Disputed territory: How one river highlights South Africa’s land inequality
From Indigenous rights to environmental protection, Cape Town’s Liesbeek River has become a symbol of land justice in South Africa. KIM HARRISBERG, of Thomson Reuters Foundation, reports…
Five killed in South Africa’s Cape Town amid taxi strike
Cape Town, South AfricaReuters Five people have been killed in the South African city of Cape Town as a strike by mini-bus taxi drivers that began last week turned violent, authorities said on Tuesday. The South African National Taxi Council (SANTACO) announced a one-week provincial shutdown last Thursday after failing to resolve various issues with […]
Rwanda suspect denies killings but ‘sorry’ over genocide
Cape Town, South AfricaReuters One of the Rwanda genocide’s most wanted remaining suspects, accused of ordering the death of 2,000 people hiding in a church, denied on Friday any involvement though said he was “sorry” for the 1994 killings. On the run for two decades, Fulgence Kayishema was arrested on Wednesday under a false name […]
“How can we also feel safe?”: Cape Town turns to surveillance tech to stop a tide of violence
KIM HARRISBERG, of Thomson Reuters Foundation, reports that city leaders hope an array of new tech will help deter criminals – but residents warn it’s not a simple fix…
South Africans intrigued by Desmond Tutu’s choice of aquamation
Cape Town, South AfricaReuters Anti-apartheid hero Desmond Tutu’s choice of aquamation over cremation or traditional burial came as a surprise to some South Africans, while others were impressed by this environmentally conscious move. By opting for aquamation Tutu, who died on 26th December aged 90, joined a growing “green burial” movement centred around the use […]
South Africa parliament blaze contained; National Assembly “completely destroyed”
Cape Town, South AfricaReuters Authorities said on Tuesday they had finally contained a suspected arson fire at South Africa’s parliament building after a second-day flare-up that completely destroyed the lower house National Assembly chamber. A 49-year-old man accused of setting the fire appeared in court to face five charges including arson and possession of an […]
New blaze at South Africa’s parliament brought under control – officials
Cape Town, South AfricaReuters A new blaze at the complex housing South Africa’s parliament in Cape Town was brought under control overnight, city officials said on Tuesday, as a suspect arrested in connection with the fire was due to appear in court. An initial fire on Sunday caused the roof of the New Wing housing […]
Farewell to “our national conscience” at funeral of South Africa’s Tutu
Cape Town, South AfricaReuters President Cyril Ramaphosa lauded the late Archbishop Desmond Tutu as “our moral compass and national conscience” as South Africa bade farewell at a state funeral on Saturday to a hero of the struggle against apartheid. “Our departed father was a crusader in the struggle for freedom, for justice, for equality and […]
Mourners pay respects to South Africa’s anti-apartheid hero Tutu
Cape Town, South AfricaReuters Hundreds of mourners queued on Thursday to pay their respects to Archbishop Desmond Tutu whose body lay in state at St George’s Cathedral in Cape Town where the anti-apartheid hero preached against racial injustice. Tutu, a Nobel Peace prize winner widely revered across racial and cultural divides for his moral rectitude […]
Tears for Tutu, giant of struggle and neighbour who brought round groceries
Johannesburg, South AfricaReuters Mourners held a candlelight prayer ceremony outside the Soweto home of late Archbishop Desmond Tutu on Wednesday, weeping over the memory not only of a world-renowned lion of the anti-apartheid movement but of a kind and loyal neighbour. Tutu, who died at 90 on Sunday, lived for a while on the same […]