Writing

Villagers to relive serial killer terror

AN EASTERN Cape community devastated by a spate of killings will have to relive the trauma from today as a man suspected of being one of the worst serial killers in South African history goes on trial.

Half of SA believe courts not working

By MICHELLE SOLOMON ONE in three people in the country believe the courts discriminate against poor black South Africans. Even worse, only half believe courts are working for them. These results were drawn from the 2012 South African Social Attitudes Survey – administered by the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) – where a detailed set… Read More ›

2010 Cup ‘cheats’ hit hard – Court freezes assets of BCM officials

By MICHELLE SOLOMON MILLIONS of rands worth of assets belonging to a former Buffalo City Metro director and 16 others – many of whom stand accused of cheating the municipality out of some R11.8-million – have been provisionally frozen after a tender relating to the 2010 World Cup was investigated. Ten of them, including former… Read More ›

Two kids die of rare disease at Frere in 3 weeks

AT LEAST two children in East London have died of a rare disorder in recent weeks.

The Daily Dispatch has learnt of a further five people in the city diagnosed with Guillain-Barré Syndrome [GBS]. The exact cause of the condition is unknown but it attacks the nervous system and if not treated promptly, can result in death.

Alleged hitmen face murder, robbery and conspiracy charges

FIVE alleged hitmen appeared in the East London High Court last week on charges of organised crime, racketeering and multiple murders.

Vuyani Sibanda, 42, Isaac Phiri, 69, Thabiso Mini, 27, Sakhela Magasana, 29, and Makhaya Qwala, 34, stand accused of racketeering, conspiracy to commit murder, murder, and robbery under aggravating circumstances.

Son of Transkei soil joins Concourt bench

By MICHELLE SOLOMON MOUNT Frere-born advocate Mbuyiseli Russell Madlanga was yesterday sworn in as a Constitutional Court judge. The latest addition to the Concourt bench brings a host of notable achievements. Mdlanga was born in Njijini village in 1962, and despite his apartheid-era education managed to come top of his class throughout his tertiary education…. Read More ›

State ‘drags feet’ in R2m damages claim

THE Eastern Cape health MEC faces a R2-million lawsuit over medical negligence.

Ndoda Alfred Magoswana lodged medicalthe case against the health department after an allegedly botched appendix operation left him partly deformed and unable to work.

Misty mountain-top magic for everybody

By MICHELLE SOLOMON and JAI CLIFFORD-HOLMES NESTLED on a plateau of the Amatola Mountains in the midst of a cool, prehistoric forest lies Hogsback, a small settler village with one main street and bursting with personality. Hogsback residents form part of a close-knit community of environmental activists, tourism professionals, adventurers and creative craft makers. Hogsback… Read More ›

Mandela’s old classrooms fixed

THE dilapidated school block where struggle heroes Nelson Mandela and Robert Sobukwe once learnt has been restored to its former glory.

Three anglers drown and one survives in Fish River tragedy – front page

TWO East London men drowned on Saturday evening and a third is missing after their boat capsized while fishing at the Fish River mouth near Port Alfred.

Press Council has not dismissed Communications Department complaint against Sunday Times

The Press Ombudsman has denied allegations made by the National Department of Communications that the Press Council formally dismissed its complaint against Sunday Times editor Phylicia Oppelt.

In a South African Press Association’s (SAPA) report published on News24 this morning, communications spokesperson Wisani Ngobeni reportedly claimed that the Press Council had turned away the department’s complaint against Oppelt.

Interracial, cross-cultural same-sex marriage. Diversity at its best.

CHARLENE Donald and Larissa Klazinga are about as different as two women can be. Donald, 23, is bi-racial, of Xhosa descent and grew up in a Jehovah’s Witness home in East London. Klazinga, 40, is Jewish and grew up in a small gold-mining town in Gauteng. Klazinga is a vegetarian, while Donald loves to eat… Read More ›

Will gov have 58 sexual offences courts ready by September? No.

The South African government’s claim that it will establish 58 dedicated sexual offences courts, to be fully operational by September this year, appears to be untrue. No budget has been announced and there appears to be no clear framework for how the courts will operate.

Anti-Harassment Act heralds end to cyberstalking

A NEW law against stalking and harassment came into effect over the weekend after many years of campaigning by sexual violence NGOs.
The Protection from Harassment Act (PHA) was adopted by parliament in 2011, and came into effect on Saturday April 27.
In a statement the Department of Justice (DoJ) explained that the PHA would provide South Africans with an in expensive civil remedy to deal with harassment, mainly by means of a court order preventing the harasser from con tinuing with the unwanted behaviour. Any person that con travenes such a court order is guilty of an offence and liable to fine and/or a maximum prison sentence of five years, according to the DoJ.
A Rhodes University student spoke to the Daily Dispatch about an online stalker that has been harassing her since October 2012. The student asked not to be named.

East London cops can’t deal with rape

By MICHELLE SOLOMON and ZIPO-ZENKOSI NCOKAZI MANY police officers in the East London policing area do not know how to respond to rape cases, [an] investigation revealed. The investigation also found that a few did not appear to know the legal definition of rape. This week, [we] visited seven East London police stations and presented… Read More ›