Innehållsförteckning för 2021-05-17 från Cape Argus

Zintle Mahlati and Shakirah thebus THOUSANDS of people older than 60 will begin receiving the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine today as the country moves into phase two of the vaccination drive. Health Minister Dr Zweli Mkhize said more than 130 sites will be active from this week to begin vaccinations. The government aims to vaccinate more than 10 million people during the second phase, which runs until October. The programme began with health-care workers, who were administered the one-shot Johnson & Johnson (J&J) vaccine. Thousands have been vaccinated so far. However, more have yet to receive the jab, as the Sisonke programme, under which the vaccinations were run, ended on Saturday. As of Saturday, 478 452 health-care workers had been vaccinated under the Sisonke programme. The SA Medical Research Council…

A 66-YEAR-OLD Cape Town man drowned while out with family, after he was swept away by currents at Grotto East at the lagoon mouth, near Hermanus, on Friday. National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) Hermanus station commander, André Barnard, said: “It appears that the man had been walking at the lagoon with his daughter and his grandson when he and the grandson may have waded in shallow water along the shore of the lagoon before being caught in currents. The lagoon had broken its banks last week in heavy rainfall.” The man was assisted to shore by his daughter and a civilian, and the child waded ashore. After CPR efforts, the man was declared dead. Police spokesperson FC van Wyk said the incident occurred at about 1pm. “Witnesses heard a scream,…

Mwangi Githahu mwangi.githahu@inl.co.za THE CITY has approved a public participation process for the controversial proposed Newmarket Street housing project. The move comes after an outcry following the publication of a notice last year announcing the City’s plans to lease out the site in Cape Town’s Central City to a private company to be used as a parking lot. This particular public participation will take place within the prescripts of the Municipal Asset Transfer Regulations (MATR) Act for the intended long-term rights to use, manage and control the property for social housing for a period of 30 years. The project is located just a short walk from the Cape Town city centre. Launching the process, Mayco member for human settlements Malusi Booi said the proposed Newmarket Street project had a…

We Are All Birds Of Uganda Hafsa Zayyan Merky Books Review: Orielle Berry In 1960s Uganda, Hasan is struggling to run his family business following the sudden death of his wife. But just as he begins to see a way forward, a new regime seizes power, and a wave of rising prejudice threatens to sweep away everything he has worked so hard to build. In contemporary London, we are introduced to Sameer, a young high-flying lawyer. He senses an emptiness in what he thought was the life of his dreams. Called back to his family home by an unexpected tragedy, Sameer begins to find the missing pieces of himself not in his future plans, but in a past he never knew. Alternating between two continents and several generations over a troubled century,…

Madiny Darries | Pinelands Listening to Gareth Cliff’s comments on the current situation in Palestine is nauseating. He made these comments on his show on Wednesday. Firstly, he refers to the al-Aqsa Mosque compound as the Temple Mount and says that the Palestinian families are being evicted because in 1948 that land was owned by the Jews. Jordan invaded Jerusalem and chased the Jews out. He says when Israel takes over a place, it doesn’t chase out the Palestinians. According to him, the Jewish families that were chased away in 1948 still have the title deeds to the properties. He adds that the Palestinian families have been living rent-free for 72 years and it is time they vacate the properties and make way for the rightful owners, and…

AS A confirmed member of the DOF Brigade (Doddery Old Farts), I distrust anything electronic. “Just tap your card,” the teller says and waves your credit card vaguely over her keyboard and a lump of virtual money vanishes out of your bank account and into hers. It may seem very slick and clever, like a magician pulling a rabbit out of your ear, but you know that rabbit wasn’t really in your ear. I imagine this is how politicians manage to steal billions of tax-payers’ rand. Just wave your party membership card over a machine and money slips from your account into theirs. I don’t believe I’m alone in my distrust. Most people seem to think money doesn’t really exist. Government employees threaten to go on strike for more money…

Trade deals expose conduct of West African ruling elites and maintaining stability THE political survival of ruling elites is one of the major determining factors behind their trade policy choices. But trade policy choices can determine whether a country’s economy diversifies to reduce dependence on the production of a few goods or services. This phenomenon is most pronounced in countries whose economies are heavily dependent on a few commodity exports. To understand this phenomenon better, I have looked at the behaviour of ruling elites in West Africa since the early 1960s. I focused specifically on their choices of trade policy and relations. I chose West Africa because some of the countries in the region, including Burkina Faso, Senegal and Ivory Coast, have basically been in a trade partnership with the…

TensionS between Israel and militant groups in the Gaza Strip continued yesterday for the seventh day in a row as the death toll in the coastal enclave climbed to 181 and 1 225 others were injured, officials said. At least 33 Palestinians, including eight children, were killed yesterday in Israeli air strikes on Gaza, in the worst daily toll since bombardment started almost a week ago, local authorities said. The health ministry in Gaza said in a press statement that since last Monday, 181 Palestinians had been killed, including 52 children and 31 women, and 1 225 others had different injuries. Militant groups, led by the armed wing of the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), fired barrages of rockets from the Gaza Strip at cities and towns in…

Sydney: The crew of an Indonesian fishing trawler that was “clinging to their vessel” in bad weather has been rescued off Australia’s west coast, a top Canberra official said yesterday. The boat had started sinking in the Indian Ocean on Thursday with 20 crew members on board, Australian Defence Minister Peter Dutton said in a statement. Australian air force planes dropped life rafts for the crew, stranded 670 nautical miles west of Perth, before a Japanese fishing vessel picked them up on Saturday. Dutton said the crew had been “clinging to their vessel”. The survivors were transferred to the Australian navy ship HMAS Anzac on Saturday afternoon. “The fishermen are receiving medical support,” Dutton added.…

Eshlin Vedan eshlin.vedan@inl.co.za A 59th minute goal from Ben Malango earned Raja Casablanca a vital 1-1 draw with Orlando Pirates in their Confederation Cup quarter-final first-leg clash at Orlando Stadium yesterday. There is no doubt that that the team from Morocco will be the happier team with the outcome. Not only did they avoid defeat, but they also scored a vital away goal. Malango was gifted the ball following a defensive lapse in concentration by Nathaniel Nyauza, with Pirates defender Bongani Sam also unable to recover following his defensive partner’s error. Vincent Pule had put the Sea Robbers ahead in the 38th minute with a well-executed goal from a one-on-one situation after taking advantage of lax defending by the visitors and rolling the ball into the net. The first half…

Cricket Australia has said it was open to hearing any new information regarding the 2018 Cape Town scandal in the wake of batsman Cameron Bancroft’s comments suggesting that the team’s bowlers were aware of the ball-tampering tactics. Following an investigation, former Test opener Bancroft was banned for nine months for his role in the incident, while then-captain Steve Smith and his deputy David Warner were stripped of their leadership positions and handed year-long suspensions. The CA review had at that time cleared the rest of the team and the support staff from any wrongdoing or knowledge of the damaging incident, but Bancroft’s interview to The Guardian on Friday has reopened old wounds. “CA has maintained all along that if anyone is in possession of new information in regards to the…

Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant was inducted posthumously to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on Saturday, as the class of 2020 was enshrined after months of delay due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The five-time NBA champion died last year aged 41 in a helicopter crash alongside his daughter and seven others, shocking the world of professional sport and sending his legions of fans into mourning. Bryant’s widow Vanessa, who started dating Kobe when she was 17, offered an acceptance on his behalf as presenter Michael Jordan stood nearby. “Dear Kobe, thank you for being the best husband and father you could possibly be,” she said. “Thank you for never giving up on us. Thank you for all of your hard work.” The 18-time All-Star joined the NBA…

Bloodbath as gangs fight for dominance Sisonke Mlamla sisonke.mlamla@inl.co.za THE killing of a man in RR-section, Site B, Khayelitsha, on Saturday seemed to have been the catalyst for a bloody weekend in the sprawling township. At last count, 12 people were left dead as gunmen went on a rampage of shootings police said were linked. The provincial government has come out to state that the latest killings were probably linked to extortion rackets operating in the townships as rival gangs fought for dominance. The Cape Argus visited the scene yesterday. The distraught aunt of one of the victim’s, Asemahle Mayekiso, said he was shot and killed at the door in front of their home.“I do not know why they killed him. He was an innocent child who never did anything…

Sisonke Mlamla sisonke.mlamla@inl.co.za A nine-year-old girl was shot dead while playing with a police officer’s firearm with two of her friends. Police spokesperson FC van Wyk said a murder case was registered for investigation after a shooting on Friday night at in Drommedaris, Mbekweni. A leaked police report said three children were invited to play at the officer’s house. When he arrived from work, he took off his service pistol, put it on the sofa and went to fetch water. The report said the children took the firearm and were playing with it and arguing over it. The officer tried to intervene but a shot was fired, hitting the victim in the face. “She ran towards her house, bleeding, and the officer followed to try to help but saw…

Mwangi Githahu mwangi.githahu@inl.co.za PEOPLE from lower- to middle- income households, including many essential workers across the Western Cape, are set to benefit from a new draft inclusionary housing policy framework unveiled by the Province. In a bid to tackle the issue of housing and spatial inequality in municipalities, the department of Local Government, Environmental Affairs and Development Planning has invited the public to comment on its new plan. MEC Anton Bredell said the Province wanted more affordable and inclusionary housing in well-located areas within its municipalities and the draft policy, which will rely on partnership with the private sector, will create more opportunities for people to live in better locations. “The draft policy framework will help municipalities in the province to facilitate the inclusion of more affordable housing units…

THIS week constitutes an important commemoration in the ongoing struggle for a better life for the homeless community of Cape Town. It was on May 20 last year that mayor Dan Plato officially closed the Strandfontein Homeless Camp. The final groups of people were driven out of the camp site on trucks and in buses, some to shelters and others dropped off at various locations, back on the city streets – where most of them still are today. It’s a year later and little has happened to house the growing population of homeless people. It is still largely regarded as the work of underfunded NGOs to address the plight of homeless people – a financial burden that no NGO can bear for any length of time. The primary mandate to…

The Diplomat’s Wife Michael Ridpath Corvus Books Review: Orielle Berry It’s 1936 and devastated by the death of her brother Hugh, Emma tries her best to keep his memory alive by embracing his dreams of a communist revolution. However, when she marries an ambitious diplomat, she has to leave her ideals behind and live within the strict confines of embassy life, both in Paris and Nazi Berlin. But then one of Hugh’s old comrades makes an appearance and asks her to report on her philandering husband. Contrary to his morals, her loyalties are torn. Fast forward to the year 1979: Emma’s grandson, Phil, dreams of a gap-year tour of Cold War Europe, but is unable to fund his trip. So when his dearly beloved grandmother decides to make one last trip to…

Baldwin Ndaba baldwin.ndaba@inl.co.za FORMER president Jacob Zuma is expected to appear today in the Pietermaritzburg High Court on charges of racketeering, two counts of corruption and 12 counts of fraud, nine of which were for allegedly filing false income tax returns. He is charged along with Thales company, which sought arms deal bids while Zuma was economic affairs MEC in KwaZulu-Natal and later when he was the country’s deputy president. The allegations are included in a 90-page indictment served on Zuma on March 23, 2018. The State alleges Zuma’s former financial adviser, Schabir Shaik, Thales and Thomson CSF – through its representatives – conspired to pay R500 000 to Zuma annually as a bribe in exchange for protection against any investigation into the corvettes part of the arms deal and for…

Sibonelo Nzama | Umlazi I THINK we are really misleading our children now. Allowing women to have more than one husband is really against our beliefs. You can look at this from all angles, culture, nature or religion – it is a bad idea. Dr (Aaron) Motsoaledi should rather be concentrating on sorting the problems facing Home Affairs than engaging in issues that are to confuse our future generation. This really shows that our leaders are confused with things that have nothing to do with their offices.…

ENOUGH is enough. Hamas, recognised in the West as a terrorist organisation, must be eliminated. UN agencies and the press must stop being accessories to anti-Semitism. Under international law, Israel includes Judea, Samaria and Gaza, until such time as Israel agrees to give some of it to the Palestinian Authority. The time to settle this is now. There is no Palestine. There never was an Arab Called a Palestinian until the KGB and Egypt established the Palestine Liberation Organisation – as a terrorist, propaganda tool, to drive the infidels out of the Middle East, in 1964. There is no equivalence between Israel and the PA, and Hamas. Israel is one of the top 10 countries in the world. The PA and Hamas are political parties at best, and terrorists at…

Ben Levitas | Oranjezicht IF GAZA ends up in a heap of ruins, Hamas will still proclaim victory. Every dead body – whether Palestinian or Israeli – is celebrated by Hamas. The Israeli dead are the detested enemy and Palestinian dead are celebrated as martyrs. Among the dead, children especially, are celebrated by Hamas, because they fuel sympathy for their cause and project the Israelis as heartless. It does not matter whether the 400 misdirected missiles launched by Hamas that landed in Gaza caused many Gazan children to die, because they contribute to the count of children’s deaths, and they know that Israel will be held to account. Hamas is a nihilistic extremist Islamist terrorist organisation that is bent only on the total destruction of Israel – no…

Dr Yogan Pillay, Dr Kibachio Joseph Mwangi and Sandhya Singh May 17 is World Hypertension Day. The theme this year is “Measure your blood pressure, control it, live longer”. About half of all South Africans have elevated blood pressure, and this trend has increased over the past few decades. The SA Demographic and Health Survey conducted in 2016 and published in 2019 reported that between 1998 and 2016 the prevalence of hypertension rose from 25% to 46% in women, and from 23% to 44% in men. The prevalence of hypertension rises steadily with increasing age, peaking at 84 among women and men 65 and older. Twenty-nine percent of women and 34% of men with hypertension were never told by their health provider that they suffered from it. Equally…

HARARE: Zimbabwe’s High Court has dealt a blow to President Emmerson Mnangagwa, ruling his decision to extend Chief Justice Luke Malaba’s tenure by five years was invalid because it breached the constitution. The Judicial Service Commission (JSC), which employs all judges, said the decision means that Deputy Chief Justice Elizabeth Gwaunza becomes acting chief justice pending the outcome of an appeal. This is a setback to Mnangagwa whose party changed the constitution to allow him to appoint senior judges without a public vetting process. The opposition accused Mnangagwa of seeking to influence the judiciary. Lawyers challenged a constitutional amendment that raised the retirement age of judges to 75 from 70, which allowed Mnangagwa to extend Malaba’s term.…

Zaahier Adams zaahier.adams@inl.co.za Mamelodi Sundowns co-coach Manqoba Mngqithi believes his team were “the better team football-wise” despite losing 2-0 to Al Ahly in their Champions League quarter-final first leg in Cairo on Saturday evening. The South African champions dominated possession for long periods and created a couple of chances to score an all-important away goal, but unfortunately did not utilise their opportunities. Against a quality team like Al Ahly, it would prove suicidal as the Red Devils scored through a wonderful strike by Mohamed Taher before a calamitous mistake by Sundowns goalkeeper Denis Onyango gifted Salah Mohsen a tap-in during the closing stages and allow Pitso Mosimane’s team to take a two-goal cushion into the second leg against his former team in South Africa on Saturday. “Like I expected, it…

HER challengers stumbled at the final hurdle yesterday, and Lee-Anne Pace held on to win her fourth national open title when she won the Investec South African Women’s Open title by one stroke at Westlake Golf Club in Cape Town. Pace carded a level-par 72 in the final round after a weekend of trying conditions, and that was enough to ward off the threat posed by young German Leonie Harm, who also shot level-par in the final round. In a share of third place were another German, Karolin Lampert, and SA’s Nicole Garcia on five-over. “It’s really very special for me,” said Pace of the tournament co-sanctioned by the Sunshine Ladies Tour and Ladies European Tour. “I lost it a few years ago here on the same course and I’m…

From page 1 Health expert Dr Aslam Dasoo from the Progressive Health Forum said the country had delayed long enough in administering vaccines. He said although the start of the vaccination programme was welcome, it would likely have minimal impact on the third wave. “It is not going to make a difference. Whatever happens with that roll-out, it will not have an appreciable effect on the third wave. All that might reduce the severity of the third wave might be people themselves taking on non-pharmaceutical measures. And for the government to act now with decisiveness and prohibit all gatherings unless necessary,” he said. The EVDS system can be accessed on the Department of Health’s website: https://vaccine.enroll.health.gov.za/#/…

Tarryn-Leigh Solomons tarryn-leigh.solomons@inl.co.za PARLIAMENT’S police portfolio committee has proposed a fully digitised firearm licence application system to make it possible for citizens to renew their licences online. This comes after the committee conducted an oversight visit to the SAPS Central Firearm Register (CRF) and the forensic science laboratory services in Tshwane on Saturday. The committee found a backlog of about 250 000 applications piled in the offices and corridors. Acting committee chairperson Kebby Maphatsoe said the committee was not impressed by the backlog and proposed a fully digitised application system instead of the current system, which was laborious and inefficient. “According to SAPS, there is a process of modernisation which is under way and that a bid has already been advertised to computerise the firearm licence application system to make…

EARLIER this month, the world celebrated World Press Freedom Day (May 3). Yet many of our international colleagues were unable to participate, since their ability to report on news or opinion has been severely restricted or denied outright. The current situation in Palestine is a case in point, including the bombing of the building in Gaza that housed the Al Jazeera and AP news agency offices. This is a deliberate attempt to silence the media covering the events happening in Palestine. Independent Media outright denounces this action. The Palestinian Centre for Development and Media Freedoms (MADA) has already noted a drastic increase in the number of violations against media freedoms. (According to the Palestine Journalists Syndicate more than 600 cases of journalist rights violations were recorded in 2020). As peace…

Staff Reporter SOUTH Africa awaits with bated breath to find out whether home-bred Natasha Joubert will be crowned Miss Universe. The Miss Universe pageant took place yesterday in the US (2am-5am today in South Africa) at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel Casino in Hollywood, Florida, US. Reigning Miss Universe Zozibini Tunzi will crown her successor at the end of the pageant, with many hoping to see Joubert at the forefront. A country’s back-to-back wins have only occurred once before in the pageant’s 69-year history. Venezuela’s Dayana Mendoza and Stefanía Fernández took the crown consecutively in 2008 and 2009. Last year the pageant was postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic, making Tunzi, crowned in December 2019, the longest-reigning Miss Universe. Joubert, who was second runner-up at the 2020 Miss South…

Rogues’ Gallery – An Irreverent History Of Corruption In South Africa, from the VOC to the ANC Matthew Blackman, Nick Dall Penguin Books Review: Orielle Berry IF YOU think corruption in South Africa began with Zuma or even with apartheid, think again. This thoroughly intriguing book unpacks the story of some of the most shadowy characters that have graced our shores, showing that dodgy wheeling and dealing has indeed been a national pastime for as long as our history has been documented. It all starts with the machinations of three governors from our colourful (to say the least) colonial past: Willem Adriaan van der Stel and the “twaddling” British duo, Sir George Yonge and Lord Charles Somerset. Add to the equation Cecil John Rhodes’ unparalleled success in poisoning the land with theft,…

Klara and the Sun Kazuo Ishiguro Faber and Faber Review: Beryl Eichenberger Love and loneliness – hardly the ideal combination, but these are the more superficial themes that Kazuo Ishiguro explores in his latest novel Klara and the Sun. There is nothing superficial about this extraordinary story, far from it, as it shows us a world that is not so far into the future, one that I certainly would not want to live in. But as we are seeing in global science and technology advances there is a pipeline that could, disturbingly, fulfil this unusual story line. This is Ishiguro’s eighth novel and his first since winning the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2017. It is a return to science fiction since Never let Me Go, published in 2005. Written with simplicity,…

Our so-called official opposition got out of the starting blocks at the dawn of our democracy without a proper strategy, let alone a Plan B should their misdirected, dishonest plan fail. And here we are now, after six general elections with intervals of five years, 14 parties in Parliament, 13 hell-bent on unseating an insurmountable “Goliath” party, the “shadow government” not even halfway to being a threat to the party that liberated all of us with the sacrifice of so many lives. This happens when one digs graves for others, soon to fall into them oneself. If this party hoped to ever govern our country, those hopes are dashed every day as it stumbles along from one scandal to another. The latest is the Palestinian matter. Four parties quickly threw…

THE story “Poor public participation ‘reflects low trust in City’” (The Cape Argus, 10 May 2021) refers. The article expresses an opinion that public participation on the budget was ‘poor’ without any real analysis (although even amid a Covid-19 year, the City maintains the response was reasonable year-on-year), and simply repeats gratuitous and unsubstantiated comments by various unrepresentative groups that public trust in the City is low. One of the best indicators of trust in a municipality is its payment collection ratio. In the City of Cape Town, this ratio is 97% for the payment of municipal accounts. This is a concrete indication of the level of trust that exists and the integrity of the systems that are in place. In fact, during 2020, the City was named the most…

SA Rugby had both good and bad news for fans when they confirmed the tour itinerary for the British and Irish Lions, but it came with the rider that it is highly likely that the matches will be played in empty stadiums. All eight matches are to be played in Gauteng and Cape Town to minimise the risks of disruption that could be caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. The schedule accommodates stable team bases and training venues, and significantly reduces travel. It is indeed good news that the tour is going ahead, but shortly after the confirmation reached rugby fans, they were informed that those who had bought tickets for the matches are to be refunded. This development does not come as a shock – it was mostly expected given…

Fighting between the Taliban and Afghan government forces resumed yesterday in the restive southern province of Helmand, officials said, ending a three-day ceasefire agreed by the warring sides to mark the Eid al-Fitr holiday. Violence has soared as the US military presses ahead with a plan to withdraw all of its troops by September, bringing an end to a 20-year military operation in Afghanistan. “The fighting started early today and is still ongoing,” Attaullah Afghan, head of the Helmand provincial council, said as a three-day temporary truce ended late on Saturday. He said Taliban fighters attacked security checkpoints on the outskirts of Lashkar Gah, the capital of Helmand province, and some other districts. An Afghan army spokesperson in the south confirmed fighting had resumed, and the Helmand governor’s office…

YANGON: One person was killed with about 15 others missing in a landslide in Myanmar’s Kachin state, an official said yesterday. “The landslide occurred due to a collapse of a heap of mining waste while jade pickers were scavenging tailings at a mining site in Seikmu village tract in Hpakant township of Kachin state at 8.15pm local time on Saturday, leaving eight people with injuries,” said U Kyaw Min, official of administration office in Wai Khar village.Rescue operations resumed yesterday. Many locals make a living by jade scavenging in the region and most of the landslides are caused by the partial collapse of tailings heaps and dams. A major fatal landslide occurred in the region in July 2020, causing at least 174 deaths with 54 injured.…

Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane has told his players he will leave the La Liga club at the end of the season, Spanish media reported late on Saturday. Radio station Onda Cero said Zidane informed the players about his decision before last weekend’s 2-2 La Liga draw at home with Sevilla, where Real missed the chance to top the table. Newspaper Marca said he addressed the team on May 8, a day before that game. Real were dumped out of the Copa del Rey by third-tier Alcoyano in January, and were defeated comfortably by Chelsea in their Uefa Champions League semi-final. When asked earlier on Saturday whether he would remain in charge next season, Zidane did not give any guarantees. “I don’t know what’ll happen. I’m here, we’re playing tomorrow…

Morgan Bolton morgan.bolton@inl.co.za Rain played havoc in the early stages of the MotoGP category of the French Grand Prix yesterday at Le Mans, with the riders pitting to change to their wet-tyre set-ups, with several crashes resulting, but unfortunately the chaos was not enough to help Brad Binder break into the top 10. Binder had another weekend to forget on his KTM, starting 21nd on the grid after a poor qualifying session. With the white flags calling in the riders as early as the fourth lap, there was an opportunity for the South African to take advantage of the change-up and the wet conditions, and make something of a terrible weekend for the team. The 25-year-old did well to stay on his bike as his counterparts battled to tame the…

Correspondent Bishops laid the Paul Roos hoodoo to rest when they beat the visitors in convincing style 36-13 at the Piley Rees Oval. This was the first time since 2010 they were able to achieve this. Notwithstanding the torrential rain, both sides showed a willingness to run the ball. It was the Bishops backs, however, who played with more cohesion and handled the wet ball with aplomb. In this respect, captain and flyhalf Jonathan Roche varied his play intelligently, making judicious use of the boot to keep the ball in front of his forwards. Paul Roos did well to restrict the half-time score to 13-8 with their eighthman Tristan van Wyk cancelling out an earlier try by burly Bishops centre Bruce Sherwood. After the changeover, and with the wind…