Innholdsfortegnelse for 2024-12-13 i Mercury

In South Africa, the challenges facing young people when it comes to sexual and reproductive health are immense. Veronica Molefe’s story, once a 17-year-old girl seeking information and now a health advocate, highlights the deep-rooted issues that adolescents face when trying to access sexual health services. “Hi, my name is Veronica Molefe. I’m 28 years old, and I lead a team of youthful professionals providing sexual and reproductive health services to adolescent girls and young women through Shout-It-Now.” “I also serve as the second deputy chairperson on SANAC’s Health Professionals Civil Society Forum. “My work revolves around supporting and advocating for young people, ensuring they have access to non-judgmental, youth-friendly sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services. “But my journey to this point started much earlier and I’d like to share…

WHOOPS! Watch your step today, gentle readers; it’s a day to beware of the unexpected. Fellows, beware of delightful Danish girls. Ladies, beware of the fellow at the fancy dress Christmas party who has horns on his helmet. Yes, it’s Friday the Thirteenth, a day when bad luck strikes, according to a Norse myth dating back many centuries. The myth: Twelve gods were having a dinner party in Valhalla. The trickster god Loki, who was not invited, arrived as the thirteenth guest and arranged for Hör, the god of darkness, to shoot Balder, the god of joy and gladness, with a mistletoe-tipped arrow. Balder died, triggering much suffering in the world, which caused the number 13 to be considered unlucky. So there you have it. Avoid the Vikings that swarm…

Eskom and the Cogta Minister Velenkosini Hlabisa have a cheek. They want to punish the consumers for going off the grid. (Surcharge plan for solar users, Mercury December 11). It’s a sheer arrogance of power. You know what happens to people who abuse their power? They are driven off from power like the Syrian ruler Assad’s flight to Russia. Once it was the pride of Africa and one of the top power utilities in the world. But when the ANC came to power, it left the country powerless. Its policy of Black empowerment saw the mass deployment of inexperienced, inefficient, lazy and roguish cadres to Eskom and other SOEs. The greedy cadres soon stripped Eskom bare and plunged the country into an unprecedented energy crisis. It had a detrimental effect…

What do flat earthers, anti-vaxxers, the members of the Birds Aren’t Real movement and the Gaza genocide deniers have in common? They are part of an exclusive group of people who, when presented with solid factual evidence that contradicts their beliefs, actually become more convinced of their veracity. For example, an anti-vaxxer may be provided with scientific research that proves the efficacy and benefits of taking a certain vaccine backed up by the most credible and qualified medical authorities, yet they will stick firmly to their deep-seated beliefs that if they take a vaccination, they could develop a mysterious illness and die on the spot. The thing with conspiracy theorists is that it does not matter if their belief system is completely contradicted by the facts. What matters is that…

IN a crucial finding that has gone largely unreported, the Competition Commission, on November 19, found that Nedbank and several other banks were guilty of colluding to push the Sekunjalo Group out of the banking market through prohibited practices. This finding not only highlights the unethical strategies employed by these major banking institutions but also underscores the necessity of protecting competitors like Sekunjalo who are committed to fair market practices. Correspondence from the Competition Commission reads: “The investigation found that the banks took a decision to terminate and/or refuse to open bank accounts for the Sekunjalo Group of companies. Sekunjalo will be forced to exit markets where they are active as a direct result of the banks’ decision to terminate and/or refuse to open bank accounts for them. “The investigation…

A recent survey conducted by Kaspersky, a global leader in cybersecurity and digital privacy, reveals that 75% of parents in South Africa strive for complete oversight of their children’s online experiences. The survey, part of an extensive initiative entitled “Growing Up Online” spearheaded by the Toluna research agency, examined the digital habits of families across five countries. It reported that South African parents monitor children’s online activities amid growing digital threats. It also revealed that 43% of children have encountered violent content online, while 12% of parents said there were incidents where unknown adults attempted to befriend their children online. A further 18% of parents reported losing money due to their children’s online behaviour or use. | Anita Nkonki…

EXPERTS have advised there will be some good news for consumers in January with another 25 basis points (bps) interest rate cut forecast. They said it was expected that the SA Reserve Bank (SARB) will continue to follow a conservative approach in its monetary policy. This follows November inflation being at 2.9%, slightly higher than the 2.8% recorded in October, as released by Stats SA this week. However this is still below the SARB target of 3-6%. Neil Roets, CEO of Debt Rescue, said the recent inflation figure of 2.9%, which falls below the Reserve Bank’s target range, naturally raised questions about the likelihood of an interest rate cut. “While the lower inflation rate creates room for the SARB to reduce rates, Governor Lesetja Kganyago’s recent remarks in the media…

THIS year marks the fourth Christmas since the Covid-19 pandemic of 2020. Some things are different, in a good and bad way. In a good way, first, we successfully held the 2021 municipal elections and, second, the 2024 national and provincial elections that included independent candidates for the first time. In a bad way because the economy is depressed and unemployment is stubbornly high. Food, fuel, electricity and education are more expensive – costing South Africans over R5 billion in disposable household income. That amount could buy a lot of presents. Other things are the same. The cost of living is still rising. So is the debt burden. Debt collectors still plague many South Africans. Unsurprisingly, millions work multiple jobs, mainly in the informal economy, to scrape together enough to…

Israelis and Palestinians are signalling new efforts to forge a ceasefire deal, their first in a year, to pause the fighting in Gaza and return to Israel at least some of the 100 hostages still held in the Palestinian enclave. The guarded optimism emerges as US President Joe Biden’s national security adviser Jake Sullivan held talks with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Israel yesterday before heading to Egypt and Qatar, co-mediators with the US on a deal. A Western diplomat in the region said an Israeli deal with the Palestinian militant Hamas group was taking shape but was likely to be limited in scope, involving the release of only a handful of hostages and a short pause in hostilities. A senior Hamas official, Basem Naim, said any US official would…

Russia has the potential to improve its position in global AI ratings by 2030 despite Western sanctions, thanks to talented developers and its own generative AI models, said the first deputy CEO of Russia’s largest lender, Sberbank. Some AI developers left Russia in recent years, especially fleeing a mobilisation drive for the Ukraine conflict in 2022, but Alexander Vedyakhin said people were returning home, lured by the new opportunities, and he said it was vital to keep encouraging experimentation in the sector. Russia lags behind the US and China, the world’s leading AI pioneers, by six to nine months on a range of parameters, but that could quickly change, he said. “I am confident that Russia can significantly improve its current positions in international rankings by 2030 through its own…

WASHINGTON: US President-elect Donald Trump said yesterday that he would have a “big discussion” about ending childhood vaccination programmes with Robert F Kennedy Jr, his nominee to run the Department of Health and Human Services, and might scrap some. “The autism rate is at a level that nobody ever believed possible. If you look at things that are happening, there’s something causing it,” he told Time magazine. Kennedy, who opposed Covid-19 curbs and was accused of spreading misinformation about the virus, has sown doubt over the safety of vaccines. “He does not disagree with all vaccinations. He disagrees … with some,” Trump said. | Reuters…

Mazda South Africa, importer of the well-known global brand, has held onto its market share this year in spite of a volatile vehicle market that was characterised by falling sales for most of the period and a big number of new competitors. MD of the local business, Craig Roberts, this week said in an interview that it was important to understand why this stabilisation of market share, even though it does not yet indicate growth, was so important for the future of the company in this country. In 2019, the Japan-based parent company moved its strategy to become a global exporter of larger, more premium-priced vehicle models, a strategy that proved successful in most major markets where the group operates, such as the US, Canada, some South American countries, Europe,…

There are certain privileges, joys and responsibilities that come with adulthood: I use “you” simply for the sake of brevity—of course, it all applies also to me. You always have the power to decide how you will behave in any circumstance. There are extremes when and where this may not be so, but they are rare and “outside” of the readership of this column. You get to decide on your attitudes and responses—your thoughts and consequent actions—to things that happen to you and around you. While you believe you are at the mercy of others for how you think and respond, you will remain a victim to the whims of others and the shape others will give you. You get to decide who is worthy of hearing your story, your…

VIOLENCE can generally be understood as the act of causing harm, whether that harm is physical, psychological, spiritual, or emotional. What stands out most about violence is the experience of pain endured by the victim. Therefore, it is crucial to approach violence from the perspective of those who are harmed rather than solely focusing on the perpetrator. While examining the motives and backgrounds of offenders is valuable for understanding and addressing the underlying issues, it shouldn't be our only focus when defining violence. In the South African context, there is a recurring narrative around the 'alarming levels of violence' predominantly affecting women. However, this perspective raises several concerns and seems tailored to achieve a specific outcome within society. Among the 6 546 murders recorded by the SAPS, much of the…

IN an unexpected turn of events, the IFP provincial chairperson, Thami Ntuli, has said he will not be available to contest for a higher position in the party’s upcoming elective conference. The IFP is set to hold its conference early next year. The party held a media briefing yesterday, where it provided an update on the state of the Government of Provincial Unity (GPU) in KwaZulu-Natal and its plans to contest the 2026 local government elections. Ntuli is also the premier under the GPU which is led by the IFP, together with the DA, ANC, and the NFP. Political analyst Thabani Khumalo said that Ntuli’s action could indicate that he realised that he has more power in the province than he would have at the national level. Responding to questions…

At least 133 000 jobs in the formal non-agricultural sectors were lost in the third quarter of 2024 as both full-time and part-time employment declined on the back of subdued economic activity. According to the Quarterly Employment Statistics (QES) survey released by Statistics SA (Stats SA) yesterday, total employment in the formal non-agricultural sector fell by 133 000, or a 1.2% decline quarter-on-quarter, bringing the level of employment from 10.74 million in June to 10.6 million in September. The latest employment numbers align with the quarterly economic contraction of 0.3% recorded in the third quarter, with many of the jobs shed in community services, primarily reflecting part-time jobs lost between the two quarters. “The outcome is reflective of a still largely subdued economy, which continues to face a number of…

South African Communist Party (SACP) chairperson Blade Nzimande has reiterated calls for a “reconfigured alliance” between the party and the ANC. The SACP is currently holding its 5th Special National Congress (SNP) in Boksburg, Ekurhuleni. In his opening remarks, Nzimande said the party is committed to the alliance, which also includes the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu). “We need this alliance. Perhaps we need the alliance more than we needed it before.” Nzimande called on the SACP, ANC and Cosatu to listen to each other, emphasising the importance of the alliance. “And, it is therefore important that we do not take each other for granted as allies, but we know that we are all together as one.” The four-day conference aims to hold discussions on the party’s intent…

Airports Company South Africa (Acsa) yesterday said it would conduct a detailed investigation to determine the root cause of the fuel supply incident at the OR Tambo International Airport in a bid to evaluate any liability before it could consider claims for compensation by passengers and airlines inconvenienced by the breakdown of its fuel supply system. Acsa said while the investigation was ongoing, it cannot take responsibility for associated costs until the technical report was finalised. “Until the investigation is concluded and the report finalised, passengers are advised to contact their airlines for claims, while airlines can submit third-party claims to Acsa for insurance evaluation,” Acsa said. “Our position is that liability for refunds or associated costs depends on the findings of the ongoing technical investigation. The responsibility will…

If they are not we’ll be no better than those whose silence made them complicit in genocide DISCOVERY Health chief executive Ron Whelan told The Mercury’s sister newspaper Cape Times on November 26 that I had been engaged directly by his medical aid scheme following my decision to cancel my membership – he lied. Since emailing Discovery expressing my disgust at their recent hosting of an Israeli hospital with close ties to the Israeli military in South Africa, I have received no reply. If Whelan or anybody from his group had made the effort to engage me, this is what I would have said was my reasoning. Last week, Amnesty International, a globally renowned human rights organisation, released a landmark report concluding that Israel has been committing genocide in Gaza…

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu this week said the interest and welfare of the citizens of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger remained a priority for the leaders of the 15-member Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas), assuring that diplomacy and wisdom would be the guiding principles in reintegrating the countries into the regional bloc. Receiving visiting German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier to Abuja, Tinubu, who is the chairperson of the authority of heads of state and government of Ecowas, said the leadership of the three countries had been so far reluctant in bringing out transition programmes with clear dates. “We have innocent citizens who are victims of the military. We will continue to explore diplomatic channels to navigate without punishing these innocent people,” said Tinubu. Tinubu told the German leader that…

Australia’s centre-left government said yesterday that it planned new rules that would charge big tech firms millions of dollars if they did not pay Australian media companies for news hosted on their platforms. The move piles pressure on global tech giants such as Facebook owner Meta Platforms and Alphabet’s Google to pay publishers for content or face the risk of paying millions to continue operations in Australia. “The news bargaining initiative will … create a financial incentive for agreement-making between digital platforms and news media businesses in Australia,” Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Financial Services Stephen Jones told a media conference. The platforms at risk will be significant social media platforms and search engines with an Australian-based revenue in excess of A$250 million, he said. The charge will be offset…

London: British Prime Minister Keir Starmer yesterday called for better safeguards for home-schooled children after the brutal murder of a 10-year-old girl. Sara Sharif’s father and step-mother were convicted of murder this week in a trial that revealed gruesome details of the abuse inflicted on her, and the failure of child protection services to intervene despite warning signs. Months before her death, her father Urfan Sharif had taken her out of school to be taught at home, after Sara’s teacher reported her bruises to child services. According to a report published yesterday, 485 children in England died or were seriously harmed by abuse or neglect in the year to April 2024. | AFP…

Dorado is once again the flavour of the week, with anglers along our coastline diving into the exhilarating frenzy of the green and gold! But it’s not just dorries stealing the show – there have been solid reports of billfish, tuna and wahoo making their presence felt, adding even more action to the mix. It’s a thrill-packed week on the water! The Kingfisher trading times for the festive season is as follows: Monday to Friday: 8am-5pm. Saturdays and Sundays: 8am-1pm. All public holidays: 8am-1pm. December 16: All branches will be open from 8am-1pm. December 25: All branches will be closed. December 26: All branches will be open from 8am-1pm, except Tackle Centre. Wednesday January 1, 2025: All branches will be closed, except for the Salt Rock and Ballito stores, which…

The Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF) has appointed former trade unionist Frans Baleni as a trustee and new chairperson of the Board of Trustees, after the resignation of former chairperson Dondo Mogajane last month. Baleni is a former general secretary of the National Union of Mineworkers and serves as a director on a number of boards. The GEPF, the largest pension fund in Africa with more than R2.3 trillion in assets under its management with around 1.2 million active members and about 500 000 pensioners and beneficiaries, said Baleni was appointed chairperson at Wednesday’s board sitting . “The GEPF Board of Trustees expresses its confidence in the leadership of Mr Frans Baleni and believes that Mr Baleni’s strategic vision and vast experience will be instrumental in guiding the Fund towards…

There were so many beauty pageants this year and some are still happening. Beauty queens from all over the world are currently in Vietnam for Miss Charm and Mbali Dlamini is representing Mzansi. Miss Charm is more than a beauty pageant, it is a contest that promotes culture, tourism, and educational activities. The pageant will be held on December 21. Dlamini of Newcastle in KwaZulu-Natal was one of the finalists at Miss South Africa 2019. At Miss Charm, she wants to empower women to go after their dreams. “Heavy is the head that wears the crown! Not only does it come with great responsibility, hard work, kindness and determination... it is also a symbol of never giving up on your dreams and always inspiring others to do the same,” she…

Besides being a desperate move to bolster declining revenues, the intention of those in power to impose a surcharge on the use of solar systems is just another way of restricting individual independence by extending and centralising state control (The Mercury, December 11). It is surprising that this idea should come from Cogta minister Velenkosini Hlabisa of the IFP which, when last checked, had Thatcherite policies. In any event, turning the screws on the diminishing corps of loyal, revenue-providing residents is not the solution because it will hasten the decline of that group. Equally doomed is the proposal to attach new revenue schemes to water services, waste treatment and the hardy annual – property rates. More taxes will mean more defaulters. Property values will drop when owners find upkeep beyond…

Market liberalism is one part of traditional liberalism which did not start out being about markets. Liberalism evolved over centuries of history and free markets came a bit later in the game. Liberalism evolved out of the religious wars where both Protestants and Catholics violently attempted to suppress beliefs they did not like. Martin Luther wrote, “Let everyone who can, smite, slay, and stab, secretly and openly, remembering that nothing can be more poisonous, hurtful or devilish than a rebel.” He argued the state was obligated “to repress blasphemy, false doctrine and heresy, and to inflict corporal punishment on those that support such things.” Of course, what was true for Luther was true for the Vatican, Calvin, and other reformationists as well. The results were a couple centuries of mass…

THE eThekwini Municipality has received more than 2 500 new registration applications from spaza shop owners ahead of Tuesday’s deadline, following the recent rise in foodborne illnesses allegedly linked to products sold at these stores. The City of Cape Town said it had received 4 000 applications for Certificates of Acceptability (COA) while Gauteng received 13 000 applications for spaza shop registrations. Last month, President Cyril Ramaphosa said that all spaza shops and other food handling facilities must be registered in the municipalities in which they operate within 21 days and that any shop that is not registered within the period and does not meet all health standards and requirements will be closed. The registration drive was prompted by the recurring illnesses linked to pesticides (including the highly hazardous chemical…

The South African High Commissioner to the Republic of Mauritius, Hlamalani Manzini, has alerted a delegation from the Department of Social Development (DSD) about the high number of South Africans imprisoned in Mauritius for drug trafficking. This, as the delegation left on Monday to repatriate a five-year-old child from a prison there. The child was born to a South African woman arrested for drug trafficking while pregnant in May 2019. They are expected to return to South Africa today with the minor who has spent her entire life inside the confines of a Mauritian prison. She will be handed over to her grandmother in the North West, who has agreed to take care of the child. Manzini shared that there were 38 South Africans incarcerated in Mauritius at present—23 men…

IT could be the election outcome or the ongoing cost of living crisis, but 73% of South Africans who participated in a newly released study feel that 2024 was a bad year for the country. This is according to the findings from the Ipsos Predictions Survey 2025, based on a 33-country study conducted by the market research company between October 25 and November 8 this year. The survey involved 23 721 adults in India, Canada, the Republic of Ireland, Malaysia, the Philippines, South Africa, Türkiye, the United States, Thailand, Indonesia and other countries. Participants were asked a series of questions concerning the year that was and their expectations for the year ahead. The key finding for the year in retrospect for two-thirds (65%) was that 2024 was “a bad year…

Temba Bavuma has never had it easy in his cricket career. But, after starting on the streets of Langa, he is now on the cusp of leading his nation to the World Test Championship final at Lord’s in June. His journey to becoming Proteas captain was fraught with difficulties, but he stuck it out in the domestic arena for the Lions in Johannesburg and made it to the top. Bavuma made his South African Test debut in the 2014 Boxing Day encounter against the West Indies in Gqeberha, and scored his first hundred against England at Newlands in the 2016 New Year’s clash. But then he had to wait for seven years before reaching three figures again, and he nearly didn’t get there as there were calls from critics for…

Haleon Pakistan plans to start manufacturing multivitamin brand Centrum in the country for domestic sales and export, its CEO said, as it seeks to boost sales in the country amid lower inflation. The Pakistan unit of British consumer healthcare firm Haleon plans to expand its pain management offerings next year by adding the Panadol range for menstrual pain and migraines, CEO Farhan Muhammad Haroon said. “Pakistan has a 24-billion rupee ($86.30 million) Vitamin Mineral Supplement market. This does not include the grey market. We already make up 7.5bn rupees ($26.97m) of the market through our (vitamin) products CAC-1000 Plus and Qalsium-D,” said Haroon. “With the launch of Centrum, we plan to capture 7% to 8% of the remaining market immediately, which is a sizeable portion of the category.” Haroon said…

ADDIS ABABA: Somalia and Ethiopia said they would work together to resolve a dispute over Addis Ababa’s plan to build a port in the breakaway region of Somaliland, which had threatened to further destabilise the Horn of Africa. The two countries’ leaders said they had agreed to find commercial arrangements to allow landlocked Ethiopia “reliable, secure and sustainable access to and from the sea” after talks this week mediated by Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan. Ethiopia had said it would lease a port in Somalia’s breakaway northern region of Somaliland in exchange for recognising the area’s independence. Mogadishu rejected the deal and threatened to expel Ethiopian troops from Somalia. | Reuters…

ABUJA: Nigerian authorities this week ordered a temporary shutdown of operations at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in the capital of Abuja after a cargo plane suffered a tyre burst and skidded off the runway. No casualties were reported in the incident and the five-member crew on board the Boeing 737-400 cargo aircraft operated by the local Allied Air was safely evacuated, said the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria. Several landing and departure schedules were delayed while emergency workers cleared the runway. An investigation is under way. | Xinhua…