Johannesburg, South Africa | Three former South African presidents for the first time issued a joint call for action Friday to end the nation’s “worsening” political crisis, the latest campaign targeting President Jacob Zuma. In an unprecedented move, the country’s living former heads of state — Thabo Mbeki, F.W. de …
Read More »South African court orders Zuma to explain shock cabinet reshuffle
Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | A South African High Court Thursday ordered President Jacob Zuma to reveal the documents he used to justify the controversial sacking of a widely respected finance minister, sparking economic turmoil. The main opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) went to court to force Zuma to explain …
Read More »South Africa’s Zuma quits rally after being jeered
Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | South African President Jacob Zuma abandoned a Mayday rally on Monday after he was booed and jeered by trade union members demanding he step down. He was heckled by crowd members who sang anti-Zuma songs as he prepared to speak at the rally in …
Read More »South Africa bus crash kills 20 children
URGENT: 20 children killed in S.Africa bus crash: emergency services Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | At least 20 children were killed in a bus crash outside the South African capital Pretoria on Friday, emergency services said, as paramedics treated the injured at the scene. The minibus collided with a …
Read More »Mourn, don’t criticise at memorials, Zuma warns colleagues
Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma on Saturday hit out at critics within his own camp telling them not to use events such as funerals or memorial services to attack each other. Speaking himself, however, at the inauguration of a former minister’s tombstone, Zuma told colleagues …
Read More »South Africa to defend failure to arrest Bashir at ICC on Friday
The Hague, Netherlands | AFP | War crimes judges will Friday hear why South Africa failed to arrest Sudan’s President Omar al-Bashir during a 2015 visit, as they mull whether to report Pretoria to the United Nations for possible action. South Africa’s lawyers will defend the decision not to detain …
Read More »Why pressure is mounting on South Africa’s Zuma to step down
Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | South Africa’s powerful trade union federation Cosatu, a key coalition partner of the ruling ANC, on Tuesday called for embattled President Jacob Zuma to resign following a deeply unpopular cabinet reshuffle. Union general secretary Bheki Ntshalintshali said it was time for Zuma to “step …
Read More »TS&P cuts South Africa’s credit rating to ‘junk’
Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | Credit rating agency Standard and Poor’s downgraded South Africa’s rating to junk status on Monday, as the country’s currency continued to slide following a controversial cabinet shuffle. “The executive changes initiated by President Zuma have put at risk fiscal and growth outcomes,” S&P said …
Read More »Memorial of South Africa icon turns into anti-Zuma protest
Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | A memorial service Saturday for anti-apartheid icon Ahmed Kathrada was transformed into a fierce attack on South African President Jacob Zuma, under fire after a controversial cabinet reshuffle. Party veterans of the ruling ANC, sacked finance minister Pravin Gordhan and Kathrada’s widow lined up to …
Read More »South Africa cabinet bloodbath exposes ANC generational divide
Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | South African President Jacob Zuma’s sweeping cabinet overhaul exposes deep divisions between the ANC’s apartheid-struggle old guard and a new generation often accused of not living up to expectations. Malusi Gigaba, 45, who replaced Pravin Gordhan, 67, as finance minister is a fervent …
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