The Mercury (South Africa) back issues from December 2008:
So, is Mbeki an asset or a liability to the alliance?(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... So now the National Union of Metalworkers, Cosatu and Julius Malema want to know if former president Mbeki will campaign for the ANC in the coming election. Numsa refers to Mbeki as "the last line of defence for the ANC" and "a stalwart of the movement" (The Mercury, November 13). ...
Mimicking milestones.(Life)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: LIFE REPORTER YOU have to learn how to crawl before you can walk. We've heard the expression often, but few of us realise the long-term consequences of babies and children skipping basic milestones. Every developmental reflex or milestone - such as crawling or ...
Thank you for helping.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... I was a victim of bag snatching at the park in Essenwood Road in Musgrave at 6.30pm on November 18. I wish to express my heartfelt gratitude to Mr Wassim Jadwat who immediately came to my assistance. He led me to the police station and assisted me with phone calls to ...
Amelia's stem cell plea.(Life)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: OMESHNIE NAIDOO TEN-YEAR-OLD Amelia Peter wants to be a surgeon when she grows up. It's not surprising - she has spent most of her young life in hospital, surrounded by healthcare workers. Amelia was born with a spinal defect called spina bifida ...
M-Net's kowtowing offensive.(Life)
Dec 01, 2008 ... IT'S been a manic week. Firstly, last Sunday saw the culmination of 91 days of 12 African contestants living in a minute house, with Angola's Ricco Venancio taking the top prize of $100 000 (R78 000 million). It was a very loud, very frenetic, very vibey two-hour Big Brother Africa 3 ...
Just know that no one nose for sure.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: Glynne Anderson WHEN I was 5 years old I contracted amoebic dysentery and it was touch and go for many weeks because in those "Jurassic" days the prognosis was 50-50 - you either made it or you didn't. It was during that time, as I lay in bed clinging to life, ...
Renaming saga turns personal.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: TANIA BROUGHTON THE legal tussle over Durban's street renaming process has become fertile ground for mud-slinging between municipal manager Michael Sutcliffe and local DA leader John Steenhuisen, with the two exchanging insults in documents filed with the Durban High ...
Lawyers 'guilty of bad conduct'.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: TANIA BROUGHTON A KwaZulu-Natal Law Society probe into the conduct of two Tongaat attorneys - accused of "stealing" the home of a client - has found that even on their own version, they conducted themselves in an "unprofessional, dishonourable or unworthy manner". ...
Oscar's new rules.(Life)
Dec 01, 2008 ... The Oscars have announced new regulations governing songs and music scores that will enable more voters to participate in the selection of nominees and permit campaigners to reach them directly with music CDs. Last year Oscars campaigners were barred from sending CDs to voters ....
NEW ON THE DVD SHELVES.(Life)
Dec 01, 2008 ... AN ELEPHANT called Horton struggles to protect a microscopic community from its neighbours, who refuse to believe it exists, in the delightful HORTON HEARS A WHO, a fun animated film featuring the voice talents of, among others, Jim Carrey, Steve Carell, Carol Burnett and Seth Rogen. ...
Historic, 'successful' matric exams end this week.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: LATOYA NEWMAN MATRIC exams, which started four weeks ago, end this week with The Mercury having received few complaints over the standard of question papers. There was much anxiety among pupils, teachers and parents when the first new curriculum exams - based ...
Campese and company boss to take the stand.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: TANIA BROUGHTON AUSTRALIAN rugby veteran David Campese will square up with global paint company boss Strath Wood in the Durban Labour Court early next year when both men will try to persuade a judge that they are telling the truth. At stake is R1 million ...
No one above law on the roads.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... The KwaZulu-Natal provincial government executive council, at its ordinary meeting held on November 26, reiterated its call to SAPS VIP protection officers to exercise extra caution on the roads with regard to the use of blue lights. This follows the incident on November 15 ...
Understanding Academic Freedom.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... How things appear to have changed (The Mercury, November 28 and others passim). When I deputised for six months for the professor of philosophy at the then University of Natal, I had a serious disagreement with the university's principal, (vice-chancellor) E G Malherbe. ...
McGonagall the magnificent.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... EVERY Monday I get bombarded by a "gem of the day" from the website of William McGonagall, known as the world's worst poet. So excruciating was the 19th century Scottish bard's clunking verse that it has earned him an immortality denied other poets. He has become a cult figure ....
Relief from gloom and doom.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... What a wonderfully refreshing picture and story about Frodo the dolphin and her newborn calf (The Mercury, November 28). It's a lovely departure from the doom and gloom which besets us these days. I see that Sea World's Ann Kunz has said that they do not yet know the sex of the calf but ...
Report on excellent revenue management system was harmful.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... I must place on record my disappointment at your sensationalist article on the eThekwini Municipality's new Revenue Management System (The Mercury, November 19). Our response to you clearly states that the total budget for the project is R408 million yet your article ...
Nurturing the space between; Research output alone does not constitute the health of a university - freedom of thought and expression are its cornerstones, writes Imraan Valodia.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... The University of KwaZulu-Natal has attracted a lot of recent publicity, unfortunately most of it adverse. The action taken against academics Nithaya Chetty and John van den Berg has generated concerns about academic freedom at UKZN and, more generally, about the health of an important ...
Rape survivor's faith in God undiminished by ordeal.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... I listened to the harrowing tale of gang rape survivor Jessica Foord on East Coast Radio recently. I wondered what extraordinary courage she must have had to endure the ordeal and still be able to relate it on air. Then I realised that people like Jessica who defy all odds to ...
United On Aids.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... At noon today, when workplaces, schools and public institutions observe a moment's silence to raise awareness about HIV/Aids, we will finally be united as South Africans against a disease that is robbing us of our future. Former president Thabo Mbeki's era of Aids denial is ...
Overhaul needed for BEE, affirmative action; Do not expect the ANC to change its black economic empowerment policies - they are too good a source of income.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: JABULANI SIKHAKHANE Don't hold your breath for the ANC to do more than just tinker with the policy of black economic empowerment. It is not in the interest of the ruling party to cut off its major source of sustenance. Jacob Zuma, the president of the ruling ...
New Zealand victory completes northern hemisphere's annus horribilis.(Sports)
Dec 01, 2008 ... LONDON: Wales's 21-18 win over Australia on Saturday did not even come close to papering over the cracks in northern hemisphere rugby: 2008 ended with a balance sheet of 19 defeats and one victory against the Tri-Nations teams. Amid the carnage, New Zealand, missing a dozen ...
Wales draw strength from win.(Sports)
Dec 01, 2008 ... CARDIFF: Wales's nail-biting 21-18 victory over Australia not only salvaged their autumn series but saw them firmly installed as favourites to defend their Six Nations title. With places also up for grabs for next year's British and Irish Lions, the initial 60-man squad for ...
'Aura' still with the All Blacks.(Sports)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: London In the build-up to New Zealand's 32-6 win at Twickenham, which saw the All Blacks secure a third grand slam over the four home nations, England insisted they would ignore their opponents' "aura". But what they couldn't ignore, and certainly couldn't ...
Argentinians remain among top four in World Cup draw.(Sports)
Dec 01, 2008 ... LONDON: The International Rugby Board has confirmed that southern hemisphere sides have secured the top four positions in today's pool draw for the 2011 Rugby World Cup. For the first time the board is using its own world rankings to seed leading nations for the World Cup, which ...
Springbok Sevens inspired to victory.(Sports)
Dec 01, 2008 ... DUBAI: The unbeaten display by the Springboks in Britain was a great motivator for the South African Sevens team in Dubai, the Sevens' captain, Mzwandile Stick, said after his team won the Emirates Airline Dubai Tournament final. The Springbok Sevens beat an impressive England ...
'ANC is using its insulting rhetoric of old'.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: NATHI OLIFANT IFP president Mangosuthu Buthelezi lambasted the ANC yesterday for the kind of language its leaders used in describing the party's newest opponents, the Congress of the People, saying there was nothing new about this kind of rhetoric. Buthelezi ...
Here We Go Again!(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... If at first you don't succeed, try, try and try again. That seems to be the motto of an elderly Malaysian couple who have just got remarried 53 years after their divorce and several spouses later. The couple, now 71 and 69, first tied the knot when they were ...
Hockenheim broke.(Sports)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BERLIN: Hockenheim would be unable to stage the German Formula One Grand Prix in future unless it received financial help from the state, circuit boss Karl-Josef Schmidt was quoted as saying yesterday. "Without grants from the state (of Baden-Wuerttemberg) there will be no more Formula One ...
Petersen bewilders Lions.(Sports)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: Stuart Hess Johannesburg: Spells of spin by Johan Botha and Robin Peterson turned the MTN Domestic Championship match the Warriors' way and gave the Highveld Lions their third consecutive defeat in the competition at The Wanderers yesterday. It was a stunning ...
Mulroy continues winning streak.(Sports)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: Grant Winter Garth Mulroy's hot winning streak on South Africa's fairways continued yesterday, but this time he needed a bit of help - actually plenty of help - from veteran Bobby Lincoln. The pair won the Gary Player Invitational at the exquisite though ...
Green jacket awaits Big Easy, says Player.(Sports)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: Grant Winter George: Ernie Els is not far away from winning another Major, and Tiger Woods may be lost to the game if he doesn't change his swing. These are the views of golfing legend Gary Player, speaking at his own tournament, the Gary Player invitational, ...
Nzimande disparaging about Manuel's economic policies.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: Deon de Lange & Sibusiso Ngalwa SACP leader and ANC national executive committee member Blade Nzimande told journalists at a briefing in Kempton Park yesterday that the government of former president Thabo Mbeki had failed to cash in on the "commodities boom" to finance ...
Keep your eyes peeled for rare event.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: Shaun Smillie JOHANNESBURG: It is a rare phenomenon and those lucky enough to be looking towards the heavens tonight, if the weather is clear, should be able to see in the western sky what stargazers call a conjunction. The thin crescent moon will be flanked ...
Refs under the spotlight again.(Sports)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: Jonty Mark The mystery surrounding Geofrey Serunkuma's red card in Saturday's Telkom Knockout semi-final deepened yesterday when it emerged that fourth official Yusuf Vawda had advised referee Abdul Ephraim to dismiss the striker, plucking a non-existent deliberate elbow ...
Black Caps rue dropped catches.(Sports)
Dec 01, 2008 ... Adelaide: Two dropped catches significantly increased New Zealand's deficit in Adelaide, where they face an enormous challenge to save the second Test against Australia with two days remaining. On a day when Ross Taylor snared a one-handed blinder at first slip to remove Brett ...
SA rated 'a dangerous destination'.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: Mercury reporters Terror-attacked India and South Africa have something in common: they have been rated as among the world's 20 most dangerous countries. Backed by travel advice issued by the British government, The Telegraph of London has placed South Africa ...
Cape Town takes the cake.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... CAPE TOWN remains a favourite destination for British tourists, despite the current credit crunch forcing holidaymakers worldwide to seriously consider more affordable travel options. Cape Town has just been voted readers' favourite city in the world in The Telegraph's 2008 ...
Najwa awaits verdict.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... CAPE TOWN: Najwa Petersen and her three co-accused should know today whether they have been found guilty of murdering Taliep Petersen. Taliep, a musician, was shot and killed in his Cape ...
Tip of the Week.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... IT'S difficult to save money in tough economic times, but one easy way to start is to resist buying small luxuries like confectionery and soft drinks ....
Rate of inflation is slowing, survey finds.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: Lyse Comins South Africa had a higher rate of overall and food inflation compared to most countries over the past year, but food inflation has started to decelerate, raising hopes that the high levels of recent months may be bottoming out. However, despite ...
Another trophy for Chia's cabinet.(Sports)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BANGKOK: Danny Chia completed an impressive victory in the $75 000 (R756 000) Mercedes-Benz Masters Thailand yesterday, giving himself a belated birthday present. The Malaysian fired a final-round even-par 72 for a two-stroke victory over compatriot Supramaniam Sivachandran and ...
COPE names its dream team for communications.(News)(Awards list)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: Fiona Forde Onkgopotse J J Tabane and Sipho Ngwema have been appointed to key positions in the Congress of the People as the fledgling party names its communications team. Tabane, until this week the corporate affairs director at Altron, has been named as ...
I'd do it again, says hero.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: Karyn Maughan johannesburg: Mumbai attack hero Bob Nicholls had no qualms about risking his life to save 150 people - but his 9-year-old son is still grappling with the potential consequences of his father's bravery. Speaking to The Mercury's sister paper, The ...
Hospital named Biko.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... PRETORIA: The Pretoria Academic Hospital has changed its name to Steve Biko Academic Hospital. Gauteng MEC for health Brian Hlongwa unveiled the plaque for the new name yesterday. He said it ...
Scientist was suspended for CSIR agendas, lawyer says.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: CRAIG McKUNE CAPE TOWN: The lawyer for suspended researcher Anthony Turton said yesterday that Turton was a "victim of unstated agendas" in the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research. He said relations between Turton and the council were "severely ...
Schuster's Bones 2 a titanic box office hit.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... JOHANNESBURG: Leon Schuster's Mr Bones 2 shattered all opening box office records for local films, earning more than R6 million. This makes it the most successful South African film opening, exceeding ...
Teachers warned against ANC rally.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: NTOKOZO MFUSI THE education department has warned that teachers attending ANC election campaign launches today and tomorrow will be disciplined and will not be paid for the two days. The teachers have been called on by the South African Democratic Teachers' ...
UKZN academic's case finalised.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: SHARIKA REGCHAND THE former president of the Combined Staff Association at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in Durban, sociology Prof Evan Mantzaris, will take early retirement next March. This is in terms of a settlement that was reached before a disciplinary ...
ANC 'is meddling in the govt'.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: SIBUSISO NGALWA & MOSHOESHOE MONARE Former ministers who resigned in solidarity with ex-president Thabo Mbeki have slammed the ANC's move to pressure the government to withdraw its intention to appeal against Judge Chris Nicholson's ruling. The judge implicitly accused ...
ANC wants better legal shelter for police.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: Deon de Lange & Sibusiso Ngalwa The ANC wants to protect the country's men and women in blue from being dragged into court "to clear their names" every time a criminal complaint is laid against them. Sources at the ANC's national manifesto conference - which ...
Second killer storm hits KZN.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: NOMPUMELO MAGWAZA & NTOKOZO MFUSI ANOTHER killer storm has struck the Durban area, leaving seven people dead and eight critically injured. Three weeks after nine people were killed in a storm in Molweni, outside Hillcrest, which left a trail of destruction, ...
Call to consider HIV and Aids today.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: Mercury Reporters South Africans should reflect on World Aids Day at noon today, when church bells will ring for a minute and special sermons will be held at all mosques. The South African National Aids Council deputy chairman, Mark Heywood, said people ...
Zondo exhibition provokes graffito.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: MATTHEW SAVIDES VANDALS have painted the word "murderer" on walls of the KwaMuhle Museum in Durban. The museum is hosting an exhibition on the life of ANC operative Andrew Zondo. Zondo was hanged for a bombing at Amanzimtoti's Sanlam Centre in ...
A revisit to Sevens heaven.(Sports)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: Rodney hartman An interest in Sevens rugby waned when one grew tired of standing under a hot sun all day on Easter Monday drinking great mugs of beer at Old Eds. That was a long time ago, thank goodness, when Old Edwardians in Johannesburg put on an Easter ...
Pienaar torments Tottenham.(Sports)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: London South African midfielder Steven Pienaar ended his goal drought to give Everton a 1-0 win against Tottenham yesterday. Pienaar hadn't scored for David Moyes's side for more than a year, but he finally got back on target with a deflected effort early in ...
Five die in Durban taxi smash.(News)
Dec 01, 2008 ... BYLINE: MATTHEW SAVIDES A HEAD-ON collision between two taxis in Durban last night left five people dead and at least six injured. Paramedics were at the scene late into the night treating the injured, four of whom were in a critical condition. The remaining two were ...
Scolari in a rage as Van Persie double stuns Chelsea.(Sports)
Dec 01, 2008 ... LONDON: Luiz Felipe Scolari launched a scathing attack on referee Mike Dean and his officials after Chelsea's 2-1 defeat by Arsenal yesterday. Scolari was furious that Robin van Persie wasn't given offside when he ran clear to score Arsenal's equaliser at Stamford Bridge. ...
ANC struggling to COPE.(News)
Dec 02, 2008 ... It has been interesting to observe how the ANC has struggled to COPE with recent competition as the new Shikota party vies to wrest political control from the ruling party. It appears the ruling party has pressed its panic buttons, and gone on high alert, attempting to frustrate ...
Celebrating the end of the Cold War; Germany is getting ready to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the fall of a concrete wall that split the world into rival camps, reports Tony Carnie, who visited Berlin last week.(News)
Dec 02, 2008 ... IT WAS the Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev who famously defined this city as the "testicles of the West". "Every time I want to make the West scream, I squeeze on Berlin," he remarked in 1958, just three years before the infamous Berlin Wall was built to divide the city - thus ...
Simple changes, new looks.(Life)
Dec 02, 2008 ... BYLINE: LIFE REPORTER A TRENDY new way to spruce up your home without spending a fortune is to add design features to existing wall or floor tiles. Instead of replacing and starting from scratch with kitchen counter tops, for example, opt for a decoratively tiled ...
Plays for young 'uns.(Life)
Dec 02, 2008 ... DURBAN'S Botanic Gardens and Catalina Theatre will soon be offering plays for children over the holiday season. The Botanic Gardens production is Puss in Boots, presented by Garth Anderson's Actors' Co-operative. Adapted from the traditional fairytale by Anderson, the ...
Traffic Offences Dealt With Selectively.(News)
Dec 02, 2008 ... It's amazing how our metro traffic department always has the staff to nab soft targets for trivial offences, but nobody to handle the more serious stuff. These intrepid individuals hide behind bushes, or on overhead bridges, with their speed cameras. They hide "around the ...
Pleasing detente in Europe today.(News)
Dec 02, 2008 ... It was pleasing to see a recent photograph of the French president, Nicholas Sarkozy, and the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, greeting each other with ...
New Zimbali development launched.(News)
Dec 02, 2008 ... BYLINE: SUREN NAIDOO A new R7 billion North Coast development called Zimbali Lakes Resort, which is the next major phase in the existing landmark Zimbali development, has been launched by international property development heavyweights IFA Hotels & Resorts and its joint venture ...