Indholdsfortegnelse for 2023-05-16 i Cape Argus

SOLIDARITY and support for the people of Palestine remains fervent, as about 1 000 people marched peacefully in Cape Town, joining the global community in commemorating Nakba Day. Nakba Day is marked annually on March 15, a day after the State of Israel was declared on May 14, 1948. The day referred to as “the Catastrophe” highlights the over 750 000 Palestinians who were expelled from their homeland and the continued persecution and ethnic cleansing of Palestinians. Over 1 000 people, including representatives from Cosatu, EFF, Al Jama-ah, CTIEC, NFP, ANC, Sactwu and Dirco, marched from Hanover Street to Parliament. The march was organised by the Al-Quds Foundation and the Muslim Judicial Council. Children from several schools and madrasas were bused in to the march. “I find people coming in…

The Stormers have been riding the crest of the wave when it comes to finals and seems to have abandoned the “choker” tag. What concerns me, though, is the escalation of ticket prices as we move through the knockout stages to the final. Since the Stormers were going to incur expenses for travelling to Ireland for possible play-offs, they now have the opportunity to save on their expenses. Instead of increasing ticket prices out of the reach of ordinary township supporters, I would appeal to the “powers that be” to retain the prices charged for the semi-final. In this way they would be saying thank you to the faithful for having supported the team and boosting their morale. The support has gone a long way in getting the Stormers where…

The fairest Cape is creating angst and jealousy, in the heart and mind of America. In spite of South Africa’s dodgy and glaring incompetence on the political world stage, it remains important at many levels for the West, hence the current indignation, expounded by the American ambassador. South Africa had become a notable armaments manufacturer, pre-1994, producing a variety of defensive and offensive products ranging from small arms, to long-range cannons, to exciting projects such as the Rooivalk helicopter. These “killing” products cost the fiscus millions in developmental costs and the time has come to recoup some of those substantial investments. The ANC are zealous opportunists, and no doubt saw a gap to do horse trading with the Russians, so deals were done behind closed doors – arms for oil,…

WHAT cargo was loaded onto the Lady R ship, which docked in Simon’s Town in December last year, that was supposedly destined for Russia? That was the question on South Africans’ lips after US Ambassador to SA, Reuben Brigety’s controversial accusation last week that South Africa had supplied weapons to Russia. Assegais, shields, knobkieries and burning tyres! were some of the more humorous guesses. We won’t know for sure until the government has released the findings of a new independent investigation, to be led by a retired judge. It is ridiculous and alarming that the government is uninformed of activities at its own naval bases. Or until Brigety produces proof to back up his quite serious claims – evidence so concrete that he would “bet (his) life” on it. According…

Barcelona secured the Spanish LaLiga title for the first time since 2019 on Sunday. The Catalan giants invested heavily last summer, sacrificing future income in order to bolster the squad and earn major silverware quickly. Xavi Hernandez’s side beat Real Madrid to win the Spanish Super Cup in January and clinched the league title by thrashing Espanyol 4-2 on Sunday. Here, we look at the key ways Barcelona were able to earn their 27th domestic championship. Rock solid Barcelona have been known over the years for their attacking flair, but their triumph this season has been based on a mean defence. The Blaugrana have conceded only 13 goals in 34 games. Andreas Christensen arrived on a free transfer from Chelsea and has slotted in perfectly, while his centre-back partner Ronald…

When the sun sets on Saturday, either Orlando Pirates or SuperSport United will end up as runners-up in the Premiership. This will by no means be a sweeter finish than finishing top, which has already been claimed by Mamelodi Sundowns for a record sixth season in a row. But be that as it may, both teams can be proud of the shift that they’ve put in this season as they have punched above their weight to consolidate a top-three finish. Pirates lost in the Caf Confederation Cup final last season after finishing third the previous campaign. The Confederation Cup is not a competition that Pirates will feel that they belong in – having become the first South Africa team to win the Caf Champions League in 1995. Enter Jose Riveiro.…

The family of the Burgundy Estate woman who was allegedly killed by her boyfriend five years ago say justice has failed them. Yeshnee Kuni, 33, was burnt in her home on Women’s Day in 2017. She died in hospital three days later. Darren Kershaw was arrested and released on R1 000 bail. He appeared briefly in the Western Cape High Court yesterday on charges of murder and arson. Yeshnee’s father, Silvun Kuni, said he had hoped to get answers but the case was postponed to June. “This matter was postponed a number of times and it hurts to say that justice has failed us over and over again. My daughter passed on tragically and in a gruesome way. “I have been making notes about the case, with dates, and hoping…

It was with dismay and disbelief that I read, once again, an article written by some or other Russian diplomat singing the praises of Russian President Vladimir Putin and heaping blame for the war in Ukraine on the Ukrainians. It is shameful that the nonsensical Russian spin is allowed on to the pages of a once-unbiased and balanced newspaper. The Russians are big on speaking the truth, yet their words are punctuated with lies, innuendo and hypocrisy. History shows that Ukraine was part of the old USSR, with several other now independent European states. When the old Soviet Union broke up, the USSR ceased to exist and all that was left was Russia. Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine is an ill-fated and hopeless attempt to redefine the Russian/Ukraine border by…

with reference to “Burn diesel worth R30 billion or collapse the economy” (Cape Argus, May 11). This is a scary statement in that the minister of electricity acknowledges that we are close to a grid collapse. He is saying that if we do not keep Eskom going with diesel at an enormous expense, the entire economy will collapse. This is tantamount to saying we will have a grid collapse first. If we have a grid collapse, this can mean weeks of no electricity which, in turn, will mean no communication by any electronic media, including cellphones and email. Moreover, water reticulation and sewage will come to an end, and even those who have inverters will find they are useless after a day or two. It will be interesting to hear…

Infectious disease outbreaks in African countries are, unfortunately, all too common. Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo or Uganda; Marburg virus in Guinea or Equatorial Guinea; cholera in Malawi; malaria and tuberculosis are among them. These diseases do not respect human-made or porous borders. So it’s essential that scientists in Africa are able to generate and share critical data on the pathogens in time to inform public health decisions. Genomic sequencing technologies are powerful tools in this kind of work. They enable scientists to decode the genetic material of diseases and create biological “fingerprints” to investigate and track the pathogens that cause those diseases. This information aids in developing diagnostics, treatments and vaccines. It also helps public health authorities to guide and prepare their public health systems for…

Contact was slowly being restored yesterday with tens of thousands of people cut off in a major Myanmar port city as the death toll from a cyclone that tore through the west of the country and neighbouring Bangladesh rose to at least five. Cyclone Mocha made landfall between Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh and Myanmar’s Sittwe carrying winds of up to 195km/h, the biggest storm to hit the Bay of Bengal in more than a decade. The storm had largely passed by late Sunday, sparing the refugee camps housing almost a million Rohingya in Bangladesh, where officials said there had been no deaths. At least five people were killed in Myanmar and “some residents” were injured, the military junta said, without giving details. More than 860 houses and 14 hospitals…

When Beyoncé Knowles Carter comes to town, everything seems to come to a standstill. In the lead up to the first stop of Bey’s Renaissance World Tour, which took place in Stockholm, Sweden last Wednesday, the city was flooded with tourists and fans from all over the world as anticipation for the star’s first solo headline tour in seven years came to a fever pitch. A few days before opening night, one fan tweeted: “Just the thought of queuing for hours and standing up through the concert is a bit terrifying, as I’m 20 weeks pregnant lol. But Bey’s worth it!” The multiple videos and fan accounts on social media quickly made clear that the opening night was indeed worth it. Fans queued for hours to get in early and…

Eskom says it will review yet more shocking allegations about maladministration and corruption at the state-owned utility, revealed in a book by former Eskom CEO, André de Ruyter. In his memoir, Truth to Power, De Ruyter reflects on his three years at the helm of Eskom where he discovered how the utility “was crippled by corruption on a staggering scale”. Penguin Random House South Africa’s website said the book details how De Ruyter took over as Eskom CEO in 2020, and realised why it was considered the “toughest job in South Africa”. In a post shared on the publisher’s website, it states: “As someone who is not beholden to the governing party, he is uniquely placed to speak truth to power.” De Ruyter recalls watching Range Rovers, BMWs, Mercs and…

Police and City law enforcement officials had to get involved after a project was put on hold when five unidentified men – reportedly from Mfuleni community around Hoboshe Street – threatened a contractor working on the resurfacing of streets. Mayco member for urban mobility Rob Quintas said the project was scheduled to be completed by May 24 but was forcefully stopped last Wednesday after five men confronted the contractor. “The contractor had to stop work immediately as the men became confrontational, claiming to represent the community and saying they wanted to be employed on the project. The work undertaken in Hoboshe Street, one of six streets to be resurfaced in the area, was initially scheduled for completion on May 24.” The contractor had to engage the local ward councillor to…

Here in Area 12, comprising the predominantly coloured township areas of Silvertown, Bridgetown, Parktown, Kewtown, parts of Surrey Estate, Rylands and Belgravia Estate, we on a regular basis have load shedding from 8pm to 10pm over weekends. Recently, on May 5, 6, 7 and 8, we had 8pm to 10pm load shedding over these consecutive days. This load-shedding schedule is often allocated to Area 12 on a regular basis, as I understand it, on a worrisome, prejudiced basis. Area 7, which is Sea Point and Green Point and the Waterfront tourists area, seems to escape this scheduled allocation. The reason for this unfair allocation needs to be explained. If one visits the periods April 1 to May 15, then I am assuming this practice needs to be addressed. CoCT, please…

In my attempt to remain relevant in sharing my lived experience of being homeless, I have for the past six weeks visited with 800 homeless individuals, of whom 200 were mothers. Among them is Gladys. This is her story: “It was never my goal to be homeless, but it happened. I wanted to take all the necessary steps to ensure my child’s safety and provide her with a nice, loving place to call home. “Unfortunately, domestic violence and broken systems of care prevented me from accomplishing this. Instead, my daughter and I endured homelessness for two years. “Homelessness and the services and programmes we were forced to rely upon affected the quality of care I was able to provide for my child. There is nothing normal about raising a…

Most philosophers of education or philosophically-inclined scholars of education in the past century and a half would agree with the claim that, ideally, education should be the practice of freedom. That is, it ought to cultivate the ability to intelligently decide how we want to shape our lives. The aim of education should be to foster human autonomy. I’m thinking here of a diverse array of scholars. Among them are some of the most influential philosophers of education and educational theorists of the 20th century: the American John Dewey, Brazilian Paulo Freire and Indian Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore. Yet there’s little evidence that their views have played any significant role in shaping the global contemporary education sector, including the tertiary sector. If these scholars are correct, universities and educational institutions…

Romelu Lukaku’s return to sparkling form has given Inter Milan an extra weapon ahead of tonight’s Champions League semi-final decider with AC Milan. Out for much of the season with injuries and with a damaged reputation following a disastrous World Cup, Lukaku has slowly worked his way back to his best. The Belgium striker has scored five times and set up three more in his last six matches and his double in Saturday’s 4-2 win over Sassuolo highlighted his new-found confidence. Lukaku celebrated his 30th birthday by beginning and ending the scoring at the San Siro, spinning and lashing home the opener from the edge of the box shortly before halftime and drilling in his eighth league goal of the season just before the end. A striker in his sort…

The Stormers expect a confident and strengthened Munster to arrive for the URC final at the DHL Stadium in Cape Town on May 27. In their all-Irish semi-final win over Leinster last weekend, Munster played without the likes of Springbok lock RG Snyman, Irish international Conor Murray, and former All Blacks centre Malikai Fekitoa. Those players were all in the side that beat the Stormers when they came to Cape Town for a round-robin match, and the home side expect them to be fit and ready for the title match. If Munster can beat Leinster without those influential players, it’s going to be an uphill battle for the defending champions to curb the Irish club if they are back. But it’s a challenge coach John Dobson’s Stormers are relishing. Because…

WASHINGTON Arubi has pleaded with South African football fans to descend on Royal Bafokeng Sports Palace to help push Marumo Gallants into the Confederation Cup final. The Gallants goalkeeper says their continental campaign is not just for their club but for the whole country. While he is in no doubt they can overturn their 2-0 semi-final first leg defeat to Tanzania’s Young Africans, the Zimbabwean believes a packed stadium will go a long way towards lifting them up. “You saw just how packed the stadium was when we played in Tanzania. It was a Wednesday afternoon, but people came to the match in their numbers and for a player that means a lot. “I really enjoy playing in a full stadium. I find that I want to play to the…