History Matters

KWANELE SOSIBO for the Mail & Guardian  | JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA – Apr 21 2011 00:00 Chalk inscriptions still mark Voortrekker Street in Ficksburg’s Market Square where Andries Tatane died after police allegedly beat and shot him during a march to the Setsoto local municipality offices on Wednesday last week. Phillip Selokoe, his former high [...]

July 1st The Times THE gloves are off! It is very disturbing that the politics of demonisation and threats have replaced common sense and understanding in the dispute involving the department of health and doctors. — Dr Lucas Ntyintyane, by e-mail # Doctors strike despite new wage offer Such brinkmanship is counterproductive. The loud noise [...]

Chandré Prince Sunday Times June 27 Most packages are ‘small change’ Militant South African doctors, angered by the government’s “Mickey Mouse” wage offer, are now intent on shutting down the country’s public health system. Strike action, which this week crippled medical services in KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape, is set to intensify and spread throughout [...]

State of the Nation Address by His Excellency JG Zuma, President of the Republic of South Africa, Joint Sitting of Parliament, Cape Town 3 June 2009 Honourable Speaker; Chairperson of the National Council of Provinces; Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly and Deputy Chairperson of the NCOP; Deputy President of the Republic, Kgalema Motlanthe Former [...]

Abahlali baseMjondolo Press Statement Tuesday, 19 May 2009 Now that the election is over and the politicians have finished hunting for positions they are running away from the people. It is impossible for a poor community to get a meeting with a politician. They only send in the police to break the people’s homes and [...]

Sue Blaine Education Correspondent Business Day 27 November 2008 THE education department intends to rid SA of unsafe school environments by 2012. This aim is part of the minimum norms and standards for school infrastructure published for public comment by Education Minister Naledi Pandor this month. Education department statistics show that 42% of SA’s 25043 [...]

On average in South Africa over the last five years there are ten shack fires a day with someone dying in a shack fire every other day. Shack fires are not acts of God. They are the result of political choices, often at municipal level. Shack settlements are a poor people’s solution to a lack [...]

FINALISED SCHEDULE OF LECTURES: September 10 Housing: Grootboom Case Speakers: Judge Dennis Davis, Peter Roman, student from the SSLJ September 17 Accountability: Metrorail – Public Transport Speakers: Judith February, Mr Van Minnen September 24 Health: TAC Case Speakers: Nonkosi Khumalo, Louis Reynolds October 01 Education: 14 years and still no case Speakers: Mamphela Ramphele Representative [...]

An interesting event is taking place this Thursday at the Centre for the Book in Cape Town. Jackie Dugard of the Centre for Applied Legal Studies will discuss the legal arguments put forward to the High Court in the recent case about water meters in Phiri, Soweto and the implications of the Court’s landmark judgement. [...]