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SOUTH AFRICA
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Former Deputy President Jacob Zuma has apologised to South Africans for not using a condom during sex.
This detail emerged during his trial on a rape charge, of which he was cleared on Monday. It caused shock in a country where 5m people are infected with HIV.
Mr Zuma also said media coverage of his trial was unfair, and hinted at a political conspiracy against him. |
He said he was "ready to lead" if his party wished. Mr Zuma was once seen as a future president and remains popular.
In a statement delivered to a news conference in Johannesburg, Mr Zuma said he had erred in having unprotected sex with a woman he knew to be HIV-positive.
"I should have known better and acted with more caution. For this I apologise to all the people of this country.He also said he would continue to support the campaign against HIV/Aids and violence against women.
Mr Zuma said the woman who accused him "should in no way be vilified or condemned", and offered a hand of friendship "to the women and organisations who demonstrated against me, because we are partners in a common struggle".
He criticised the media coverage of his trial: "It is unfortunate that freedom of _expression has been used as an instrument to assassinate character and prejudice the judicial process."
'Ready to lead'
Responding to journalists' questions about who he believed was responsible for charges being brought against him, Mr Zuma responded: "The campaign has been carried out at times by people without faces and I don't want to name names about who is behind this".
He later added: "I've often mentioned one person, [former chief prosecutor] Bulelani Ngcuka, who called some of your [journalist] colleagues to an off-the-record briefing to enlist him in his campaign against me.
Asked if he would resume his duties in the structures of the governing ANC party - from which he was suspended when charged with rape last year - Mr Zuma said he was "ready to lead" if the ANC so decided.
Mr Zuma remained composed as he answered journalists' questions.
But he became visibly upset when a journalist challenged him on his admission made in court and widely reported in the media, that he had showered after sex to reduce the risk of HIV infection.
"If you've been in the kitchen, my dear, peeling onions, you wash your hands afterwards," he said.
Mr Zuma still faces a separate charge of corruption - which he denies - to be heard in July.
Analysts say evidence aired in the rape trial has badly damaged his reputation.
The BBC's Peter Biles say there is still uncertainty about his wider political future, with many observers questioning Mr Zuma's suitability to be a president.
Mandela murder plot suspects escape
TWO men who have been on trial for attempting to murder former South African President Nelson Mandela have escaped from court. The two suspects are: charged with involvement in a white supremacist plot to topple South Africa's post-apartheid government.
Herman Van Rooyen and Rudi Gouws fled the Pretoria court during a break for lunch, officials said.
The trial began with 22 suspects, but many charges have been dropped and some have questioned whether the alleged plotters ever posed a real threat.
"I can confirm that during the lunch recess, two of the accused went missing," court official Sally de Beer said.
"We have launched a massive search and obviously have already started an investigation into the circumstances surrounding their escape."
White supremacists opposed to the enfranchisement of South Africa's black majority were seen as the biggest threat to the state in the years after the collapse of the apartheid regime.
Rooyen, 33, and Gouws, 28, are among those charged with the murder of Claude Mokone in the Johannesburg township of Soweto in October 2002.
They are also alleged to have been involved in a plot to blow up the car carrying Nelson Mandela during his time as South Africa's president.
But the plot failed when Mandela travelled by helicopter instead.
The trial has been repeatedly delayed and has crawled along in court as defence lawyers challenge the validity of the court and South Africa's post-apartheid constitution.
Credit:BBC
South African baby survives four-storey fall
An eight-month-old baby has survived being thrown from the fourth floor of a burning building in Johannesburg.
A bystander caught baby Likhona Mviko in his arms after his mother, Thandiwe, threw the infant from the balcony where she was trapped by flames.
The mother then managed to escape by climbing over the balcony and down to the floor below.
One person died in the fire in the inner-city block, and three were seriously injured.
"I pleaded with her to throw down the baby, with the assurance that it was going to either fall on the mattress that was on the pavement or right into our hands," Michael Ndlovu, the man who caught the baby, told The Star newspaper.
"After a while, when the flames grew bigger and bigger, she threw the baby without hesitation," Mr Ndlovu said.
Several bystanders were waiting to catch Likhona as he fell, but Mr Ndlovu was the first to position himself under where the infant was falling.
"The baby came rolling right there into my hands," Mr Ndlovu said.
The fire is reported to have broken out in the midst of a domestic quarrel in one of the flats.
Twelve people died a month ago, after a fire broke out in a central Johannesburg building.
SUDAN
Abuja Deal Must Pave Way for UN Peacekeeping Operation in Darfur
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As Khartoum Indicates Openness to UN Force, Security Council Must Now Act Quickly to Authorize and Deploy a Peacekeeping Mission to Darfur
Monday, May 8, 2006 (Washington, DC) – On the heels of a new peace deal on Darfur, signed on Friday by the Sudanese government and only one of the Darfuri rebel groups, Africa Action today urged immediate action from the United Nations (UN) Security Council towards the rapid deployment of a robust UN peacekeeping force to the region. |
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Amid concerns about the commitment of the Khartoum government to this peace deal on Darfur, the failure of two rebel groups to sign the deal, and the absence of a roadmap for its implementation, Africa Action emphasized that this deal must now pave the way for a UN force to supplement the African Union (AU) operation in Darfur and stabilize the situation on the ground.
Ann-Louise Colgan, Acting Co-Executive Director of Africa Action, said today, “If Friday’s deal marks a step towards peace in Darfur, the next step on that path is now clearer than ever – a UN peacekeeping operation must be sent to Darfur without delay. As the government of Sudan indicates a new openness to this possibility, it is critical that the Security Council act immediately. A resolution is needed to authorize a UN operation that can enforce the new cease-fire and peace deal, protect civilians and humanitarian operations, and ultimately facilitate the voluntary return of displaced people to their homes.”
Africa Action notes that UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Jan Egeland, who arrived in Darfur yesterday, visited a number of camps for internally displaced persons (IDP) in South Darfur, where new attacks against civilians by Sudanese government forces and their proxy militias were confirmed by the UN as recently as two weeks ago. This morning’s violent protests in Kalma camp, with displaced persons calling for an international intervention, demonstrates the rising desperation and crumbling security in the camps. Africa Action emphasizes the importance of an international presence in Darfur, in the form of a UN peacekeeping operation, to afford security and protection to the people of Darfur, and to offer international support for the long-term goal of peace in Darfur.
Marie Clarke Brill, Acting Co-Executive Director of Africa Action, said today, “As the international spotlight focused on Abuja in recent days and weeks, the situation on the ground in Darfur has been deteriorating. There are numerous reports of new violence against civilians, and an ever-growing humanitarian crisis threatens to engulf the area with the approach of the rainy season. The U.S. and international community must now sharpen the focus on the people of Darfur, and must act now to deploy an urgent peacekeeping mission to provide protection and assistance to millions of vulnerable civilians. ”
BOTSWANA
Botswana has been described as one of southern African countries with vast untapped coal deposits.
But minister of minerals, energy and water resources, Charles Tibone, said such vast coal deposits could only be mined if there was big market for them.
Tibone was addressing kgotla meetings at Dibete, Mmaphashalala, Dovedale, Kudumatse and Shakwe in the Mahalapye East constituency at the weekend.
He explained that the government had successfully negotiated with other coal producers for a coal project along the Mmamabula where more deposits had been discovered.
The advantage of Mmamabula coal project, whose power station is likely to be set up in 2011, is that it is along the line of rail.
The mine is expected to become operating around 2007/2008 after external electricity markets have been established.
According to Tibone, once the Mmamabula power station is operational, it will supply other southern African countries, including South Africa, which has been supplying Botswana with power.
He said studies had shown that South Africa would soon start to experience a
shortage of electricity. He said the Botswana government was therefore negotiating with the South African government so they could buy our electricity, but as always negotiations always take sometime to reach conclusion.
Regarding local electricity supply, Tibone promised Dibete residents that they would be supplied with power by next year.
The minsiter said the depart ment of energy was waiting for the completion of Dibete Police Station
and the weighbridge to connect from their supply point.
Others village in the Mahalapye East that would be connected through the Rural Electrification Programme during the year 2006/2007 are Mmaphashalala and Kudumatse, while Dovedale and Shakwe will be electrified through solar power system.
So far 238 villages in Botswana have been electrified through the programme. Tibone expressed hope that people would be able to run their own businesses once electricity has been supplied and help reduce the unemployment rate in the country.
The minister said governments intention is to fight unemployment rate as much as it can.
Source : BOPA
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