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The failure of South African democracy

Let’s face it: South African democracy has failed. There may still be the trappings of people voting every five years and the annual ritual of parliament being opened, but it has turned out to be just a white elephant. Every election is a racial census. The average “voter” is answering to a vague ethnic calling

Grandmother raped, stabbed and robbed in South African province

KwaZulu-Natal – A 74-year-old woman was raped, stabbed and robbed in her granny flat in Bisley, Pietermaritzburg, the Witness reported on Tuesday. Captain Thulani Zwane told the paper the woman was on her way to her room after having a bath on Saturday morning when she was attacked by an unknown man. The man had

Another painting with Zuma’s genitals exposed

Another painting of President Jacob Zuma with his private parts exposed went on display at the AVA Gallery in Cape Town on Monday night, according to a report. According to the Star, artist Ayanda Mabulu’s painting of Zuma wearing traditional attire and his penis exposed, entitled “Umshini Wam” [weapon of mass destruction] is part of

Muslims want citizen’s arrest of Tony Blair in Johannesburg

The Muslim political party Al Jama-ah plans to protest against former British prime minister Tony Blair when he speaks in Johannesburg, it said on Monday. “The demonstration is being held to support a warrant of arrest to charge him for crimes against humanity relating to the invasion of Iraq which led to the killings of

Anders Breivik’s ideas ‘are almost mainstream in many European countries’

Norwegian mass killer Anders Behring Breivik may have failed to ignite a race war with Muslims, but he succeeded in stoking anxieties about the stability of Europe’s increasingly diverse societies. Though his talk of an international underground of killers – latter-day Crusaders he called the Knights Templar – seemed to be mere fantasy, and while

South African lawlessness on the rise

South Africa is in the grip of increasing lawlessness, according to a senior researcher at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS), Beeld reported on Monday. According to an essay written by Dr Johan Burger more than a week before the Marikana mine shootings, blame for anarchy cannot simply be attributed to contempt for the law

Briton, 22, arrested for ‘racist Tweet’ aimed at black footballer

A 22-year-old man has been released on police bail in connection with racist tweets aimed at the West Ham striker Carlton Cole, police said. The man, from Southend in Essex, was arrested on suspicion of a racially aggravated public order offence. The footballer highlighted the messages on Twitter, which he received after his side’s defeat

Fashion designer John Galliano stripped of French award for ‘public racism’

ArtLyst reports that John Galliano 51, the former top British fashion designer, has been stripped of his French Legion d’Honneur award. Galiano was found guilty on a charge of “public racism” last year in September. He was charged after verbally abusing curator, Geraldine Bloch, 35, and her Asian companion, 41-yr-old Philippe Virgitti. He called Ms

German president asks for ‘courage’ against racism

German President Joachim Gauck on Sunday demanded courage from civilians and more action from officials to prevent a repeat of the orgy of racist violence that shook Rostock two decades ago. Commentators say the speech said too little on the amount of racism still prevalent in German society. “We are strong. We know that we

‘Julius Malema will return to ANCYL’ – Lamola

Expelled ANC Youth League president Julius Malema will return to the organisation, league deputy president Ronald Lamola said on Monday. “We still believe he is going to come back and we will raise this at conference,” Lamola told reporters in Johannesburg. He was referring to the ANC’s elective conference, to be held in December. Last

Women plan sex strike in Togo

Lome, Togo – Women in the civil rights group “Let’s Save Togo” said they will have a week long sex strike to demand the resignation of President Faure Gnassingbé. The plan to withhold sex from their husbands for a week will start Monday, said Isabelle Ameganvi , leader of the group’s women’s wing. Ameganvi, a

How the 1960s’ Riots Hurt African-Americans

South Africa is currently going through a period of intense social unrest, characterised by so-called “service-delivery protests”. It is estimated that last year 5% of the country’s black population participated in some form of protest action or rioting. The long-term effects could be considerable, as may be learned from this American study of the aftermath

Racism threatens Australia’s ‘brand’

The Sydney Morning Herald reports that Australia’s race discrimination commissioner says the nation’s ‘‘brand’’ has at times been maligned by outbreaks of of racism and there is a poor understanding of the problem in the wider community. Helen Szoke has also identified a ‘‘cultural glass ceiling’’ that hinders certain minority groups from rising up in

2 killed, 8 wounded in shoot-out outside Empire State Building

Two people were killed and at least eight were wounded in a shooting outside the landmark Empire State Building in New York City on Friday, a New York police source said. One of the dead was the shooter, the source said, adding there was no apparent link to terrorism. A white tarp covered what was