Category Archives: Politics
UPM Press Statement: Marikana massacre memorial service in Grahamstown
A memorial service for all who fell in the Marikana Massacre will be held in the Anglican Cathedral in Grahamstown on Thursday 30 August 2012 at 4:00 p.m.
People of all faiths and people with no faith are all warmly invited to join the event. It will be held under the banner of a shared commitment to a just peace.
ShareDA in violent encounter with Cosatu
By Marc Davies
A DA march against Cosatu’s opposition to youth wage subsidies became tense after members of Cosatu stormed the march and threw rocks at DA supporters.
The supporters in blue gathered on Tuesday morning in Braamfontein, Johannesburg, to march against Cosatu’s dismissal of a youth wage subsidy which the DA claims would create over 420 000 jobs for young, unemployed South Africans. Continue reading
ShareAG dismayed at municipality audits, government
By Marc Davies
Auditor General Terence Nombembe has warned South Africans about the increasing vulnerability of his office, saying a sharp decline in government report accuracy, service delivery and security of state information has induced a ‘dire’ situation. Continue reading
ShareUPM to feed own struggle
By Ayanda Kota, publicity secretary of UPM
The Unemployed People’s Movement (UPM) was formed in August 2009 to respond to the crisis of unemployment and the commodification of essential services in a society dominated by corruption and greed. As Steve Biko said: “The blacks are tired of standing at the touchlines to witness a game that they should be playing”. We want to do things for ourselves and all by ourselves. The UPM is born out of a realisation that we are protagonists of our lives and nobody will free us but ourselves, we – the unemployed – will have to be our own liberators.
Share
Zille: EC education an “unholy mess”
By Marc Davies
Emphatically denouncing the Eastern Cape administration, DA leader Helen Zille described education in the province as a “holy mess” at the party’s recent elective conference in Grahamstown. The event, attended by approximately 500 party members, heard Zille’s commentary on local schools only two weeks after her inflammatory comments on “education refugees” fleeing to Western Cape schools from the Eastern Cape.
The Western Cape Premiere and DA leader said the average school pupil in the Eastern Cape is likely to receive “a worse education than she would in parts of war-ravaged Congo”. She subsequently claimed that “tough minister” of Basic Education Angie Motshekga has attempted to rectify the issue of severely overcrowded and failing schools, but has been deterred by the South African Democratic Teachers Union (SADTU). According to Zille, President Jacob Zuma has been subtly sacrificing Eastern Cape children to ensure support from COSATU and SADTU in the pivotal ANC Mangaung presidential election in December this year.
VIDEO: Talk addresses rotten journalism
Video by Kayla Roux
Rhodes alumnus and City Press journalist Natasha Joseph gave a talk at Rhodes University about the ethics around journalism. Her talk addressed issue including ‘freebies’ and sponsorships, opening up the discussion about journalist codes of conduct and ethics.
ShareSilent Protest Gallery
Masithethe – Let us talk RESPONSE
Prof. Monty J. Roodt responded to an article published in Activate Ed. 1 28 Feb 2012
Land and agrarian transformation in South Africa: beyond the impasse.
The argument around land reform in South Africa is characterised as much by the degree of strong emotion generated, as by the confusion around who owned what land when. The emphasis on historical rights has to a large extent hampered the development of a dynamic and coherent rural development policy that will bring about agrarian transformation with the achievement of equity and socio-economic development as its central tenet. Continue reading
Furore over ‘Kony 2012’ campaign
By Marc Davies
Amidst exponential growth in worldwide support, the Kony 2012 campaign has suffered severe criticism for its alleged ulterior motives, financial structuring and ties to anti-gay Christian funders. Invisible Children, the ‘non-profit organisation’ that created the campaign against Kony, has released a second video defending its position and refuting these accusations. Continue reading