Indholdsfortegnelse for 2022-12-14 i Cape Argus

IT has been a journey of more than two decades for “Please Call Me” inventor Nkosana Makate to receive adequate compensation for his invention. However, the fight is not over as the legal tussle will now be heard in the Supreme Court of Appeal next year. Vodacom is appealing against the judgment delivered by the North Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, in February ordering its CEO, Shameel Joosub, to go back to the drawing board to calculate exactly what Makate should get for his invention. Judge Wendy Hughes made it clear in her ruling that the calculations used by Joosub in offering Makate R47 million for what she called a brilliant invention was by far too conservative. But Vodacom will not budge and has turned to the Supreme Court. Makate is…

Supporters of Abirah Dekhta and her family have criticised the lack of remorse shown by the seven men charged with kidnapping the 8-year-old girl. The accused, aged between 25 and 47, appeared in the Wynberg Magistrate’s Court yesterday wearing the same clothes as last Wednesday at their second appearance. Abirah was snatched in Gatesville while in school transport on the morning of November 4. On receiving a tip-off on November 14, police descended on a shack in Town Two, Khayelitsha, and found the suspects guarding the shack. They tried to evade arrest but were captured. After consulting their legal representation, three of the suspects could be seen grinning. After their appearance, the group left the dock but individually searched for their supporters in the courtroom, winking and smiling while Abirah’s…

Trevor Noah is officially no longer the host of The Daily Show, and he is using his free time to unwind and enjoy the 2022 Fifa World Cup. Noah took to his official Instagram account and shared pictures of himself with David Beckham and Didier Drogba. Noah called it a “fun surprise” to bump into his “brother Drogba”, as he captioned their picture. The South African shared a fond childhood memory of Beckham in his caption with his followers. Noah revealed that he told the former English footballer how he destroyed several pairs of shoes as he tried to figure out how to “bend it like Beckham”. “As a 15-year-old I destroyed so many pairs of shoes trying to figure out how to bend the ball like this man. I…

“Abou Ben Adhem (may his tribe increase)/awoke one night from a deep dream of peace/And saw, within the moonlight in his room… an Angel writing in a book of gold.” These are the opening lines of a poem I learnt in my primary school years at Athlone North Primary School in Kew Town in the 1940s. For some reason which I cannot explain, this week’s column centres on this recollection. I shall use the poem to exhort my readers: Be all you can ever be. Read! If you are familiar with the poem, you will know that Abou addresses the Angel, asking quite openly: “What is it that you are writing in that glorious-looking Book?” The Angel’s reply was: “The names of those who love the Lord.” “And is mine…

Last Thursday, Mohsen Shekari, 23, was executed after being convicted of “attacking” a member of the Iranian security forces. On Monday, a second protester, Majidreza Rahnavard, was executed after a sham trial where he was denied access to a lawyer and after he was severely tortured. Iranian activists estimate many more are facing a similar fate. To date, the UN estimates more than 450 people were killed and 1 400 arrested, including journalists. Not only the Iranian people, but every free and democratic country is protesting against the brutal and draconian rule of the Ayatollahs trying to suppress human rights. Two woman LGBTQ activists were sentenced to death for “corruption on earth”, and an estimated 4 000-6 000 gays and lesbians have been executed since the Islamic revolution in 1979.…

Usman Khawaja may not be the Kevin Pietersen of the Australian side, but the classy left-hander has had to take some criticism from his teammates for being quite friendly with the Proteas team in the past. Khawaja has spoken openly about his relationship with former Proteas batter Hashim Amla, and really enjoyed spending time with him off the field whenever he could. Amla, of course, is no longer with the Proteas having retired from international cricket in 2019, but Khawaja still had fond memories of the South Africans. He, of course, struck a famous century against the Proteas in South Africa’s first-ever pink ball Test at the Adelaide Oval in 2016. It occurred in extremely bizarre circumstances too, with Khawaja receiving an emergency call to open the batting after former…

Travelling through any South African airport while wearing any form of headgear, from a doek to a baseball cap, will automatically mark you out to be stopped and patted down by security. However, Airports Company South Africa (Acsa) chief executive Mpumi Mpofu said it was not profiling, but they were following international protocols. Mpofu also used the opportunity to give an update on Acsa’s preparations for the summer peak period. Referring to a weekend incident at OR Tambo International Airport in which a Capetonian Muslim woman alleged she was humiliated and profiled for being dressed in a hijab, Mpofu said the incident was unfortunate but denied it was Islamophobia. “All passengers with headgear are automatically searched, as international procedural requirements to ensure the safety and security of all travellers.” Mpofu…

Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town Thabo Makgoba says the Phala Phala saga is far from over and that President Cyril Ramaphosa’s credibility has “suffered”. Makgoba joined a chorus of criticism after the rejection of the Section 89 panel report by a majority of MPs in Parliament. “Democracy is messy and today’s vote in Parliament still leaves the country and the governing party with deep moral and ethical challenges,” Archbishop Makgoba said in a statement. “While we have to subject ourselves to the democratic process, and accept Parliament's vote, this saga is not yet over.” He said the country had yet to hear from the National Prosecuting Authority, SA Revenue Service and the SA Reserve Bank. “Whatever happens, President Ramaphosa’s credibility has suffered a blow and he will have to…

From December 5 to 9 we, in Area 12 on the Cape Flats, have had to endure load shedding between 8pm and midnight on consecutive days. Why this blatant targeting of a particular area for those undesired periods has us baffled. Surely one would think these undesired times would be evenly distributed over all areas. Yet what beats me is how one particular area is targeted to withstand and bear the brunt of load shedding at these undesired periods for a full week consecutively. Looking at the load shedding periods of Area 7, which represents the affluent suburbs of Sea Point, Green Point and Camps Bay, which include the Waterfront (tourist destination), in that particular week – December 5 to 10 – one finds that Area 7 enjoys only daytime…

When will America learn that it is the most active recruiter of what it terms terrorists? Just recently, it connived with Libyan criminals who kidnapped the alleged bomb maker that led to the Lockerbie massacre over Scotland when an American airline was blown up more than 30 years ago. This alleged criminal has been handed over to the Americans. No self-respecting person should give a hoot for this alleged criminal if he is indeed guilty of this heinous crime. But the way in which America has behaved in apprehending him, which is against the law, is in itself reprehensible. Why do Americans think potential “terrorist” recruits will respect them when they themselves act criminally outside international law? Right now, one man has spent 20 years in detention, without trial,…

With more than 40 African leaders visiting Washington this week, US President Joe Biden has a rare opportunity to court a group of nations that have been ambivalent about, and frustrated by, his global effort to rally support behind Ukraine and mount a unified front against Russia. Biden will this week host the US-Africa Leaders Summit, an event last held eight years ago under then-president Barack Obama. This time, the event comes as the White House is working to coax support from African nations that have been hard hit by the war in Ukraine, especially by a wheat shortage and a disruption in the food supply, but also by rising fertiliser and fuel prices. The AU has condemned Russia’s aggression, but many nations on the continent have otherwise tried to…

Let me just get this off my chest: It is ridiculous that Ryan Rickelton and Tony de Zorzi are not on tour with the Proteas in Australia. Lions left-hander Rickelton was omitted from the trip due to a lingering ankle problem that he has insisted is under control, but Cricket South Africa did not budge from their selection policy of not picking injured players. But Rickelton, who was part of the last Test squad, has shown just how “injured” he is with a thrilling run of form in domestic cricket, with scores of 15, 100 not out, 108 not out, 17, 126 and 99 in his last six innings in four-day and one-day cricket. Hopefully CSA can realise their mistake and get him – and Western Province left-hander De Zorzi,…

The Women’s Legal Centre (WLC) has launched a high court application challenging the constitutionality of certain provisions of the Criminal Procedure Act (CPA) which prohibits the publication of information relating to a person accused of sexual offences before they plead to the charges. WLC filed the constitutional challenge against the Minister of Justice and Correctional Services Ronald Lamola. This follows a year after a court case in which a Khayelitsha man accused of a sexual offence, launched an application in terms of the Protection from Harassment Act on the basis that an Athlone activist Caroline Peters publicly identified him by name and posted his details on social media before he pleaded. The accused also laid criminal charges against Peters for contravening the provisions of the CPA. While the Khayelitsha Magistrate’s…

Despite some of the R350 Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant beneficiaries still waiting for their money since April and other challenges that marred the disbursement, the country is shifting closer to the realisation of the Basic Income Grant (BIG). The Department of Social Development launched a second report for basic income support yesterday which found the SRD grant can be adopted permanently without sacrificing economic growth. The research was commissioned by the department in partnership with the International Labour Organisation and used different models to consider the economic, fiscal and social impacts of making the SRD grant permanent. Social Development acting director General Linton Mchunu said the discussion had shifted over the past few months. “Before, the discussion was whether we should bring a Basic Income Grant and that…

THE LATEST unemployment figures have shown the South African situation has gone from bad to worse. Most of us are punch drunk and almost oblivious to the ongoing pain unemployment is causing each and every single South African family. For the past 20 years, the country has been bleeding jobs and very little has been done to stem the tide. We should not only be stopping the destruction, but turning the situation around. There are many ways the government could tackle the job crisis, but every time a solution is suggested, it is either ignored, or reasons are given as to why they don’t want to even try. The unhealthy relationship between the trade union movement and governing party, the ANC, is part of the problem. The trade unions, under-…

In a recent report, the UN secretary- general (UNSG) warned that “sexual violence continues to be employed as a tactic of war, torture and terrorism”, and “that sexual violence has been used to target and silence women political activists”. In fact, 3 293 cases of conflict- related sexual violence (CRSV) across 18 countries were reported by the UN in 2021, with 97% of these cases affecting women and girls as survivors. This is likely to be a gross underestimate, as sexual violence is often considered a “hidden” crime where few survivors are inclined to report what happened for fear of being stigmatised, or of retributive violence, especially where patriarchal norms are strong. Why sexual violence occurs in conflict is a complex question. The answers can be found in multiple intersecting…