tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-303878492024-03-14T04:41:23.544+02:00Inside South AfricaA South African blogging on anything relating to South(ern) Africa. International issues, as viewed from South Africa, are also covered.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00288015012037286460noreply@blogger.comBlogger47125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30387849.post-39701253394253129202008-11-03T09:16:00.009+02:002009-02-11T15:01:23.104+02:00'Comrade' Mbeki's letter out in the openI've been away for two days, taking a break in nearby Alexandria Forest. Arriving back in cell phone coverage, and reconnected to my internet access, I discover that a couple of things have happened since my departure. Apparently <a href="http://www.news24.com/News24/World/US_Elections_2008/0,,2-10-2339_2419702,00.html">Barack Obama has an 'illegal alien' connection in the US</a>, oh my, and the ANC splinter group will probably call their new political party -to be launched in December- the <a href="http://www.news24.com/News24/South_Africa/Politics/0,,2-7-12_2420010,00.html">South African Democratic Congress</a>.<br /><br />But the tidbit that most got my attention relates to the publishing of a 'private' letter former president <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thabo_Mbeki">Thabo Mbeki</a> wrote to the president of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African_National_Congress">ANC</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacob_Zuma">Jacob Zuma</a> (see letter below). This is after the same <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Executive_Committee_%28African_National_Congress%29">ANC NEC</a> that removed Mbeki as South African President, suddenly announced that Mbeki would be campaigning for them in the run up to next year's elections! The timing of that announcement is obviously tied to the above mentioned break-away movement by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terror_Lekota">Terror Lekota</a> and other present-former-suspended-stealth members of the ANC disillusioned by the manner of Mbeki's sacking and the perceived purge of his loyalists after 'Polokwane". While on one hand members of the ANC's NEC have been dismissive, in their typical arrogant manner, of the bad bad <span style="font-style: italic;">bad</span> dissidents they, on the other hand, found no problem in suddenly brandishing Mbeki as trump card in dealing with what they claim to be a splinter group of no significance.<br /><br />Make no mistake, <span style="font-style: italic;">Comrade </span>Mbeki is not happy about this. Thus he fires of a stinging letter to <span style="font-style: italic;">Comrade </span>Zuma. The letter is not published, initially, and is sent as a private communique. It shows Mbeki's discipline and in content once again displays his intellectual prowess (although in my opinion diluted by dated political ideology).<br /><br />What is not clear, but which I can't help but suspect, is whether Mbeki knew what would happen next? Is this a case of 'give them enough rope and they will hang themselves'? The ink on his letter was barely dry when, with great arrogance, his letter was quoted in public -once again without his permission- to indicate that Mbeki would not run off with Lekota into a new political party. But the stinging criticism that made up a large part of the letter was conveniently left out of these public pronouncements. What happens next follows the script of political power play to the letter (no pun intended...). The poisonous letter is leaked to the press...<br /><br />The letter makes for interesting reading. What I find of particular interest is Mbeki's attack on the '<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cult_of_personality">cult of personality</a>' and how this has become a feature of the Jacob Zuma brigade. He clearly infers that he will have no part in it - no surprise there off course. He is however very much involved with the 'cult of personality' in his dealings with the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zimbabwe">Zimbabwe</a> crisis and its <span style="font-style: italic;">super </span>cult-of-personality-characther <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Mugabe">Robert Mugabe</a>...<br /><br />The use of exclusive and polarising terms such as 'comrade' and '<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Democratic_Revolution">national democratic revolution</a>' are still alive and well amongst 'intellectuals' in the ANC . The latter term implies some positive values, such as the alleviation of poverty but is very worrisome in many other respects. For one thing it has become a trend to brand anyone who differs from the ruling party as an 'anti-revolutionary'. While Mbeki has not resorted to the latter, if memory serves me correctly, his tendency to think within the Africanist ideological box has probably had a lot to do with the polarisation which featured so strongly in his presidency.<br /><br />The letter also leaves me with some sadness for Thabo Mbeki, the human being. How the mighty has fallen. It would have been so much better if he actually delivered on the promises he made and the lofty ideals he strived for. <a href="http://inside-south-africa.blogspot.com/2008/05/thabo-mbeki-what-could-have-been.html">I posted on 'what could have been' in May of this year</a> and I'm afraid what I wrote there represents what will probably be my lasting impression of Mbeki years from today.<br /><br />Herewith then the much spoken about letter, as sourced from <a href="http://www.news24.com/">news24.com</a>:<br /><br /><blockquote><p> Comrade President, I imagine that these must be especially trying times for you as president of our movement, the ANC, as they are for many of us as ordinary members of our beloved movement, which we have strived to serve loyally for many decades. </p><p> I say this to apologise that I impose an additional burden on you by sending you this long letter. </p><p> I decided to write this letter after I was informed that two days ago, on October 7, the president of the ANC Youth League and you the following day, October 8, told the country, through the media, that you would require me to campaign for the ANC during the 2009 election campaign. </p><p>As you know, neither of you had discussed this with me prior to your announcements. Nobody in the ANC leadership - including you, the presidents of the ANC and ANCYL - has raised this matter with me since then. </p><p> To avoid controversy, I have declined all invitations publicly to indicate whether I intended to act as you indicated or otherwise. </p><p> In truth your announcements took me by surprise. </p><p> This is because earlier you had sent Comrades <a href="http://www.whoswhosa.co.za/Pages/profilefull.aspx?IndID=5325" target="_blank" class="twelvered">Kgalema Motlanthe</a> and <a href="http://www.whoswhosa.co.za/Pages/profilefull.aspx?IndID=5142" target="_blank" class="twelvered">Gwede Mantashe</a> to inform me that the ANC NEC and our movement in general had lost confidence in me as a cadre of our movement. </p><p> They informed me that for this reason you suggested that I should resign my position as president of the Republic, which I did. </p><p> I therefore could not understand how the same ANC which was so disenchanted with me could, within a fortnight, consider me such a dependable cadre as could be relied upon to promote the political fortunes of the very same movement, the ANC, which I had betrayed in such a grave and grevious manner as to require that I should be removed from the presidency of the Republic a mere six or seven months before the end of our term, as mandated by the masses of our people! </p><p>Your public announcements I have mentioned came exactly at the moment when Comrade Mosiuoa "Terror" Lekota and other ANC comrades publicly raised various matters about our movement of concern to them. </p><p> I have noted that some in our broad democratic movement have spoken publicly, unfortunately, and wrongly saying that Comrade Terror has acted as they have, driven by their loyalty to me as an individual. </p><p> During the decades we have worked together in the ANC, we have had the great fortune that our movement has consistently repudiated the highly noxious phenomenon of the "cult of personality", which we saw manifested in other countries. </p><p> It therefore came as a surprise to me that anybody within our revolutionary democratic movement could so much as suggest, and therefore insult somebody like <a href="http://www.whoswhosa.co.za/Pages/profilefull.aspx?IndID=914" target="_blank" class="twelvered">Terror Lekota</a> that he could act as he has, whether rightly or wrongly, driven by attachment to a personal cult! </p><p> In this context, given that I have worked longer with you than I have worked with Terror, I would be interested to know your view of any instance in our movement during which it fell victim to the noxious phenomenon of the personality cult, as a result of which it ceased to think, content to act in the manner of the "anointed personality", such as the late Kim Il-Sung determined to the people of North Korea! </p><p> Personally, I've been privileged to interact with such varied titans of our struggle such as <a href="http://www.whoswhosa.co.za/Pages/profilefull.aspx?IndID=6316" target="_blank" class="twelvered">Oliver Tambo</a>, Moses Kotane, JB Marks, ZK Matthews, <a href="http://www.whoswhosa.co.za/Pages/profilefull.aspx?IndID=6450" target="_blank" class="twelvered">Yusuf Dadoo</a>, <a href="http://www.whoswhosa.co.za/Pages/profilefull.aspx?IndID=6185" target="_blank" class="twelvered">Mark Shope</a>, Leslie Massina, Duma Nokwe, Moses Mabhida, <a href="http://www.whoswhosa.co.za/Pages/profilefull.aspx?IndID=6377" target="_blank" class="twelvered">Frances Baard</a>, Steve Dlamini, Lilian Ngoyi, <a href="http://www.whoswhosa.co.za/Pages/profilefull.aspx?IndID=8140" target="_blank" class="twelvered">Walter Sisulu</a>, Gertrude Shope, <a href="http://www.whoswhosa.co.za/Pages/profilefull.aspx?IndID=6301" target="_blank" class="twelvered">Govan Mbeki</a>, Julius Nyerere, Raymond Mhlaba, <a href="http://www.whoswhosa.co.za/Pages/profilefull.aspx?IndID=4635" target="_blank" class="twelvered">Kenneth Kaunda</a>, Helen Joseph, <a href="http://www.whoswhosa.co.za/Pages/profilefull.aspx?IndID=6318" target="_blank" class="twelvered">Trevor Huddleston</a>, Agostinho Neto, Robert Resha, Jack Simons, <a href="http://www.whoswhosa.co.za/Pages/profilefull.aspx?IndID=5794" target="_blank" class="twelvered">Seretse Khama</a>, Ray Alexander, Ruth Matseoane, <a href="http://www.whoswhosa.co.za/Pages/profilefull.aspx?IndID=2386" target="_blank" class="twelvered">Sam Nujoma</a>, Fish Keitsing, Kate Molale, <a href="http://www.whoswhosa.co.za/Pages/profilefull.aspx?IndID=5389" target="_blank" class="twelvered">Ahmed Kathrada</a>, <a href="http://www.whoswhosa.co.za/Pages/profilefull.aspx?IndID=3961" target="_blank" class="twelvered">Nelson Mandela</a>, Joshua Nkomo, Samora Machel, MB Yengwa, Ruth and <a href="http://www.whoswhosa.co.za/Pages/profilefull.aspx?IndID=6310" target="_blank" class="twelvered">Joe Slovo</a>, <a href="http://www.whoswhosa.co.za/Pages/profilefull.aspx?IndID=3562" target="_blank" class="twelvered">Robert Mugabe</a>, Mpho Motsamai, Bram and Molly Fischer, Mike Harmel, Brian and <a href="http://www.whoswhosa.co.za/Pages/profilefull.aspx?IndID=6424" target="_blank" class="twelvered">Sonia Bunting</a>, <a href="http://www.whoswhosa.co.za/Pages/profilefull.aspx?IndID=2114" target="_blank" class="twelvered">Andrew Mlangeni</a>, <a href="http://www.whoswhosa.co.za/Pages/profilefull.aspx?IndID=6343" target="_blank" class="twelvered">Liz Abrahams</a>, Joe Modise, Florence Mophosho, Alfred Nzo, Beyers Naude, Albertina Sisulu, Thomas Nkobi, Sophie de Bruyn, Ellen Khuzwayo, Nomzamo Madikizela-Mandela, Wilton Mkwayi, Alfred Hutchinson, Rusty and <a href="http://www.whoswhosa.co.za/Pages/profilefull.aspx?IndID=6181" target="_blank" class="twelvered">Hilda Bernstein</a>, Jack and Rita Hodgson, Cedric Mayson, Thomas Nkobi, Tiny Nokwe, Albert Nolan and many others. </p><p> All these, and many others I have not mentioned, were and are true heroines and heroes of our struggle. </p><p> I have omitted to mention others among these such as Albert Luthuli because I cannot claim truthfully that I have interacted with them in the context of the struggle. </p><p> I have mentioned the people I have to make essential and crucial points, central to the value system of our movement and struggle, that none of these heroes or heroines ever sought adulation in any manner that would turn them into cult figures. </p><p>They never did anything, nor did we act in any way as we grew up in the liberation movement, which would result in our movement being enslaved in the cult of the individual. </p><p> In this regard there were exceptional circumstances attached to Comrade Nelson Mandela, which were not of his making or will. </p><p> In the context of the global struggle for the release of political prisoners in our country, our movement took a deliberate decision to profile Nelson Mandela as the representative personality of these prisoners, and therefore to use his personal political biography, including the persecution of his then wife, Winnie Mandela, dramatically to present to the world and the South African community the brutality of the apartheid system. </p><p> The beginning and the end of this particular discourse is that both of us have grown up in a political atmosphere that we fully respected and honoured our leaders, heroes and heroines without reservation. </p><p> However, for me personally, at no point did this translate into "hero worship" and therefore the progression to the phenomenon of the "cult of personality". </p><p>I know this as a matter of fact that all the heroes and heroines I have mentioned would have opposed the emergence of such a cult with every fibre in their revolutionary bones! </p><p> For this reason I find it strange in the extreme that today cadres of our movement attach the label of a "cult of personality" to me, and indeed publicly declare a determination "to kill" to defend your own cause, the personal interests of "the personality", <a href="http://www.whoswhosa.co.za/Pages/profilefull.aspx?IndID=927" target="_blank" class="twelvered">Jacob Zuma</a>! </p><p> When we last met, on September 19 2008, at the Denel buildings adjacent to the Oliver Tambo International Airport, I restated to you the incontrovertible fact that you knew that our engagement in the struggle for the liberation of our people had never been informed by a striving for personal power, status or benefit. </p><p> In this context I told you that should the ANC NEC, which was meeting from that day, decide that I should no longer serve as president of the Republic, having been the ANC presidential candidate presented to the Second and Third democratic parliament in 2004, I would respect this decision and therefore resign. </p><p>I have been informed informally that you reported this to the ANC NEC at the conclusion of the discussion about this particular matter. I take this opportunity sincerely to thank you for communicating my views to the NEC in this regard. </p><p>I mention all this in the light of what I cited earlier - the statements made first by the president of the ANC Youth League and later yourself, concerning the role I would play in the forthcoming 2009 election campaign, which has not been discussed with me. </p><p>For some years now our movement has had to manage an immensely challenging and unprecedented situation, occasioned by the criminal charges preferred against you by the National Prosecuting Authority, and related matters. </p><p>I state this as a matter of fact with no comment about the merits or demerits of what may have been said and done by anybody or institution in this regard. </p><p> I also mention this fact in this letter because, despite our best efforts, many in our movement and our population at large have refused to believe the sincere message both of us strived to communicate, that there were and are no divisions between us, and that nobody should use our names to incite or perpetuate division in the ANC and the country. </p><p>When the December 2007 Polokwane ANC National Conference elected you president of the ANC, and responding to Comrade Kgalema Motlanthe's suggestion, I walked with you to the platform, publicly to demonstrate my acceptance of that outcome, as did other Comrades who had been defeated in the electoral process. </p><p>When, more recently, the ANC NEC decided that it no longer had confidence in me to serve as its preferred cadre to occupy the position of president of the Republic, I made it a point not to contest this decision, and therefore resigned. </p><p>When I addressed the nation on September 21 2008, announcing that I had tendered my resignation as president of the Republic, to the National Assembly as the elective body, I said that I have been a member of the ANC for 52 years. </p><p>There is absolutely nothing I have done through this half-a-century of struggle of which I am ashamed. Above all, I know of nothing I have done which, to my knowledge, constitutes a betrayal of the interests of the masses of our people and their confidence in the ANC. </p><p>Despite all this, I have taken note of the campaign that some in our ranks, supported by some in our media, have waged for many years focused on discrediting me in particular, given the senior positions I have occupied in the ANC, and the ANC in general. </p><p>I have constantly been acutely aware of the fact that this campaign has been based on outright lies and deliberate and malicious distortions. </p><p>For many years I have refused to stoop to a public debate driven by these fabrications, which would demean and destroy the dignity of the ANC, its leadership and me personally. </p><p>I must admit that this posture might have produced results we never intended, specifically as it might have suggested that we could not contest the lies that have been told. </p><p>I know that now there are some in our country and elsewhere in the world who appear on television programmes or contribute newspaper opinion columns as "experts" or "analysts", simply on the basis of their readiness to abandon all ethical considerations and self-respect, to propagate entirely fabricated and negative notions about what our national democratic revolution means to our country and people. </p><p>Because of the services some of these have rendered to the opponents of the national democratic revolution, the "experts" and "analysts" and others who market themselves as "intellectuals/academics" have been handsomely rewarded with material possessions as embedded opponents of the national democratic revolution. </p><p>Yet such is the malaise that has entrenched itself in our democracy, including our movement, that we do not ask the obvious question - how can such "intellectuals/academics" have come to accumulate such wealth? </p><p>Bearing in mind everything I have said, let me then address the immediate matters on the national agenda, which relate directly to me. </p><p> (1) Comrade Lekota and others have not engaged me in any of the actions they have taken, to secure my approval or otherwise. </p><p>(2) The ANC leadership has not engaged me in any of the responses it has taken in this regard, to secure my approval or otherwise. </p><p>(3) Informally, I have communicated my view to both these contending groups, members of the ANC, that they should address all matters that might be in contention. </p><p>(4) In my President's Political Report to the Polokwane 52nd National Conference of the ANC, presented as prescribed by the ANC constitution, I warned of the grave challenges our movement was facing. I suggested that the conference should discuss these. This was not done. Ten months after this report was presented, I still stand by what it said. </p><p>Following the developments of December 2007 and September 2008, relating to tasks I had been given by the ANC, I have considered carefully what I should do as a private South African and African citizen. </p><p>Currently I am working as speedily as I can to elaborate the substance of this work, which will ensure that whatever I do in no way involves me in the internal politics of the ANC or the functioning of the government of South Africa. </p><p>As the saying goes, I refuse absolutely to rule from the grave. History will judge whether what I did during my political life, until September 25 2008, is worth anything. </p><p>Given the December 2007 and September 2008 outcomes to which I have referred, I trust that you will take the necessary measures to: </p><table width="622" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><td class="twelveblack" valign="top" width="90%" align="left"><li> Remind all comrades that everything we have done since 1994, to advance the national democratic revolution, has been based on collective decisions of our movement, without exceptions; </li><li> Encourage all Comrades honestly to confront the real problems, challenges and opportunities that the ANC, the broad democratic movement and our country face; and, </li><li> Convince these Comrades to desist from abandoning their revolutionary democratic obligations by falsely and dishonestly pretending that the goals of the national democratic revolution have been frustrated, if they have been, through the actions of one individual - <a href="http://www.whoswhosa.co.za/Pages/profilefull.aspx?IndID=895" target="_blank" class="twelvered">Thabo Mbeki</a>. <p>I would like to believe that you and I have devoted out adult lives to the victory of the national democratic revolution, and nothing else. </p><p>Similarly, I would like to believe that we have always understood that this revolution has as its principal focus the upliftment and empowerment of the millions of our working people, including women, who constitute the overwhelming majority of our people. </p><p>Accordingly, we have understood that this revolution has absolutely nothing to do with the personal fortunes of those who might, by virtue of historical accident, be its leaders at any particular moment. </p><p>I would like to believe that in this context we agree that the strategic and historic task facing the tried-and-tested leaders and cadres of our movement is to determine what needs to be done, next, to advance the goals of the national democratic revolution, focused on advancing the interests of the millions of the working masses. </p><p> In my view, with which you are free to disagree, the revolutionary tasks we confront are to: </p></li><li> Recognise the various factors that have militated against the achievement of the unity and cohesion of the ANC in the recent past; </li><li> Defeat the actions prevalent in our governance system, especially the provinces and municipalities, to remove from their positions Comrades who are perceived as belonging to factions different from those which currently serve as elected leaders in the current elected ANC structures; </li><li> Renew the democratic movement on the basis of: </li><li> opposition to the cult of personality </li><li> the defeat of careerism and opportunism; </li><li> the defeat of the use of violence in the ANC and the rest of the democratic movement to impose particular leadership cliques interested in winning government tenders for themselves and their friends; </li><li> the defeat of bureaucratic parasitic tendency leading to the abuse of state power for self-enrichment; </li><li> the rejection of the phenomenon of the emergence of a black compradore bourgeosie which, in the context of BBBEE, is ready to front both for the domestic white and international capitalists; </li><li> commitment to the implementation of a socio-economic programme focused on economic growth and development, the restructuring and development of our economy, reducing unemployment and poverty, and sharing the wealth of our country in terms of our national, class and gender categories. <p>Nobody, and I believe the leadership of the ANC above all others, can ignore the conclusion that today our country stands at a particular crossroad. </p><p>This means that the decisions we take today will impact on our country and the masses of our people for a considerable number of years. </p><p>I am confident that the decisions the leadership of the ANC will take in this regard, with you at its head, will indeed advance the goals of the national democratic revolution to which so many of us, led by the veterans of our movement, have dedicated our lives. </p><p>As a small plea in this regard, I appeal that nobody should abuse or cite my name falsely to promote their partisan cause, including how the 2009 ANC election campaign will be conducted. </p><p><b> Amandla! Matla! </b></p><p> <b>Thabo Mbeki</b> </p><p> - News24 </p></li></td></tr></tbody></table></blockquote>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30387849.post-58650679717928553832008-07-07T12:05:00.011+02:002008-07-07T17:17:59.293+02:00Two excellent online Mandela & Apartheid multimedia resourcesI'm a great believer in the power of the internet. Yet, I'm often still surprised at the jewels it offers when I bump into some new resource - freely available to anyone with a (preferably broadband) internet connection. The latest are two excellent resources on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nelson_Mandela">Nelson Mandela</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apartheid">Apartheid</a>. I'm sure there are many more.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Mandela: An Audio History</span></span><br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.mandelahistory.org/mstories.html"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizdnEr7QeTu_rIeZU7t3EKQRsNfrVipKNbRpxfMR0K7UHtRmETXQSUxFlUNrrLqPfSwR8POlkI6wRdUN_f5iymm42BgWbMTZptNkHmqf376ICODBv-wMSP1a3zGUN0TfF3Hg7hyQ/s400/Mandela+audio+history.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5220214430801117378" border="0" /></a><br /><blockquote>"A five-part radio series <span class="textblack12pt">documenting the struggle against apartheid through rare sound recordings, the voice of Nelson Mandela himself, as well as those who fought with him, and against him.... </span><span class="textbrown11pt">An Audio History was originally broadcast on <a href="http://www.npr.org">National Public Radio</a> in the U.S. and <a href="http://www.safm.co.za/portal/site/safm/">SAfm</a> in <a href="http://www.afrilux.co.za/quickies/South_Africa.htm">South Africa</a>."</span></blockquote><span class="textbrown11pt"></span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The Stories</span><br />I thoroughly enjoyed listening to the five episodes sorted under the heading "<a href="http://www.mandelahistory.org/mstories.html">The Stories</a>". It is a grand narrative, well organised and told through recordings of radio broadcasts, interviews with anti-apartheid activists / politicians and liberation songs - amongst others. If you're familiar with South African historical and contemporary figures, you'll recognise many of them. Speakers and/or broadcasts are not introduced but rather flow seamlessly into each other. The listener is taken on a 50-year journey from 1994-1994. As with all attempts to convey history, not all perspectives are catered for throughout. But be that as it may, this is an impressive effort.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The People</span><br />Here you will find short biographies on the persons interviewed in <span style="font-style: italic;">The Stories</span> section above.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Audio Timeline</span><br />This section provides a graphical time line of the events covered in the five audio episodes of <span style="font-style: italic;">The Stories</span>. Very helpful if you are unfamiliar with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apartheid">South Africa's apartheid history</a> and that of Nelson Mandela. A great refresher course if you think you know the history!<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Nelson Mandela Media Centre (News24.com)</span></span><br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://specialreports.news24.com/Mandela/"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnDai9k5J12S43k2nhdPu06tTszohSH9fLxAnSbTV3R4DcKZqEVdR2gbEZZe6vSiCo3X3otyP-hlIoMzq0HnpDxyonpDJywYD-XJO56JtAbvDwQ4J3alsaTCscQMbvR83m4MNu9Q/s400/NM+media+centre.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5220258702294890130" border="0" /></a><br />This is a very slick, well packaged collection of information on Nelson Mandela. It is hosted on <a href="http://www.news24.com">News24.com</a>'s site and I assume they put it together. It is in fact a work in progress as there seem to be more content on the way.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://specialreports.news24.com/Mandela/"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcMcWaCLUnSOTP5ahK5yjxT65oEHJ_6zEuZpyUl2eXd-iJJOqhRTPtD-vdnIu0ZPpR5Ur7iEI9m2qwEcRCwGvy-d8UfvfYgzC2Gsp9Yl0NPRdZf3jsIZFSogicuYENADkTEmHDOA/s400/NM+speeches.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5220261390393461426" border="0" /></a>The speeches section provides transcripts for speeches by Mandela starting with an address to the ANC Youth League in 1951 up to an address by Mandela at the funeral of Adelaide Tambo in 2007. A very impressive collection indeed.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://specialreports.news24.com/Mandela/"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5i7iL60hfxtHX2wXbKG4CTQ4Pxt_3IfUE0DbEu8VAcC3feHyHfB8EUQEk235nbGm1d2t_OfBLKFEpKqNELGUfCkum1CL9E3kowVh1OD1l1bHtZLwCpAjfRJ-bBJQOikKeZiEI6A/s400/nm+videos.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5220264763513143922" border="0" /></a>The video section mainly feature prominent South Africans sharing the impressions Mandela made on them through his life and personal encounters. Amongst others, it features <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helen_Suzman">Helen Suzman</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Bizos">George Bizos</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jay_Naidoo">Jay Naidoo</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahmed_Kathrada">Ahmed Kathrada</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francois_Pienaar">Francois Pienaar</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penny_Heyns">Penny Heyns</a>. It also includes a couple of clips highlighting different aspects of Mandela's life and person.<br /><br />As with the first site featured above, this one also features a very informative timeline of events in Mandela's life. The <span style="font-style: italic;">Biography</span> section provides a summary of important fazes in his life. Finally a collection of audio slide shows rounds of News24's presentation. I hope that the current presentation is but a starting point for an even more comprehensive future library of information.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30387849.post-23280304967660895382008-06-25T10:59:00.007+02:002008-06-25T17:53:49.343+02:00Stories that got my attention - 25 June 2008Here are a couple of interesting and/or noteworthy stories that caught my attention this morning:<br /><br /><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://mhambi.blogspot.com/">Mhambi</a><span style="font-weight: bold;">: </span><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://mhambi.blogspot.com/2008/06/is-nelson-mandelas-silence-on-zimbabwe.html">Is Nelson Mandela's silence on Zimbabwe OK?</a><br /><br /><blockquote>Much is currently being made in the British Press of Nelson Mandela's visit to the UK for the concert celebration of his 90th birthday.<br /><br />Not because of the <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/celebritynews/2188482/Sir-Elton-John-to-sing-Happy-Birthday-to-Nelson-Mandela.html">planned star studded line up</a> mind you. But because Mandela has not condemned Robert Mugabe's government of late...<br /><br /></blockquote><br /><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://constitutionallyspeaking.co.za/">Constitutionally Speaking</a><span style="font-weight: bold;">: </span><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://constitutionallyspeaking.co.za/?p=594">What happens when 5 judges retire?</a><br /><br /><blockquote><p style="text-align: justify;">Next year five judges of the Constitutional Court will come to the end of their 15 year term and will have to retire. These are Chief Justice Pius Langa and Justices Kate O’Regan, Albie Sachs, Yvonne Mgoro and Tollie Madala. Justices O’Regan, Sachs and Mokgoro have been consistently the most progressive voices on the court and it is difficult not to worry about the direction the court will take with five fresh faces on its benches.</p> Although there are some safeguards built into the Constitution regarding the appointment of judges, the process of appointing Constitutional Court judges are potentially open to political manipulation...<br /><br /></blockquote><br /><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.sagoodnews.co.za/">south africa THE GOOD NEWS</a><span style="font-weight: bold;">: </span><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.sagoodnews.co.za/sa_teaching_the_world/sa_ad_agency_wins_grand_prix_at_cannes_.html">SA ad agency wins Grand Prix at Cannes</a><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.sagoodnews.co.za/images/stories/never_let_their_toys_die.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 446px; height: 296px;" src="http://www.sagoodnews.co.za/images/stories/never_let_their_toys_die.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><blockquote><p> South African advertising agency DDB (SA) won the Grand Prix award in the Press category at the 55th Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival held in Cannes, France this week. </p> From more than 7 400 global entries in the press category, DDB (SA) scooped the coveted premier award for their Energizer campaign...<br /><br /></blockquote><br /><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.sagoodnews.co.za/">south africa THE GOOD NEWS</a><span style="font-weight: bold;">: </span><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.sagoodnews.co.za/sa_teaching_the_world/sa_documentary_wins_world_tv_award_.html">SA documentary wins World TV Award</a><br /><br /><blockquote><p> A South African film has won the best documentary award in the 2008 World TV Awards. </p> The documentary, entitled "The Letter", deals with the personal stories emerging from the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine. Through the story of a mother, who in search of closure and reconciliation, writes a letter to her son's killers, the film aims to increase public awareness around issues of diversity, tolerance and peace...<br /><br /></blockquote><br /><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/">BBC News</a><span style="font-weight: bold;">: </span><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7472565.stm">US to ignore Zimbabwe poll result</a><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44757000/jpg/_44757340_zimzanumug466.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px;" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44757000/jpg/_44757340_zimzanumug466.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><blockquote><b>The US will not recognise the outcome of Friday's presidential election run-off in Zimbabwe, a senior state department official has said.<br /><br /></b>Jendayi Frazer told the BBC Robert Mugabe could not claim a legitimate victory amid the current campaign of violence against the opposition...<br /><br /><blockquote><p class="first"> </p></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><p> </p></blockquote><span style="font-style: italic;">My comments</span>: Will South Africa follow a similar approach? I wish, but I don't see any chance of that happening. It will probably also not achieve much. It's a little like putting your hands in front of your eyes and saying - you're not there, I won't acknowledge you. Who do you talk to in order to end the charade? But at least the US is indicating that it doesn't approve of the current madness. Could South Africa's Government at least convey that message in public - 'Bob, you're a naughty boy and we don't like it'?. Once again I don't see this happening. <a href="http://inside-south-africa.blogspot.com/2008/06/monday-morning-zim-headache.html">I'm still depressed about Zim</a>.<br /><br /><br /><br /><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/">BBC News</a><span style="font-weight: bold;">: </span><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7472577.stm">Landmark Florida Everglades deal</a><br /><br /><blockquote><p class="first"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44776000/jpg/_44776423_everglades_226.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 200px;" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44776000/jpg/_44776423_everglades_226.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><b>US conservationists are hailing a landmark agreement under which the state of Florida will buy a huge tract of land from a major sugar company.</b> </p><p>The US Sugar Corp has tentatively agreed to close down and sell the 800sq km of land it owns in the Everglades to Florida for $1.75bn (£890m). </p><p>Florida's governor said the agreement was as important as the creation of America's first national park. </p>The swampy Everglades is one of America's most unusual ecosystems...<br /><br /></blockquote><br /><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/">BBC News</a><span style="font-weight: bold;">: </span><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7472532.stm">Biofuel use 'increasing poverty'</a><br /><br /><p class="first"> <b></b></p><blockquote><p class="first"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44623000/jpg/_44623241_palmoil_afp_226_170body.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 200px;" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44623000/jpg/_44623241_palmoil_afp_226_170body.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><b>The replacement of traditional fuels with biofuels has dragged more than 30 million people worldwide into poverty, an aid agency report says.</b> </p><p> Oxfam says so-called green policies in developed countries are contributing to the world's soaring food prices, which hit the poor hardest. </p><p> The group also says biofuels will do nothing to combat climate change. </p><p> Its report urges the EU to scrap a target of making 10% of all transport run on renewable resources by 2020. <!-- E SF --> </p><p> Oxfam estimates the EU's target could multiply carbon emissions 70-fold by 2020 by changing the use of land...</p><p><br /></p></blockquote><p> </p><br /><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/">BBC News</a><span style="font-weight: bold;">: </span><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7471924.stm">Bill Clinton endorses Obama bid</a><br /><br /><p class="first"> <b><blockquote>Former US President Bill Clinton has announced for the first time his support of fellow Democrat Barack Obama's bid for the White House.</blockquote></b> </p><p> </p><blockquote><p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44775000/jpg/_44775454_clinton_ap226b.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 200px;" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44775000/jpg/_44775454_clinton_ap226b.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>Mr Clinton's wife Hillary was Mr Obama's biggest rival for the party nomination, and he was often critical of Mr Obama on the campaign trail. </p><p> Mr Clinton's spokesman said he was committed to working for an Obama win. </p> Mr Obama and Mrs Clinton are to hold a joint rally on Friday, but Mr Clinton will be in Europe and will not attend...<br /><br /></blockquote><br /><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/">BBC News</a><span style="font-weight: bold;">: </span><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/7470832.stm">Record sale for Monet masterpiece</a><br /><br /><blockquote><p class="first"><b>A Claude Monet painting, Le Bassin Aux Nympheas, has fetched a record £40.9m for the artist's work at auction. </b> </p><p>The identity of the victorious bidder at Christie's, London, has not been made public. The painting had been expected to fetch £24m. </p><p>Painted in 1919 in Giverny in France it has been seen in public just once in the past 80 years. </p>Monet's 1873 Le Pont du chemin de fer a Argenteuil, which sold in May, had held the previous record of £20.9m...<br /><br /></blockquote><br /><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/">BBC News</a><span style="font-weight: bold;">: </span><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7472056.stm">Children terrified by SA xenophobia</a><br /><br /><b></b><blockquote><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44776000/jpg/_44776221_jex_127922_226b.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 200px;" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44776000/jpg/_44776221_jex_127922_226b.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><b>Ten-year-old Fortune watched a man being shot dead in front of him as he accompanied his mother to the grocer's store.<br /></b><p>Another 10-year-old saw men armed with clubs and guns preparing for an attack. </p><p>"I was scared," he says, "so I prayed." </p><p>Both children have been receiving counselling after a wave of anti-immigrant attacks in South Africa last month. </p><p>Their school called in art therapist Michelle Booth when teachers realised that many pupils had been traumatised by violence - which they had either suffered directly or witnessed...</p><p><br /></p></blockquote><p> </p><a href="http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news">TIMESONLINE</a>: <span style="font-size:100%;"><a href="http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/africa/article4207971.ece#cid=OTC-RSS&attr=2015164">Outrage over £200m UK investment in Zimbabwe</a><br /><br /></span><p> </p><blockquote><p>Anglo American, the London-based mining giant, is to make what is believed to be the largest foreign investment in Zimbabwe to date, just as the British Government puts pressure on companies to withdraw from the country. </p><p> Anglo will invest $400 million (£200 million) to build a platinum mine in Zimbabwe — a move that has raised concern among some of the company’s shareholders and been condemned by politicians. </p><p> The Foreign Office was investigating tonight whether the company’s investment breached sanctions against Zimbabwe. Anglo insisted that its involvement in the country did not break the law. </p><p> The decision, which was criticised roundly as likely to give succour — and possibly money — to the Mugabe regime, is in stark contrast to the policy of nearly all other main British corporations in Zimbabwe. They are either withdrawing from the country or waiting for Mr Mugabe to be deposed before expanding their businesses... </p></blockquote><p></p><br /><br /><blockquote></blockquote>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30387849.post-61362787043322946882008-06-24T21:03:00.005+02:002008-06-24T23:28:01.044+02:00To BEE or not to BEE...<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Economic_Empowerment">Black Economic Empowerment (BEE)</a> is regarded as either holy or evil by South Africans, depending from which vantage point it's looked at. For non-South Africans who may not be in the know - BEE refers to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Affirmative_action">affirmative action</a> policies, which are driven first and foremost by <a href="http://www.afrilux.co.za/linkspop/sa_government/sa_gov_index.htm">Government</a> through legislation, as well as through so-called <span style="font-style: italic;">BEE Charters</span> agreed to between Government and Business (mostly by specific industry's, e.g. Tourism).<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2262/2532864392_c88ebc109e.jpg?v=0"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 411px; height: 307px;" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2262/2532864392_c88ebc109e.jpg?v=0" alt="" border="0" /></a><br />While race plays a major role in how BEE is perceived in <a href="http://www.afrilux.co.za/quickies/South_Africa.htm">South Africa</a>, it would be a mistake to believe that all whites are against it and all blacks for it. BEE was always going to be a necessary evil at best and at worse <span style="font-style: italic;">reverse*</span> discrimination (*against whites as opposed to previous discrimination against blacks). It can probably be argued that it will always be both... My own preference has been towards labelling it a '<span style="font-style: italic;">necessary </span>evil'. That is, BEE should be seen against the country's history of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_South_Africa_%281652-1815%29">colonisation</a> (±300 years) and formal <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apartheid">Apartheid</a> (±40 years), which robbed the black majority of opportunities for education and development. To address these past injustices, a degree of discrimination is needed in the present day (affirmative action).<br /><br />However, about a decade of BEE has caused many to re-evaluate their stance on this thorny issue. To be fair many, myself included, had a lot of caveats regarding support for BEE / affirmative action to begin with. These now strongly come into play, given the history of BEE thus far. In short a smallish group of the (mostly) political well-connected have benefited hugely from BEE. Some black labourers benefit indirectly through union participation in BEE deals, although the empowerment effect thereof at ground roots level is questionable. The vast majority of black South Africans are not really in a stronger position to advance up the economic ladder - some even argue that most are in a worse position today.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">There are a few aspects of the current BEE experience that troubles me greatly. These include:</span><br /><ul><li>The small number of people actually (disproportionally) empowered by BEE, as referred to above.<br /><br /></li><li>It seems that the main focus is on filling top, influential, highly paid positions, with black faces - i.e. following a top-down approach.<br /><br /></li><li>The previous point suggests that the only way to empower blacks is by getting rid of whites... That is, whites can't be trusted in playing a part in the great empowerment project. It has to be driven by blacks in high positions, by extension by driving out whites currently filling those positions. This is gross generalisation on my part, but it represents at the very least a worrying perception.<br /><br /></li><li>BEE in South Africa, in my view, is based too much on the redistribution of wealth rather than the creation of wealth. In other words cutting the proverbial economic pie in smaller pieces, so that everyone can get a bite - rather than baking a bigger pie. (Obviously the 'shareholding' in a bigger pie can remain in the same lily white hands, which won't help either.)<br /><br /></li><li>An experience which is bothering me more and more is listening to black commentators matter-of-factly stating that black South Africans must eventually dominate business, because of the demographics of our population. There is a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_of_entitlement">culture of entitlement</a> in these pronouncements that bugs me. If I as a white person build up a family business from scratch with years of blood and tears, am I required to simply hand over a majority stake to someone else, because of his black skin colour? Why can't a family business remain exactly that, irrespective of the family's race?<br /></li></ul>It would be naïve to expect that after 350 years of discrimination against blacks in this country an <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African_National_Congress">ANC</a> Government would not opt for fast track empowerment, as they've done. But one would hope that this will be coupled with a similarly aggressive drive to empower blacks to compete on merit, not to be mere recipients of what virtually amounts to hand-outs? I fear this has generally not been the case.<br /><br />The main failing of the ANC Government in my view has been the complete failure to deliver, or at least begin to deliver, quality education at (primary and secondary) school level. The fortunate black students that make it into universities (these days a very sizable portion of university populations) are either those who were able to get into historically white schools or the exceptional few who managed to reach the bar despite attending the average black township school (the average black township school being poor to useless).<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.liberty.co.za/Liberty/content/main/investorrelations/reportspresentations/financialresults/financialreports/sustain2006/images/society_pic03.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px;" src="http://www.liberty.co.za/Liberty/content/main/investorrelations/reportspresentations/financialresults/financialreports/sustain2006/images/society_pic03.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br />At present universities attain their high percentage of black students not because of population demographics naturally leading to it. Rather, it is manipulated by setting different standards for different race groups. The bottom line is, if you're white you have to outperform black students by a clear margin in order to make it to university. Worse, if you're black a mediocre school performance will often do. The reason for this is not that black kids are lazy or have a lower intellectual capacity. It is rather that Government fails them - mostly in the poor execution of education policy -; school principals who are either unable to manage or don't care fail them; and ill qualified, poorly motivated and often totally uncommitted teachers fail them.<br /><br />The baggage of school boycotts in the Apartheid era is also haunting us today. I'm amazed at how (black) school children still feature as cannon fodder in political struggles. Whether it be protests against poor service delivery by municipalities, provincial demarcation disputes or micro issues with particular education representatives the fact is that school children should be in classrooms being equipped for their futures - not out on the streets protesting. Parents and community leaders should ensure that children don't get dragged into these matters.<br /><br />Yet, businesses are pressed continuously to promote black employees, often in preference of better qualified and experienced white co-workers. How can this be, if black schools are continuously allowed to sink further and further into the gutter? It all smacks of political expediency rather than a true commitment to empowering black South Africans. If you're serious about 'BEE' you need to empower black South Africans, first and foremost through dramatically improved school education, to compete.<br /><br />The litmus test for BEE lies in abolishing affirmative action and then seeing whether you're doing enough for black school education to enable black children to naturally progress in big numbers into university and careers beyond. Blacks have the ability, as do any other race, to compete. They should be allowed to do so!<br /><br />I didn't really have the stomach to wander into the above topic, but a talk by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moeletsi_Mbeki">Moeletsi Mbeki</a> (the brother of our infamous President...) got me fired up. While I've read about some of M Mbeki's opinions lately, I'm not able to vouch for his general positions, as they are mostly unknown to me. However, on this issue I think he's spot on. We need more (black) commentators who come out and address this important issue. I'm just hoping that enough do so to bring real change in BEE policies before my eldest child, born a decade after 1994 'democratic revolution', matriculates in about 2023... I'm not too hopeful though.<br /><br />Below follows a report on Moeletsi Mbeki's talk <a href="http://www.fin24.com/articles/default/display_article.aspx?ArticleId=1518-25_2346100">as featured on News24.com</a>:<br /><br /><blockquote><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">'BEE no solution to poverty'</span> </span><br />Johannesburg - Wealth redistribution is no solution to poverty, political analyst Moeletsi Mbeki told a conference on the world economy in <a href="http://www.afrilux.co.za/quickies/johannesburg.htm">Johannesburg</a> on Tuesday.<br /><br />"Redistribution can actually accentuate poverty and create social conflict," he said.<br /><br />"I was one of the first to oppose Black Economic Empowerment (BEE), because if they're going to redistribute wealth, who is going to get what? Where are you going to get that wealth from?"<br /><br />Broad Based BEE had only benefited top ANC leaders, Mbeki said.<br /><br />"It benefits the people in power, but what about the poor? BEE is more of a problem than a solution."<br /><br />He suggested that the government look at wealth creation rather than "fight the ghosts of the past. The ANC expends a lot of energy with BEE in an attempt to correct the past".<br /><br />The only way to go bridge the gap between rich and poor was to sort out the education system and concentrate more on the development of small and medium businesses.<br /><br />"BEE stops black from becoming entrepreneurs," Mbeki said.<br /><br />"Black people are not necessarily against capitalism," he said, adding that it was only the model of capitalism that the apartheid National Party had promoted that blacks did not like.<br /><br />He was however unsure if the ANC could market capitalism to the electorate.<br /><br />"The ANC leaders are afraid of the unions - groups like Cosatu and the SACP - they think these groups deliver a huge constituency but they don't."<br /><br />He said that the ANC had been "very good" at establishing a political system and the Constitution, but had not done well in economics.<br /><br />"I never expected them to because they have never run a business."<br /><br />He said that at least he and his brother, President Thabo Mbeki, had worked in the family's spaza shop as children.<br /><br />"But when my brother gets kicked out as head of government, you won't have anyone there who has actually managed even a spaza shop." </blockquote>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30387849.post-50569961250373606382008-06-23T10:19:00.004+02:002008-06-23T10:44:12.647+02:00A Monday morning Zim headacheOh my, oh my, oh my... Just when you think things in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zimbabwe">Zimbabwe</a> can't possibly turn out any worse. they do.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d2/Morgan_Tsvangirai.jpg/200px-Morgan_Tsvangirai.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 200px;" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d2/Morgan_Tsvangirai.jpg/200px-Morgan_Tsvangirai.jpg" alt="Morgan Tsvangirai, is this the last we're going to see of him?" border="0" /></a>I caught the news of MDC opposition leader, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tsvangirai">Morgan Tsvangirai</a>'s withdrawal from the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zimbabwe">Zimbabwe</a> presidential race on my cell last night. How depressing, utterly depressing. Apparently the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Movement_for_Democratic_Change">MDC</a> is <a href="http://www.news24.com/News24/Africa/Zimbabwe/0,,2-11-1662_2344973,00.html">keeping open a back door</a> - but I can't see anything happening that will allow them to use it. I don't believe this is <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brinkmanship">brinkmanship</a>, this is simply the end of the road.<br /><br />While I understand the MDC's utter desperateness, considering the 'orgy of violence' (to quote Tsvangirai) that has been unleashed against them, I cannot help but think that withdrawing is a huge mistake. What about the scores of MDC activists and regular supporters who paid with their lives in the recent past, hoping that this was the death throes of the Mugabe regime? Were their deaths in vain? Why pull out now, less than a week before the runoff? Yes, the election would not be free and fair - there's no chance of it being, considering the events of the last month and Mugabe's tyrannical history. But what does this achieve? Does it not snuff out any hope for normal Zimbabweans to get rid of the tyrant?<br /><br />This is probably it. Robert Mugabe gets a free ticket to continue his thievery and power abuse. Will the region stop him? Dream on. Oh my, oh my, how depressing, how utterly depressing...Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30387849.post-26278569969049818172008-06-18T21:06:00.005+02:002008-06-23T10:47:17.254+02:00ANC Youth League President puts his foot in it (his mouth)<span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Stupid stupid speech!</span></span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.sowetan.co.za/News/Article.aspx?id=760127"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 200px;" src="http://www.sowetan.co.za/thumbnail.aspx?type=img&id=114127" alt="Julius Malema (The Sowetan newspaper)" border="0" /></a>Julius Malema, the by now (even more) controversial <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African_National_Congress_Youth_League">ANC Youth League</a> President, is said to be on the defence after his inciting remarks in Thaba Nchu (Free State) at a Youth Day rally. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African_National_Congress">ANC</a> President, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacob_Zuma">Jacob Zuma</a>, was in attendance and did not use his own speech later on to rebuke the young firebrand, but rather stuck to his prepared speech and ignored Malema's inexcusable utterings.<br /><br />If you missed the news coverage on Malema's remarks, you can read about it <a href="http://www.thetimes.co.za/News/Article.aspx?id=785553">here</a> (<a href="http://www.thetimes.co.za/">The Times</a>), but the following quote sums up the offending speech pretty well :<br /><br /><blockquote></blockquote><blockquote>“Let us make it clear now: we are prepared to die for Zuma. Not only that, we are prepared to take up arms <span style="font-style: italic;">and kill</span> for Zuma,”<br /></blockquote><br />This thoughtless inciting remark was apparently received with applause from the crowd... I don't think the above statement by Malema really requires any comment, it speaks for itself. Suffice to say that <a href="http://www.afrilux.co.za/quickies/South_Africa.htm">South Africa</a> really needs better quality leaders with more common sense and respect for democracy and the rule of law.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">The journalist and the war monger</span></span><br />A <span style="font-style: italic;">Times</span> political reporter, Moipone Malefane, recorded an interview with Malema to get clarity on what he may have meant with his ill chosen rants. The audio interview follows at the end of this post. Instead of gracefully distancing him from his moment of foolishness he seems to only dive deeper into the murky waters of shallow, ideological, rhetoric. Malefane, on the other hand needs to be commended for not being thrown, but relentlessly asking piercing questions. She's clearly more of a print than broadcast journalist and is not very smooth in terms of presentation, but she zooms in mercilessly on the target!<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">- exactly who does the ANCYL want to kill?</span><br />Malefane pointedly asks him who 'they' are prepared to kill, perhaps the judiciary (in retaliation for the prosecution of Zuma on corruption charges)? Malema tries to skirt the issue vaguely stating that they (the ANCYL?) will kill those who try to undermine black majority rule. Malefane then points out that Zuma is being prosecuted under a <span style="font-style: italic;">black</span> government. He then claims his comments is not related to the legal prosecution of Zuma but against the 'forces of darkness' who wish to portray the ANC leadership as 'the most corrupt people who will never lead any successful government' (cue Darth Vader breathing effect in the background here). Malefane: "Who are these forces?". In not answering her question Malema then uses a term that is fast becoming a pet hate of mine, claiming that he is talking about '<span style="font-style: italic;">counter-revolutionary forces</span>'. The latter term is becoming the preferred twin to labelling legitimate criticism of the <a href="http://www.info.gov.za/index.html">Government</a> or ANC as being racist.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">- are you not inciting violence?</span><br />Interesting, in denying stoking up violence Malema employs another trick often used by politicians finding themselves in difficult corners of their own making. He starts using 'we' rather than 'I' or 'me'. Suddenly it is collective. 'No, no, <span style="font-style: italic;">we </span>are not saying...'. Was Malema conveying official ANCYL policy, I hope not? I doubt it, although the Youth League of late is a strange animal.<br /><br />And just as I'm thinking about the above, I press the play button for the rest of the interview and Malefane zooms in again with her next question:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">- the statement that you made... ...did you canvas it within the ANC Youth League... ...is that what the ANC Youth League believe...?</span><br />Then Malema goes back to talking about the 'revolution' and that the ANCYL has always said that it will pay the highest price to defend it. Probably quite true in content, but he's clearly uncomfortable with the question.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">- give me an example of what would cause the Youth League to take up arms?</span><br />Malema tries to avoid answering, he can't really... He mumbles about 'no need'.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">- but you can't put out a statement if there's no need? ...is there a threat?</span><br />Malema is suddenly a little lame. The bravado is somewhat deflated now. In an almost apologetic tone he tries the old line: 'There's no threat... we are just saying to you... so committed to this revolution we can even die... and kill for it (sic)'. Now he's really burying himself, he actually said there is no threat! Why the great hooha?<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">- do you think your statement was responsible?</span><br />'Yes, very responsible...'. Sure. 'It's a revolutionary statement'. Oh, off course, now it all makes sense! Thank you comrade Malema, why didn't I see that all along!<br /><br />At this point the interview meanders off into other topics. But Malefane is as sharp as before. When Malema claims they've put together a legal team that will approach the courts she wants to know if they have met with the team yet (they will be doing so on Thursday and will then announce the names). Further questions on the composition of the 'legal team' by Malefane leads to answers that leads a strong impression that the existence of such a team is somewhat questionable. The legal team will among other things try and convince the court that the case should be dropped because it may divide the country. That sounds like a strange legal argument to me, if enough people disapprove do we set aside the law for an individual?<br /><br />And then, just as one thinks Melefane is going to say 'thank you and good bye' she pitches the clincher to a worn-down Malema:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">- but Julius what happens in case this case is not dropped?</span><br />So what does 'Julius' say. We will attack the 'forces of the dark' and kill them? No, he says: "If the case is not dropped... ...it will go through the court, the president will appear...".<br /><br />Well done Moipone Malefane! The audio file follows below:<br /><br /><embed src="http://multimedia.thetimes.co.za/player/player.swf" flashvars="playerID=1&bg=0xF8F8F8&leftbg=0xEEEEEE&rightbg=0xCCCCCC&rightbghover=0x999999&lefticon=0x666666&righticon=0x666666&righticonhover=0xFFFFFF&text=0x666666&slider=0xff0000&track=0xFFFFFF&loader=0x999999&border=0x666666&autostart=no&soundFile=http://multimedia.thetimes.co.za/mp3/2009.mp3" height="24" width="290"></embed>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30387849.post-47392284078282625472008-06-17T09:35:00.005+02:002008-06-17T12:39:34.365+02:00Anton Harber on xenophobia coverage: The Star vs. The Daily Sun<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.theharbinger.co.za/"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 200px;" src="http://www.theharbinger.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/themes/blix/images/anton4.jpg" alt="Anton Harber, click here to visit his blog" border="0" /></a>For those readers who don't know this, Anton Harber is a former editor of the <a href="http://www.mg.co.za/">Mail & Guardian</a>. Presently he is a professor at <a href="http://web.wits.ac.za/">Wits University</a> (<a href="http://www.afrilux.co.za/quickies/johannesburg.htm">Johannesburg</a>) and directs the Journalism and Media Studies Programme.<br /><br />Harber has a very insightful blog, <a href="http://www.theharbinger.co.za/">The Harbinger</a>, dealing mostly with current events in relation to how different media houses and outlets approach these issues. On June 13th he posted on the contrasts in media coverage of the 'recent' <a href="http://inside-south-africa.blogspot.com/2008/05/xenophobia-images-of-shocking-hatred.html">xenophobic attacks in South Africa</a>, as evident in comparing <a href="http://www.thestar.co.za/">The Star</a> and <a href="http://www.dailysun.co.za/">The Daily Sun's</a> coverage. These are off course two very different publications, the former a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broadsheet">broadsheet</a> aimed primarily at the middle & upper classes and the latter a typical working class, sensationalist, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabloid">tabloid</a>.<br /><br /><blockquote>...It is easy to say which of these newspaper treatments makes us feel better about ourselves. The Star holds out hope that those who respond to humanitiarian needs outnumber those who partook of the violence or stood aside as it happened. It is tougher to say which newspaper offers the more accurate depiction of our society. More likely, the contrast between these two highlights the different worlds occupied by South Africans of different classes, with very different understandings of what happened in those few days in May. The Star’s is the view from the suburbs, from those only indirectly affected; the Daily Sun’s is the view from the townships and often from the perpetrators themselves...</blockquote><br /><a href="http://www.theharbinger.co.za/wordpress/2008/06/13/of-aliens-and-mobs/">The article</a> makes for very interesting reading, you'll find it <a href="http://www.theharbinger.co.za/wordpress/2008/06/13/of-aliens-and-mobs/">here</a>.<br /><blockquote></blockquote>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30387849.post-78335951133435052402008-06-12T10:27:00.007+02:002008-06-12T11:57:03.950+02:00'SADC election observers should go to Zimbabwe immediately'Herewith, in full, a statement released on June 10 (2008) by the <a href="http://www.up.ac.za/">University of Pretoria</a> <a href="http://web.up.ac.za/default.asp?ipkCategoryID=47">Law Faculty's</a> <a href="http://www.chr.up.ac.za/"><span style="font-style: italic;">Centre for Human Rights</span></a>.<br /><br />Thanks to Pierre at <a href="http://constitutionallyspeaking.co.za/">Constitutionally Speaking</a> from whom I picked up the story. It is encouraging that civil society is becoming more and more vocal in South Africa.<br /><br />In all honesty, even if scores of observers are sent to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zimbabwe">Zimbabwe</a> immediately it will be too late to provide the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Movement_for_Democratic_Change">MDC</a> with a reasonable chance to rally their supporters ahead of the presidential election scheduled for June 27, which is now only 15 days away. It may help to expose power abuses during the actual election and thereafter. But the bottom line is that <a href="http://www.afrilux.co.za/quickies/South_Africa.htm">South Africa</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_African_Development_Community">SADC</a> have failed the people of Zimbabwe once again. One can only hope for a miracle come June 27...<br /><br /><blockquote> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="http://www.chr.up.ac.za/press%20releases/Zimbabwe%20SADC%20election%20observers.doc">SADC election observers should go to <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Zimbabwe</st1:place></st1:country-region> immediately</a> <o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span><b style=""><i style=""><span lang="EN-GB">Release date: 10 June 2008<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">The Centre for Human Rights, at the Faculty of Law, <st1:placetype st="on">University</st1:placetype> of <st1:placename st="on">Pretoria</st1:placename>, calls on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Levy_Mwanawasa">President Mwanawasa</a>, in his capacity as Chairperson of SADC, and on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thabo_Mbeki">President Mbeki</a>, in his capacity as SADC mediator on <st1:country-region st="on">Zimbabwe</st1:country-region>, to take all possible measures to ensure the immediate and extensive deployment of SADC observers in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Zimbabwe</st1:place></st1:country-region>.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">It is encouraging that President Mbeki has already voiced his support for the deployment of SADC observers, and that he reminded member states to make the necessary resources available for this purpose. However, these observers should not focus primarily on monitoring the polls on voting day, but should be put in place as soon as possible to cover the period leading up to the elections and a reasonable period thereafter. These observers should also be representative of SADC as a whole.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">An election is a process, consisting of three main phases: (1) the pre-election period; (2) the voting day itself; and (3) the period between voting and the release of results. <span style=""> </span>If election observers focus on what happens on voting day only, the important determinants of a free and fair election prior to and after voting day would not be taken into account. At the moment, there are clear indications that the pre-election conditions are not only making a free and fair election impossible, but are skewed in favour of the candidacy of President Mugabe. Even if people are allowed to go to the polls on voting day, free and fair elections are impossible due to the harassment, arrest, detention and even disappearance of activists and leaders; restrictions on the media; and fear and intimidation of the population and non-governmental organisations.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">According to SADC’s own ‘Principles and Guidelines Governing Democratic Elections’, the SADC election observation mission should be deployed ‘<i style="">at least</i> two weeks before the voting day’ (para 4.1.10). Under the specific circumstances prevailing in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Zimbabwe</st1:place></st1:country-region>, the ‘normal’ period of two weeks should be increased as much as possible. It is imperative that all efforts should be made to get as many observers into place, covering as extensive an area as possible, as soon as possible. The elections, scheduled to take place on 27 June, is just 16 days away. Observers should be on the ground now, and should stay at least until election results are announced.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Observers should insist on the full compliance with the SADC Principles and Guidelines, which includes the following:</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><br /></span></p> <ul style="margin-top: 0cm;" type="disc"><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><span lang="EN-GB">The government must safeguard the human rights and adequate security of all stakeholders and parties (para 7.4; 7.5).</span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><span lang="EN-GB">The observers must have unimpeded and unrestricted access to all polling stations and counting centres (para 7.19).</span></li></ul> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Once deployed, SADC observers must submit regular reports, so that matters requiring urgent attention may be dealt with by the appropriate SADC organ.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><br /><span style=""> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">To ensure a credible election, as many observers as possible should be allowed into the country. Presidents Mwanawasa and Mbeki should insist that <st1:country-region st="on">Zimbabwe</st1:country-region> allows other observers, in line with the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights’ ‘Resolution on the Forthcoming Run-off Election in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Zimbabwe</st1:place></st1:country-region>’, adopted in May at its 43rd ordinary session. In this resolution, the African Commission requests that the Zimbabwean government allows ‘both national and international election observers to observe the entire electoral process, so as to enhance the credibility of the electoral process, and acceptance of the results of the elections by all contesting parties’.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">The Centre for Human Rights further urges Presidents Mwanawasa and Mbeki to exert all possible pressure on President Mugabe to halt violence, intimidation, and selective use of to law stifle opposition, and to abide by the SADC Principles and Guidelines Governing Democratic Elections and the Zimbabwean Constitution and Electoral Act.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><i style=""><span lang="EN-GB">For more detail, please contact: Frans Viljoen, Director of the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, <a href="mailto:frans.viljoen@up.ac.za">frans.viljoen@up.ac.za</a>; tel: 012 4203228; cell: 073 393 4181<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p> </blockquote>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30387849.post-43922054941873629402008-06-09T11:34:00.009+02:002008-06-12T12:28:25.290+02:00NY Times Blogging Heads: Is Racism Over?I love the <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/">New York Times</a>, although lately I've had very little time to indulge in it. On occasion I've noted a link to '<a href="http://bloggingheads.tv/"><span style="font-style: italic;">Bloggingheads</span></a>', but 'till today never followed it. The Bloggingheads topic featured on the NY Times online edition today caught my attention and I took the leap. The format of Bloggingheads is mostly that of two participants, seen in a split video screen, discussing a topic via an internet video feed. It is non-moderated and free flowing.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">(The Bloggingheads video follows lower down. The video may not be visible if you're reading this post outside of my blog).</span></span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;font-size:130%;" >Is Racism Over (in US Politics)?</span><br />In this 'edition' of Bloggingheads two (black) academics discuss the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barack_Obama">Obama</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hilary_Clinton">Clinton</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_Party_%28United_States%29_presidential_primaries%2C_2008">primary race</a>, which has since concluded. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/chris_dunn/2256436968/"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 275px; height: 412px;" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2219/2256436968_f1d52d6aea.jpg?v=0" alt="" border="0" /></a>In one or two of the states that Hillary Clinton took, race seemingly played a decisive issue in voters' minds. Simply put white voters voted for the white candidate. Does this support the notion that <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Racism">racism</a> is still very much active in American politics or is there a more complex explanation? This kind of discussion can off-course be very gloomy and dark. However, the two academics paint a very interesting and nuanced picture. One which gives hope that non-racialism may have taken a few steps forward in the States.<br /><br />Their discussion is also one which in my view looks at racism from different angles, not simply white on black. A very refreshing aspect, which is sorely lacking - although not totally absent - in South African deliberation on this very important matter. Their analysis goes where few discussions tend to, that is to a place where you also take a critical look at the validity of ideas which would normally be used to defend your own 'position'. I'm going to be keeping an eye out for these two guys, it's worth the trouble!<br /><br />By the way, the 'two guys' are <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_McWhorter">John McWhorter</a> of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manhattan_Institute">Manhattan Institute</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glenn_Loury">Glenn Loury</a> of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brown_University">Brown University</a>.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;font-size:130%;" >Will the presidential election results reflect on racism in the US?</span><br />If Barack Obama gets elected as the next US President there will off-course be a very strong argument that America has indeed come a very long way in how it views race. His winning of the Democratic ticket is that already, although we are dealing with the more progressive of the two dominating political parties. One can also argue that in the popular vote, i.e. even more so than in the delegate count, things turned out very evenly for the two Democrats. Thus, for argument's sake, if virtually all Republicans and independents voted for McCain and a large portion of Clinton's supports did the same Obama will end up short by a country mile. That will off-course not automatically signal racist convictions amongst voters. It may be a genuine conviction amongst voters that McCain stands for better policy and is a better leader (not my conviction). A better explanation will probably be that America is still in the hold of <span style="font-style: italic;">politics of fear</span>. But should Obama win the presidential race, and at this stage it seems there is no reason why he couldn't, surely it has to say something about a changing America - at least in as far as racism is concerned?<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;font-size:130%;" >Obama on racism</span><br />It was unavoidable that the topic of race would surface somewhere in the primary race, as it did. Obama handled the issue, I believe, with exceptional well phrased candour and grace. If you missed <span style="font-style: italic;">THE speech</span> on racism, by Obama, during the primaries <a href="http://inside-south-africa.blogspot.com/2008/03/barack-obama-impresses-with-bold-speech.html">read the post I wrote on it here</a> (YouTube video of full speech included).<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;font-size:130%;" >The Bloggingheads video</span><br />The very interesting section of the McWhorter & Loury discussion (approx. 6-min) featured on the <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/">NY Times' website</a> follows directly below (you'll need a broadband link to watch this).<br /><br /><embed type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://bloggingheads.tv/maulik/offsite/offsite_flvplayer.swf" flashvars="file=http%3A%2F%2Fbloggingheads%2Etv%2Fnyt%5Fclips%2Fmirror%2Dplaylist%2F11383" height="333" width="448"></embed><br /><br />To view the full discussion, which I recommend, <a href="http://bloggingheads.tv/diavlogs/11372?in=00:22:57&out=00:27:10&mkt=OP-D-I-NYT-MOD-MOD-M046-ROS-0608-L1">click here</a> (It intro's with a bit of personal banter before diving into deep water - running time = approx. 45-min).Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30387849.post-27307149450515707612008-05-29T10:56:00.004+02:002008-05-29T11:11:37.337+02:00Slideshow: Soetwater 'refugee camp' (News24.com)News24.com posted an online slideshow (with audio commentary) on their website today. It features Soetwater 'refugee camp', a tent compound set up on Kommetjie's Soetwater Recreation Area (<a href="http://www.afrilux.co.za/quickies/cape_peninsula.htm">Cape Peninsula</a> / Greater Cape Town). The camp currently houses 3000 refugees with more arriving. Most of the services at the camp are currently being provided by volunteers, with donations from the public being the main source of supplies. This may change as reports suggest <a href="http://inside-south-africa.blogspot.com/2008/05/govt-prepares-for-14-camps-south-africa.html">Government may be gearing up to establish official refugee camps</a>.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.24.com/media/news/Soetwater/index.html"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 482px; height: 281px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9Pr93yd6VJeRfpwFAVFbR3_0c4gW0fAFoLLNC3Ht6RE1ZeiDd-PWOZ9HEmOT9GpUgwFMbJW_LauZBtcIeavcAhBS4pc4aZNOH4FTd-OD6m8skiEbcDbKJh6Nagy9nvPWpnKvazA/s400/soetwater.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5205723785235481810" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Click on the image to view the slideshow on News24.com's website.</span><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30387849.post-59912516596446391512008-05-29T10:26:00.007+02:002008-06-12T12:00:09.835+02:00Govt prepares for 14 camps: South Africa: Xenophobia: News24<a href="http://www.news24.com/">News24.com</a>, an online news portal in the <a href="http://www.naspers.co.za/">Naspers</a> group of companies, posted the article below an hour ago (produced by <a href="http://www.news24.com/Beeld/Home">Beeld</a>). To read it in its original context, click on the article heading below.<br /><br />This is a first for <a href="http://www.afrilux.co.za/quickies/South_Africa.htm">South Africa</a> and has been called for by various groups since well before the current wave of xenophobia. In my opinion this is a major development, if it is confirmed officially off-course. I'll comment on it lower down...<br /><br /><blockquote><a href="http://www.news24.com/News24/South_Africa/Xenophobia/0,,2-7-2382_2330912,00.html">Govt prepares for 14 camps</a><br /> <span class="secondarystorycopy"> 29/05/2008 08:24 - (SA)<br /><br /></span><p>Staff Reporters, Beeld</p><p><br /> </p><p> Cape Town - The government was to announce on Thursday that camps would be set up countrywide for the victims of xenophobic attacks.</p><p><br /></p><p>However, the camps would not be referred to as refugee camps because of the negative connotations of such a name worldwide. </p><p>From what Beeld was able to gather, the Cabinet met until about 17:00 on Wednesday to discuss the proposed camps, among other things. </p><p><br /></p><p>This came after a meeting on Monday between President <a href="http://www.whoswhosa.co.za/Pages/profilefull.aspx?IndID=895" target="_blank" class="twelvered">Thabo Mbeki</a>, the Cabinet committee which was established to deal with the matter, and provincial premiers. </p><p><br /></p><p>Mbeki was to meet UN High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres in Japan on Thursday where the crisis would be discussed. </p><p>Exact details of the plan could not be confirmed officially on Wednesday, but Beeld was able to determine the following:</p><p><br /></p><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="622"><tbody><tr><td class="twelveblack" align="left" valign="top" width="90%"><li> "Shelter camps" (perhaps with a more-acceptable name) would be announced which temporarily would provide foreigners with shelter and food in the interests of their safety, health and sanitation; </li><li>There would be up to 14 of these camps countrywide - seven large and seven small ones; </li><li>Foreigners would stay in the camps "for as long as necessary" - no timeframe was given; </li><li>It looked as if metro councils would be approached by provinces to cordon off areas for the camps. </li><li>Metro councils in Gauteng and the Western Cape - where the xenophobic attacks were the most widespread - would get camps, but not the metro councils in the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal; </li><li>The number of foreigners in the country was estimated at about 51 000 on Wednesday night, of which about 28 000 were in Gauteng and 20 000 in the Western Cape; <span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">(((I assume this refers to the number of people displaced by the xenophobic violence as there are obviously many more foreigners in the country!)))</span><br /></li><li>It seemed as if the national government was not in favour of the UN openly helping because it considered the country to be in a position to resolve the matter itself; </li><li>The Ekurhuleni metro would erect tented camps on the outskirts of Springs and Germiston, and possibly in the Kempton Park area too; and </li><li>The greater Johannesburg city council already was working on plans for camps, together with the national and provincial government. <p>At the time of going to press no comment could be obtained from the Tshwane metro council in Pretoria. </p></li></td></tr></tbody></table></blockquote><br />Years ago, as a student journalist, I was part of a church drama group that went to sing for <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FW_de_Klerk">FW & Marike de Klerk</a>... :-). At the time he was still the president of South Africa, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nelson_Mandela">Nelson Mandela</a> had been released from prison and negotiations for a new dispensation was well under way. We got to drink tea and enjoy snacks with the first couple in their official residence afterwards. A very strange experience! Being a young idealistic, aspiring, journalist I asked FW for his thoughts on the role of the media. He answered that he saw it as <span style="font-style: italic;">a necessary evil</span>. I was slightly taken aback...<br /><br />In the years since I've used the phrase quite often myself. It comes to mind again with the above breaking news. To spell it out: Setting up refugee camps (or whatever you elect to call them) in South Africa is a necessary evil at best. It is too late to avoid it. <span style="font-style: italic;">It is not good news</span>.<br /><br />I actually value the Government's stance up to now, i.e. that it is best for immigrants to integrate with society in general. However, it seems as if this policy was also an excuse to ignore the problem of illegal immigration. Best also not to create camps for Zimbabwe immigrants, how do you explain then some of the mind boggling claims by Thabo Mbeki that there's no crisis in Zimbabwe? For immigrants to integrate successfully into society they should have been officially recognised as immigrants or refugees. They should have been processed, i.e. given documents. This should have been done in a way that ensured local communities that foreigners living among them where there legally. And so one can go on. The list of shortcomings, policy failures, mismanagement, incompetence, corruption and neglect in regard to immigration by Government at all levels is a very very long one.<br /><br />Where to from here? I fear incredible damage has been done in the last few weeks. While the occurrence of xenophobia is not entirely new in South Africa, the scale of the the recent events is such that it complicates the issue tremendously. In an ideal world politicians would talk to the relevant local communities and lay their fears to rest so that they can welcome back immigrants and they would live together happily ever after. Dream on...<br /><br />We now have a bizarre new kind of Apartheid in South Africa. <span style="font-style: italic;">Us</span> equals South Africans and <span style="font-style: italic;">them </span>the 'illegal ones' or 'refugees'. In the short term pure humanitarian considerations dictate that camps be set up. But would you like to live in such a camp? <span style="font-style: italic;">Do you want your children to live in such a camp!?</span> How much better would it be for these people to get out into society again and earn their keep through productive means. I suspect that the refugee-camps-by-another-name will also function as a first stop in the deportation chain ending somewhere north of our borders. While some of the deported will have doubts about returning to South Africa they will find exactly the same circumstances they fled in the first place - virtual dictatorship in Zimbabwe, anarchy in Somalia, etc. As before most of them will probably come back through the revolving door that is our borders. Deportation is not a viable long-term solution. They only kind of deportation that works is the kind that basically assists the limited amount of immigrants who want to return to their home countries in doing so.<br /><br />I'm very curious to see how these camps will be managed. Will the inhabitants thereof have freedom of movement in and out of the camps? Will they be documented? Will they be assisted in finding alternative housing? Will permanent structures be built in the camps? Only time will tell, but what is sure is that South Africans cannot be critical enough in following future developments around this - it goes to the core of the values entrenched in our constitution.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30387849.post-28223477992139173922008-05-22T17:05:00.010+02:002008-05-23T21:04:02.376+02:00BBC News (online) exposure for this blog - the good & 'the bad'I received a message from <a href="http://mhambi.blogspot.com/">Mhambi</a> yesterday informing me that comments by both of us on the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xenophobia">xenophobia</a> currently raging in parts of <a href="http://www.afrilux.co.za/quickies/South_Africa.htm">South Africa</a> featured on BBC News' website. The BBC piece, headlined '<a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7413565.stm">SA bloggers want end to violence</a>', quoted from ten blogs by South Africans. <a href="http://inside-south-africa.blogspot.com/"><span style="font-style: italic;">Inside South Africa </span></a>(<a href="http://inside-south-africa.blogspot.com/2008/05/xenophobia-images-of-shocking-hatred.html"><span style="font-style: italic;">Xenophobia - images of shocking hatred</span></a>) and <a href="http://mhambi.blogspot.com/">Mhambi</a> were included in the pool.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">For a list of all the blogs, and links to all of them, </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7413565.stm">go to the article</a><span style="font-style: italic;"> and you'll find it under the heading 'Related links' in the right-hand menu (you'll need to scroll down a bit).</span></span><br /><br /></div>I'm delighted! However, this elation is somewhat tempered and needs some qualification.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">South Africa's "bad publicity"</span><br />Most people with any knowledge of public relations or journalism will be able to quote the mantra: "<span style="font-style: italic;">There's no such thing as bad publicity</span>". While this is undoubtedly true in most respects, it certainly does not mean that anyone would crave such 'bad publicity'. In this particular case it saddens me that <a href="http://www.afrilux.co.za/quickies/South_Africa.htm">South Africa</a> is, deservedly, getting a lot of bad publicity. While it is vital that the current events, and its underlying causes, get exposed and debated it is also true that it will result in lost investment and economic damage - in short diminished trust in South Africa. Yes, it may be a wake up call for Government and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African_National_Congress">ANC</a> which <span style="font-style: italic;">may </span>lead to concerted efforts to solve various pressing socio-economic and human rights issues. But should those gains materialise it comes at a cost. How much better would it have been if these issues received priority before this all blew up in our faces?<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Article not that good</span><br />The second reason for my tempered enthusiasm at being included in the article is quite strange, considering what an impressive news organisation the BBC boasts. To be frank, I didn't find the quality of the particular article that good...<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">BBC's human angle</span><br />But let me rather focus on the good for a moment! I love the fact that the BBC goes to great lengths to get the human angle on stories in addition to their more 'hard-news', removed, 'objective', political and analytic reporting. Their stories very often end with an invite to people affected by a specific news story to relate their own experience of events. In the case of their coverage of the xenophobia incidents the standard invite resulted in a very insightful piece '<a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7408367.stm">S African violence: Your stories</a>'. A dimension of reality is added to a story when someone relates, in first person narrative, how a mob knocked on his door and the frantic scramble to get out of harm's way. It is because I appreciate that kind of angle that I included the aforementioned link in <a href="http://inside-south-africa.blogspot.com/2008/05/xenophobia-images-of-shocking-hatred.html">my post</a> that was thereafter <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7413565.stm">featured by the BBC</a>.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">BBC's sampling of bloggers' comments</span><br />Sampling bloggers' comments is another way to relate a more 'localised' and 'local' angle on a story. The strategy definitely has value. I put the two words in inverted commas because many of the writers are quite far removed from events. The 'local' or 'localised' element to sampling their views lies in their nationality (South African in this case), rather than their location. While nine of the bloggers seem to live in South Africa -it's difficult to be sure- I suspect that none of them has been affected directly by the violence at the time they posted their opinions (one is actually of English nationality, but living in <a href="http://www.afrilux.co.za/quickies/cape_town.htm">Cape Town</a> - as pointed out in the article). I believe, for instance, that none of them actually saw burning barricades, mobs roaming the streets and so on. That is, all of them provided opinions based on what they saw or read in the media (no different from anyone else). Furthermore labelling their opinions as representing 'local' opinion is obviously dangerous - as a sample of ten is by no means representative. But it is quite clear that they do indeed represent different 'local' schools of thought and as such relating their opinions have value.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Poor selection of blogs?</span><br />So where's the 'bad' in all of this? I'm disappointed with the quality of the BBC's selection (read 'the BBC employee's' / 'journalist's '...). Some of the blogs, such as '<a href="http://mhambi.blogspot.com/">Mhambi</a>', '<a href="http://rwnel.blogspot.com/">Reggie</a>' and '<a href="http://www.inthenews.co.za/">In the news</a>' seem to be of a good to excellent quality. However, a mere casual check of quality should, in my mind, have disqualified more than one of the selected blogs from inclusion in the article. I'm thinking of '<a href="http://southafricanhell.blogspot.com/">South Africa Sucks</a>' and '<a href="http://www.iluvsa.blogspot.com/">I love South Africa... but I hate my Government</a>'. Both of these blogs feature explicit racism and clearly operate at the level of highly prejudiced propaganda.<br /><br />I'm all for <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_of_speech">freedom of speech</a>, in fact I'm passionate about it. But surely, when one seeks comments on developments in a country you look for people who at least represent a somewhat critical analysis of events? None of the ten blogs included in the article where dismissive of the extremely negative turn of events - rightly so. Thus I'm not arguing that the BBC should have looked for bloggers who sing the government's praises. In fact I don't believe any of the included blogs do that. However, the two mentioned blogs interpret virtually anything that happens in the country through thick racist lenses. As such any new development is not analysed or explained on merit and within a complex context. It is simply rolled out as 'evidence' to support a preconceived notion that 'everything is going down the drain in South Africa' because 'they (blacks) can only mess things up'.<br /><br />To drive my point home, surely the BBC would not include '<span style="font-style: italic;">The UK Sucks</span>' or '<span style="font-style: italic;">Keep the UK white</span>' (fictional blog names) when sampling English bloggers' opinions on developments in the UK? Unless they're doing an expose on supremacist groups or the like, that is. At the very least they will probably qualify that these (fictionary) blogs represent an ultra-conservative viewpoint?<br /><br />While the excerpts from the two blogs pointed out by me on their own don't necessarily relay overtly the racism prevalent on the blogs, they do include questionable statements. For example a quote in the BBC's article, attributed to Doberman on 'I luv South Africa... but I Hate my Government', reads:<br /><br /><blockquote>"<span style="font-style: italic;">...for allowing millions of foreigners to invade our country illegally, to steal jobs, resources, to commit crime...</span>".</blockquote><br />I can't help but think that the mobs who are engaging in the sickening xenophobic violence will love this quote... It smacks of the prejudice that seems to be driving them. Note the use of the words '<span style="font-style: italic;">invade</span>' (not flee from economic hardship or oppressive governments), '<span style="font-style: italic;">steal </span>jobs' (sure) and '<span style="font-style: italic;">commit crime</span>'. Are we to believe that in our overflowing prisons foreigners vastly outnumber South Africans? Get real! I don't think this kind of rubbish should feature on a reputable news service's site, unless meant to illustrate prejudice.<br /><br />On balance, the misgivings expressed above doesn't change the fact that I'm chuffed at the inclusion of this blog in the BBC's article. I'm thrilled! Hopefully, if in future the BBC is more circumspect about who's ramblings they quote this blog will still make the grade...Unknownnoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30387849.post-31878032257194582552008-05-19T16:46:00.012+02:002008-05-19T23:55:06.221+02:00Xenophobia - images of shocking hatred<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:85%;">For a news24.com <a href="http://www.24.com/media/news/xenophobia/index.html">photo presentation on the xenophobic violence</a> raging in <a href="http://www.afrilux.co.za/quickies/gauteng.htm">Gauteng</a> at present, click on the image below.</span><br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.24.com/media/news/xenophobia/index.html"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkv_VSjqx3-qQNgzr8ZI6Ug2G4IkrvpnEH8Al9EvMODnE2V1r31I6HQ_BGYv2hvLW_EdNuneTqmmtgzA3hakwG7ONoZf0KvVBnNxaEtuRjq6uKFBzg9CDVf0s2u9TheV_nbTU1eA/s400/xenophobia.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5202103499130104962" border="0" /></a><br />I wish against all odds that the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xenophobia">xenophobic</a> madness currently under way in <a href="http://www.afrilux.co.za/quickies/South_Africa.htm">South Africa</a> will abate overnight and that we can simply forget about it. But this will off-course not happen by some miracle. It will need commitment, firstly acknowledgement, and strong determined action from Government and all kinds of civic and political leaders.<br /><br />The current orgy of hate and lawlessness cannot be ignored or dealt with by run of the mill press statements. Blaming it on 'criminal elements' is also ludicrous as it is as clear as daylight that these acts are being perpetrated by large sections of the particular communities - not just a few individuals. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thabo_Mbeki">President Mbeki</a> needs to address the nation via national TV and radio and make clear that the Government will not tolerate the evil of Xenophobia. He can gather the new <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African_National_Congress">ANC </a>leadership (including <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacob_Zuma">Jacob Zuma</a>) and other prominent leaders around him when making such a statement. Obviously this needs to be backed up by action. We don't have the convenience of avoiding the embarrassment of deploying the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SANDF">SANDF</a> in our streets to restore order, it should have been done already. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civil_society">Civil society</a> should also mobilise and reach out a hand to the foreigners at the receiving end of the violence.<br /><br />Addressing the many failings that contributed to the current situation must receive urgent attention once the violence has been stemmed. But for now talk of poverty, crime, corruption and the like will not end the violence. What is needed is unqualified condemnation of this scourge at the highest level and forceful action.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Video</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7407914.stm"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_aEMj78HPE_Rcu7VWTfyEu5i1D57b0wpy18fdZQmkjan104adV5JBfqPe0U4EaKvDTrHrv_RPIY1YgvhuJBbdWzTEgSbYSJgkpwum_L_xxXklibCAtTOT_eIGySHo09ff8znWTg/s400/xenbbc.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5202180860081040530" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;">BBC <span style="font-style: italic;">online</span> video on the violence <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7407914.stm">here</a> (external link)</span><br /></div><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">News</span><br /><ul><li>news24.com - <a href="http://www.news24.com/News24/South_Africa/News/0,,2-7-1442_2325283,00.html">Mobs armed with petrol run amok</a></li><li>news24.com - <a href="http://www.news24.com/News24/South_Africa/News/0,,2-7-1442_2325090,00.html">SA shocked by violence</a></li><li>M&G online - <a href="http://www.mg.co.za/articlePage.aspx?articleid=339600&area=/breaking_news/breaking_news__national/">Parties slam govt over xenophobic attacks</a></li><li>allAfrica.com - <a href="http://allafrica.com/stories/200805190988.html">President Mbeki condemns Xenophobic attacks</a></li><li>CNN - <a href="http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/africa/05/19/southafrica.deaths/">'Anti-foreigner' violence kills 22 in South Africa</a></li><li>The Times online edition (UK) - <a href="http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/africa/article3961894.ece">Thabo Mbeki's critics demand action not words</a></li><li>BBC online - <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7407914.stm">Thousands flee S Africa attacks</a></li><li>New York Times - <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/20/world/africa/20safrica.html?_r=1&ref=africa&oref=slogin">Anti-Immigrant Violence in S Africa</a><br /></li></ul><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Opinion</span><br /><ul><li><a>Haigh & Hussein on iol.co.za - </a><a href="http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=6&art_id=vn20080519111744578C666409">What fuels the hatred</a><a href="http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=6&art_id=vn20080519111744578C666409">?</a></li><li>Peter Fabricius on iol.co.za - <a href="http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=15&art_id=vn20080519055911317C425056">Alex mayhem aggravated by shortcoming</a><br /></li><li>Soweto - <a href="http://www.sowetan.co.za/News/Article.aspx?id=769122">Readers' comment on the xenophobic violence</a></li><li>BBC online - <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7408367.stm">S African violence: Your stories</a> (reports from 'foreigners' on the receiving end of the current xenophobic attacks)</li><li>BBC online - <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7408320.stm">Foreign attacks concern SA press</a> (excerpts from mostly editorials)<br /></li></ul><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Blogs</span><br /><ul><li>Mhambi - <a href="http://mhambi.blogspot.com/2008/05/time-to-call-army.html">Time to call in the army?</a></li><li>Constitutionally Speaking - <a href="http://constitutionallyspeaking.co.za/?p=547">Xenophobia excused or explained?</a></li><li>thinking aloud - <a href="http://pitsotsibs.blogspot.com/2008/05/xenophobia-it-is-us-south-africans-who.html">Xenophobia: It is us South Africans who should carry the blame</a></li><li>Somewhere in Africa - <a href="http://washingtonbureau.typepad.com/nairobi/2008/05/south-africas-f.html">South Africa's foreigner problem</a></li><li>Comment is free - <a href="http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/sean_jacobs/2008/05/south_africas_hard_thruths.html">South Africa's hard truths</a><br /></li></ul>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30387849.post-2918353764262501672008-05-17T12:34:00.006+02:002008-05-19T15:47:38.664+02:00Thabo Mbeki - what could have beenPierre de Vos once again got me thinking on his blog <a href="http://constitutionallyspeaking.co.za/"><span style="font-style: italic;">Constitutionally Speaking</span></a> today. In a post titled '<a href="http://constitutionallyspeaking.co.za/?p=546"><span style="font-style: italic;">Those were the days...</span></a>' he nostalgically thinks back to a time when <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thabo_Mbeki">Thabo Mbeki</a> demanded respect with his intellectual discourse (see video clip lower down). A time when, at least for some of us, he made you sit back and take note. He could make you think again about, rethink, set ideas. But alas, HIV, Zimbabwe, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jackie_Selebi">Selebi</a> and many other areas of <span style="font-style: italic;">denialism</span> corrupted his legacy and did immense damage to <a href="http://www.afrilux.co.za/quickies/South_Africa.htm">South Africa</a>. I need not elaborate on his short comings. It is painfully apparent in current public discourse - as it should be. Gains in housing and other areas such as water access fade into the background.<br /><br />It reminded me about a post I wrote when <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PW_Botha">PW Botha</a>, <span style="font-style: italic;">Die Groot Krokodil</span>, passed away (<a href="http://inside-south-africa.blogspot.com/2006/11/pw-botha-defiant-to-end.html"><span style="font-style: italic;">PW Botha 'defiant to the end'</span></a>) in 2006. I know it's a bit cruel to compare Mbeki to Botha, they presided over markedly different forms of government. In one <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_rights">human rights</a> was severely curtailed and in another it is highly valued, at least in name. However, what a bitter irony that so much I wrote about Botha could also be applied to Mbeki. For the full context on what I said about Botha, follow the above link, but note how the excerpts below also applies to Mbeki:<br /><br /><blockquote>...will mostly remembered for 'what could have been'. He is famous for an important speech he made, dubbed 'The Rubicon Speech' (((Mbeki - "I am an African")))...<br /><br />...Sadly, he didn't follow through on the foundation that was laid... ...The challenge was huge though... ...South Africa ... its white population felt threatened from within and without... ...The rest of the world was viewed as simply being ignorant, as not grasping the complexities that was South Africa...<br /><br />...However, all the potential was there for change...<br /><br />...What was desperately needed was strong, visionary, leadership. ...was definitely a strong leader, as bold as they came... ...He showed promise of vision, but alas did not follow through on this...<br /></blockquote><br />I have no doubt that amidst all the damage, Mbeki also leaves a positive legacy - even if it is overshadowed by all the ills mentioned higher up. Below, with thanks to <a href="http://constitutionallyspeaking.co.za/?p=546">Pierre de Vos</a>, follows a YouTube clip on Mbeki's famous speech as the then Vice President of South Africa in 1996 (not the full speech). For the full text of the speech go <a href="http://www.anc.org.za/ancdocs/history/mbeki/1996/sp960508.html">here</a>. The clip was produced for <a href="http://www.southafrica.net/">South African Tourism</a> and used in marketing <a href="http://www.afrilux.co.za/quickies/South_Africa.htm">South Africa</a>. The campaign's punch line, still used today, is "South Africa - It's<span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 102);"> im</span>Possible". The 'im' should be 'strike-through', i.e. a line should be drawn through it, but I haven't yet figured out how to do that in Blogger...<br /><br /><br /><object height="355" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/OJ6EUUB-omw&hl=en"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/OJ6EUUB-omw&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="355" width="425"></embed></object><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" >...if you're reading this post outside of my blog the YouTube video above may not be displayed - to remedy this <a href="http://inside-south-africa.blogspot.com/2008/05/thabo-mbeki-what-could-have-been.html">visit my blog</a>...</span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30387849.post-17530238635290756782008-05-12T11:01:00.007+02:002008-05-12T11:33:18.314+02:00Finding (good & bad) memories online<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.daylife.com/photo/0csPgrNdPvaqQ"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 452px; height: 288px;" src="http://cache.daylife.com/imageserve/0csPgrNdPvaqQ/610x.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;">Former State President (of South Africa), PW Botha,<br />shakes hands with a <a href="http://www.afrilux.co.za/quickies/soweto.htm">Soweto</a> youth - Aug 31, 1979.<br />(As displayed by <a href="http://www.daylife.com/photo/0csPgrNdPvaqQ"><span style="font-style: italic;">Daylife</span></a> and credited to "<a href="http://www.daylife.com/source/AP_Photo/photos/all/1">Beeld AP</a>").</span><br /></div><br />It's amazing what you can find on the internet, and mostly with very little effort. I followed a tag related to this blog as I was curious to see what I have posted about the particular subject ('<a href="http://inside-south-africa.blogspot.com/search/label/Christian%20faith">Christian Faith</a>'). It turned out that <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PW_Botha">PW Botha's</a> death in late 2006 was the unlikely topic of the post. In the posting titled <a href="http://inside-south-africa.blogspot.com/2006/11/pw-botha-defiant-to-end.html"><span style="font-style: italic;">PW Botha 'defiant to the end'</span></a> I mentioned a signature photograph of Botha's historic visit to <a href="http://www.afrilux.co.za/quickies/soweto.htm">Soweto</a> in 1979. I was nine years old at the time...<br /><br />I went to <a href="http://images.google.co.za/imghp?hl=en&tab=wi">Google Image Search</a> and searched for <a href="http://images.google.co.za/images?gbv=2&hl=en&safe=off&q=%22PW+Botha%22%2B%22soweto%22&btnG=Search+Images">"Soweto" and "PW Botha"</a>. The above picture was the second picture on the first page of results. Now if you were sitting in a newsroom in 1990, before the internet became what it is today, and had to find this picture you'd have your work cut out for you. I love the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet"><span style="font-style: italic;">NET</span></a>!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30387849.post-50068852398329851302008-04-25T11:00:00.004+02:002008-04-25T12:18:48.096+02:00Constitutionally Speaking - Mbeki & Mugabe<a href="http://www.thoughtleader.co.za/pierredevos">Pierre de Vos</a>, the guy behind the blog <a href="http://constitutionallyspeaking.co.za/"><span style="font-style: italic;">Constitutionally Speaking</span></a>, once again produced a very well thought through and articulated article - this time on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thabo_Mbeki">Thabo Mbeki's</a> much talked about political strategy of 'quiet diplomacy' towards <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Mugabe">Robert Mugabe's</a> ongoing abuses in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zimbabwe">Zimbabwe</a>.<br /><br />The article, '<a href="http://constitutionallyspeaking.co.za/?p=525">Zimbabwe: Why Mbeki is all carrot and not stick</a>', lead to a rather long debate in the comments following below the article. It makes for interesting reading (in this case the comments) and is a good reflection on some of the different views present in South Africa on this issue. Once again many of the arguments is directly or indirectly race based - something that will sadly be with us for a long time to come...<br /><br />Snippets from the article:<br /><br /><br /><blockquote>...Of course we have to remember that the two previous elections were declared credible and mostly free by South African observers (following the Mbeki line), despite the fact that these were conducted in an atmosphere of fear and violence and according to electoral rules that clearly allowed for the massaging of the results in favour of Mugabe. This suggests that the Mbeki ANC would have done and said almost anything to ensure that Mugabe was not humiliated or criticised in any way...<br /><br /><p align="justify">...There are at least two problems with these arguments.</p><p align="justify"><br /></p> <p align="justify">First, South Africa is supposed to be a constitutional state based on the Rule of Law and a respect for human rights and the government police (sic) is supposedly to promote respect for human rights across Africa and to foster good governance in Africa through Nepad and the African Peer Review mechanism.</p><p align="justify"><br /></p> <p align="justify">The failure of the government to forcefully criticise even the most flagrant human rights abuses and the stealing of two previous elections by Mugabe, suggests that South Africa is a silent or not so silent supporter of a tyrant and thus makes a mockery of the supposed leadership of our President and our country on human rights issues. This undermines our standing in the world and among right thinking people all across Africa. It is a matter of credibility: if one mollycoddles a tyrant it is hard to be taken seriously when making lofty statements about good governance and respect for human rights in other parts of Africa or the rest of the world (like in the USA or Iraq).</p><p align="justify"><br /></p> <p align="justify">Our President has lost all credibility by holding hands with a person who has lost an election and now refuses to accept this reality and is using his military to terrorise the population who had the audacity to vote for the opposition.</p><p align="justify"><br /></p> <p align="justify">Second, (and much worse) the South African governments’ silence (sold as quiet diplomacy) has actually helped to prop up Mugabe and thus helps him to stay in power... South Africa could place serious diplomatic and economic pressure on Mugabe to change but has failed to do so. This makes our government complicit in the murder and torture of thousands of Zimbawean citizens and the ruining of the economy in that country.</p><p align="justify"><br /></p> <p align="justify">Thus South Africa’s actions have helped to support a tyrant in power and have made it potentially <em>more </em>(not less) difficult to get rid of him...</p><p align="justify"><br /></p><p align="justify"><span style="font-weight: bold;">To read the full article & the interesting debate in the comments section go </span><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://constitutionallyspeaking.co.za/?p=525">here</a>.<br /></p></blockquote><br /><br />I also touched on the subject in March of 2007 when I put the question - '<a href="http://inside-south-africa.blogspot.com/2007/03/robert-mugabe-credible-partner-for.html">Robert Mugabe - credible partner for quiet diplomacy?</a>'. That was after the leader of the opposition was detained and ended up in hospital.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30387849.post-41309345239550840252008-04-17T11:14:00.007+02:002008-04-17T16:36:52.489+02:00Burt Glinn Retrospective (photographer & photojournalist)The New York Times' <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/">online edition</a> ran a multimedia retrospective on <a href="http://www.magnumphotos.com/Archive/C.aspx?VP=XSpecific_MAG.Biography_VPage&AID=2K7O3R148AVD">Burt <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Glinn</span></a> today. It includes twelve impressive black and white photo's covering a range of subjects. He died Wednesday in New York.<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2008/04/11/us/20080411GLINN_index.html"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px;" src="http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2008/04/11/us/22782779.JPG" alt="" border="0" /></a>"Members of the Seattle Tubing Society in full float." - Burt <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Glinn</span> / <a href="http://www.magnumphotos.com/Archive/C.aspx?VP=XSpecific_MAG.AgencyHome_VPage&pid=2K7O3R1VX08V">Magnum</a><br /><br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://inmotion.magnumphotos.com/essays/revolution.aspx"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5b7Uy32GZv6mUB6IIbxVlf_MI59w-Mokps6j9EL7M63EA1ZUcfGVPrbab2moj0B86G39gQoKlru3_OlagXZkNVcjQZxTv5S0z4IZhIbx8ChtDi19ic5NweooRm3NhXFMMaMwqiQ/s400/glinn.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5190143061927188338" border="0" /></a><a href="http://inmotion.magnumphotos.com/essays/revolution.aspx">Magnum Photo's - "Revolution"</a>. A fascinating multimedia slide show of great b&w photo's with commentary by the late Burt <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Glinn</span> in which he tells the story of how he left overnight for <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuba">Cuba </a>to document <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fidel_Castro">Fidel Castro</a>'s victory march to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Havana">Havana</a>. He tells of how he first had to locate the revolution, how he tracked down Castro and how events unfolded thereafter.<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.magnumphotos.com/Archive/c.aspx?VP=Mod_ViewBoxInsertion.ViewBoxInsertion_VPage&RP=XSpecific_MAG.Stories_VPage&CT=AlbumsOfAlbum&SP=Album&IT=AlbumStories2&R=2K7O3R148K7R"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiROaMjin_HIYMJW-u8613fphmhEL0ovjWtBwSawYNBSXPDDJ1AeHt-YakHsGZ2C2Ks5PaHG_c10La7FmFNQy8mF30ed0fCLKvK5WQ6lmzZXQRdKhrKGXKTFdkUbKfZ6VU4Eq7VlA/s400/major_features.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5190199094070531970" border="0" /></a><a href="http://www.magnumphotos.com/Archive/C.aspx?VP=XSpecific_MAG.AgencyHome_VPage&pid=2K7O3R1VX08V">Magnum Photos</a>. Links to <a href="http://www.magnumphotos.com/Archive/c.aspx?VP=Mod_ViewBoxInsertion.ViewBoxInsertion_VPage&RP=XSpecific_MAG.Stories_VPage&CT=AlbumsOfAlbum&SP=Album&IT=AlbumStories2&R=2K7O3R148K7R">25 major features by Burt <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Glinn</span></a>.<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30387849.post-66062798322977607762008-04-10T14:59:00.009+02:002008-04-11T11:13:39.668+02:00"Bush's War" - Excellent PBS Frontline documentary available online<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/bushswar/"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPbLPrKodkauYwtOEwTzXjkFKEeJhTYb3LUdnjxpXIgDbgHFygnjIfNyC9yNSlrkh_jYwk97ytjlEqS1_g7TONS65_qjiX9q5JSyhPpqWYDdyOuE0dMASUGpNDUr9X8DrhDqkS2w/s400/frontline_bush.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5187601691198354722" border="0" /></a><br />An excellent documentary on the Iraq War was broadcast by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PBS"><span style="font-style: italic;">PBS</span></a> (USA) in March of this year (2008). As a South African I can't tune in on PBS, but found a <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/07/business/media/07frontline.html?scp=1&sq=frontline&st=nyt">New York Times article (7 April 2008) on the online popularity of the documentary</a> earlier today. <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Bush's War</span> is a two hour, two-part, documentary <a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/bushswar/">available online from the PBS website</a> in a series of 10-minute streams. The release of the documentary coincides with the 5<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">th</span> anniversary of the War.<br /><br />The documentary is impressive for many reasons. Amongst others it includes an incredible amount of factual information; is comprehensive; includes scores of interviews with cabinet insiders, political commentators, journalists and authors; features amazing video quality for an online streamed feed (PBS has it's own media player...) and utilises the advantages of online information dissemination by providing optional links to full interviews (often with transcripts), time lines, etc. It's refreshing to view a documentary that holds your attention without trying to entertain.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/bushswar/art/synopsisp.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 237px; height: 158px;" src="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/bushswar/art/synopsisp.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>I have watched the first three 10-minute streams and plan to watch the rest over time (I do have a day job...). The documentary starts with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/9/11">9/11</a> and shows, based on credible information, just how early Iraq was put on the table as a target.<br /><br />It also revisits the conflict-ridden relationship between <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colin_Powell">Colin Powell</a> and the cabinet <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">neo</span>-cons - particularly <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dick_Cheney">Dick Cheney</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Rumsfeld">Donald <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Rumsfeld</span></a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Wolfowitz">Paul <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Wolfowitz</span></a>. The rivalry between the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pentagon">Pentagon</a>, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Department_of_State">State Department</a> and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CIA">CIA</a> is featured. It looks at the role played by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Yoo">John <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Yoo</span></a>, then at the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._Department_of_Justice">Justice Department's</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Office_of_Legal_Counsel"><span style="font-style: italic;">Office of Legal Counsel</span></a>, in providing legal memo's which assisted the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Presidency_of_George_W._Bush">Bush Administration</a> in pursuing what Dick Cheney referred to as 'working the dark side' - a questionable, unconventional, strategy in direct contravention of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geneva_Convention">Geneva Conventions</a>, as well as America's own laws. The documentary continues in its very insightful, thorough, style to track the events and developments from 9/11 to where we are today.<br /><br />In my view <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Bush's War</span> represents a public broadcaster doing what it should be doing, <span style="font-style: italic;">informing</span> and thus empowering the public. Now if only the SABC could generate this kind of material...<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Additional information provided</span> </span><br />Following the optional links to additional information that pops up throughout the documentary (online streamed version), and actually reading the linked articles, will take many hours. Some of the interesting information available in this remarkable feature by PBS, many from '<span style="font-style: italic;">The Dark Side</span>" - a previous PBS production that is utilised in <span style="font-style: italic;">Bush's War</span>, are:<br /><br /><ol><li><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Opinions on 'working the dark side'</span><br /><br />Exploring what Dick Cheney meant when he famously said that America would have to 'work the dark side' in its 'War on Terror'. Go <a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/darkside/themes/darkside.html">here</a>.<br /><br /></li><li><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Office Politics & Other Anecdotes</span><br /><br />"The tensions, conflicts, personality and politics that played out behind closed doors in the Bush administration, and in particular, during the run-up to the invasion of Iraq."<br /><br />For this very interesting article, go <a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/darkside/themes/anecdotes.html">here</a>.<br /><br /></li><li><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Interview with John <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Yoo</span></span>. The legal memo guy from the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel. Interview <span style="text-decoration: underline;"></span><a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/torture/interviews/yoo.html">here</a>.<br /><br /></li><li><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Interview with Richard Clarke</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/darkside/art/clarkep.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 236px; height: 118px;" src="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/darkside/art/clarkep.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>"A <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">counterterrorism</span> expert, <b>...</b>was a member of the White House National Security Council... and is the author of <i>Against all Enemies,</i> an insider account of the Bush administration's policy-making in the war on terror. As an intelligence analyst ... and later, a high-level policy maker, Clarke offers insights into the interplay between the two worlds and shares some thoughts on the heated intelligence wars during the lead-up to the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003..."<br /><br />Interview <a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/darkside/interviews/clarke.html">here</a>.<br /><br /></li><li><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Interview with Steve Coll</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/darkside/art/collp.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 236px; height: 118px;" src="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/darkside/art/collp.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>"<b>...</b>a <i>New Yorker </i>writer and the author of <i>Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan, and Bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001</i>. His interview here offers an overview of George Tenet, his relationship with President Bush, his leadership of the CIA, and, in particular, his management of the intelligence community's assessment on Iraq's <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">WMD</span> programs -- an assessment that contributed to the case for war, but soon after was proven wrong."<br /><br />Interview <a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/darkside/interviews/coll.html">here</a>.<br /><br /></li><li><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Interview with </span><b><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">John McLaughlin</span><br /><br /></b><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/darkside/art/mclaughlinp.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 242px; height: 121px;" src="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/darkside/art/mclaughlinp.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>"The deputy director of the Central Intelligence Agency from 2000 to 2004, and its acting director following George Tenet's resignation in July 2004, <b>John McLaughlin</b> has served 11 CIA directors. Here, he offers his perspective on some of the decisions and challenges during the months after 9/11 and then, the run-up to war in Iraq. He discusses the National Intelligence Estimate (<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">NIE</span>) that George Tenet backed, but which was soon proven wrong regarding Iraq's <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">WMD</span> capabilities. And he talks about the lessons the CIA learned from its intelligence failures and its involvement in the politicization of the intelligence process during this period."<br /><br />Interview <a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/darkside/interviews/mclaughlin.html">here</a>.<br /><br /></li><li><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Interview with Richard Kerr</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/darkside/art/kerrp.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 244px; height: 122px;" src="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/darkside/art/kerrp.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>"<b>...</b>served in the CIA from 1960 to 1992, including three years as deputy director for intelligence (1986-'89) as deputy director (1989-'92) and a few months as acting director in 1991. In 2003, at the suggestion of Donald <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Rumsfeld</span>, a group was put together to review the intelligence on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction program, and Kerr was asked to head it. ...His group ultimately published four reports (two of which remain classified): The first looked at <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">pre</span>-war intelligence on Iraq; the second evaluated the raw intelligence that went into the infamous National Intelligence Estimate; the third assessed the strengths and weaknesses of intelligence analysis; and the fourth suggested improvements. Here, Kerr discusses his findings; his thoughts on the proper role and the future of the CIA; and his impressions of Dick Cheney and George Tenet."<br /><br />Interview <a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/darkside/interviews/kerr.html">here</a>.<br /><br /></li></ol>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30387849.post-82451051711791195722008-03-22T11:39:00.014+02:002008-04-09T17:18:05.359+02:00YouTube awards best videos of 2007<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">If you are reading this post outside of </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://inside-south-africa.blogspot.com/">my blog</a><span style="font-style: italic;"> you may not be able to view the video clips, </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://inside-south-africa.blogspot.com/">click here</a><span style="font-style: italic;"> to go to </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://inside-south-africa.blogspot.com/">InsideSouthAfrica</a><span style="font-style: italic;">.</span></span><br /></div><br />A favourite online resource for South African news, <a href="http://www.news24.com/">news24.com</a>, featured the inclusion of a Kruger Park wildlife video, shot by American tourists on 'safari', in YouTube's collection of what its users voted the best videos of 2007. More special and some not-so-special clips complete the selection of 12 video clips - each in its own category. My pick from amongst the winners follow below. To view all 12 the videos, click this post's heading above.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Eyewitness Category</span></span><br /><object height="355" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/LU8DDYz68kM"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/LU8DDYz68kM" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="355" width="425"></embed></object><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" >(If the video above doesn't show, it may have been removed by copyright holders..., you can view it <a href="http://www.negativespace.com/battle.php" target="new">here</a>.)</span><br /><br />The Kruger video, winner in the 'Eyewitness' category is indeed very special. It clearly shows what remarkable sightings await visitors to South African wilderness destinations. Obviously very few people get to see sightings quite as remarkable as that portrayed in the video. However, having said that, what makes the video special to me is that it was shot from a safari vehicle not in an exclusive private game park, but in the gem of South Africa's (public) national parks - The <a href="http://www.afrilux.co.za/quickies/kruger_national_park.htm">Kruger National Park</a>. <span class="fullpost">In the video you catch glimpses of private vehicles whose occupants clearly had the wonderful opportunity to take in exactly the same spectacle. While you are more likely to see incredible wildlife sightings up close in one of the much more expensive private reserves, those on a tighter budget are not locked-out from experiencing the wilderness and its wildlife at its most special.</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Adorable Category</span></span><br /><br /><object height="355" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/cXXm696UbKY&rel=0"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/cXXm696UbKY&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="355" width="425"></embed></object><br /><br />I'm sure this video had a lot of parents of young babies and toddlers, a group that includes me, voting for it (although I did not partake in the voting). The scene is so familiar in showing how a young baby develops a very basic and strange sense of humour. What a special moment when you first get to connect with your child in this kind of way.<br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Short Film Category</span></span><br /><br /><object height="355" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/ZiRHyzjb5SI&rel=0"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ZiRHyzjb5SI&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="355" width="425"></embed></object><br /><br />This video is put together very cleverly and professionally. As a short film it is obviously a challenge to deal with sometimes difficult and complex topics in the space of a few minutes. The producer succeeds in this very well. He also hides the topic of the video and trusts that his viewers will be intelligent enough to figure it out for themselves. He doesn't lecture, but creates empathy and insight through the short film. I will not give away the topic which he is dealing with - have a look for yourself. Below follows his 'director's commentary' video in which he discusses his winning entry.<br /><br /><object height="355" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/d_QL2nzyg6A&hl=en"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/d_QL2nzyg6A&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="355" width="425"></embed></object><br /><br />The background on the video, how it was put together and with what equipment. Very interesting.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Creative Category</span></span><br /><br /><br /><object height="355" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/G0LtUX_6IXY&rel=0"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/G0LtUX_6IXY&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="355" width="425"></embed></object><br /><br />Human Tetris. If you've ever played the game or been hooked on it, as I was at some point in the past, you have to watch this. It won in the 'Creative' section and deservedly so. Very enjoyable.<br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Inspirational Category - nominee</span></span><br /><br /><br /><object height="355" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/dGCJ46vyR9o&rel=0"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/dGCJ46vyR9o&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="355" width="425"></embed></object><br /><br />This is a very thought provoking video. It touches on how outdated modern teaching environments and methods are, as well as how technology both enhances and blocks the acquisition of knowledge. It includes some interesting statistics and perspectives. The website flashed at the end of the video, a collaborative blog by Kansas State University students and faculty, is worth a visit for those interested in technology - especially the internet => '<a href="http://mediatedcultures.net/ksudigg/">Digital Ethnography</a>'. On completing the paragraph I realised that this video was actually a nominee in the 'inspirational' category and not a winner, but I thought it deserved a mention anyway!<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Politics Category</span></span><br /><br /><br /><object height="355" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/WWyJJQbFago&rel=0"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/WWyJJQbFago&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="355" width="425"></embed></object><br /><br />The winner in the 'politics' section. Produced by a political activism website it is a poignant reminder of what unites different world cultures and religions, as opposed to what drives them apart. It especially focuses on the need for real efforts to bring peace to the Middle East. It points out that public opinion has the power to force political leaders to change course. In some respects the video is idealistic. But that is probably a necessary element in political or social activism - the believe that change is possible. The movement behind the video is based at <a href="http://www.avaaz.org/en/">Avaaz.org</a>.<br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Instructional Category</span></span><br /><br /><object height="355" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/HsQIoPyfQzM&rel=0"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/HsQIoPyfQzM&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="355" width="425"></embed></object><br /><br />The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubik%27s_cube">Rubik's Cube</a> was invented in 1974 but entered pop culture in the early 80's. I must have been ±13 when it took South Africa by storm as well. I remember fondly how we challenged each other to see who could solve the puzzle in the shortest possible time. Somehow I've lost the urge in the 25 years since. A younger mind is much more prone to taking up such a challenge. Having watched the video above may just have given me enough inspiration to give it another go. I don't remember really worrying about 'algorithms' 25 years ago - but it's probably because one stops thinking about those once you reach the point of solving the puzzle in seconds rather than minutes... I can't really remember. I'll have to see whether we threw away all our Rubik's Cubes...<br /><br />The video is very well put together, systematic in its approach and has a vibe that only a twenty-something (or younger?) presenter could generate :-).Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30387849.post-9694377618045257992008-03-20T16:49:00.008+02:002008-04-09T14:13:41.207+02:00Barack Obama impresses with bold speech addressing racism<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Barack</span></span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Obama</span></span> made a speech on Tuesday which <span style="font-style: italic;">should </span>reverberate around South Africa, although most in the country is probably unaware of the drama playing itself out.<br /><br />The eloquent speech on racism, with well balanced arguments was a <span style="font-style: italic;">tour <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">de</span></span> force</span> in dealing with an issue which is as important in South Africa as it is in America. He very effectively addressed the fears and frustrations of peoples of various race groups. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Obama</span></span> managed to put forward arguments for addressing these by <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">focusing</span> on common problems rather than race, while at the same time acknowledging injustices of the past and present. His message is a unifying one, rather than the polarising style that has at times been a hallmark of our own President <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Mbeki</span></span>, when dealing with issues of race.<br /><br /><object height="355" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/F-EPJeTaaio&hl=en"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/F-EPJeTaaio&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="355" width="425"></embed></object><br /><br />It's a pity that more South Africans don't follow the American Presidential Election primaries. It is an impressive show of democracy in action. While it is most definitely prone to politics of personality rather than substance, its thoroughness eventually forces the latter to emerge. Although I still can't explain how such a system could lead to the election, and especially re-election of the current incumbent...<br /><br /><ul><li>For a New York Times video with transcript of the speech scrolling next to it go <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2008/03/18/us/politics/20080318_OBAMA_GRAPHIC.html">here</a>.</li><li>For a New York Times' editorial praising the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">speech</span> go <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/19/opinion/19wed1.html?em&ex=1206158400&en=235341cd8a8cfc4a&ei=5087%0A">here</a>.</li><li>For Maureen <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Dowd's</span></span> opinion go <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/19/opinion/19dowd.html?em&ex=1206158400&en=49ad824b98a69972&ei=5087%0A">here</a>.</li><li>For <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Mhambi's</span> take go <a href="http://mhambi.blogspot.com/2008/03/obama-makes-nuanced-complicated-risky.html">here</a>.</li><li>For an interesting note on the potentially changed perception of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Obama</span> see <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Attie</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Heunis</span>' blog post <a href="http://www.heunis.net/blog/?p=264">here</a>.<br /></li></ul>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30387849.post-54411719623470509022007-04-30T09:34:00.000+02:002007-04-30T11:00:46.503+02:00The Sowetan's (bad) dreamIn 1963 Martin Luther King gave his famous '<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_have_a_dream"><span style="font-style: italic;">I have a dream</span></a>' speech, a stirring vision of a day when freedom and liberation would reign in the then segregated United States.<br /><br />With the celebration of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_Day_%28South_Africa%29">Freedom Day</a> in <a href="http://afrilux.co.za/quickies/South_Africa.htm">South Africa</a> on April 27, <a href="http://www.sowetan.co.za/">The Sowetan</a>, a newspaper mainly serving readers from <a href="http://afrilux.co.za/quickies/soweto.htm">Soweto</a>, launched an ad campaign borrowing from King's speech. However, it deliberately twists the message into one of despair and black (no pun intended...) humor. Thus instead of dreaming of a day of freedom and liberation, it instead 'dreams' of dark days of murder, rape, racial injustice, crime and grime. The narrator in the ad uses the sermon-like style of Martin Luther King, with a hint of an American accent, but the dialogue and accent remains clearly recognizable as South-African. The punch line challenges the listener with a question:<br /><br /><blockquote>"What have you done with your freedom South Africa? Don't let it go to waste. Cherish it"<br /><br /></blockquote>Calling the ad brilliant is perhaps over the top. It's not the most original idea ever 'dreamt' up. But it is <span style="font-style: italic;">brave</span>, a quality that one would like to associate with our news media.<br /><br /><object classid="clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000" codebase="http://fpdownload.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=8,0,0,0" id="Zoom" bgcolor="#000000" height="264" width="322"> <param name="allowScriptAccess" value="sameDomain"> <param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"> <param name="movie" value="http://www.zoopy.com/Small_offsite.swf"> <param name="FlashVars" value="stream=http://www.zoopy.com/video/1177656601.flv"><param name="quality" value="high"> <param name="bgcolor" value="#000000"> <param name="loop" value="false"> <embed src="http://www.zoopy.com/Small_offsite.swf" flashvars="stream=http://www.zoopy.com/video/1177656601.flv" quality="high" bgcolor="#000000" name="Zoom" loop="false" allowscriptaccess="sameDomain" allowfullscreen="true" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" height="264" width="322"></embed></object><br /><br />So when the SABC banned the ad it just added to a growing discomfort with the public (state?) broadcaster. Surely the powers that be at the SABC have the brains and insight to understand that the Sowetan's ad does not amount to hate speech (as it implied)? What is the SABC doing to our freedom in South Africa? It seems more and more that for the SABC our freedom does not include the free flow of information?<br /><br />Oh no, our big broadcasting brother will protect us against <span style="font-style: italic;">unsavory </span>information. It is our good fortune that the SABC has a strong ideological base. It will protect all of us, who are not mature enough to do so for ourselves, against the bad <span style="font-style: italic;">bad bad</span> (anti-revolutionary) ideas out there. Heil the SABC! Heil the ANC! Heil Mbeki! HEIL SNUKI*!<br /><br />*Ok, I know <a href="http://inside-south-africa.blogspot.com/search/label/Snuki%20Zikalala">Snuki </a>wasn't necessarily involved this time round, but heil Snuki anyway...Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30387849.post-49659156976574865122007-04-29T13:42:00.001+02:002008-04-09T17:40:26.906+02:00Am I in fact FEmale?Last time I checked I was male, but the <a href="http://bookblog.net/gender/genie.php"><span style="font-style: italic;">Gender Genie</span></a> seems to think otherwise... I read about the Genie on <a href="http://constitutionallyspeakingsa.blogspot.com/2007/04/do-you-write-like-boy-or-girl.html">Pierre <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">de</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Vos</span>' blog</a> and in a moment of triviality decided to give it a try. First I submitted the text from my <a href="http://inside-south-africa.blogspot.com/2007/04/to-white-or-not-to-white-whitey.html">most recent post on this blog</a>. <span class="fullpost">The Genie pronounced me to be 'female', but it did indicate that the submitted text fell short of the ideal 500+ word count. I breathed a sigh of relief and promptly copied a longer piece of text (833 words) from <a href="http://inside-south-africa.blogspot.com/2007/03/robert-mugabe-credible-partner-for.html">a previous post on this blog</a>. Oh dear, I'm still <span style="font-style: italic;">female</span>! Should I be worried?<br /><br />My female score = 1383 and male score = 1197. My, my...</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30387849.post-6723547290530436472007-04-29T11:17:00.000+02:002007-04-29T12:13:52.822+02:00To white or not to white, whitey?There are many issues in contemporary <a href="http://afrilux.co.za/quickies/South_Africa.htm">South Africa</a> that are discussed, pondered, thought and <span style="font-style: italic;">fought</span> about. As always the topics most heatedly debated are the negative ones - crime & corruption, aids, etc. For white South Africans an issue that is rarely spoken about by name, but which often lurks underneath the surface of discussions by another name, is identity. Being white and living in Africa can cause a bit of an identity crisis. Am I 'European', 'western', 'African', etc.? I do have some strong opinions in this regards, but won't touch on those in this post.<br /><br />I noticed an opinion piece by Marianne <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Thamm</span> on News.24 today, dealing with one aspect of the identity issue. My wife buys the <a href="http://www.fairlady.co.za">Fair Lady</a> from time to time and Marianne has a regular column in the Magazine. Whenever the Fair Lady makes its appearance in our house, I always page to her column first. She is an extremely sharp thinker and excellent writer. Her columns dealing with contemporary matters is always worth a read. She has a way of slaughtering holy cows with wit and sarcasm. I have seldom found myself differing from her opinions and when I did it was with some discomfort... may she be onto something here?<br /><br /><a href="http://www.news24.com/News24/Columnists/Marianne_Thamm/0,,2-1630-2147_2104933,00.html">The News.24 column</a>, it may have been published elsewhere first, is titled <span style="font-style: italic;">White Like Me</span>. The title alone may be interpreted as a form of sarcastic social commentary. <a href="http://www.blacklikeme.co.za/Home/tabid/1284/Default.aspx"><span style="font-style: italic;">Black Like Me</span></a> is a range of beauty care products launched in the 80's (I believe). Back then it was a statement in itself, proudly proclaiming that 'black is beautiful' in a time that Apartheid (white supremacy) was the order of the day. Sarcastically stating 'White Like Me' in present day South Africa packs quite a punch. What does it mean to be 'white like me', should it mean something?<br /><br />That it is in fact an emotive issue is clear in the amount of comments the relatively short column drew. It represents a small sample of the way in which the identity question is dealt with in the larger (white) society. Read <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Thamm's</span> article and contribute your 2-cent's worth if you feel like it.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30387849.post-5978697803998951542007-03-23T10:12:00.000+02:002007-03-23T11:22:31.812+02:00"Questions we must start asking to bring SA back from the brink"A friend's blog, <a href="http://mhambi.blogspot.com/2007/03/sultans-of-bling_22.html">mhambi, mentioned an excellent article</a> recently published in Business Day, 15 March 2007. Mhambi also posts a satirical take on the ANC's logo, have a look - it's really good.<br /><br /><span>In the article, titled rather ominously "<a href="http://www.businessday.co.za/articles/topstories.aspx?ID=BD4A412666"><span style="font-style: italic;">Questions we must start asking to bring SA back from the brink</span></a>", </span><span><span class="storybyline">Xolela Mangcu</span></span><span> provides a well reasoned and researched summary of how South Africa's present and past politics may be analyzed. Using a thorough intellectual approach he quotes from socio-political-philosophical works to raise interesting angles on the subject. </span><span><span><span class="storycopy">Mangcu is executive chairman of the Platform for Public Deliberation, and a visiting scholar at the Public Intellectual Life Project at Wits University.</span></span></span><br /><span><br />He quotes </span><span><span><span class="storycopy">Alain Badiou:<br /></span></span></span><span class="storycopy"><p></p><blockquote style="font-style: italic;"><p>"Badiou explains why political parties betray their people by first asking the question that has preoccupied many of us over the past few years: “We must ask the question that, without a doubt, constitutes the great enigma of the century. Why do the most heroic popular uprisings, the most persistent wars of liberation, the most indisputable mobilisations in the name of justice and liberty end in opaque statist constructions, wherein none of the factors that gave meaning and possibility to their historical genesis is decipherable?”<!--par0--></p> <p><!--par1-->His answer is what he calls “political unbinding”. He says that political representation is a fiction through which politicians pretend to represent the interests of others."</p></blockquote><p></p></span><br />Granted, Badiou's take is rather pessimistic. However, in South Africa we're still suffering a little from the so-called 'honeymoon syndrome'. That is there's still a lingering euphoria about our emergence from Apartheid, making criticism -especially stinging criticism- of the government seem a bit like treason. In the mean while the door is left open for corruption. Mangcu points out <span><span><span class="storycopy">that Jean Francois Bayart & Co. refers to corruption as </span></span></span><span><span><span class="storycopy"> “the privatisation of public resources”. This reminds me of a recent article, <a href="http://inside-south-africa.blogspot.com/2007/01/financial-mail-ancs-soul-for-sale.html">mentioned in this blog</a>, in the Financial Mail under the heading "ANC's soul for sale". What the latter article describes, a network of patronage on all levels of government, can very well be referred to as "the privatisation of public resources".</span></span></span><br /><span><br />Mangcu also decries the government's stance on Zimbabwe, in which it acts very much in line with Badiou's perplexing question above. Pitched in our contemporary context Badiou could very well have asked how on earth the ANC, that fought (in effect) for human rights for all South Africa's citizens, can be so tame in it's response to Zimbabwe's </span><span class="ital-inline">atrocious treatment (including torture) of the political opposition? I touched on this in a recent post - "<a href="http://inside-south-africa.blogspot.com/2007/03/robert-mugabe-credible-partner-for.html"><span style="font-style: italic;">Robert Mugabe - credible partner for quiet diplomacy?</span></a>".<br /><br />My only criticism on Mangcu's article is that I would have loved a few more pages of it, it's way too short! If I get the time I'm going to dig around and see if some of his academic papers are available online. It should make for very interesting reading (click on this post's heading to read his article).<br /></span><span></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30387849.post-78238931701582083842007-03-18T21:56:00.000+02:002007-03-18T22:57:40.601+02:006x6=36 as demonstrated by GibbsThe Cricket World Cup has started well for South Africa. We didn't impress much in the warm-up games but in our first official game the sparks flew. As far as South Africa's performance was concerned the match was an impressive affair with various individual's contributions worth noting. However, Herschelle Gibbs' six consecutive sixes in one over (six balls) was out of this world. He went from 32 at the start of the over to 68 at the end. Sure, the Netherlands is a minor force in world cricket and the field was relatively small. But six sixes in a row remains an incredible feat. While it is not impossible, I'd like to see any other batsman repeat that. If you haven't seen that incredible six shots, have a look below...<br /><br /><object height="350" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/DaT5FunCAXw"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/DaT5FunCAXw" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="350" width="425"></embed></object><br /><br />South Africa has been a strong contender leading up to world cups since our re-admission in 1992, after isolation brought about by Apartheid. Since that very first world cup we've been disappointed more times than I care to remember. Despite all this 2007 may just be the year. Yes, we've fizzled out many times before - but South Africans are die-hards. We will get there and this may very well be the year.<br /><br />Just to emphasize why South Africa should never be underestimated I went on a nostalgic trip and unearthed two more gems from YouTube. The first is Jonty Rhodes' explosion onto the world stage in the 1992 World Cup and the second a snippet from South Africa's incredible feet in scoring 438/9 to eclipse Australia's world record score (they batted first) of 434/4 set just hours before (merely a year ago). That's a total of 872 runs in a single one day game. The video's quality is not great but it does capture the incredible tension towards the end of the game. My brother who very rarely attends games was in the stands at the invitation of a supplier at work. I'll be forever jealous of him for having missed out being there to witness that bit of history. The video starts of with Telemachus getting dismissed with the score at 423. All-rounder Andrew Hall is in the middle but the former's dismissal means that we've virtually run out of batsmen. Boucher walks onto the pitch, the perfect guy in this situation. But if another wicket falls only Ntini is left to bat, an incredible bowler but a true fast-bowler-batsman...<br /><br /><object height="350" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/lEMbIUBWp6k"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/lEMbIUBWp6k" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="350" width="425"></embed></object><br /><br /><object height="350" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/k6R_UhaIs7M"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/k6R_UhaIs7M" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="350" width="425"></embed></object><br /><br />For more on the Wanderers game go to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australia_in_South_Africa,_5th_ODI,_2006">Wikipedia</a>.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0