Men bomb ATM, despite guard
February 04 2008 at 09:30AM
Three men made off with a substantial amount of money after blowing up an Absa automated teller machine (ATM) in Hammersdale on Monday morning, KwaZulu-Natal police said.
Superintendent Henry Budhram said the incident took place at Wallers Caltex service station at 2am.
He said a security guard saw two men approaching the machine but presumed they were customers.
"A short while later, he heard three explosions and noticed the men carrying a bag and fleeing towards a vehicle," said Budhram.
The robbers fled the scene and no arrests were made. - Sapa
Monday, February 4, 2008
Approved: Chinese bank to buy into SA bank
Approved: Chinese bank to buy into SA bank
February 03 2008 at 02:55PM
By Scott McDonald
Beijing - China's biggest bank said Sunday it has received approval to buy a 20 percent stake in South Africa's biggest lender, the latest big-ticket overseas expansion by Chinese investors.
The deal between state-owned Industrial & Commercial Bank of China and Standard BankGroup is one of China's biggest foreign corporate acquisitions to date.
"The Chinese Banking Regulatory Commission has approved the plan by the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China to take the stake," the bank said in a brief statement on its Web site.
The statement did not provide financial details of the deal, which was announced last year, but the official Xinhua News Agency said it was worth $5,46-billion.
"The deal has already been approved by shareholders of both banks along with regulators in South Africa," the statement said.
The move comes amid a push by communist leaders for China's companies to expand abroad to diversify the economy. Efforts have focused on developing ties with Africa as a potential source of energy, raw materials and markets for its booming economy.
China's state-owned banks are growing rapidly amid an export-fueled economic boom and are expanding abroad to serve Chinese clients in foreign markets and to win international business.
ICBC's decision in South Africa to take a minority stake instead of acquiring a bank outright was in line with a Chinese strategy of trying to avoid possible political frictions over buying assets abroad.
Chinese companies have been skittish about acquisitions since the uproar in 2005 over state-owned oil company CNOOC's attempt to buy US oil and gas producer Unocal CNOOC dropped its bid after American critics said it might endanger energy security.
ICBC is flush with cash to pay for foreign expansion after raising a record-setting US$21.9 billion in an initial public stock offering in October 2006.
ICBC says it has 1.1-trillion yuan ($153-billion) in assets and reported profits in 2006 of 49.3 billion yuan ($6,8-billion).
Standard Bank, headquartered in Johannesburg, operates in 38 countries and says it has assets of US 119 billion.
Beijing is encouraging Chinese companies to invest abroad in what it calls a "go global" strategy to diversify the economy and take advantage of international opportunities.
Chinese companies invested US 21 billion abroad in 2006, according to the government. - Sapa-AP
February 03 2008 at 02:55PM
By Scott McDonald
Beijing - China's biggest bank said Sunday it has received approval to buy a 20 percent stake in South Africa's biggest lender, the latest big-ticket overseas expansion by Chinese investors.
The deal between state-owned Industrial & Commercial Bank of China and Standard BankGroup is one of China's biggest foreign corporate acquisitions to date.
"The Chinese Banking Regulatory Commission has approved the plan by the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China to take the stake," the bank said in a brief statement on its Web site.
The statement did not provide financial details of the deal, which was announced last year, but the official Xinhua News Agency said it was worth $5,46-billion.
"The deal has already been approved by shareholders of both banks along with regulators in South Africa," the statement said.
The move comes amid a push by communist leaders for China's companies to expand abroad to diversify the economy. Efforts have focused on developing ties with Africa as a potential source of energy, raw materials and markets for its booming economy.
China's state-owned banks are growing rapidly amid an export-fueled economic boom and are expanding abroad to serve Chinese clients in foreign markets and to win international business.
ICBC's decision in South Africa to take a minority stake instead of acquiring a bank outright was in line with a Chinese strategy of trying to avoid possible political frictions over buying assets abroad.
Chinese companies have been skittish about acquisitions since the uproar in 2005 over state-owned oil company CNOOC's attempt to buy US oil and gas producer Unocal CNOOC dropped its bid after American critics said it might endanger energy security.
ICBC is flush with cash to pay for foreign expansion after raising a record-setting US$21.9 billion in an initial public stock offering in October 2006.
ICBC says it has 1.1-trillion yuan ($153-billion) in assets and reported profits in 2006 of 49.3 billion yuan ($6,8-billion).
Standard Bank, headquartered in Johannesburg, operates in 38 countries and says it has assets of US 119 billion.
Beijing is encouraging Chinese companies to invest abroad in what it calls a "go global" strategy to diversify the economy and take advantage of international opportunities.
Chinese companies invested US 21 billion abroad in 2006, according to the government. - Sapa-AP
Pig slashing shocks hardened inspector
Pig slashing shocks hardened inspector
Myrtle Ryan
February 03 2008 at 01:31PM
When Douglas Wolhuter of the SPCA in Kokstad went to investigate a case of cruelty against a pig, nothing could have prepared him for the horrendous sight which met his eyes.
"I couldn't believe she was still alive; her injuries were horrific. It's the worst case I have had to deal with in the five years I have been doing this," said Wolhuter.
"She had slashes on three of her legs. There were deep lacerations through the tendons of the hock, and bone had been shattered. Her skull was almost totally smashed and one eye had been cut through."
He described the sow lying on hessian bags, in agony, breathing through the vast open space where her sinus passage was. Her skull had been shattered to such an extent he could not use a pre-stunning device to render her unconscious before shooting her with his 9mm.
He said the pig's owner had informed him that the animal had been attacked by a member of the community. The owner signed an affidavit saying this person had previously viciously hacked five other pigs between 2006 and 2007.
The owner said the police had been called to the scene early that morning. They had done nothing to end the animal's suffering and had declined to open a case, saying that problem animals often got into people's crops.
However, the owner said the pig had not entered the yard of the attacker, but had been wandering on common land.
As Wolhuter arrived at 3.30pm the pig had been left to suffer for hours.
According to Wolhuter, the CID had also been reluctant to intervene. They interviewed the suspect, who told them he had set his dogs upon the pig, but had never used a weapon.
"Anyone who looked at its forehead could clearly see it had been hacked," he said. "Anyway, he had no right to set his dogs upon the pig either."
Chris Kuch, spokesperson for the NSPCA, said it might be justifiable for Wolhuter to lay a charge against the inspector of the SAPS in Mount Ayliff, who had investigated the matter.
It had taken Wolhuter five hours to lay charges at the police station, while officers continued to tell him the matter could be resolved through talk.
Kuch said it was not up to the police to decide what steps the SPCA could take.
"If the magistrate decides the accused needs counselling after the trial, that is another issue," Kuch said. "The SPCA is empowered to enforce the Animal Protection Act."
o This article was originally published on page 2 of Tribune on February 03, 2008
Myrtle Ryan
February 03 2008 at 01:31PM
When Douglas Wolhuter of the SPCA in Kokstad went to investigate a case of cruelty against a pig, nothing could have prepared him for the horrendous sight which met his eyes.
"I couldn't believe she was still alive; her injuries were horrific. It's the worst case I have had to deal with in the five years I have been doing this," said Wolhuter.
"She had slashes on three of her legs. There were deep lacerations through the tendons of the hock, and bone had been shattered. Her skull was almost totally smashed and one eye had been cut through."
He described the sow lying on hessian bags, in agony, breathing through the vast open space where her sinus passage was. Her skull had been shattered to such an extent he could not use a pre-stunning device to render her unconscious before shooting her with his 9mm.
He said the pig's owner had informed him that the animal had been attacked by a member of the community. The owner signed an affidavit saying this person had previously viciously hacked five other pigs between 2006 and 2007.
The owner said the police had been called to the scene early that morning. They had done nothing to end the animal's suffering and had declined to open a case, saying that problem animals often got into people's crops.
However, the owner said the pig had not entered the yard of the attacker, but had been wandering on common land.
As Wolhuter arrived at 3.30pm the pig had been left to suffer for hours.
According to Wolhuter, the CID had also been reluctant to intervene. They interviewed the suspect, who told them he had set his dogs upon the pig, but had never used a weapon.
"Anyone who looked at its forehead could clearly see it had been hacked," he said. "Anyway, he had no right to set his dogs upon the pig either."
Chris Kuch, spokesperson for the NSPCA, said it might be justifiable for Wolhuter to lay a charge against the inspector of the SAPS in Mount Ayliff, who had investigated the matter.
It had taken Wolhuter five hours to lay charges at the police station, while officers continued to tell him the matter could be resolved through talk.
Kuch said it was not up to the police to decide what steps the SPCA could take.
"If the magistrate decides the accused needs counselling after the trial, that is another issue," Kuch said. "The SPCA is empowered to enforce the Animal Protection Act."
o This article was originally published on page 2 of Tribune on February 03, 2008
Sunday, February 3, 2008
South Africa will spawn its own Mugabe
South Africa will spawn its own Mugabe
http://www.thefirstpost.co.uk/?storyID=6392
How long will it be before South Africa produces its own home-grown Robert Mugabe? Only so long as the Almighty spares Nelson Mandela, since it is his miraculous influence that has stopped such an inevitable calamity already happening.
Consider South Africa's circumstances. A small, white minority has a virtual monopoly of all the country's wealth and property. Political power may have been handed over to the blacks, but in terms of ordinary life the whites still have it made, and very blatantly and offensively so.
That was the bargain Mandela struck to end apartheid, but it cannot last once his authority is no longer around to sustain it.
Sadly, however, I do not believe that a grievance so profound and so deeply rooted can be put to rights democratically, by due process,
It is Nelson Mandela’s influence that has stopped such an inevitable calamity already happening within the law.
The whites, who still wield economic power, won't allow it, and if they once reach the conclusion that the necessary degree of radical redistribution and/or expropriation is unavoidable, they will get out, taking their money with them.
Such then will be the passions released that no democratic government will be able to contain them. Nothing short of a mailed fist will work.
The blunt truth is that henceforth the white minority are fated to be obvious scapegoats for anything that goes seriously wrong in South Africa. As soon as Mugabe got into trouble, he turned on his white minority; so it will be in South Africa. That is the law of the jungle, as Kipling would have said.
So let the world sing - white even more heartily than black - God Save and Long Live Nelson Mandela.
FIRST POSTED APRIL 17, 2007
http://www.thefirstpost.co.uk/?storyID=6392
How long will it be before South Africa produces its own home-grown Robert Mugabe? Only so long as the Almighty spares Nelson Mandela, since it is his miraculous influence that has stopped such an inevitable calamity already happening.
Consider South Africa's circumstances. A small, white minority has a virtual monopoly of all the country's wealth and property. Political power may have been handed over to the blacks, but in terms of ordinary life the whites still have it made, and very blatantly and offensively so.
That was the bargain Mandela struck to end apartheid, but it cannot last once his authority is no longer around to sustain it.
Sadly, however, I do not believe that a grievance so profound and so deeply rooted can be put to rights democratically, by due process,
It is Nelson Mandela’s influence that has stopped such an inevitable calamity already happening within the law.
The whites, who still wield economic power, won't allow it, and if they once reach the conclusion that the necessary degree of radical redistribution and/or expropriation is unavoidable, they will get out, taking their money with them.
Such then will be the passions released that no democratic government will be able to contain them. Nothing short of a mailed fist will work.
The blunt truth is that henceforth the white minority are fated to be obvious scapegoats for anything that goes seriously wrong in South Africa. As soon as Mugabe got into trouble, he turned on his white minority; so it will be in South Africa. That is the law of the jungle, as Kipling would have said.
So let the world sing - white even more heartily than black - God Save and Long Live Nelson Mandela.
FIRST POSTED APRIL 17, 2007
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