safety and Security MEC Reagen Allen’s security detail who shot himself at a funeral has shone a light on the mental health issues within the SAPS. Siyabonga Mngcongo, 44, from the Eastern Cape was in critical condition in hospital after he placed his service pistol in his mouth and pulled the trigger in an apparent attempted suicide. The incident took place on the church grounds of the VGK (Uniting Reform Church) in Halt Road, Elsies River, on Saturday morning, where Mngcongo was found behind the church garage with an exit wound to his left cheek. He had been attending the funeral of a slain Law Enforcement officer, said MEC Reagen Allen. “I am deeply shocked and hurt by what transpired. I’d…

“FOR the first time in history, the physical survival of the human race depends on a radical change of the human heart.” This was written over 50 years ago by the German psychoanalyst and social psychologist Erich Fromm, who fled Nazi Germany in 1933. This plea is now an imperative. Sixty Harvests Left, the third in the trilogy – the others being Farmageddon and Dead Zone – is about what we eat, the consequences of how it is produced and, with our essential participation, “how to reach a nature-friendly future”. Philip Lymbery is the chief executive of the international farm-animal organisation Compassion in World Farming. His mission over 30 years has been to reform the appalling conditions in which factory farmed animals are reared and he has travelled the…

Tobacco is a leading cause of disease. It is estimated that it kills half of its consumers. Over a million additional deaths result from exposure to second-hand smoke. Countries around the world are moving towards stricter regulation of tobacco products in compliance with their obligation to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. In 2018 South Africa published a tobacco control bill that sought to better regulate the sale of cigarettes and other tobacco products. It’s been revised as the Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Control Bill 2021 and has been approved for submission to Parliament. Ina Skosana (IS) speaks to Catherine Egbe (CE), a lead researcher on South Africa’s Global Adult Smoking Survey, about the latest developments. IS: Why has it taken so long to…

President Xi Jinping hailed China’s rise as a global power and demanded unity around his leadership yesterday, launching a Communist Party Congress that is set to rubber stamp his bid to rule for a historic third term. In an opening address to 2 300 delegates gathered at the Great Hall of the People, Xi promoted and defended a range of signature policies – including zero-Covid and his anti-corruption drive that has taken down rivals in the party. “Unity is strength, and victory requires unity,” Xi said after walking onstage to a thunderous reception from the hand-picked attendees who will vote during the week-long congress on the party leadership for the next five years. The president – whose 10-year rule has seen the country become a global superpower – said:…

LONDON: Two environmental protesters appeared in a UK court on Saturday after throwing tomato soup over Vincent van Gogh’s Sunflowers painting at London’s National Gallery. Just Stop Oil climate activists Anna Holland, 20, and Phoebe Plummer, 21, pleaded not guilty in the London court to criminal damage. They were released on bail, pending a trial in London on December 13. On Saturday, nearly 30 Just Stop Oil activists glued themselves to the tarmac as they blocked a major road in east London, triggering angry exchanges with motorists. |…

Ipid battles to deal with SAPS brutality More than 300 people have allegedly died at the hands of police in the Western Cape in the past year. This is aside from the more than 2 000 deaths ascribed to police in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal. These figures were given to members of Parliament by the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid). The Ipid report paints a dark picture of the negligent handling of rapes in police custody, alleged rape cases against police officers, and aggressive and trigger-happy cops. Ipid’s report shows that it is working through a backlog of 40 065 cases nationally, though decisions have been made only in a few cases. However, Ipid officials said the actual backlog figure is 12 000 cases. Ipid executive director Jennifer Ntlatseng said that…

National police commissioner Fannie Masemola and the National Prosecuting Authority are sitting on the recommendations into Anti-Gang Unit (AGU) detective Charl Kinnear’s murder investigation, which implicates senior policemen, MPs heard. This emerged as the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) submitted a classified report into Kinnear’s killing to Parliament. Kinnear was shot and killed in 2020 outside his Bishop Lavis home. Ipid compiled a classified report and submitted it to the police committee on Friday. However, MPs batted the document away without perusing it as they had not received it in advance and amid questions around top secret clearance of some MPs. Freedom Front Plus leader, Dr Pieter Groenewald, pressed police committee chairperson, ANC MP Tina Joemat-Pettersson, to stick to her promise on Wednesday to discuss the matter soon. He quizzed…

AMID concern around the high levels of Sars-CoV-2 RNA in wastewater treatment plants in Cape Town and other parts of the Western Cape, prompting the issuance of a public alert, the SA Medical Research Council (SAMRC) has noted a significant decline since. The SAMRC conducts weekly waste- water testing of Sars-CoV-2 levels, with samples collected from over 80 wastewater treatment plants across six provinces. Covid-19 is caused by the virus Sars-CoV-2. Increases were found in De Doorns, Rawsonville and Worcester. SAMRC Wastewater Surveillance team member, Professor Angela Mathee, said: “Two or three weeks ago, we started seeing sharp increases at some sites. In Cape Town, we saw a Sars-CoV-2 RNA increase in most wastewater treatment plants. But last week, the sharp rise followed a very fast decline in Cape Town…

The City has compensated the 46 homeless people living in Sydney Street, District Six, for the wrongful eviction and impounding of personal belongings it carried out last year. The parking lot occupiers, represented by Ndifuna Ukwazi, took the City to court after its Law Enforcement unit in September last year confiscated and dispossessed approximately 100 occupiers of their homes and personal belongings. In October the high court declared the City’s use of municipal by-laws to confiscate and “dispossess” tents, informal structures, and personal possessions belonging to the occupiers unlawful in terms of Section 26(3) of the Constitution and the Prevention of Illegal Eviction from and Unlawful Occupation of Land Act 19 of 1998. It also interdicted the City from evicting the occupiers or confiscating their tents, informal structures, or personal…

Los Angeles is sweltering. Smokes from fires are burning in the wastelands on the outskirts of this parched city. The palms are not quite so verdant as they used to be and nary a breeze runs through the wide boulevards, leaving the normally gently swaying trees as still as tall dead sentinels on the smokin’ hot sidewalks. It’s here that the lives of the Mexican American Alvarado family are described. You’ll be reminded of the diverse yet closely knit families portrayed on TV series such as Frankie and Grace; of the “telenovelas” sprung out on Latin American TV and even of the doings of the Ewings in Dallas. At the core of this delightful family saga are patriarch Oscar and his wife Keila, who has Jewish roots. Their three daughters…

The next fortnight will be quite important for Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates, who will want to meet in the MTN8 final a week after the league’s Soweto Derby. The MTN8 is the most lucrative domestic tournament, and the two Soweto giants – who have both been trophyless for couple of years – are a match away from the final and winning R8 million. Only Mamelodi Sundowns, AmaZulu and their greatest rivals – themselves – stand in their way. Pirates will face Sundowns in the MTN8 semi-final second leg in Polokwane on Saturday with a slight advantage after the first leg ended 0-0 in Orlando Stadium. Nevertheless, the Buccaneers have to shed a five-game winless run, which has been inspired by their severe shyness in front of goal. They…

BERLIN: German chancellor Olaf Scholz called for an expanded EU bloc, telling a gathering of European social democrats that it would then be able to better pull its weight in global affairs. Since assuming office, Scholz has made EU expansion to include the Balkans and others nations a major plank of his foreign policy. It has taken on more urgency since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which became a candidate for EU membership early this summer. “An EU with 27, 30, 36 states, with then more than 500 million free and equal citizens, can bring its weight to bear even more strongly in the world,” Scholz said at the congress. The EU currently has 27 members. |…

A fire and clashes erupted at Tehran’s notorious Evin prison on Saturday night as the protest movement sparked by Mahsa Amini’s death in custody entered the fifth week. The fire that broke out in the prison overnight killed four inmates and left 61 others injured, the judicial authority said on its website yesterday. The facility in northern Tehran is known for the ill-treatment of political prisoners. Foreign detainees are also held there. Hundreds of those detained in the protests over Amini’s death have reportedly been sent to Evin prison. “Troubles”erupted between inmates and guards at Tehran’s Evin prison and a fire broke out but the situation is “under control”, Iranian state media reported on Saturday. At least eight people were injured, the state news agency IRNA reported, citing a…

THE Cricket South Africa T20 Challenge Division 1 kicks off on Monday in Potchefstroom. Here Zaahier Adams looks at five youngsters, besides Dewald Brevis, to keep a close eye on this week. 1. Matthew Boast (Titans) The all-rounder has improved in leaps and bounds under coach Shukri Conrad’s mentorship since last year’s Under-19 World Cup in the Caribbean. He dominated the past weekend’s CSA Division 2 T20 Challenge where he played a leading role in the SA U19s lifting the trophy. The former St Charles pupil was the tournament's second highest wicket-taker (nine wickets at 14.60 with an economy of 6.40) and was also runner-up on the run-scorers list (141 runs at an average of 28.20 and strike-rate of 180). 2. Liam Alder (Lions) The King Edward VII High School…