South Africa Reports

2023-03-10 17:00:35 EFF warns businesses to close on day of planned shutdown or face being looted

Ahead of its planned national shutdown on 20 March, the EFF has warned all small businesses and factories to close on the day or risk being looted.

In a video seen this week, party members were captured announcing the shutdown via a loudspeaker.

The SA Federation of Trade Unions' involvement would see more than 700 000 of its members taking part in the shutdown and ensure workers would not be victimised for joining.

https://www.news24.com/news24/politics/political-parties/eff-warns-businesses-to-close-on-day-of-planned-shutdown-or-face-being-looted-20230309 Open / Comment

2023-03-09 22:36:57 Electricians in Germiston brutally murdered attempting to fix power cable

Investigations are underway after 4 electricians were killed in Germiston on Monday. Residents apparently mistook the electricians for criminals who were attempting to steal the power cables.

One of the city’s electricians requested assistance from contractors after noticing a group of community members on a bridge nearby.

When the electricians approached the scene, the community members picked up the vehicle of the contractors as they were working on-site, threw it over the bridge and set it alight. The community then attacked the contractors and assaulted them with various objects, killing four of them in the process.

“The barbaric murder of these innocent people is strongly condemned by the municipality. What makes the situation worse is that these victims of brutal murder were trying to assist with the stabilization of electricity in the very same area where they were senselessly attacked,” the city said in a statement. Open / Comment

2023-03-08 19:15:47 Open / Comment

2023-03-08 15:20:58 7 March: Nehawu strike continues to hit hard with widespread reports of deaths and suffering Day two of the interdicted Nehawu (National Education, Health and Allied Workers' Union) strike continued to rumble and burn on Tuesday, leaving dead bodies, exhausted… Open / Comment

2023-03-08 15:19:55 7 March: Nehawu strike continues to hit hard with widespread reports of deaths and suffering

Day two of the interdicted Nehawu (National Education, Health and Allied Workers' Union) strike continued to rumble and burn on Tuesday, leaving dead bodies, exhausted workers and hungry and untreated patients in its wake.

“Our nursing services manager was up until 1.30am. She was actually laying out four corpses,” said an exhausted health worker.

“We will investigate if the deaths are linked to the strike action… they were simply found dead in their beds and suffice to say that yesterday (Monday) no patient received any medication, or IV fluids or anything.”

https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2023-03-07-nehawu-strike-continues-to-hit-hard-with-widespread-reports-of-deaths-and-suffering/ Open / Comment

2023-03-07 13:13:31 South Africa’s Economic Contraction Exceeds All Estimates

South Africa's economy shrank by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, much worse than economists expected.

That’s the biggest contraction since the third quarter of 2021, when deadly riots, looting and arson disrupted supply chains, industrial output and demand for manufactured goods. 

Sustained blackouts are seen as the most significant risk to economic growth.

Economists polled by Reuters expected GDP to shrink by only 0.4% for the last quarter of 2022.

Economists in a separate Bloomberg survey predict a contraction in gross domestic product in the three months through March, meaning the economy may already be in recession. Open / Comment

2023-03-06 22:23:30 The South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa, has announced his new appointments after the cabinet reshuffle

Two noteworthy changes:

Paul Mashatile is appointed the new Deputy President following David Mabuza's resignation
Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa is appointed as the newly created Minister of Electricity Open / Comment

2023-03-06 11:21:16 As per the article, in Afrikaans, the victim was found with her hands bound with heavy gauge wire and gunshot wound to the head. A shotgun was found next to her body.

3 men have been arrested. 1 of which was a former employee on the farm. The other 2 are family members of the former employee.

A Somalian worker on a neighbouring farm heard a gunshot at around 19:30 and rushed to report it. Open / Comment

2023-03-06 11:21:16 Elderly woman (74) brutally murdered near Calvinia, Northern Cape province, on her farm. Open / Comment

2023-03-05 11:39:52 So are we Open / Comment