Johannesburg - An anti-crime petition with an estimated 200 000 signatures and a memorandum demanding a crime-free and corruption-free South Africa were handed to officials by marchers in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban.
"This is not the end-all and the be-all. We will use all every avenue, including the Constitutional Court, to ensure that peoples' rights are no longer violated," said Shane Pillay, national co-ordinator of the South Africans Against Crime campaign.
A petition and memorandum were handed to a mayoral official at Johannesburg mayor Amos Masondo's office in Braamfontein by protesters who had marched from Library Gardens.
"We are law-abiding citizens and feel that the president should be law-abiding and ensure that our grannies, children and everyone is safe," said Steph Hartung of Victims in the Republic of South Africa (Virsa), one of the march co-ordinators.
People are suffering
"The President has the money and the will to change the situation. People are suffering - how can people live like this?"
The petition called for government to change "its relaxed attitude towards crime", said Pillay.
The 12 point memorandum included calls for the instilling and rekindling a sense of patriotism; looking at training facilities for police; more visible policing; and getting rid of corrupt policing.
Hartung said the march was prompted by the fact that he had been a victim of crime himself and that crime was becoming a problem.
Marches against crime were also held in Cape Town and Durban with the aim to collect three million signatures for a petition to hand to government.
In Cape Town, a petition and memorandum was handed to an official of the department of safety and security at parliament.
In Durban, a petition and memorandum was given to a police official after there was nobody to receive the documents at the Department of Safety and Security.
"I will support any crime march organised by anybody to fight crime as I am tired of crime," said African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP) president Kenneth Meshoe who joined protesters in Johannesburg.
"Crime is oppressing us as we can't go where we want to go with our families."
Most protesters in Johannesburg wore pink ribbons around their arms in solidarity with victims of crime.
Standing together
Banners included words such as "Mbeki wake up" and "Beware criminals, South Africa is gatvol" and T-shirts were worn with "ABC, I'm Affected By Crime" and "Crime Free South Africa".
One elderly man held a placard that said "Aged 78 years, held at gunpoint".
While walking to the mayors office from the central business district, protesters sang songs such as "Phansi nge crime" which means "Down with crime".
Hartung said the march was a success but it would have been great if there were more "township" guys at the protest.
At the Johannesburg march, Miss Africa 2006 Gillian Elson said: "I believe it is the responsibility of every South African to stand together and fight against crime in South Africa and to stand together to support initiative against crime."
Virsa was established in November last year, but was formally launched in January.
It is part of the campaign South Africans Unite Against Crime which describes itself as "pro-government, anti-crime".
While I support this campaign, I find it weird that they describe themselves as "pro-government".... Our dearly beloved president recently stated that it is merely a "perception" that crime is a problem in South Africa... But I guess the organisers like to kiss ass...
André in Zuid-Afrika
Quote:
Hundreds protest over Sheldean
09/03/2007 11:50 - (SA)
Johannesburg - Hundreds of people across South Africa have protested against child murders in the country, dressed in a pink top and jeans, to remember Sheldean Human.
The seven-year-old was taken from her Pretoria home last month and her body was found in a culvert in the capital on Monday. She was dressed in a pink top and jeans when she went missing.
Several hundred protesters gathered outside Pretoria magistrate's court on Friday, where the case of Andrew Jordaan, 25, the man accused of murdering Sheldean, was postponed until March 16.
The court was packed to capacity before Jordaan appeared, with journalists and the public jostling for space. All the seating was occupied and numerous people stood. Many more who could not fit into the court room remained outside the building.
The protestors dispersed peacefully after the postponement.
'Sick society'
About a hundred people, including politicians, also gathered outside parliament's main gates in Cape Town for a peaceful protest against the high rate of child murders in South Africa.
"There is something fundamentally sick in South African society. We have a sick society," Independent Democrats leader Patricia de Lille told Sapa at the scene.
As she spoke, members of the public laid bunches of flowers around a poster-size photograph of Sheldean that had been leaned up against the plinth of a statue at parliament's Roeland Street entrance.
De Lille expressed sympathy for all families who had lost children to crime.
"There is no justification for the murder, rape and maiming of the most vulnerable in our society," she said.
Call to reinstate death penalty
African Christian Democratic Party MP Steve Swart said government was failing in its role to protect citizens.
He further called for reinstatement of the death penalty, saying there was "clearly insufficient deterrent in the justice system".
The Democratic Alliance's Mike Waters said on average three children were murdered each day in South Africa.
He said he hoped the protest would galvanise citizens and the media to highlight child murders.
"It should spur government, the public sector and society to start doing something about child abuse and murders."
There were a range of initiatives, including the sending of missing children's photos via cellphones by the major network operators, that could be implemented, but these needed to be driven by government, Waters said.
Bloemfontein
The pink-tops-and-jeans protest was also evident in Bloemfontein on Friday.
Most parents and children arriving at the Universitas primary school were wearing pink tops and jeans, while boys wore white shirts, a pink ribbon and jeans.
The protest against children becoming victims of crime was arranged by a group called the Pink Ladies.
Gargerienne Green, a mother of three, also wearing a pink top and jeans, said most of her colleagues at the University of the Free State were wearing the same cloths when she arrived at work on Friday.
"Most in our division are wearing pink tops and jeans today, even my husband put on a pink shirt today.
"We support the protest against violence toward children, and also against women."
André in Zuid-Afrika
Quote:
11yr-old missing in Cape Town
10/03/2007 20:17 - (SA)
Johannesburg - Police were on Saturday searching for an 11-year-old girl who went missing from her home in Mitchell?s Plain in the Western Cape.
Superintendent Billy Jones said the girl, Anestacia Wiese, was last seen by her mother at 11:00 on Friday when she went to the shop about a block away from her home in Woodridge, Michell's Plain.
Wiese never arrived at the shop.
Police investigations uncovered that the girl had walked in the direction of a nearby high school with an adult male.
Wiese was wearing a blue jeans and pink T-shirt when she disappeared.
Jones said she had a brown complexion, was of a medium build, around 1.4m tall with black hair and brown eyes.
The man she was reportedly with, was tall, well-built and bald, he said.
The search for the girl was continuing and police were going door-to-door in the area in an attempt to gather information on her whereabouts.
Anyone with information that could assist police were urged to contact Inspector Charles Julies at 073 804 2000 or Crime Stop on 086 001 10111.
André in Zuid-Afrika
Quote:
Big search for missing 2yr-old
02/03/2007 18:11 - (SA)
Rustenburg - Police and community members in Moruleng village near Mogwase in North West have launched a massive search for a two-year-old boy who has been missing for three days.
On Friday, police searched pit toilets in Moruleng but could not find Reboni Gaswell Mabine Ntwagae.
Constable Bontle Diphoko said Reboni was last seen playing with friends in the Matlotleng section of Moruleng on Tuesday.
He was wearing khaki shorts and a light blue T-shirt.
Diphoko said anyone with information on Rebone's whereabouts could contact Inspector Mothusi Kgalegi on 078 243 273.
André in Zuid-Afrika
UNHAPPY: Zhaney Saaiman joins a protest at a Pretoria court where the man accused of murdering Sheldean Human appeared. (Waldo Swiegers, Beeld)
(The words on the poster say: Am I next, Pr. (president) Mbeki?)
André in Zuid-Afrika
Quote:
In South Africa, Mbeki Faces Public Outrage Over Crime
Robert Carmichael | 19 Feb 2007
World Politics Watch Exclusive
CAPE TOWN, South Africa -- South Africa has an enviable reputation as a tourism destination. Beautiful scenery and beaches combine with spectacular game reserves, high-quality hotels and a cheap currency to ensure a steadily increasing stream of visitors.
But its reputation isn't all good. Ask people outside the country what they know of South Africa and the word "crime" is seldom far away. And if the perception internationally is of a country where crime is out of control, the local feeling is equally bleak.
South African citizens are angry at what they see as soaring levels of crime -- much of it violent -- and the inability of the criminal justice system to protect victims.
Many are also angry that government ministers, cosseted by bodyguards and living in well-secured homes, appear to have been ignoring the problem. The perception that senior politicians in the ruling African National Congress (ANC) are out of touch was not helped last year when the minister for security said that people who "whinge" about crime should simply leave the country.
And President Thabo Mbeki showed his ability to misread the public mood when, in a television interview last month, he said it is merely a perception that crime is out of control.
"Nobody can prove that the majority of the country's 40 million to 50 million citizens think that crime is spinning out of control," he said.
And the government's commitment to fighting crime is not helped by the close personal links that the national police chief, Jackie Selebi, has with an alleged South African crime boss who is currently on trial for murder and drug running.
Mbeki's comments on television were followed by a number of high-profile crimes, which prompted an outburst at the government's stance from none other than the head of the country's National Prosecuting Authority. Crime is "happening to all of us now -- no one is safe any more," he said.
In the wake of truly appalling crimes that retain the capacity to shock even here, letters to newspapers have called for the reintroduction of the death penalty. (The judge in one recent case told two men who were convicted of murdering a four-year-old girl and raping her nanny that he would have imposed the death penalty if only the constitution allowed it.)
As events moved to a head this month, a leading local bank decided at the 11th hour to pull a campaign designed to pressure Mbeki into putting crime at the top of his agenda in his annual address to Parliament on Feb. 9. (The government's denial that it had pressured the bank to drop its campaign is not widely believed.)
As the first days of February ticked by and the day of his annual address to the nation drew closer, the pressure on Mbeki to address the issue intensified from the public, business, politicians and civil society. The country wondered what the president would do.
How Bad is It?
There is no question that, by international standards, crime levels are high in South Africa -- one United Nations survey suggests the country has the third highest crime rate in the world. So how bad is the situation, and is it actually getting worse?
Official statistics for the year ended March 2006 showed an average reported daily crime rate of around 50 murders, 150 rapes, and 35 car hijackings. Note the word "reported' -- in a country where the police are not known for their integrity or efficiency, the actual number is almost certainly higher.
The South African Institute of Race Relations (SAIRR), an independent research body, reported that the ten years to 2006 saw a decline in eight out of 12 crime categories. Victim surveys by other research bodies, which ignore official figures and instead ask a sample of the population for their experiences, suggest that this trend is accurate.
Among the categories that have declined are murder, attempted murder and car theft -- all of which fell by between one-third and two-fifths in that period. (These figures are measured as the number of crimes per 100,000 of the population.)
Not unreasonably, the government has therefore insisted that crime figures have fallen. However, despite the fall in some categories, the crime numbers are still very high. Figures to the year ended March 2006 reveal that around 18,500 people were murdered, almost 55,000 were raped, and nearly 120,000 violent robberies were reported.
The reason the government's optimism does not jibe with the reality experienced by many South Africans is that, again according to the SAIRR, incidents of attacks on the person -- rape, indecent assault, aggravated robbery and drug-related crimes -- have risen. In the case of rape, that rise is around 2 percent; at the other end of the spectrum, cases of indecent assault have more than doubled. At the same time the level of violence involved in the commission of crimes has risen even as the number of some crimes has dropped.
These are key reasons why South Africans feel more vulnerable and fearful than before.
All of which goes some way to explaining why the government has misread the public mood, by claiming that things are getting better (which in some cases they are) when the perception of ordinary citizens is the opposite.
Mbeki Addresses Criticism
Amid all of this, Mbeki arrived at parliament in Cape Town on Feb. 9 to give his speech. It was no unqualified success, but it did go some way towards appeasing his critics. He insisted that the government's policies designed to combat crime are effective. It is the execution of those policies by the police and the courts that needs improving, he said.
He admitted that the target of cutting serious crimes such as murder, robbery and assault by up to 15 percent a year has not been hit, and said the government and the nation "must continue and further intensify the struggle against crime".
Among the new measures the president outlined was increasing the country's police force from around 150,000 to 180,000 by 2010 (when South Africa is set to hold the soccer World Cup). Other measures included stepping up intelligence operations against organized crime, and improving the functioning of the police and the courts.
Mbeki's words on crime received little applause from opposition parties, some of whose leaders felt his speech was woolly and short on detail. Other opposition leaders decried the fact that he had roundly ignored the scourge of corruption, which is another key problem here. Many of the same sentiments were heard in the press, although one prominent commentator said Mbeki's acknowledgement of the seriousness of the issue marked a step forward.
"Say what you like," he told a Cape Town newspaper, referring to Mbeki's foot-in-mouth comment in January, "we've come a long way from the famous interview of a few weeks ago when rampant crime was just a perception in the president's view."
It may strike some as bizarre that the leader of a nation gets applauded for acknowledging a problem that seems so obvious to so many. But it does mark a start, and people here are hoping that they will at last see a concerted effort by the government to tackle a problem that they believe is as important as anything else the country faces.
But fixing the problem will require more than putting another 30,000 police on the beat or finessing the courts. Thirty percent of South Africa's population is aged 15 to 29, and the country as a whole suffers from high unemployment, lagging economic opportunity for the majority, and glaring disparities in wealth and income.
Couple that with seemingly pervasive corruption in local and national government, and it is little wonder that so many are turning to the gun to make a living. In the long term, the only way to beat crime is more jobs and a better education for all. With around two years to go before the end of his presidency, the clock is ticking for Mbeki to make a difference.
Robert Carmichael is a South African journalist who most recently worked in Cambodia as managing editor of the Phnom Penh Post
KSa
Well, I have heard from different sources that SA is dangerous now and people are extremely angry and fed up with it. Hundreds of people whose relatives were brutally assasinated have left the country. I heard that it's sometimes impossible to punish the culprits because their names are not registered in official records so it's like they don't exist!
How do you personally perceive the situation in terms of your own security? Have you ever been in danger?
André in Zuid-Afrika
Quote:
I heard that it's sometimes impossible to punish the culprits because their names are not registered in official records so it's like they don't exist!
OK, that part's not true. Our judicial system works well, and anyone caught willl go to jail (and believe me, you don't want to be in a South African jail...)
I've only been a victim of crime a few times, I've been lucky...
* My car was stolen about six years ago
* I was mugged once.
* I've been the victim of fraud twice.
* One break-in in my house...
Well below the average here, so I really consider myself lucky....
Fact is, thousands (not hundreds) have left the country because of crime. I now live in a security estate (guards walking around all the time), so I feel fairly safe when I'm at home. But I don't feel safe when I go out. I avoid much of the city where I live, because it's not safe to go there (including the city centre [downtown, as it's called in the US]).
KSa
Quote:
OK, that part's not true. Our judicial system works well, and anyone caught willl go to jail (and believe me, you don't want to be in a South African jail...)
As far as I remember this was in the interview a SA woman gave to the newspaper. She now lives in the Netherlands.
Quote:
I've only been a victim of crime a few times, I've been lucky...
* My car was stolen about six years ago
* I was mugged once.
* I've been the victim of fraud twice.
* One break-in in my house...
Well below the average here, so I really consider myself lucky....
OK, here is my record taken form my whole-life (33 years) experience.
Letters in brackets mean: communist period (C) and after-communist period (A):
> theft (but then recovery) of my car (C) + one unseccesful attempt (A)
> two breaks-in in my flat (C&A)
> triple robbery in the street (A) with mininal losses
Fortunately, I have never been threatened with a knife or a gun.
In the town where I currently live (a bit more than 60 000) I feel very secure - I often walk late in the night and nothing bad happened.
On the other hand, in the city where I was born and spent most of my life I feel rather insecure and try to avoid certain parts. To make it clear - assasinations are very rare there (in fact, there were two or three in the past decade) so basically I'm only afraid of being robbed or punched in the face but my life is actually not threatened.
The bigger city is the worse situation in terms of safety. Especially car thefts is like a plague. But even in Warsaw or Cracow, although I'm constantly on my guard, it's only "increased attention" rather than fear.
Quote:
Fact is, thousands (not hundreds) have left the country because of crime. I now live in a security estate (guards walking around all the time), so I feel fairly safe when I'm at home. But I don't feel safe when I go out. I avoid much of the city where I live, because it's not safe to go there (including the city centre [downtown, as it's called in the US]).
I think this is alarming and ...depressing. Although as I judge from your face and sense of humour you don't seem to be a person extremely overpowered by this![/quote]
Benjamin [inactive]
One thing I've noticed is that I'm often much less sensible with regards to crime when I'm in another country on holiday. For example, I've walked through a quiet park in Brussels at midnight without really caring, but I'd never do anything like that in Birmingham.
We're often advised not to go upstairs on double-decker buses if we're alone, especially at night. I've ignored that advice many times and have never actually had a problem, although I should admit that I do find it kind of scary (and almost always end up spelling of cannabis).
Actually, what's scary about Birmingham at night, especially on a Friday or Saturday, is that there are always lots of drunk people roaming around (both men and women) — people who would not ordinarily be 'criminals', but one can never know what they might end up doing.
Daniel
Benjamin wrote:
Actually, what's scary about Birmingham at night, especially on a Friday or Saturday, is that there are always lots of drunk people roaming around (both men and women) — people who would not ordinarily be 'criminals', but one can never know what they might end up doing.
"Ordinary" people can be unpredictable. That's why I'm always wary of strangers I approach when I go out as you can never know what they might be capable of.
I've never been a victim of crime myself before and I hope I never will be. I've only witnessed violent attacks a few times though.
I read in the newspaper last month about how a vicious gang 7 to 10 strong launched appalling and brutal physical attacks involving guns and knives on innocent passengers on the underground trains and buses here in London a few years back. Apparently, they've committed between 200 and 500 attacks on people and got away with it. They've only just been caught after a man actually died when he was chased up the street after leaving a station.
Pauline
Is London very dangerous? It's possible they will attack you when you are walking or on a bus/train etc..?
Benjamin [inactive]
Pauline wrote:
It's possible they will attack you when you are walking or on a bus/train etc..?
Yes, but ultimately it's probably no worse than, say, Paris.
Walker
Quote:
Fact is, thousands (not hundreds) have left the country because of crime. I now live in a security estate (guards walking around all the time), so I feel fairly safe when I'm at home. But I don't feel safe when I go out. I avoid much of the city where I live, because it's not safe to go there (including the city centre [downtown, as it's called in the US]).
André, do many middle-class people live in "security estates"? Or is it more of an upper-class phenomenon? One of the bosses at my work is currently living in such an estate in Johannesburg, SA. Reactions I've heard at work about that boss's current home have been "God, that's insane!" and such comments. As a Swede it's hard to imagine people living like that, or that they should have to live like that.
Deborah
Daniel wrote:
I read in the newspaper last month about how a vicious gang 7 to 10 strong launched appalling and brutal physical attacks involving guns and knives on innocent passengers on the underground trains and buses here in London a few years back. Apparently, they've committed between 200 and 500 attacks on people and got away with it. They've only just been caught after a man actually died when he was chased up the street after leaving a station.
This is such a different London than the one I visited in 1970! I recall my mother expressing concern about my going out for the evening on my own, and the owner of the pension assuring her that it was perfectly safe to be out all night. I didn't stay out all night, but it did feel absolutely safe.
Despite my mother's and my grandparents' fears for me because of my habit of being out alone late at night in San Francisco and New York, the only time I was ever attacked was in SF in broad daylight, when I was with my grandmother, and that was a case of road rage.
André in Zuid-Afrika
Walker wrote:
Quote:
Fact is, thousands (not hundreds) have left the country because of crime. I now live in a security estate (guards walking around all the time), so I feel fairly safe when I'm at home. But I don't feel safe when I go out. I avoid much of the city where I live, because it's not safe to go there (including the city centre [downtown, as it's called in the US]).
André, do many middle-class people live in "security estates"? Or is it more of an upper-class phenomenon? One of the bosses at my work is currently living in such an estate in Johannesburg, SA. Reactions I've heard at work about that boss's current home have been "God, that's insane!" and such comments. As a Swede it's hard to imagine people living like that, or that they should have to live like that.
It's becoming more popular, and yes, they do tend to be expensive, so it's mainly upper class. (Mine has parts which are less expensive, plus I live in a less expensive city! ) It's not only about security, they became popular before the crime situation started to get out of hand. They usually have "themes" eg. gholf estates, built around a gholf course, or as in the case of the one where I live, wildlife estates. The security offered is a major reason for its popularity, of course.
Quote:
I think this is alarming and ...depressing. Although as I judge from your face and sense of humour you don't seem to be a person extremely overpowered by this!
I love this country, and believe in its future. We still have a lot going for us, and hopefully the government will soon wake up and start doing something about the crime, instead of pretending it's not really a problem.
A few stats...
Assaults
Rank Countries Amount (top to bottom)
#1 South Africa: 12.0752 per 1,000 people
#2 Montserrat: 10.2773 per 1,000 people
#3 Mauritius: 8.76036 per 1,000 people
#4 Seychelles: 8.62196 per 1,000 people
#5 Zimbabwe: 7.6525 per 1,000 people
#6 United States: 7.56923 per 1,000 people
#7 New Zealand: 7.47881 per 1,000 people
#8 United Kingdom: 7.45959 per 1,000 people
#9 Canada: 7.11834 per 1,000 people
#10 Australia: 7.02459 per 1,000 people
Murders with firearms
#1 South Africa: 0.719782 per 1,000 people
#2 Colombia: 0.509801 per 1,000 people
#3 Thailand: 0.312093 per 1,000 people
#4 Zimbabwe: 0.0491736 per 1,000 people
#5 Mexico: 0.0337938 per 1,000 people
#6 Belarus: 0.0321359 per 1,000 people
#7 Costa Rica: 0.0313745 per 1,000 people
#8 United States: 0.0279271 per 1,000 people
#9 Uruguay: 0.0245902 per 1,000 people
#10 Lithuania: 0.0230748 per 1,000 people
Rapes
#1 South Africa: 1.19538 per 1,000 people
#2 Seychelles: 0.788294 per 1,000 people
#3 Australia: 0.777999 per 1,000 people
#4 Montserrat: 0.749384 per 1,000 people
#5 Canada: 0.733089 per 1,000 people
#6 Jamaica: 0.476608 per 1,000 people
#7 Zimbabwe: 0.457775 per 1,000 people
#8 Dominica: 0.34768 per 1,000 people
#9 United States: 0.301318 per 1,000 people
#10 Iceland: 0.246009 per 1,000 people
KSa
André in Zuid-Afrika wrote:
Murders with firearms
[b]
#6 Belarus: 0.0321359 per 1,000 people
This surprised me the most.
André in Zuid-Afrika
Quote:
SA cop jobs 'worst in world'
14/03/2007 20:12 - (SA)
Cape Town - South Africa has become one of the most dangerous countries in the world in which to be a police officer, said the Inkatha Freedom Party on Wednesday.
Party spokesperson Velaphi Ndlovu said the emotional damage the job caused was shown in the increased number of police-officer suicides in the second half of last year.
According to Safety and Security Minister Charles Nqakula - in a written reply to a parliamentary question by Ndlovu - 506 police officers committed suicide between 2000 and 2005.
Suicides accounted for the deaths of 23 officers in the first six months of 2006, but this figure doubled to 46 in the last six months of the year.
"Serious questions must be asked on why this figure increased so sharply," Ndlovu said.
"To make matters worse, police psychologists are leaving the organisation in dangerously high numbers, although the minister revealed in his written reply that only 19 left in 2006, which is questionable."
SAPS in a dismal state
The IFP was shocked that of the 46 police officers killed in the line of duty between July 1 and December 31 2006, 47.87% were murdered and 45.62% killed in vehicle accidents.
"It is clear that the South African Police Service finds itself in a dismal state of affairs and without clear commitment from the government to improve the conditions in which police officers go about doing their duties every day; things can only get worse," said Ndlovu.
Elaine
Hmm... and you still want me to visit?
André in Zuid-Afrika
Elaine wrote:
Hmm... and you still want me to visit?
Ah, don't worry, I'll protect you!!!!!
Elaine
My hero!
André in Zuid-Afrika
Many of you may have heard of this...
Quote:
UFS horror race video surfaces
26/02/2008 23:26 - (SA)
Henry Cloete and Sapa
Bloemfontein - A racism bombshell hit the University of the Free State (UFS) on Tuesday when a video was distributed showing five black cleaners at a traditionally white men's residence on the campus being "initiated".
Amid loud laughter, they are shown taking part in races, downing beers and drinking a mixture in which a student had secretly urinated.
Hundreds of furious black students gathered on the lawn next to the campus library on Tuesday afternoon, demanding an explanation and singing protest songs.
Student leaders managed to persuade them to delay a protest march until Wednesday morning.
Screaming students condemned the scenes on the video and waved placards with messages such as "Enough is enough".
Speaking to Volksblad at the spontaneous campus protest, a student said: "We're furious. The problems at the campus have now escalated, and become a full-blown human-rights issue."
The video was apparently recorded by students at the Reitz men's residence last September.
Given mixture to drink
The narration on the video begins: "Once upon a time the 'boere' lived peacefully here on Reitz Island, until one day when the less-advantaged discovered the word 'integration' in the dictionary."
The cleaners take part in a "boat race" (a beer-downing competition), a dance, a sprint race, a mock rugby practice and finally, they're given a mixture to drink.
The video shows garlic being put into a dish full of what looks like dog food.
"We know they're less privileged so we're adding a bit of meat," says the narrator.
Another student puts the bowl on the toilet and urinates into the mixture.
The brew is then distributed in plastic glasses to the cleaners.
All five of them spit out the first mouthful, but try to finish it amid loud encouragement from the students.
The video ends with the words: "That, at the end of the day, is what we think of integration."
This is followed by one of the students asking a cleaner: "What does 'sefebe' mean in Afrikaans?"
"A black whore," she replies.
Integration policy
The Rector, Professor Frederick Fourie, said at a media conference on Tuesday evening that the cleaners were traumatised when they saw how their trust had been abused by the students at the residence.
"The humiliation stems from the way in which the video is presented."
He said the video clearly referred to the integration policy which was being implemented from this year by the university.
In short, the policy lays down what percentages of black and white students will be allocated to the residences.
Up to the end of last year, whites and blacks lived in separate residences.
Fourie said: "There's an ugly crust on this issue. The video's a direct indication of that."
Four students can be clearly identified on the video. Two of them still live in Reitz residence and the university management has barred them from the campus. The other two have completed their studies.
Fourie said: "We will act swiftly and efficiently against the students concerned, and begin a more-comprehensive inquiry into the affair. We're also considering filing criminal charges."
He said it had been a highly emotional day on the campus, during which student representatives, members of the house committee and university staff had roundly condemned the content of the video.
Planning protest march
Helen Zille, national leader of the Democratic Alliance strongly condemned "the disgusting abuse" of the cleaners, by the students who made the video.
Meanwhile, the Freedom Front Plus, too, has condemned the video.
Youth leader Cornelius Jansen van Rensburg distanced the organisation from the "atrocities screened on a video reportedly produced at the institution".
"The FF Plus Youth will never condone, nor justify, the violation of the human dignity of any person.
"If the video footage is real and the description thereof in media reports, correct, the event speaks of inhumane conduct which should not be left unpunished," said Van Rensburg.
The cleaners' union, Nehawu, intended joining several black or mainly black groups who were planning a protest march at the campus on Wednesday morning.
They'll be handing over a memo listing their grievances and suggestions to the UFS management. - Beeld / Sapa
Quote:
'It's war!'
27/02/2008 23:02 - (SA)
Henry Cloete
Bloemfontein - A line has been drawn in the sand between black and white students on the campus of the University of the Free State (UFS).
That's the shared sentiment of various black students who took part in a protest march by several hundred students and members of Nehawu on the university campus.
The protest followed the shocking video, produced by white male students at Reitz hostel, that showed five cleaners being "initiated" into the hostel.
The video shows the cleaners drinking a brew in which the students appear to have urinated.
At the end of the video the words "That's what we really think of integration" appear on the screen.
Ntombenhle Buthelezi, one of the students in the protest march, said: "This is just the tip of the iceberg. Racial tension at this campus has been going on for far too long.
"I won't study at the same university as those two."
Another student in the march, who preferred not to be named, said the video was one of the most humiliating things he had ever seen.
"This is war between the blacks and the whites. Since I started studying here, I've always been afraid, and felt that there was oppression."
The march ended at the main building, where Free State Premier Beatrice Marshoff addressed the crowd and expressed her disgust at the contents of the video.
"It is unacceptable! If the university won't act, the government will!"
A letter of protest was handed to Free State MEC for education Casca Mokitlane, and the Rector of UFS, Professor Frederick Fourie.
Fourie emphasised that he shared the indignation of the students about the contents of the video.
Protesters threw stones
The cleaners who appeared in the video were at the front of the protest march. They did not want to speak to Volksblad.
A Nehawu spokesperson said the cleaners were still "too traumatised".
Wednesday morning's march was just the beginning.
Pandemonium broke out shortly afterwards and the police unrest unit had their hands full when the students split into small groups and swept across campus, trying to whip up others.
A large group gathered at the Reitz hostel, protesting and throwing stones, and five of the group were arrested.
Stun grenades were used to disperse protesting students there and elsewhere on campus.
UFS spokesperson Lacea Loader said classes had been suspended for the day, quite early on.
Shouting students ran into several lecture halls and tried to whip up support.
White students were few and far between on campus on Wednesday.
Reitz hostel students formed a furniture barricade around their residence.
Several other students who also live in hostels, barricaded themselves in "for fear for our lives".
Was manhandled
Theology student Cornus Botha said that shortly after the 10:00 lecture started in the CR Swart building, there was a loud bang.
The building filled rapidly with students shouting: "Come out. Come out."
"We didn't how to respond and so we walked out. The guys half-manhandled me. I was kicked in my back and side, several times."
The unrest had quietened down shortly before lunchtime.
But, the mood was far from calm and, for the rest of the day, for black and white students, it ranged between fear, fury and, above all, uncertainty.
I would like to state that I, and most Afrikaners, are disgusted by this video, and that what these young men have done, is not representative of current views amongst the vast majority of Afrikaners. Please do not judge all of us by this video.
Sandman
Thanks to Internet people all over the world can have information about the situation in South Africa. If you read just newspapers or watch on TV you can't realize what is happening in there. For example in my home country the online media has not told almost anything about electricity breakouts in SA. In my daily newspaper there was once a little writing about the electricity crisis. Just wondering why? In my country the media also explains those difficulties to be apartheid's faul. Everything can not be apartheid's foul, I think. There must be other reasons too.
What do the South Africans think themselves about what should be done to help the crime situation besides emigrating? Is there anything that can be done? I think voting in elections won't help much because the ANC gets more than a half of votes. SA is still a one party democracy, during apartheid there was the National Party today there is ANC.
Sandman
André in Zuid-Afrika wrote:
I would like to state that I, and most Afrikaners, are disgusted by this video, and that what these young men have done, is not representative of current views amongst the vast majority of Afrikaners. Please do not judge all of us by this video.
Every normal human being would distugted by somenthing like this video.
André in Zuid-Afrika
Sandman wrote:
Thanks to Internet people all over the world can have information about the situation in South Africa. If you read just newspapers or watch on TV you can't realize what is happening in there. For example in my home country the online media has not told almost anything about electricity breakouts in SA. In my daily newspaper there was once a little writing about the electricity crisis. Just wondering why?
Well, to be fair, I don't think the world is really all that interested in what happens in South Africa. But on the other hand, given the fascination the world had with apartheid, you'd think there'd be more interest in what followed...
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In my country the media also explains those difficulties to be apartheid's faul.
Eh? How did they make that sum? In 1998 Eskom (the national electricity company, which is state owned) released a report saying that SA is running out of power, and more provision should be made, building more power stations, otherwise we'd have serious problems by 2008. The (ANC) government told them they were talking nonsense, and dumped the report.... Well, do they have egg on their faces.... Not that they know it, of course, they can't see it due to the latest daily power outage...
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Everything can not be apartheid's foul, I think. There must be other reasons too.
Exactly. We're already 14 years beyond the official end to apartheid. Certainly some problems still hail from those days, but apartheid has become an easy excuse for the present govt to explain away it's own mistakes and shortcomings.
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What do the South Africans think themselves about what should be done to help the crime situation besides emigrating? Is there anything that can be done?
It;s a difficult question (to be fair to the govt again). One big problem is the reluctance of the govt to act. But it really is about more than that, getting at the cause of the problem. ANd that's eradicating poverty (which the govt talks about a lot, but does very little). Meanwhile, ordinary people are doing what they can, getting involved in neighborwood watches, installing security systems in their houses, and moving to security housing complexes (those who can afford it).
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Voting in elections won't help much because the ANC gets more than a half of votes. SA is still a one party democracy, during apartheid there was the National Party today there is ANC.
True, but I still vote in every election. The ANC will crumble much faster than the NP did (it's already started), and I'm counting on that.
Sandman
André in Zuid-Afrika wrote:
Quote:
In my country the media also explains those difficulties to be apartheid's faul.
Eh? How did they make that sum? In 1998 Eskom (the national electricity company, which is state owned) released a report saying that SA is running out of power, and more provision should be made, building more power stations, otherwise we'd have serious problems by 2008. The (ANC) government told them they were talking nonsense, and dumped the report.... Well, do they have egg on their faces.... Not that they know it, of course, they can't see it due to the latest daily power outage...
Uh! I didn't express myself properly. I meant that the media explains all the problems as echoes from the era of the apartheid and the present government is usually responsible for nothing. In mid 90's South Africa was in headlines in my country too but today there is just silence. Maybe the official thruth is meant to be that everything is ok in SA because there is no more any racial oppression (yes, I know there is but never in newspapers or on TV).
André in Zuid-Afrika
Sandman wrote:
André in Zuid-Afrika wrote:
Quote:
In my country the media also explains those difficulties to be apartheid's faul.
Eh? How did they make that sum? In 1998 Eskom (the national electricity company, which is state owned) released a report saying that SA is running out of power, and more provision should be made, building more power stations, otherwise we'd have serious problems by 2008. The (ANC) government told them they were talking nonsense, and dumped the report.... Well, do they have egg on their faces.... Not that they know it, of course, they can't see it due to the latest daily power outage...
Uh! I didn't express myself properly. I meant that the media explains all the problems as echoes from the era of the apartheid and the present government is usually responsible for nothing. In mid 90's South Africa was in headlines in my country too but today there is just silence. Maybe the official thruth is meant to be that everything is ok in SA because there is no more any racial oppression (yes, I know there is but never in newspapers or on TV).
I understand what you mean, yes. It's a bit sad for me, that when there was an officially (seen as) oppressive system here, everyone was up in arms. Now that we officially have a (seen as) democratic system, but things are still not right, nobody cares... I believe the world wants SA to succeed, to be the first African country to succeed, sp much so that they prefer to ignore the problems. And with that they ignore the people who suffer... And I don't mean people like me, I'm OK, but millions of others, black and white, who are suffering because of an incompetent, selfish and greedy government....
Elaine
André in Zuid-Afrika wrote:
Well, to be fair, I don't think the world is really all that interested in what happens in South Africa. But on the other hand, given the fascination the world had with apartheid, you'd think there'd be more interest in what followed...
After the terrible events that happened over the weekend (and probably are still continuing as I write), I think the whole world has finally sat up and taken notice. Unfortunately, it took the senseless murders of innocent people to get the world to realize that situations are dire in the SA townships and in Zimbabwe.
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"Most of the Zimbabweans want to leave. It is better at home than here," said the former teacher who was chased out of his home by a mob early Sunday. (Associated Press)
Cry the beloved country indeed...
André in Zuid-Afrika
Elaine wrote:
André in Zuid-Afrika wrote:
Well, to be fair, I don't think the world is really all that interested in what happens in South Africa. But on the other hand, given the fascination the world had with apartheid, you'd think there'd be more interest in what followed...
After the terrible events that happened over the weekend (and probably are still continuing as I write), I think the whole world has finally sat up and taken notice. Unfortunately, it took the senseless murders of innocent people to get the world to realize that situations are dire in the SA townships and in Zimbabwe.
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"Most of the Zimbabweans want to leave. It is better at home than here," said the former teacher who was chased out of his home by a mob early Sunday. (Associated Press)
Cry the beloved country indeed...
Hm, so that did make international headlines...
What happened over the weekend, had shocked us all, and it indeed is horrible. I believe it accentuates the terrible condition Africa is in. I feel so sorry for the immigrants, most of whom have come here in search of a better life. SA is seen by those up north as a kind of paradise, the USA of of Africa, so to speak. But the problem is that we don't have work for them, we don't have homes for them. And black South Africans see them as a threat, because they are taking jobs away from them. Unemployment is already high, we can't afford more people, it's as simple as that. Unless they bring expertise and/or money to create new jobs. So in a way I understand what the attackers in Alex felt. And yes, another sad truth is that many of the immigrants (a large number of them being illigal immigrants), ARE involved in crime. Sadly, the innocent ones now fall victim... And the government sits idly by... Watching, but not offering any solutions.
André in Zuid-Afrika
Interestingly, a survey published in newspapers today, showed that most South Africans, black and white, welcome immigrants from Europe, but not from Africa,
André in Zuid-Afrika
The violence is now also in Cape Town...
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'They're going to kill us!'
23/05/2008 08:12 - (SA)
Nurene Jassiem, Marius Louw, Marelize Barnard and Garth Stead, Die Burger
Cape Town - At least one foreigner, a Somali citizen, has been killed and six people have been injured when residents of Du Noon near Milnerton in Cape Town, started attacking foreigners with stones and bottles.
A 14-year-old child was injured and a shop owner was allegedly stabbed in the back.
Several shacks were destroyed and doors were kicked open by attackers looking for immigrants.
Several container shops belonging to foreigners were plundered and their contents stolen. At least one was set on fire.
Police took 500 foreigners to safety at the Milnerton police station and an emergency centre was set up at the Killarney racecourse to accommodate people overnight.
Failed community meeting
The chaos followed a meeting on Thursday night at which discussions to avoid xenophobic attacks here, failed.
Residents said the ward committee member did not want to listen to their grievances.
After the meeting, residents told reporters that they wanted the foreigners to leave.
"We want them (the foreigners) to leave by Sunday," said Nonkululeko Sarlana, a resident of Du Noon.
Heavily armed metro and police officers searched Du Noon for armed men when the chaos erupted at 21:00.
Bewildered residents hid behind locked doors and windows. Shopkeepers tried to save what they could. Late at night, they took supplies from the shelves and packed them into waiting cars. The chaos spread across a wide area and police tried to protect the panicky shopkeepers and their families.
In the Joe Slovo area of Du Noon there was at one stage only three police members trying to keep violent gangs from getting to foreigners. Shots were fired while people tried to run from police.
People arrested
South Africans as well as foreigners were arrested.
A police helicopter flew over the area, shining a light on problem areas.
According to metro emergency services, six people had been injured at 23:00. A 14-year-old child, thought to be South African, had been hit by a rubber bullet in his house, breaking his jaw.
A photographer from Die Burger had his camera violently taken from him after he tried to photograph people destroying a shop.
Three Zimbabwean women living in Du Noon said they had never seen anything like this in Zimbabwe. A friend told them to flee as soon as possible. They left all their belongings. Police warned people to stay out of the area.
Cape Town mayor Helen Zille ordered all community halls in the area surrounding Du Noon to be opened for those fleeing the violence.
Army ready
She ordered the army to be in a state of readiness to help save the peace.
Western Cape Premier Ebrahim Rasool and Provincial Police chief commissioner Mzandile Petros as well as Provincial Minster of Community Safety Leonard Ramatlakana were on the scene.
Mozambican Americo Masinga, who has lived in SA since 1989, said he saw something was happening at 19:00 on Thursday night when people started coming together to sing and dance. He and his wife decided to leave Du Noon.
Moses Ndabihawenimana and his two brothers are from Burundi. They came to SA in 2006. Their parents were murdered in Burundi.
"This is war! They are going to kill us!"
A Nigerian shopkeeper said eight people stormed into his shop. "They took everything, everything".
Parts of the N7 were closed on Thursday night after stone throwing incidents. Although no incidents of violence were reported at Masiphumelele near Fish Hoek, many foreigners left the area out of fear for their lives, said police spokesperson senior superintendent Billy Jones. In Knysna, five shops belonging to Somalis were set on fire and plundered, said Sapa.
"Intervention in the form of an emergency community meeting came to late to stop the xenophobic criminals," said Mcebisi Skwatsha, Western Cape secretary of the ANC. "We are horrified and embarrassed".
André in Zuid-Afrika
Things are a bit worrying here at the moment. I'm not a fan of Mbeki myself, and this could well turn out to be a good thing. But we'll have to see.... My prediction (and hope) is a split in the ANC, resulting in a coalition government after next years elections. But it could turn violent....
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Analysts hailed President Thabo Mbeki's last address to the nation as one of the best, if not his second best to his milestone "I am an African" speech, as he announced his resignation on Sunday night.
Mbeki's moving address on national television was also carried live by international networks like Sky News and CNN.
He announced that he had handed his resignation letter to National Assembly Speaker Baleka Mbete and that he would step down on a date to be determined by Parliament.
'It was a dignified, calm and measured'
Mbeki, although still defiantly rejecting the damning inferences made by Judge Chris Nicholson last week, reminded South Africans of the road travelled so far - both achievements and shortcomings.
He also spoke of the challenges that lie ahead as he implored South Africans to have faith in the government.
Dr Adam Habib, political analyst with the Human Sciences Research Council, described Mbeki's speech as "magnificent".
"It was a dignified and very statesman-like … He said he thinks the incoming administration will do well. He implored the ANC and country to rise up in the face of adversity," said Habib.
But Mbeki still went for his detractors, albeit in a subtle and respectable way, said Habib.
'He has put his opponents on the back foot'
"He responded to his critics … (to) Nicholson, but did so in way that respected the boundaries and independence of the judiciary.
"There were messages in the address too. He was sending a strong signal that he will challenge Nicholson's judgment … (he thinks) that it's not a fair judgment. The second warning he was sending to the new ANC leadership (was) not to be triumphalist," he said.
Habib contrasted Mbeki's resignation to that of his apartheid predecessor PW Botha who was forced to resign by his party in 1989. Botha took the opportunity to publicly chastise his political opponents within his party and in the government.
Habib felt Mbeki's speech compared well with his 1996 "I am an African" speech.
Aubrey Matshiqi, of the Centre for Policy Studies, said Mbeki could easily just have announced his resignation in a "sulky way", but he instead addressed his people.
"Overall, given the (current political) circumstances, the speech was gracious. I didn't expect him to lash out, because his response (to the ANC decision), as reported by Gwede Mantashe, showed that (Mbeki) was going to work with the ANC," said Matshiqi.
For Judith February, of the Institute for Democracy in Southern Africa, Mbeki's 20-minute speech would calm the sceptics and reassure the world of stability in South Africa.
"It was a dignified, calm and measured. It will go a long way in calming people who are uneasy with the ANC decision to recall him," said February.
The speech, said February, was a "dignified exit" befitting the "office of the president".
"We will see a smooth transition and the toning down of some of the destructive rhetoric from the (ANC) Youth League which does not do anything good for the country," said February.
Mbeki said he was still a disciplined ANC member and respected its decisions.
"Trying times need courage and resilience. Our strength as a people is not tested during the best of times. As we said before, we should never become despondent because the weather is bad, nor should we turn triumphalist because the sun shines," he said.
Opposition parties also warmly received Mbeki's speech. DA leader Helen Zille summed up Mbeki's resignation as "dignified and presidential".
ID leader Patricia de Lille also thought Mbeki was making a "dignified" exit, pointing out that he had tried to give South Africans the assurance that "everything will be OK".
"Mbeki is always so aloof. This was the first time I saw some emotion - some passion - in his address. He connected well with the people of this country tonight."
De Lille added that "The lesson for all politicians here is that you must never take for granted those who voted you into office."
Bantu Holomisa, president of the UDM, described the speech as "classic" Mbeki.
"He has put his opponents on the back foot. He has put the onus on them to prove that he interfered in any way with the prosecution of Zuma," said Holomisa.
ACDP MP and justice spokesperson Steve Swart welcomed the fact that the ANC had chosen what appeared to be the "least disruptive" constitutional manner of replacing Mbeki and thereby avoiding a messy constitutional crisis.
Elaine
What's your take on Jacob Zuma?
André in Zuid-Afrika
Elaine wrote:
What's your take on Jacob Zuma?
I don't trust him, but he has been making some very positive sounds, especially about matters such as crime prevention, and the rights of minority groups. There is also the matter of his fraud case (which, no doubt, has a lot to do with the hurry to get rid of Mbeki, to prevent further procucuting) and the charge of rape, on which he was found innocent, but still... He's not remarkably clever, but shrewd.
André in Zuid-Afrika
Pray for us...
My country is now officially in a crisis...
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THE decision by Finance Minister, Trevor Manuel, and 10 other Cabinet ministers to quit their posts in solidarity with President Thabo Mbeki, who has been forced to resign will throw South Africa’s government into crisis.
Manuel was widely believed to be staying on to ensure financial stability as a new president took office and to reassure the markets that economic policy will not be radically altered by new ANC president Jacob Zuma, who owes his ascension to left wing allies in the trade union movement and the SA Communist Party.
If Manuel is not reappointed, the ANC will have a major headache. They will have to quickly find someone who can continue Manuel’s legacy. Perhaps Reserve Bank governor Tito Mboweni, who also enjoys credibility in the financial world and who has stayed out of the Mbeki-Zuma fight, will be the man to step into the breach.
Markets have already reacted negatively to Manuel’s departure, with the rand weakening on the news.
André in Zuid-Afrika
I just can't believe Trevor Manuel has resigned. He was the one man who has kept this govt going, and despite a shaky start, he was without a doubt our best minister of finance. I'm losing hope...
André in Zuid-Afrika
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APA-Johannesburg (South Africa) Outgoing President Thabo Mbeki had received the letters of resignation from at least one third of the cabinet, \"which, regretfully, he has had to accept\", the Presidency said on Tuesday.
The cabinet members who have resigned include Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, who earlier in the day announced her decision to leave her position to which she was appointed after current African National Congress president Jacob Zuma was released from his responsibilities as deputy president in 2005 following the conviction of his financial adviser to 15 years in prison for corruption in arms deal.
One of the reasons Mlambo-Ngcuka gave was to allow a new president the opportunity to choose his or her own deputy president.
Others who resigned on Tuesday are: •Minister of Defence Mosiuoa Lekota; •Minister in the Presidency Essop Pahad; •Minister of Intelligence Ronnie Kasrils; •Minister of Correctional Services Ngconde Balfour; •Minister of Public Enterprises Alec Erwin; •Minister of Science and Technology Mosibudi Mangena; •Minister of Public Works Thoko Didiza; •Minister of Provincial and Local Government Sydney Mufamadi, and Minister of Public Service and Administration Geraldine Fraser-Moleketi.
Deputy ministers who resigned are:
•Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Aziz Pahad; •Deputy Minister of Finance Jabu Moleketi; and •Deputy Minister of Correctional Services Loretta Jacobus.
\"The resignations will be effective from the day that the president\’s resignation takes effect [Thursday],\" the Presidency said.
\"All the ministers have expressed their availability to assist the incoming administration in the handover process and any other assistance that might be sought from them.
\"President Mbeki thanked the deputy president, the ministers and deputy ministers for their dedicated service to the nation and wished them well in their future endeavours,\" it said.
The Presidency denied a report by the South African Broadcasting Corporation that the entire cabinet had resigned.
It was already known that Erwin would not stay after the next election, and Essop Pahad made his own announcement on Monday, but the big surprise was Finance Minister Trevor Manuel, who said himself two days ago that he had no intention of quitting.
Oh, but we'll survive, we always do, we're South African. But I have to admit, I'm slightly shaken... and slightly scared...
André in Zuid-Afrika
Interestingly, when you go through the list of ministers who have resigned, with one or two exceptions, they were the ones who did their jobs well. As for those remaining....
We have one hell of a crisis on our hands here!
Uriel
Scary stuff!
André in Zuid-Afrika
There's now strong talk of a new party, to be founded by some prominent current ANC leaders. That would be an excellent development. It would break the ANC's monopoly on power, which will take us a long way down the road of democracy. So it could be that all of this could turn out for the best. Also positive is that there has been no violence so far. That's a good sign.
André in Zuid-Afrika
Meanwhile, our new president... who will merely be a stooge of Jacob Zuma. He'll do the paperwork, get the salary, but the real decisions will be taken by Zuma. Who do they think they're bluffing?
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Cape Town - People have seen Kgalema Motlanthe as a possible presidential candidate for five years or more, ever since there were fears that Jacob Zuma could be crippled by the fraud and corruption charges being prepared against him.
Once he was elected as Zuma's deputy at Polokwane last December he was canvassed so often as a likely candidate if Zuma disappeared into a legal pothole, that he seemed to come to believe it himself.
Questioned in public on the subject, he declared he would rather be scouting for new talent for Bafana-Bafana, but as Die Burger reported at the time: "Few present believed him."
He was deployed to Parliament to serve in the Mbeki cabinet to act as a bridge between the outgoing government and the one coming in. He was given the job of minister in the presidency, and took over from deputy president Phumzile Mlambo Ngcuka in the task of leading the government's Parliamentary business.
Although he nailed his colours to the star of Jacob Zuma, he has been described as an independent thinker who is not afraid to speak his mind.
He is a man of compromise, so when Ebrahim Rasool was fired by the new ANC, he spotted a possible danger to the party in the Western Cape, and moved to neutralise it by appointing Rasool to his staff.
This did not go down well with the firebrands in the Zuma camp, and he has since been accused again of grooming himself to take over the presidency.
Born in 1949, the youngest of 13 children, Motlanthe was early on influenced by the revolutionary ideologies of the Black Consciousness Movement of Steve Biko. He was detained by the apartheid government in 1977 at the age of 28, the year after the Soweto uprising.
In 1967 he had been detained for 11 months for pursuing the aims of the liberation movement African National Congress. He was later sentenced to 10 years imprisonment on Robben Island.
Shortly after his release he followed Cyril Ramaphosa as secretary- general of the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM). Ramaphosa became secretary-general of the ANC but in 1997, disappointed by the succession of Thabo Mbeki, Ramaphosa retired from politics. Kgalema was elected in his place.
In last year's bitter ANC succession battle, Motlanthe featured on the lists of both Mbeki and Zuma supporters for a position in the top six to be elected at the party's conference in Polokwane.
His political style is ponderous, and he is not a charismatic speaker, although he has a gently humorous turn of phrase, but is also known for his lengthy speeches.
He has high regard for process and consultation, and his ten years as secretary-general has given him unrivalled knowledge of the ANC way of doing things and a useful idea of where many bodies are buried.
He also earned a reputation as a grassroots worker who visited the various branches and kept in contact with ordinary rank and file members. But in his report to the conference in Polokwane, he had to frankly admit that the organisation he administered was not in a healthy state, and would need much work before being ready to face the electorate.
He is seen as a peacemaker, and when Mbeki demanded that the ANC executive discipline or axe deputy Health Minister Nozizwe Madlala-Routledge, he said that he did not see any need for her to be disciplined as she was not in breach of the ANC constitution.
Some controversy arose in his career when his name came up in allegations that the ANC received financial aid from the Iraqi government when the party found itself in a financial bind. - I-Net Bridge
Uriel
How would you want to see the ANC develop if they were to split into another party?
André in Zuid-Afrika
Uriel wrote:
How would you want to see the ANC develop if they were to split into another party?
What I would like to see, is a coalition, a completely new alignment. A split in the ANC, assuming that the breakaway party gathers significant support, which I believe it will, will create exactly that situation. The ANC as such has served its purpose, and has no place anymore in the current South Africa. It is not a normal political party, it is bound together in its struggle against apartheid, which no longer exists. It maintains its hold over the electorate by reminding people of apartheid, by keeping the bogeyman alive, instead of concentrating on the future. The sooner the ANC disappears from the political scene, the better, the same way the National Party disappeared. Both are dinosaurs from the past.
André in Zuid-Afrika
A new party now seems to be a certainty. Problem is, our electoral system means that anyone who breaks away to help form a new party, will lose his seat in parliamnet. So those involved are keeping mum about it. It will probably happen shortly before next year's general election. A survey done shows considerable support for a new party.
Uriel
Bummer! In our system, you ostensibly vote for the person, not their party, so a sitting member can switch allegiences during their term and still remain in office until their term is up -- it has only happened a few times, but it has happened. But then, we don't assign seats based on apportionment of votes -- it's just one individual versus another at the polls.
André in Zuid-Afrika
There have been quite a few developments here recently, and the big news is that there has been a huge breakaway from the ANC. A new party will be formed by the rebels on 16 December. Indications are strong that they will attract a lot of votes from former ANC supporters, and it's quite possible that the ANC will lose its majority on national level, as well as in most provinces, in next year's general election. This will lead to a coalition government nationally, as well as in most provinces, which will be a good thing. Predictions are that this is the beginning of the end for the ANC, and that it will be shattered into many pieces over the next few years.
André in Zuid-Afrika
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New party gets its name?
02/11/2008 22:36 - (SA)
Johannesburg - The splinter group's new political party will likely be known as the South African Democratic Congress, the SABC reported on Sunday.
The party will be named also be registered on Monday, it said.
A decision to oppose the ANC in next year's election was taken in the national convention in Sandton on Saturday.
The party will be formally constituted in Bloemfontein only on December 16, but co-leader Mbhazima Shilowa told delegates at the closing session of the convention that it could not be a "no-brand name" until then.
On the eve of the convention, the ANC launched a bid in the Pretoria High Court for an interdict against the use of what seemed the most likely name, the SA National Congress, as well as the SA National Convention.
The ANC said it was protecting its "trademark, name and identity
Elaine
So does that mean that this splinter group will lose their seats in Parliament?
André in Zuid-Afrika
Elaine wrote:
So does that mean that this splinter group will lose their seats in Parliament?
They will, but the next general election is due in April 2009, so it's only for a few months. At this stage it seems the new party has more support than anybody suspected. They could win in several provinces, or at least be part of a coalition government with some other opposition parties, such as the Democratic Alliance (which I support).
André in Zuid-Afrika
Well, the ANC seems to be cracking up totally now, with almost daily defections from them. Next year's elections are going to be very interesting. Of course, the ANC keeps saying that they are not threatened, and will win another landslide victory. But it's as clear as daylight that they are worried, very worried...
André in Zuid-Afrika
The results of by-elections held yesterday are very intereesting....
Quote:
Cope scores in by-election
11/12/2008 08:19 - (SA)
Wendell Roelf
Cape Town - A breakaway faction of the ruling African National Congress won 10 of 27 contested municipal by-elections in the Western Cape, electoral officials said on Thursday.
The by-elections were widely seen as an important gauge of support for the Congress of the People (Cope), formed after senior leaders defected from the ANC in protest at the ousting of former president Thabo Mbeki.
Cope candidates stood as independents in Wednesday's by-elections because the grouping has not yet officially registered as a political party. It plans to launch formally on December 16.
"The ANC won 3 seats, the (Cope) independents 10, Democratic Alliance 9 and the Independent Democrats 5 of the 27 seats contested in the Western Cape," said regional electoral officer Courtney Sampson.
The ANC did not contest 12 of the 27 seats in the Western Cape. Across the country, a total of 41 by-elections were contested and results were due from other areas.
ANC split
The ANC has ruled Africa's biggest economy with a huge majority since the end of apartheid in 1994, but the party's dominance is being challenged by the split and a corruption case hanging over its leader, Jacob Zuma.
He has dismissed the breakaway faction as irrelevant, but ANC officials are worried about more defections and have gone to court to prevent the new grouping from using the name Congress of the People.
Cope has vowed to contest a national parliamentary election due in 2009.
Foreign investors are closely watching voting patterns amid fears the ANC will tilt to the left under Zuma.
Since 1994, the ANC has been unable to win an outright majority in the Western Cape where the official opposition Democratic Alliance runs the city of Cape Town.
Elaine
So what's next? Do you foresee a smooth transition?
On a separate but related note, I just read this heartbreaking story about Sandra Laing, a white woman who was born "black". I'd never heard of her before, but apparently her story is well known in SA. It's shocking how this was how people used to treat each other back then.
So what's next? Do you foresee a smooth transition?
On a separate but related note, I just read this heartbreaking story about Sandra Laing, a white woman who was born "black". I'd never heard of her before, but apparently her story is well known in SA. It's shocking how this was how people used to treat each other back then.
Another series of by-elections will take place soon, probably in February. One result of the by-elections which took place now, is that the balance of power in several local councils had tilted in favour of the opposition, and if this trend continues in the coming by-elections, the ANC will lose control over several more councils. The general elections (for parliament and provincial legislatures) is due in April 2009, and that will be the biggest test. Current predictions are that the ANC will lose at least three provinces (currently it controls all nine).
How smooth such a transtion will be, is an interesting question. When the ANC lost control over the Cape Town city council in 2007 to a coalition of parties, several attempts were made by the ANC to win back control, sometimes with underhand methods. But in the end it did peacefully accept its loss of power. This is a good sign, but it still remains to be seen how it will accept a loss of power on a wider scale.
Yes, the story of Sandra Laing was tragic. It's a wellknown story here. Perhaps one of the most awful aspects of apartheid was the effect race classification had on people. It happened in many cases that members of the same family were classified differently. That effectively meant that families were split, since they couldn't have "normal" contact.
André in Zuid-Afrika
To bring you up to date...
The split in the ANC has indeed happened, leading to the formation of the Congress of the People (Cope). The ANC's support was reduced during the general election in April, losing a lot of support nationwide. It gained support in only one province, KwaZulu-Natal, at the expence of the Inkatha Freedom Party. In the remaining eight provinces its support dropped sharply, and it lost power to the Democratic Alliance (DA) in the Western Cape.
André in Zuid-Afrika
Quote:
A number of South Africa’s opposition parties are considering banding together to take on the ANC in the 2011 local government elections.
The Democratic Alliance, Congress of the People, United Democratic Movement and the Independent Democrats have been in talks since November despite denying any form of negotiations taking place ahead of the general elections earlier this year.
Political analyst Aubrey Matshiqi said in-fighting among opposition parties had cast doubt on whether they could create a force to be reckoned with.
“In entering into a coalition, with the Congress of the People, some of these political parties will have to be aware that there is a possibility of collateral damage because of the internal strife,” Matshiqi said.
Meanwhile, DA leader Helen Zille remarked it was too soon to describe them as a coalition.
“It’s much too early to talk about a possible coalition. There are many options available to us. We are still having talks about talks and we are at the beginning exploratory stage of the process. These talks have been going on for a long time since even before the election,” Zille responded during an interview.
She confirmed her predecessor Tony Leon’s appointment as ambassador to Argentina: “He goes on to serve South Africa not the ruling party, in the capacity as ambassador, and I think he will do extremely well. He specifically was not in consideration and did not want to be in consideration,” Zille further added.
André in Zuid-Afrika
André in Zuid-Afrika wrote:
Quote:
A number of South Africa’s opposition parties are considering banding together to take on the ANC in the 2011 local government elections.
The Democratic Alliance, Congress of the People, United Democratic Movement and the Independent Democrats have been in talks since November despite denying any form of negotiations taking place ahead of the general elections earlier this year.
Political analyst Aubrey Matshiqi said in-fighting among opposition parties had cast doubt on whether they could create a force to be reckoned with.
“In entering into a coalition, with the Congress of the People, some of these political parties will have to be aware that there is a possibility of collateral damage because of the internal strife,” Matshiqi said.
Meanwhile, DA leader Helen Zille remarked it was too soon to describe them as a coalition.
“It’s much too early to talk about a possible coalition. There are many options available to us. We are still having talks about talks and we are at the beginning exploratory stage of the process. These talks have been going on for a long time since even before the election,” Zille responded during an interview.
She confirmed her predecessor Tony Leon’s appointment as ambassador to Argentina: “He goes on to serve South Africa not the ruling party, in the capacity as ambassador, and I think he will do extremely well. He specifically was not in consideration and did not want to be in consideration,” Zille further added.
To put this into perspective, such a grouping would win (based on 2009 results) every local government in the Western Cape, most in the Northern Cape, and several in the remaining provinces (including the city of Port Elizabeth) in the local government elections in 2011.
Elaine
André in Zuid-Afrika wrote:
To put this into perspective, such a grouping would win (based on 2009 results) every local government in the Western Cape, most in the Northern Cape, and several in the remaining provinces (including the city of Port Elizabeth) in the local government elections in 2011.
Are these opposing parties ideologically similar that they can maintain cohesion after the elections? If not, then I foresee such a coalition quickly splintering along ideological lines once they've achieved their goal in defeating the ANC.
André in Zuid-Afrika
Elaine wrote:
André in Zuid-Afrika wrote:
To put this into perspective, such a grouping would win (based on 2009 results) every local government in the Western Cape, most in the Northern Cape, and several in the remaining provinces (including the city of Port Elizabeth) in the local government elections in 2011.
Are these opposing parties ideologically similar that they can maintain cohesion after the elections? If not, then I foresee such a coalition quickly splintering along ideological lines once they've achieved their goal in defeating the ANC.
Ideologically they're quite close. They're already working together with huge success in some local governments. Their biggest obstacle will be personalities, as all of these parties have strong leaders. Which could be a great combination, or a cause for conflict. But I believe all of these leaders will be able to put the bigger purpose before their own interests. And the voters will expect it from them. We are at a point where voters will not allow leaders to put their own interest first.And most opposition voters, white and black, want this co-oporation.
But I guess the organisers like to kiss ass...
) It's not only about security, they became popular before the crime situation started to get out of hand. They usually have "themes" eg. gholf estates, built around a gholf course, or as in the case of the one where I live, wildlife estates. The security offered is a major reason for its popularity, of course.
Not that they know it, of course, they can't see it due to the latest daily power outage... 
