Author: AfriNEWS

A summons has been issued against convicted wife-beater Jaco Swart to appear in court on 14 August on a new charge of assault, this time against a policewoman. But it is unlikely he will appear because he cannot be found in the country in order for the summons to be served on him. AfriForum’s Private Prosecution Unit represents Warrant Officer Sonja Albertyn in this matter, which is being privately prosecuted. Last year, Swart pleaded guilty to assaulting his wife Nicoleen Swart, in a widely publicised case that revealed surveillance footage of Swart brutally kicking, punching, and manhandling his wife. The…

Warsaw, Poland: The ‘road to peace’ is now well underway, with President Cyril Ramaphosa arriving at the Warsaw Chopin Airport on Thursday for a working visit to Poland, Ukraine and Russia. President Ramaphosa is leading a delegation that includes Heads of State from Zambia, the Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Senegal and Uganda in a bid to broker peace between Ukraine and Russia.  President Ramaphosa and his counterparts are, over the next few days, expected to lead the African peace mission, which will see the President of Ukraine, Volodymr Zelensky, and Russia’s Vladimir Putin, sitting on the negotiation table. President…

The Black Sash has handed over a petition to the Department of Social Development (DSD) calling on Minister Lindiwe Zulu to introduce a permanent universal basic income grant and to set up a task team to oversee the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA). The Black Sash petition notes various issues with grant payments, including: the shrinking footprint of cash pay points, post offices closing, post office pay points and ATMs running out of cash, no loadshedding contingency plans, and no clear plan to replace expired SASSA cards. Since handing over the petition in May, the Black Sash has met with the…

The Namibia Stop 8 Housing Project in Inanda, eThekwini, started in 2019, but to date only one RDP house has been completed. Residents say the construction company was on site from 2019 to 2020, but stopped because of the Covid pandemic. According to eThekwini Municipality spokesperson Lindiwe Khuzwayo, the development – located about 30km from Durban centre – comprises 500 serviced sites and 343 new housing units. She said R83-million had been spent so far. The money had been spent on roadworks, stormwater, sewers, platforms and foundations, water reticulation, and some top structures. At the council meeting on 31 May…

The Namibia Stop 8 Housing Project in Inanda, eThekwini, started in 2019, but to date only one RDP house has been completed. Residents says the construction company was on site from 2019 to 2020, but stopped because of the Covid pandemic. According to eThekwini Municipality spokesperson Lindiwe Khuzwayo, the development – located about 30km from Durban centre – comprises 500 serviced sites and 343 new housing units. She said R83-million had been spent so far. The money had been spent on roadworks, stormwater, sewers, platforms and foundations, water reticulation, and some top structures. At the council meeting on 31 May…

It’s been four months since Bloekombos High learners marched to Eskom’s local Kraaifontein office to ask that their school be connected to electricity. But they remain in the dark. Learners say they are struggling to cope during their June exams without access to electricity. In February the learners demanded that Eskom restore electricity supply to their school. At the time, the school had been without consistent supply for several months. Eskom then temporarily fixed the problem until about three weeks ago when electricity was cut again. According to Eskom, the illegal connections from surrounding informal settlements had blown a fuse which they…

South Africans who automatically lost their citizenship when they took citizenship of another country have been aided by the Supreme Court of Appeal. The apex court has ruled the relevant section of the South African Citizenship Act to be inconsistent with the Constitution. In a unanimous ruling, it further ordered that those South Africans who lost their citizenship through the application of the section, since its operation from 1995, “are deemed not have not to have lost their citizenship”. The challenge to the legislation was brought by the Democratic Alliance, whose arguments were initially dismissed by the Pretoria High Court…

President Cyril Ramaphosa has arrived in Geneva, Switzerland, ahead of his participation at the World of Work Summit held in that country. The summit is hosted by the United Nations’ International Labour Organisation (ILO) which was formed to promote social justice and fight for acceptable standards of working conditions across the world. The ILO’s 111th conference will be held on the side lines of the summit. “Themed ‘Social Justice for All’, the Summit is convened by ILO Director-General Gilbert Houngbo. “Endorsed by the ILO Governing Body during its 347th Session in March 2023, this high-level forum will address the need…

Formal notice to vacate the land they occupy on the banks of the Diep River was on 24 May served on 119 families who have been living on the municipal land near Parklands North since July 2020. The families were given 21 days to comply, failing which the City would start formal eviction processes in accordance with the Prevention of Illegal Eviction (PIE) Act. The families occupy erf 38295. Other families, who occupy the adjacent erf 79, were given notices to vacate within 21 days on 22 March 2022. The occupiers did not move and are still there. Similarly, the…

Zanda Moyo appeared in the Bloemfontein Magistrate Court on Tuesday. This brings the number of people accused of assisting rapist and murderer Thabo Bester’s escape from prison to nine. He will appear in court for the criminal trial on 20 June. Moyo is charged with violating a body, fraud, and harbouring and concealing an escaped convict. Bester escaped from Mangaung Correctional Centre on 3 May 2022. He faked his death in a fire in his cell, leaving behind a burned body who police believe to be Katlego Mpholo. During the bail hearings of five of the accused last month, the…