Vol 48 No 22 | NAMIBIA Sam bows out again 2nd November 2007 The founding President is standing down, but he certainly isn't going away for good President Sam Nujoma, at 78, is at last moving into a back seat. He told a specially-convened meeting of the politburo of the ruling South West African People’s...
Vol 48 No 22 | ZIMBABWEINTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND Fund furore and banking bailout 2nd November 2007 Against the advice of their own senior staff, the Boards of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank are blocking the restoration of voting rights to Zimbabwe,...
Vol 48 No 22 | ZIMBABWEEUROPEAN UNION Brown's boycott 2nd November 2007 British Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s refusal to attend the European Union summit in Lisbon, Portugal, on 8-9 December alongside Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe plays well with Britain’s conservative...
Vol 48 No 22 | SOUTH AFRICAZIMBABWEBRITAIN Scrum half 2nd November 2007 Relations between Britain and South Africa, not helped by the Springboks’ 15-6 defeat of England in the Rugby World Cup in Paris on 20 October, have become poisonous...
Vol 48 No 21 | SOUTH AFRICAANALYSIS Zuma, Buthelezi and the Zulu nation 19th October 2007 The exit of Inkatha leader Mangosuthu Buthelezi from politics and the rise and rise of Jacob Zuma as a national leader with an unassailable base in KwaZulu-Natal is a moment of truth for South Africa’s Zulus. The Inkatha Freedom Party, so long dominant in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), is losing its grip and risks disintegration. Its leader, Chief Mangosuthu Buthelezi, told its national conference (13-14 October)...
Vol 48 No 21 | SOUTH AFRICA A king's ransom 19th October 2007 The King of the Zulus, Goodwill Zwelithini, has been allocated 30 million rand (US$4.4 mn.) by the state for the 2006/2007 financial year. There are fears that he...
Vol 48 No 21 | SOUTH AFRICA Take me to your traditional leader 19th October 2007 President Thabo Mbeki's attempts to reform the system of traditional leaders to bring it into line with democracy are not universally popular. Traditional leaders are resisting, especially in...
Vol 48 No 20 | SOUTH AFRICA Exit Pikoli, Chief Prosecutor 5th October 2007 Factions in the security services are fighting their own battles as the contest for the national leadership heats up The suspension by President Thabo Mbeki of the National Director of Public Prosecutions, Vusi Pikoli, may foreshadow a constitutional crisis. At the very least, it embitters the contest...
Vol 48 No 20 | SOUTH AFRICA Zuma in the sights 5th October 2007 Insiders say that President Thabo Mbeki is frustrated by the National Prosecuting Authority's inability to make headway in its case against Jacob Zuma. Last September, Judge Herbert Msimang...
Vol 48 No 20 | SOUTH AFRICA Intelligence in a divided house 5th October 2007 South Africa's intelligence services, police and army appear rudderless, with increasingly limited civilian or democratic oversight. Vusi Pikoli is the fifth chief of a security department to leave...
