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Saturday, March 18, 2006

Mbeki praises Tsotsi



Pretoria - The Oscar win by the film Tsotsi had taught the nation that developing the creative arts was important for the new South Africa, President Thabo Mbeki said in Pretoria on Friday.

"The birth of the new South Africa must also be about these matters; matters of the soul. We need to ask ourselves, how do we develop the dramatic arts?" Mbeki said, at a function at the presidential guesthouse in honour of the film's cast and crew.

Such films did not have to be about politics or South Africa's apartheid past. All of South Africa's stories needed to be told, he said.

Tsotsi director Gavin Hood was happy a film such as Tsotsi had united a nation with a story about a thug.

Bringing people together to talk about one thing, even though they came from different backgrounds, was one of the merits of the film, he said.

Tsotsi was awarded the Academy Award for Best Foreign film.

Since the crew's return to South Africa, with its prized gold statuette, it has met the national cricket team, former president Nelson Mandela and Cape Town's new mayor, Helen Zille.

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'That car came straight at us'



Johannesburg - Had Alberto Riccardi not overslept, he could have been one of the joggers that was hit by an alleged drugged 27 year-old motorist in Edenvale.

Two of Riccardi's jogging mates, Richard Albrecht, 38, and Joe Mendoza, 42, died at the scene of the accident in Herman Street, Meadowdale, after a motorist ploughed into four joggers of the Bedfordview Country Club at about 05:30.

Dr Wayne Korras, 43, general practitioner in Dunvegan, was taken to the Milpark hospital in Johannesburg in a critical condition by helicopter.

Karl Quinn, 20, was taken to the same hospital by ambulance.

"I did not jog with the guys as my alarm clock did not go off.

"We (the athletes) usually went away together over weekends.

Escaped being hit

"Those that you jog with, are more like friends," a shocked Riccardi, chair of the club's athletics division, said.

According to Arlene Lawson, sports administrator of the club, the athletes do their practice runs every morning - Mondays excluded - to prepare for marathons such as the Comrades and the Two Oceans.

Mendoza's wife, Dina, is pregnant with their second child, scheduled to be born next week.

Albrecht and his wife, Helena, don't have children.

Grant Greeff, 36, and Michelle Kellock, 36, who were in the same group, were lucky not to be hit by the vehicle.

"I saw the approaching car and thought it was getting closer too fast.

"I jumped out of the way and I think I escaped being hit by a fraction of a second," Greeff said.

The car apparently swerved across the road.

"That car came around a curve at a speed.

"It literally came for us," Kellock said.

Kobeli Mokheseng, spokesperson for the Ekurhuleni metro police, confirmed that the suspect did not test positively for alcohol, but it is believed that he was under the influence of drugs.

Drugged

Blood samples were taken in the Edenvale Hospital for tests to establish what type of drug he had used.

The suspect was only slightly injured in the accident.

Inspector Prudence Mvelase, East Rand police spokesperson, said it was expected that the driver of the car would appear in the Germiston magistrate's court on Monday on a charge of culpable homicide.

According to Riccardi, Korras was still in a critical but stable condition at the deadline.

Quinn is believed to be conscious, but both his legs were broken and he has a fracture of the skull.

Milpark hospital refused to provide any information about the injured in terms of a wish of the families.


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Wednesday, March 15, 2006

'Stop these savages now'



Johannesburg - The killing of Makgabo Bernice Matlala, granddaughter of Transvaal Judge-President Bernard Ngoepe, "is a wake-up call to the country's law enforcers that there is still a lot of work to be done to get South Africa right".

These were the words of Firoz Cachalia, MEC for community safety in Gauteng, during a memorial service for the four-year-old girl at the Central Methodist Church in Johannesburg on Tuesday.

Members of the legal profession and child-rights activists reacted equally strongly during the moving ceremony about Makgabo's "senseless" and "barbaric" murder last week.

Her naked body was found by forensic investigators under her parents' bed at their home in Lenasia South near Johannesburg during an extensive search of the area.

She apparently was strangled with a pair of pants belonging to her father, magistrate Stephen Matlala, during a robbery at the house. Her hands were tied behind her back.

Innocent targets

The Matlalas' domestic worker was blindfolded and the robbers took turns in raping her.

Cachalia told Judge Ngoepe: "There will never be sufficient justice for a murder like this.

"Makgabo's innocence and vulnerability are an example of the people whom violent criminals are targeting nowadays.

"Hopefully, the country's mourning for your granddaughter will help heal your family's broken hearts in time."

A heartbroken Ngoepe, flanked by family members, was seated in the front row in church.

"It was a gruesome and senseless murder," said Muzi Msimang, president of the Black Attorneys Association amid loud chanting by mourners.

"Poverty is not an excuse for a crime like this, because raping an elderly woman and murdering an innocent child do not fill one's stomach."

Delphin Serumaga, representing People Opposing Woman Abuse (Powa), described Makgabo's murder as "unbelievably barbaric", and said that such atrocities were happening far too often in South Africa.

Official statistics revealed by Safety and Security Minister Charles Nqakula, in answer to a parliamentary question by the Democratic Alliance, showed that three children were murdered a day in the 2004/'05 year, reported Borrie le Grange.

Ishmael Semenya SC said Makgabo's "innocent face" would haunt violent criminals countrywide for a long time.

Family's 'incredible sufering'

"The memories of Makgabo will force each one of us to find answers and will unite us in our mourning.

"Her gruesome death has left all of us inconsolable, but will strengthen us in our striving to overcome evil," said Semenya.

Ngoepe, who fought back tears throughout the service, said afterwards that the family was going through "incredible suffering".

"They are trying to be strong, but it is very difficult under the circumstances," he said.



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Tuesday, March 14, 2006

Capsize crew tell of sea drama



East London - A sailor is missing off the Kei River mouth after a catamaran capsized on Sunday night, said the National Sea Rescue Institute on Monday.

NSRI East London station commander Geoff McGregor said two other crew of the 40-foot Tamuza, sailing from Cape Town to Durban, were rescued.

The Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centre launched a rescue operation after one of the sailors had managed to send a distress signal after midday on Monday.

McGregor said: "Both survivors reported they shielded themselves from wind by staying inside a forward hatch and one of the survivors dived below decks into the cabin to activate the emergency distress signalling beacon."

The survivors had been asleep below decks when the vessel capsized, while the missing third man had been at the helm.

None of the sailors was identified.

Meanwhile, a canoeist's body was found floating in the Swartvlei lake near George on Monday after his canoe was found at the edge of the lake, said NSRI Wilderness station commander Hennie Niehaus.



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'One doesn't get used to rape'



Johannesburg - A trauma specialist testifying in the Jacob Zuma rape trial, has rejected defence suggestions that the woman should have developed ways of resisting such attacks.

The woman has admitted to having been raped before.

Zuma's counsel, Kemp J Kemp, suggested that the woman, with her history of being a rape victim, should have developed ways of resisting such attacks.

Merle Friedman, the trauma specialist, replied: "I haven't met people who have made an active effort to get used to being raped."

Last week, the woman told the court that when she turned around and saw Zuma naked she just "froze", did not fight back or scream, and was in a daze that lasted for some time.

Friedman, reading her assessment of the woman to the court, said: "Based on recent literature, freeze, flight, fight, fright, faint provides a more-complete description of the human acute stress response sequence than current descriptions."

It was "entirely consistent" with the literature and her professional experience, that there were variations of response.

"However, when the attack is completely unexpected, and the victim is woken from sleep and perceives herself to be trapped, it is probable that her response would be to freeze and submit, rather than to fight.

"In addition, the history of the relationship, as that of father/daughter, and the respect in which she held him, would further reduce the chance of her fighting.

'Others stay in the freeze'

"She did say 'no' twice to him and turned her face away and closed her eyes, which was some attempt at not being there or fleeing.

"The first response to a traumatic event is to freeze and some people come out of it and other people stay in the freeze," she said.

The woman has known Zuma since she was five and repeatedly referred to him throughout her testimony as "umalume" (uncle).

Friedman said most women "froze" while being raped and studies showed that even soldiers were known to freeze in traumatic situations.

Kemp disagreed, saying this often depended on circumstances, such as if the attacker was bigger than the woman, or if he was armed.

Spoke about her sexual needs

At the time of the alleged rape in Zuma's Johannesburg home last year, he was 5kg heavier than the woman.

Kemp also said it was not usual for a woman and her father to speak about her sexual needs - as Zuma and the complainant had before the alleged rape - and questioned Friedman on her knowledge of the Zulu culture.

She said she was not qualified to say if this was an appropriate conversation, according to Zulu tradition and culture.

The complainant testified last week that she had been raped three times while a child and believed that a pregnancy was due to a rape she did not remember.

'She was completely overwhelmed'

Friedman said she interviewed the woman, called "Khwezi" (star) by a group of supporters who refer to themselves as the "One in Nine" group, twice - once for an hour, and once for an hour and a quarter.

She also studied her statements, was briefed by the police and found that the woman was completely overwhelmed and shocked by the alleged rape.

She said it was normal for rape victims to take a long time to report rapes and difficult for them to begin to use the word "rape" to describe what had happened to them.

"The time it took her to be able to use the word was very consistent with rape survivors."

Showed signs of dissociation

This and the "trance-like" state she spoke of could have explained confusing information she sent afterwards in an SMS.

This said that Zuma was beginning to look at her sexually, there was "something in my drawers" and the "mothers must not know".

Friedman testified that the woman also showed signs of dissociation and startled easily.

Dissociation was when the human mind was so overwhelmed it could not actually deal with it. A person could dissociate by freezing or becoming unaware of what was going on."

"Dissociation is usually indicative of early childhood sexual abuse," she said.

The dissociative amnesia associated with this could explain why she could not remember how she fell pregnant.

Questioned about 'selective memory'

The woman believes she fell pregnant after being raped at a seminary during what she describes as an "attack" which included fainting.

But Kemp put it to her that this could just have been a way of securing permission for an abortion at that time.

He questioned Friedman extensively on what he believed was "selective memory" and on why the woman could remember certain details, but not others.

He also wanted to know why she had not conducted tests to determine the levels of trauma claimed and whether the woman was malingering.

Friedman said most of these tests were based on norms not applicable to South Africa and it would have been irresponsible to do so.

Tense exchanges in court

She based her assessment on two tests accepted in South Africa, her professional experience and by consulting international specialists.

She believed that the woman showed signs of post-traumatic stress disorder.

She only started speaking about the rape when she was in her own office and when she felt safe.

The exchange between Kemp and Friedman was tense at times and with Kemp at one stage questioning an expert's description of trauma she presented by saying: "Can I ask you, did she leave out shouting for help, because it doesn't start with an 'f'?"

To which Friedman replied: "I don't think that requires an answer."

The doctor who examined the woman told the court in the afternoon the only injury the woman had was a posterior fourchette tear between 2mm and 5mm long.

This could have been from force or from passion, from not having intercourse for a long time, a lack of preparation (such as not being lubricated), or from an instrument or a nail.

She had appeared calm, said Dr Mupata Likibi.

He described in intimate detail the physical attributes and the state of her vagina.

Likibi will continue his testimony on Tuesday.

Trip to Dar es Salaam

Towards the end of Friedman's testimony Kemp asked her to confirm that the woman told her she went shopping often "which was not like her".

Friedman replied this was one of the few things she was allowed to do while in the witness-protection programme.

Kemp then asked if she knew about a trip made to Dar es Salaam in Tanzania, and just before asking Judge Van der Merwe for a lunch break, posed the question: "Didn't you ask where she got the money?"

He did not pursue that line of questioning after lunch.



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Monday, March 13, 2006

Captains: 'An incredible game'



Johannesburg - The South African and Australian cricket captains struggled to find words on Sunday to describe the fifth and final one-day international, which South Africa won by one wicket, with a ball to spare.

The match saw both teams breaking the world record for the highest scores in international cricket. A total of 872 runs were scored, at a rate of nearly nine an over throughout the match.

"Incredible," said South African skipper Graeme Smith.

"We'd struggle to repeat a match like that. I think it compares with the tied Test between Australia and the West Indies at Adelaide as one of the greatest matches in cricket history."

Ponting agreed that it was one of the best one-day matches of all time.

"We had no defence against Smith and (Herschelle) Gibbs. We've talked about Australia scoring more than 400 one day. We did that today, and lost. It is incredible."

Gibbs the deserved winner - Ponting

Ponting said that while there was always a chance that South Africa could pass Australia's record total of 434, the odds against it were very high.

"We scored that many, so it was possible that they would too - but there was no way on earth that they should have done it."

Ponting, who was jointly named Man of the Match with Gibbs, but declined the honour, saying Gibbs was the deserved winner.

He added that, despite having made his highest score in one-day internationals (ODIs), it was still disappointing to make such a massive score and lose.

"But teams have often had success at running down big scores against us," he said.

He suggested that the advent of Twenty20 cricket, as well as a relatively small ground, meant that huge scores were possible.

Monday a recovery day

"We have to get over this quickly and prepare for the Test series," said Ponting.

"South Africa will be buoyed by the result going into the Test series, and there's a very short turnaround period."

Smith said South Africa would probably take Monday as a recovery day and start preparing for the Tests on Tuesday.

"We need to get our feet back on the ground," he said. "It's been an emotional rollercoaster the past few days.

"We came so close in Durban on Friday, and so were pretty down, and then we won today, and won the series."

Gibbs, whose 175 was his highest ODI score, said he had woken up on Sunday morning with a good feeling.

"The last time I had that feeling was when I made a hundred against Australia at Edgbaston in the World Cup in 1999. I wish I had that feeling more often."

Asked where he rated Sunday's match, he said he thought it was one step ahead of Edgbaston.

Smith said that the team had not had any gameplan to score 435.

Had to get momentum going

"You don't lie in bed and imagine making a total like that," he said.

"We just knew we had to go out and score quickly. It never really crossed our minds that we could do it.

"We had to get some momentum going. We were smashing balls all over the place, and then we'd look up at the scoreboard, and we were still 350 behind.

"Chasing massive totals like that, you either get quite close, or you get nowhere near."

The captains praised both teams for creating such an exciting match.

Ponting said: "The batters did well, but the bowlers didn.'t."

Smith said: "I think it's a wicket the batsmen would like to roll up and keep, but the bowlers would like to bury it."

The first Test begins at Newlands in Cape Town on Thursday.

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