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SA asks UAE to release Karabus

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The government has written a strongly worded letter to the UAE in a move to persuade them to release detained professor Cyril Karabus.

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Cape Town - The South African government has written a strongly worded letter to its UAE counterpart in a move to persuade them to release detained Cape Town professor Cyril Karabus, says Deputy Minister of International Relations and Co-operation Marius Fransman.

“At this point, we feel that it will be in the best interest of all involved to release Karabus, considering his age and deterioration of health. This issue has now reached a diplomatic protection phase,” said Fransman.

He was speaking at a press briefing on Thursday at the Taj Hotel; a little over two hours after a visit to the Karabus family home in Kenilworth.

Fransman said the government had “taken a firm approach” towards the UAE authorities in the form of a demarche – a “strong line of diplomatic action a country can take to convey their concerns on a given subject from one government to another”.

An emeritus professor at the UCT, Karabus, 77, has been detained in Abu Dhabi on charges of manslaughter and falsifying documents since August 18 last year.

He was arrested while in transit in Dubai to South Africa from his son’s wedding in Toronto, Canada. His fate in the Abu Dhabi court is still unclear, after 15 postponements.

Fransman said the department had rendered “extensive” consular assistance to Karabus and his family.

The letter, written by Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, requested that UAE authorities deal with Karabus’s case in an “expeditious and fair manner as it is placing strain on the existing good relations between the two countries in the field of medical co-operation”.

Fransman said it was not possible for South Africa to interfere with the judicial process in another sovereign county, but that they had called on UAE authorities to “expedite the matter and to bring it to finalisation as quickly as possible”.

Karabus’s lawyer, Michael Bagraim said they were “excited” that the government was finally intervening in Karabus’s case. “It’s been an emotional four months, hopefully this helps in bringing Karabus home,” he said.

A specialist paediatric oncologist, Karabus, who has a pacemaker, was tried and convicted in absentia in the UAE in 2002, after he worked as a locum at the Sheikh Khalifa Medical Centre in Abu Dhabi in 2000.

Prosecutors have argued that he failed to give a blood transfusion to a three-year-old Yemeni cancer patient during an operation at the Sheikh Medical Centre.

She later died of myeloid leukaemia.

Karabus and his legal team in Abu Dhabi continue to wait for news from the attorney general.

He is yet to report to the judge whether they have managed to locate the missing original medical records required to prosecute Karabus.

Meanwhile Karabus’s ex-patients and their families will hold a “get-together” on Monday afternoon to rally support for his release and to also celebrate the lives Karabus has changed over the years, said organiser and Karabus's ex-patient, Táryn Harkness.

Harkness, 38, was diagnosed with non-hodgkins lymphona at age three.

“Under Karabus’s guidance, his team oversaw my treatment, my progress and ultimately my recovery. His treatment saved my life. Even long after I was ‘in remission’ Karabus oversaw my progress in his quiet, compassionate way,” she said about her experience at the Red Cross Children’s Hospital.

Harkness was given the all clear at age 20.

“As a mom now, I can’t begin to imagine how a parent can endure a disease that threatens to take her child, but I know that doctors like him are few and far between, and that his gentle strength and unending encouragement helped my recovery as much as any medical treatment his team administered,” said Harkness.

The event will be held at Bagraims Attorneys, 5 De Lorentz Street, Gardens at 5:30pm.

nontando.mposo@inl.co.za

Cape Argus


Strike leader condemns ‘criminals’

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A prominent farm strike leader has damned “criminal elements” for joining the protests and looting stores.

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Western Cape - A prominent farm strike leader has damned “criminal elements” for joining the protests and looting stores, as the violence continued on Thursday.

Grabouw witnessed scenes of violence on Thursday as groups of men launched a long series of sniping raids on public roads.

But John Michaels, of the Grabouw Elgin Civic Organisation, blamed this squarely on “criminal elements” who had joined the protesters. He said he “distanced” the protesters from these looters and said the police should act against them.

Michaels also said police had acted “provocatively” against the legitimate industrial action, by ordering “peaceful” demonstrations to break up.

From as early as 6am, police sought to disperse groups which arrived on the Old Cape Road in the Pineview suburb.

After numerous interviews, the Cape Argus established that amid these groups were not only striking workers, but large numbers of unemployed men who have worked as seasonal workers on occasion and others who appeared to be barely out of school.

Together, the men often responded to the police’s demands to disperse by hurling rocks at the police, and open battles then developed.

Dodging the flying rocks, policemen fired rubber bullets and threw “thunder-flash” canisters to drive the rock-throwers back.

Groups of men made numerous attempts to march down to the main road through Grabouw, but were stopped by police.

The next headache for authorities were two fires lit on MTO forestry land, in fynbos on a rocky koppie to the west of the town.

A spotter plane soon arrived, followed by a helicopter armed with a “Bambie bucket”, and a crop-sprayer, which also dumped water on the rocky slopes in a daring display of flying.

As sunset neared, after almost 12 hours of strife, a pall of smoke hung over the town of Grabouw – as a dozen street fires still belched choking black smoke from burning tyres and rubbish into the evening sky.

Cape Argus

Microlight crash victims identified

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Trygve Skorge of Cape Town and Anton Jonker of Table View, died when the light aircraft they were in crashed just after take-off.

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Cape Town - A pilot and his passenger, who died when the light aircraft they were in crashed just after take-off from a private airstrip near Durbanville on Thursday, have been identified.

They were microlight flying instructor Trygve Skorge, 50, of Cape Town and Anton Jonker, 27, of Table View.

Skorge operated his company, Aquila Microlight Safaris, from a private airstrip on the farm of Wintervogel, where the craft crashed shortly after take-off on Thursday morning at 6.30am.

The plane burst into flames after impact.

Jonker’s brother, who has not been named, was at the airstrip at the time and would have flown after him, said farm owner Andries W van Dijk on Thursday afternoon.

“It was terrible. He was very shocked. They heard a loud bang and rushed to go have a look. They found the aircraft engulfed in flames,” Van Dijk said.

Van Dijk said Skorge’s mother, who lives in Cape Town, and sister, who was on holiday here from Joburg, also later arrived at the scene.

Skorge had rented a shed and the use of the airstrip, Van Dijk said.

Wintervogel is near the R304 between Klipheuwel and Stellenbosch and falls within the Swartland Municipality.

Police from Malmesbury and Philadelphia were at the scene.

Skorge not only flew microlights professionally, but also described himself as a photographer, actor and artist.

He was known for acting the role of Vincent van Gogh in a television advertisement recently.

On his Facebook page, the former Swede had posted numerous photographs, including aerial pictures taken while flying, and several self-portraits and photographs taken during a visit to a Masai village in Kenya.

There were also some photographs he posted of works of art he created.

According to people who knew Skorge on the farm, he had a son who lived in Germany, but he was single.

Jonker lived in Table View, but originally came from Edenvale in Gauteng.

Witnesses said the plane crashed almost immediately after take-off.

Police liaison officer Warrant Officer November Filander said the aircraft had burst into flames after impact. The wreckage lay on open ground near the edge of the airfield. No buildings were damaged.

Police would open an inquest docket, but the whole investigation was to be taken over by the Civil Aviation Authority, Filander said.

henri.duplessis@inl.co.za

Cape Argus

Family, friends bid farewell to Commins

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“Nothing could’ve prepared me for the searing pain of losing my father,” Donne Commins, daughter of John Commins, told friends, relatives and members of the cricketing fraternity, who gathered to pay their respects.

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Cape Town - “Nothing could’ve prepared me for the searing pain of losing my father,” Donne Commins, daughter of John Commins, told friends, relatives and members of the cricketing fraternity, including Mark Boucher and JP Duminy, who gathered to pay their respects to the former Western Province Union cricketer on Thursday.

Commins was murdered in his Newlands home last Tuesday after three men climbed through an open bedroom window and tied up him and his wife before ransacking his house.

The funeral was held for the 71-year-old at the St Michael’s Church in Rondebosch.

Commins had always treasured his time at church and could often be seen minutes after the service, sitting with his eyes closed and reflecting back on his life.

Over 200 people filled the pews as the Commins family reminisced about their time with him.

While his nephew John, who is overseas, could not make it to the funeral, a letter from the former Proteas cricketer was read out loud.

“I will miss our conversations where we sorted out all of South African sports problems,” said John. “Rest in peace JC1.”

Commins’s son Greg was overcome with emotion, choking back tears as he listed everything his father had taught him. “Always be modest, never think you are alone,” said Greg. “Stand up for the weak, appreciate sunsets. We’re going to miss you Buster,” he concluded.

Donne said she would always remember her father with a pair of braai tongs in his right hand and a glass of red wine in his left. The “humble businessman” treasured the simple moments in life,sitting around the fire and chatting with his family.

Donne joked about some of the frugal tips her father passed on to her.

“Never open a mini-bar at a hotel,” she joked. “Never go out for coffee when there’s coffee at home and always buy at factory shops.”

kieran.legg@inl.co.za

Cape Argus

Farmers, unions set to meet

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Police continued patrols on the N1 at De Doorns ahead of talks between farmers and unions, following violent protests.

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Police continued patrols on the N1 at De Doorns ahead of talks between farmers and unions on Friday, following violent protests earlier in the week.

The national road, which remained closed to traffic, was quiet.

Rocks, glass and spent rubber bullet casings littered the road following running clashes between officers and protesters the previous two days.

The talks between individual farmers and unions were expected to take place near the town later on Friday.

The Cape Orchards Company (COC) representing 12 farms in De Doorns agreed to the talks with, among others, the Congress of SA Trade Unions (Cosatu), the Food and Allied Workers Union (Fawu) and the Bawsi Agricultural Workers Union of SA (Bawusa).

“These discussions are separate to the engagements we've been having with Agri-SA,” Cosatu Western Cape secretary Tony Ehrenreich said in a media briefing on Thursday.

“What we are now talking here is a deal with the table grape (farmers) and some related groups...” he said.

COC chairman Gerhard de Kock said he invited 28 farmers to Friday's meeting.

“I believe that the groups should come forward, as they've indicated to me that they are prepared to talk about a settlement deal,” said de Kock.

On Thursday, police used a water cannon and fired rubber bullets and stun grenades in an attempt to disperse thousands of strikers who pelted them with stones.

The strike by seasonal workers to have their R69 daily wage increased to R150 - which began on August 27 last year, and was called off on December 4 - resumed on Wednesday. - Sapa

Drugs, cash worth R1m seized in bust

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A tip-off led cops to seize drugs and cash with a combined value of R1m and arrest two suspected dealers on the Cape Flats, Western Cape police said.

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Cape Town - A tip-off led police to seize drugs and cash with a combined value of R1 million and arrest two suspected dealers on the Cape Flats, Western Cape police said.

Warrant Officer November Filander said police found 301 yellow capsules containing cocaine, tik, blocks of cocaine, a scale as well as cash at a house in Ilitha Park, Lingelethu West.

“Our members arrested a 33-year-old Nigerian male and a South African female, 30, at the house.

The suspects will appear in the Khayelitsha Magistrate's Court on Monday on drug related charges. - Sapa

De Doorns strikers welcome talks

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Some striking farmworkers welcomed talks between unions and farm bosses, following two days of violent protest action.

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De Doorns, Western Cape - Some striking farmworkers welcomed talks between unions and farm bosses on Friday, following two days of violent protest action.

The individual farmers agreed to a meeting organised by Cape Orchards Company (COC) chairman Gerhard de Kock.

The COC represents 12 farms in the De Doorns Hex River Valley, which together produce approximately three million boxes of table grapes a year.

“We are glad they (farmers) are willing to negotiate,” 29-year old farmworker Johannes Links told Sapa as he stood on the side of the N1 highway in De Doorns on Friday.

The area had been the epicentre of violent clashes between protesters and police on Thursday.

It was quiet on Friday with police patrolling the highway, which remained closed to traffic.

Links said he had worked on farms in the area for the past 16 years.

He rubbished claims by farmers who said they could not afford to meet wage demands of R150 a day.

“They make more and more profit from our work every year... they are not the losers, we lose out,” Links said.

Workers are earning a minimum wage of R69 a day.

“Our parents struggled to make ends meet, we are struggling... now we are trying to make things right to secure our children's future,” said Links.

He said if farmers were not willing to budge, workers would continue the strike until “the grapes rotted”.

It was harvesting season at the vineyards, but very few workers had arrived to pack the grapes.

The faster the farmers gave them a good answer, the faster they would stop rioting, he said.

Police were monitoring the situation in various areas in the Western Cape.

Police spokesman Andre Traut said at least 118 people had been arrested on public violence related charges since Wednesday. - Sapa

‘Oliphant must step up’

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“Her deafening silence in the face of this crisis must be challenged.”

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Cape Town - Labour Minister Mildred Oliphant must act decisively to stop violent farmworker strikes in the Western Cape, the provincial government said on Friday.

“Her deafening silence in the face of this crisis must be challenged,” said Western Cape premier Helen Zille and provincial agricultural MEC Gerrit van Rensburg in a joint statement.

They said that Oliphant should not “hide” behind calls to follow official processes.

“It is incumbent on the labour minister to make the first move in defusing the situation, through visible and proactive engagement.”

The strike by seasonal farmworkers to have their minimum R69 daily wage increased to R150 - which began late August last year, and was called off at the beginning of December - resumed on Wednesday in De Doorns.

Running clashes between protesters and the police have seen hundreds arrested for public violence and the police using a water cannon, rubber bullets and stun grenades in an attempt to disperse thousands of strikers. The N1 had also been closed.

Zille and Van Rensburg said Oliphant needed to get all the parties involved into discussions as soon as possible so that the harvest season was not affected.

“Failure to do so will see very severe consequences, not only for the Western Cape but for South Africa as a whole.”

On Friday, Oliphant suggested it was farmers who needed to come to the negotiation table.

“I am not convinced that there is a serious attempt by farmers to negotiate,” said Oliphant in a statement.

She said farm owners were instead insisting on a sectoral determination process which would hold hearings from next week to re-look at the R69 a day minimum wage.

On Friday, the Cape Orchards Company (COC) representing 12 farms in De Doorns agreed to talk with various unions.

Meanwhile, the National Employers' Association of SA (Neasa) warned that strike action could not lead to long lasting changes.

“Industrial action may force employers to make immediate concessions, but it cannot secure long term employment,” Neasa CEO Gerhard Papenfus said in a statement.

He said that wage increases had to take “economic realities” into account.

“Any increases which do not fit into a sustainable business model will lead to all kinds of undesired consequences, which in turn will result in unemployment.”

Papenfus gave the example of the wage negotiations that took place in the mining sector after it was beset by wildcat strikes.

He warned that higher wages could also lead to retrenchments.

“One can also not ignore the fact that low earners are finding it extremely difficult to make ends meet. However, it's also true that the millions of unemployed South Africans pose an even bigger threat in the medium to long term,” he said. - Sapa


Farmers must negotiate - Labour Minister

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Farmers must come to the negotiation table to help end the violent strike by farmworkers, Labour Minister Mildred Oliphant said.

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Western Cape - Farmers must come to the negotiation table to help end the violent strike by Western Cape farmworkers, Labour Minister Mildred Oliphant said on Friday.

“I am not convinced that there is a serious attempt by farmers to negotiate,” said Oliphant in a statement.

“I would also like to call on the farmers to engage their workers on the best way forward. At the end of the day, the main thing is negotiation between employer and employee.”

Police continued patrols on the N1 at De Doorns on Friday ahead of talks between farmers and unions, following violent protests earlier in the week.

The national road, which remained closed to traffic, was quiet.

Rocks, glass and spent rubber bullet casings littered the road following running clashes between officers and protesters the previous two days.

The talks between individual farmers and unions were expected to take place near the town later on Friday.

On Thursday, police used a water cannon and fired rubber bullets and stun grenades in an attempt to disperse thousands of strikers who pelted them with stones on the N1 in De Doorns.

The strike by seasonal workers to have their minimum R69 daily wage increased to R150 - which began on August 27 last year, and was called off on December 4 - resumed on Wednesday.

Oliphant said that there needed to be “exemplary” leadership among the strikers to curb the violence.

“While farmworkers have every right to demonstrate, violence destroys their cause.”

She said that the current strike action was “unprocedural” and therefore the workers were not protected by law.

“They (labour leaders) have to think carefully about what they are exposing workers to, and whether in the end (if) it is worth their while.”

Dozens of people have been arrested since the violence flared up again this week.

A total of 271 workers were arrested for public violence during November's strikes, the labour ministry said.

There was also damage to property and at the time, farmers hired private security to protect their land.

Oliphant said that her Director-General Nkosinathi Nhleko's recent attempt to broker a peace deal was thwarted by the farm owners' representatives.

She said at the time, farming association Agri-SA declared it did not have a mandate to negotiate, and also felt the demands were “unrealistic” and would lead to financial problems for farmers.

“At the same time, farmers in the Western Cape have not been forthcoming in terms of putting a counter offer on the table.”

Oliphant said farm owners were instead insisting on a sectoral determination process.

Previously the process set the minimum wage for farmworkers at R69 a day.

However, at the beginning of this year, the minister was approached by workers' representatives, who said that not enough people were canvassed in the Western Cape when determining this figure.

Ministerial spokesman Musa Zondi said that from next week, new hearings would be held for anyone interested in discussing the minimum wage in the agricultural sector.

“It's a process of give and take,” said Zondi.

He said that while there was a “sense” that R69 appeared to be too low, it also should be remembered that the figure was not “thumb sucked” by the minister but, rather, had been determined after a thorough process.

On Friday, the Cape Orchards Company (COC) representing 12 farms in De Doorns agreed to the talks with, among others, the Congress of SA Trade Unions (Cosatu), the Food and Allied Workers Union (Fawu) and the Bawsi Agricultural Workers Union of SA (Bawusa).

Cosatu Western Cape secretary Tony Ehrenreich said these were considered separate talks with individuals rather than settlements which could be implemented across the sector. - Sapa

Eyewitness relives paraglider’s fall

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Shaun Farrow described the impact when a paraglider smashed into an outside wall and gate of a house in Fresnaye.

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Cape Town - “It sounded like a truck hitting another vehicle.”

That is how traumatised house painter Shaun Farrow described the impact when a 50-year-old German tourist flying a paraglider smashed into an outside wall and gate of a house in Fresnaye on Thursday.

Tourist Frank Till, 50, survived the impact, but later died of his injuries, despite the best efforts of paramedics who arrived at the scene only a few minutes after the accident.

Till and other flyers jumped from the lower launch site on Lion’s Head yesterday afternoon and the aim was to land on open ground close to the Sea Point promenade.

But Till experienced severe turbulence, which forced him off course.

This morning, a still shocked Farrow described how he and his two colleagues saw the paraglider fleetingly as he soared overhead before Till hit the wall and gate.

“I think his chute was tangled and out of control. His head hit the wall and his body went into the gate below, slamming it open,” Farrow said.

“We were painting the house across the street and we ran over immediately to see if we could help. He was still alive at that stage and he was holding his hand over his nose, but he was turning blue.

“I suggested we should put something under his head and cut the cords of the chute that were tangled around him, but other people said we should not touch him.”

Farrow said the flyer must have come in at a speed of between 40 and 50km/h.

“The paramedics were at the scene very quickly. They treated him intensively and seemed to try to clear his nose and mouth and, initially, his colour seemed to improve.

“They found his smashed cellphone. I offered to put the sim card in my phone and try to find numbers, but it showed up nothing when I did so.”

Farrow said the incident had affected him badly.

“This morning I came here; I told my girlfriend I did not want to walk past this place again. It is so sad. Imagine, they had to tell his family he was dead and that while he was meant to have fun on holiday.”

Cape Argus

SA man dies in Vietnam after insect bite

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A Cape Town yoga and fitness instructor has died in Vietnam after being bitten by an unidentified insect.

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Cape Town - A Cape Town yoga and fitness instructor has died in Vietnam after being bitten by an unidentified insect.

The family and friends of Paul Underwood say they were shocked as he died only hours after contacting them to tell them that he was in hospital.

Underwood, 39, had been enjoying a holiday in Phong Nha Farmstay in Vietnam when he contracted a virus after being bitten by an insect.

“He drove to a hospital in Danang to receive treatment (on Monday) because he had a high fever and wasn’t feeling well. He (Underwood) was feeling too sick to travel all the way so Ben (a friend) suggested he stop at the Hoan My International Clinic in Hue,” Paul Henderson, who was with Underwood at the time, wrote in a letter to inform relatives of his quick deterioration.

“Paul’s breathing was heavy and he was sweating. He told me he had been bitten by an insect on December 26,” he said.

“He (Underwood) had a discolouration on his left calf, which must have come from whatever toxins or virus had entered his bloodstream.” He said he could feel the toxins in his leg and arm and was then taken to ICU for tests, Henderson said.

“By the afternoon, it appeared that the virus had begun to spread quite quick. Discolouration appeared on other limbs and he was getting pins and needles in his fingers. At 7.30pm Paul told me he had notified a friend back home about his condition.”

Henderson said that, nearly 30 minutes later, doctors had put him on a breathing apparatus. “I was in the room with Paul as the doctors tried to get his heart started again. Doctors worked on him for what seemed like forever and I remember the sorrow when they finally stopped.”

His friend Michael Stevenson left Cape Town yesterday in a bid to collect his remains. He said Underwood, who was a free spirit, had travelled widely and had enjoyed meditation and surfing.

When the Cape Times contacted his mother, Naideen Underwood, she said: “I’ve been getting a lot of phone calls of encouragement from family and friends. I’m still in shock because it all happened so suddenly.”

barbara.maregele@inl.co.za

Cape Times

ANC calls for end to farm strikes

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The ANC has called on Western Cape farmworkers to suspend their strike.

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Cape Town - The ANC on Friday called on Western Cape farmworkers to suspend their strike.

“The ANC calls on Cosatu together with Fawu and Bawusa to facilitate the suspension and assist labourers to enter into talks in order to reach an amicable solution,” Western Cape African National Congress chairman Marius Fransman said in a statement.

He said criminals had used the strike and ensuing protests to “loot and perpetuate violence.

“The ANC respects the right of workers to organise, but in the light of more goodwill amongst some farmers and unruly elements hijacking the present strike, the ANC calls for cool off time and room for talks.”

Fransman said farmers, under the auspices of Agri-SA, should use the possible suspension of the strike to hold talks with workers.

“This strike needs to end and a lasting solution found or the unintended consequences could mount on all sides.”

Fransman's comments came after the Congress of SA Trade Unions announced some farmers had agreed to settlement talks.

“The problem is not the minimum wage, but farmers who refuse to pay fair wages above the bare minimum. This has led to the untenable dispute.”

Meanwhile police were continuing patrols on the N1 at De Doorns, following the violence on Wednesday and Thursday.

The national road, which remained closed to traffic, was quiet on Friday. Rocks, glass and spent rubber bullet casings littered the road.

Police spokesperson Lt-Col Andre Traut said at least 118 people had been arrested across the Western Cape so far. - Sapa

Caution urged over fire displaced

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The IFP has questioned plans to move 854 fire displaced families into houses for people on the housing waiting list.

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Cape Town - The Western Cape government's relocation of 854 families who lost their homes in a fire BM Section, Khayelitsha, needed to be handled with caution, the IFP said on Friday.

The party was “encouraged” by the help the province was offering the families, Inkatha Freedom Party spokesman on housing Phendulani Biyase said in a statement.

However, the plan needed to be “approached with extreme caution”.

“Although the IFP is not against assistance being offered to the Khayelitsha residents, we question the wisdom of moving them to housing that residents of Mfuleni have been on the waiting list for,” Biyase said.

He claimed that some Mfuleni residents had threatened violence because they felt they had been overlooked.

“Another question arises as to what will happen when residents are asked to leave and they refuse to go,” he said.

On New Year's Day a fire swept through BM Section, destroying hundreds of shacks.

Luyanda Ngcebetshane, Sivuyile Gqodo, Nkosiyako Lako, and Zukile Magada were killed in the blaze. A fifth person, Lunga Krexe, later died in hospital. - Sapa

Fair labour practice bears fruit

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Adriaan Wolfaard pays employees above minimum wage, encourages worker representation and abides by labour practices.

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Cape Town - Adriaan Wolfaard not only pays his employees above the minimum wage, he encourages worker representation and abides by labour practices.

Despite this he became a victim of the farmworker strike after he lost 1 000 bins when his packing house was fire-bombed in November.

Wolfaard runs the Verdun Farm in Prince Alfred Hamlet which grows and exports stoned fruit to the UK and Canada.

Although some workers have threatened strike action recently, after thousands of others went on strike in the Boland over low pay, they believe their farm is among the best paying in the area.

Workers have told Wolfaard they will wait for the Department of Labour’s Sectoral Determination before taking any action.

Women on the farm earn R83 a day and men, who work an extra hour, R93 a day. The women work nine hours during peak season. Permanent and seasonal workers have the same rates. Wolfaard said he preferred this to avoid dissension. Increases were negotiated by a farmworker committee elected by workers.

“Workers feel that they should be earning more and I agree with them. I feel that it need not be R150,” he said.

He has kept in contact with the committee to ensure that he knows what’s going on.

“We are coping. We are managing the situation as best we can. It (the strike) came at a time when we are vulnerable.”

The company also provides housing for four families and the land has since been transferred to them.

Yesterday the farm was short-staffed after many workers who do the picking had left, apparently because of intimidation. There are normally seven teams of about 15 people each.

Wolfaard’s son, Peter, who helps with the running of the farm, said workers had left early yesterday after threats were made against their lives.

But for others work did not stop. Randall Maart, 22, has been employed at the farm for four years but has been working on farms since he was eight years old. He worked his way up from pelleting to head of administration.

He earns R180 a day and helps his grandmother with household expenses. Maart plans to do a course in management to help realise his ambition of managing the packing house.

“Working here is great. The people here (owners) encourage you to follow your dreams. You have to work hard because there are opportunities for you to move up,” Maart said.

Before going to the Verdun Farm, Karel Titus was a driver in Endevue near Ceres. He has been employed at the farm for about five years. At his previous job he earned about R60 a day but now earns R103 a day.

“Things are much better now,” he said.

Cape Times

Progress in talks with farmers: Cosatu

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Town-by-town discussions with Western Cape farmers are progressing well, Cosatu in the province said.

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Cape Town - Town-by-town discussions with Western Cape farmers are progressing well, Cosatu in the province said on Friday.

“We hope to get agreement with many of the farmers over the weekend,” Western Cape Congress of SA Trade Unions secretary Tony Ehrenreich told reporters in Worcester, about 34km from De Doorns, where violent protests erupted on Wednesday.

Ehrenreich said discussions were happening between worker unions and some individual farmers, with the assistance of the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration.

“There are good farmers, but there are still bad farmers who don't want to negotiate and raise wages above R69 per day,” he said.

Seasonal workers wanted R150 per day. Ehrenreich said they were willing to compromise to around R110 per day.

“We will continue to call for a boycott of bad farmers and help good farmers to get more market access.”

The individual farmers agreed to a meeting organised by Cape Orchards Company chairman Gerhard de Kock. The company represents 12 farms in the De Doorns Hex River Valley, which together produce approximately three million boxes of table grapes a year.

De Doorns had been the epicentre of violent clashes between protesters and police on Wednesday and Thursday. It was quiet on Friday, with police patrolling the highway, which remained closed to traffic.

Police spokesman Lt-Col Andre Traut said at least 118 people had been arrested on public violence related charges since Wednesday. - Sapa


Heart op patient doing well

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The 59-year-old woman who became the world's first patient to undergo the non-surgical closure of a leaking heart valve is doing well.

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Cape Town - The 59-year-old woman who became the world's first patient to undergo the non-surgical closure of a leaking heart valve was doing well in hospital, Mediclinic SA said on Friday.

“(Marianna Cronjé) was transferred from the critical care unit to a general nursing unit this 1/8Friday 3/8 morning,” the hospital said in a statement.

Doctors performed the operation on Saturday, through a thin tube inserted into her groin. She was born with her heart on the right side of her chest.

Cronjé, from Stellenbosch, had rheumatic fever when she was young, and had undergone four open-heart operations in the past 40 years - the last one in 2000.

When her heart valve started leaking, doctors could not operate on her again and her condition deteriorated to the point where she could do nothing for herself.

Her cardiologist, Dr Hellmuth Weich, would present her case to the World Paediatric and Adult Cardiology Congress in Cape Town in February. - Sapa

Cosatu must fix this – ANC

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The ANC has told Ehrenreich to call for the immediate end of the farmworker's strike.

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Western Cape - The ANC has told union boss Tony Ehrenreich to call for the immediate end of the farmworker’s strike, with ANC provincial leader Marius Fransman telling Ehrenreich: “Leadership will have to lead.”

But Ehrenreich, who is also the ANC leader in the Cape Town city council, hit back that it was “not Cosatu’s strike to call on or off”.

The strike, which has at its root farmworkers’ demands for a R150-a-day minimum wage, reignited on Wednesday and quickly became violent with rubber bullets fired at stone-throwing protesters, who also torched vehicles and property.

On Friday, however, the action had calmed somewhat, with only pockets of unrest reported.

 

Fransman was firm on Friday that Cosatu, the Food and Allied Workers Union (Fawu) and the Building and Allied Workers Union of SA (Bawusa) should suspend the strike, and help workers begin talks with their employers.

He also had harsh words for farmers who spent large amounts on high-end security to guard their property, describing the guards as “nothing but mercenaries shooting at innocent farmworkers”. But he later admitted there was “goodwill” among some farmers, and said the time had come for a “cool-off time and room for talks”.

 

“Cosatu, under the leadership of comrade Tony last Sunday, was leading the process of the build-up to the strike, and he indicated that they were there giving direction to the process. He must now publicly call for immediate suspension of the strike. Leadership will have to lead, even if it is difficult,” Fransman said.

Ehrenreich’s response was curt: “This is not Cosatu’s strike to call on or off. The workers are certainly not going to take kindly to us trying to call it off at this stage because there is no agreement yet.”

On negotiations with farmers, he added that Cosatu had made good progress, on a town-by-town basis. The CCMA had also come on board to aid in negotiations.

“Many farmers are coming forward to negotiate, but De Doorns is still a problem. There is a big divide between those farmers who are willing to negotiate and those who want to continue paying the R69 per day.”

 

Ehrenreich warned that if agreement was not reached soon, the strike could escalate “out of control”. Workers would not back off before a settlement was struck.

Premier Helen Zille also stepped into the fray, saying

that Labour Minister Mildred Oliphant’s “deafening silence” should be challenged.

“She needs to bring together the relevant stakeholders to facilitate discussions, and reach an agreement that will calm tensions and ensure that the harvest season is not disrupted,” said Zille.

“This crisis will very seriously impact on our food export industry, and the hundreds of thousands of people dependent on it,” she said.

Oliphant’s spokesman Musa Zondi responded that resolution of the strike, now in its fourth day was in the hands of employers and employees.

“There isn’t much the minister can do, except to keep appealing to the parties to talk. But obviously we are encouraged by the fact that some farm owners have decided to break ranks and say they will negotiate with workers on their farms,” Zondi said.

Zondi also took a swipe at AgriSA over its statement that it did not have a mandate to enter negotiations and was awaiting a sectoral determination, saying it was throwing a spanner in the works.

“Sectoral determination and collective bargaining between the employer and employee are two separate processes. All sectoral determination does is to set up the bare minimum amount that an employee can be paid in that sector.”

However, Hans van der Merwe, AgriSA president, called Zondi’s claims “nonsense”.

“We have organisations as members. None of our affiliates have a mandate to negotiate on behalf of their members on wages, therefore we also do not have a mandate.”

“If we did fall under the Labour Relations Act with a central bargaining council, then it would have legal enforcement ability, but that is not the case. What we did do, and are still doing, is urging our farmers to negotiate with workers at farm level.”

Meanwhile, Western Cape Disaster Risk Management head Colin Deiner said Friday’s strike was marked by only “sporadic incidents”.

A five-year-old child was slightly injured in the hand by a rubber bullet in Ceres. There had also been activity in Villiersdorp, De Doorns and Grabouw. “There have been protests all over, but they are very small,” Deiner said.

Six people were arrested on Friday, bringing the total arrests to 124. – Additional reporting by Daneel Knoetze

Weekend Argus

Metro cops get ready for duty in schools

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Metro police who have been trained to make schools safer for children at selected schools in Cape Town will report for duty for the first time when the new academic year begins.

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Cape Town - Metro police who have been trained to make schools safer for children at selected schools in Cape Town will report for duty for the first time when the new academic year begins on Wednesday.

Metro police chief Wayne le Roux, said the School Resource Officers (SROs) had received extensive training last September from the National Association of School Resource Officers, an NGO in the US.

“With the financial assistance of Violence Prevention through Urban Upgrading, we provided additional training in conflict resolution, communications, project management, computer skills, crime prevention through environmental planning, and broken windows theory,” said Le Roux.

“The officers conducted surveys of the most challenging environmental factors that might impinge on their work. At this stage we’re preparing and working behind the scenes. It’s going back to basics for them. They will need to build relationships and trust with the pupils.”

While the city’s long-term plan is to have a School Resource Officer at every school, they’re starting with six officers at six city high schools. They start work on Wednesday at Oscar Mpetha High School in Nyanga, Sizimisele High School in Khayelitsha, Bishop Lavis High School, Lotus High School, Chrystal High School in Hanover Park, and Phoenix High School in Manenberg.

Principals said they were “very excited” about the programme.

Dominic Maruping, principal of Sizimisele High where teenagers attacked one another with pangas in gang fights last year, said the presence of an officer would be “a great help”.

“His visibility alone will be a very good thing. He will be able to communicate with the children, provide counselling, and share his knowledge and experience… He will also be of great assistance to parents who sometimes don’t know what to do,” Maruping said.

Dumile Mawisa, principal of Oscar Mpetha High, said he and his school would do their best to make the programme a success. “Anything related to improving safety and security at our school is very much welcome. Schools can definitely benefit from the project.”

Shafiek Abrahams, principal of Phoenix High, said the officer’s presence would benefit the Manenberg community as a whole: “As a school we will tackle the problem of the drop-out rate… our SRO will be doing house visits. The learners who got to meet the officer last year… like that they have someone to protect them, and share ideas… (on improving) the community,” he said.

JP Smith, mayoral committee member for safety and security, said that apart from safety at the schools, the aim of the programme was to establish a youth and civilian academy. “The SROs will be at the schools permanently, working on the safe-movement corridor to and from the schools – where officers patrol, where the lighting is best, and where there are CCTV cameras.

“They will make sure that if there’s violence on school grounds they quickly summon other metro police to respond.”

sibongakonke.mama@inl.co.za

Weekend Argus

YCLSA calls for peace during strike

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The Young Communist League of South Africa (YCLSA) has called for peace among Western Cape farmworkers during their strike.

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Johannesburg - The Young Communist League of South Africa (YCLSA) on Saturday called for peace among Western Cape farmworkers during their strike.

“Workers need to be disciplined or they risk loosing much needed popular support in broader society,” spokesman Khaya Xaba said in a statement.

Farmworkers in De Doorns in the Western Cape want their minimum R69 daily wage increased to R150. The strike began on August 27

last year, and was called off on December 4 and resumed on Wednesday.

He said the YCLSA have consistently supported the legitimate demands of the striking workers and would continue to push for increased wages as well as an increased minimum wages.

However, workers and their leadership should avoid being affiliated with hooliganism, criminal vandalism and looting.

“We are extremely concerned by reports of violence emerging from divisions between workers and union representatives. We believe that workers cannot afford to open themselves to accusations of intimidation or violence.”

Since the strike resumed on Wednesday the De Doorns had been the epicentre of violent clashes between protesters and police.

On Thursday police used a water cannon, fired rubber bullets and stun grenades in an attempt to disperse thousands of strikers who pelted them with stones.

On Saturday morning a truck was hijacked and set alight.

Xaba echoed SA Communist Party general-secretary Blade Nzimande’s comments that the premier of the Western Cape lacked leadership.

Earlier on Saturday Nzimande said premier and Democratic Alliance leader Helen Zille must not act like a “cry baby” about the farmworkers strike in De Doorns.

“I have a message for Helen Zille. Do not be like a cry-baby asking national government to intervene,” he told several thousand ANC members gathered at Kings Park stadium in Durban for the African National Congress's 101st anniversary celebrations.

Xaba said Zille either feared the workers or did not care about them.

“She has shown that she is an active supporter of the minority elite farm owner community.”

Spokesman for the premier Zak Mbhele said Nzimande's comments could only be ignored.

“No thinking South African would take them seriously.”

He called Xaba's comments complete nonsense.

“The interests of farmworkers are a key concern for the Western Cape government.”

He said that was why they have called for Labour Minister Mildred Oliphant to show leadership and intervene in the farmworker strike.

“The longer the violence and disruptions continue, the more damage the farming sector will suffer, which will harm exports and ultimately the jobs and livelihoods of farmworkers.”

On Saturday the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) offered to intervene in the.

“We have the authority to intervene, and the skills and experience to mediate a solution,” executive director Nerine Kahn said in a statement.

The CCMA said they were in a position to mediate a binding short-term agreement while the parties wait for a sectoral wage determination by the labour department. - Sapa

CCMA offers to intervene in strike

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The Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration has offered to intervene in the strike by farmworkers.

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The Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration has offered to intervene in the strike by farmworkers in the Western Cape over wage increases.

“We have the authority to intervene, and the skills and experience to mediate a solution,” executive director Nerine Kahn said in a statement on Saturday.

“We have offered our services - which we are empowered to do in matters of public interest - and trust that the parties will respond positively to our offer.”

The CCMA said they were in a position to mediate a binding short-term agreement while the parties wait for a sectoral wage determination by the labour department.

Farmworkers in De Doorns in the Western Cape want their minimum R69 daily wage increased to R150. The strike began on August 27

last year, and was called off on December 4 and resumed on Wednesday.

Police spokesman Warrant Officer November Filander said the situation in De Doorns had calmed down after a hijacking on Saturday morning.

“At 6am today (Saturday) three suspects hijacked a truck while the driver was waiting for farmworkers he had to pick up,” Filander said.

“They took the truck to the Stofland informal settlement where they petrol bombed the truck which burned out totally. No one was injured and no arrests were made.”

The men were wearing balaclavas. Filander said police were monitoring the area.

The public hearings review relating to the farmworkers dispute is expected to start next week for revisions from April 1.

“If we can reach a collective agreement soon, it will not only begin to restore calm and ensure workers can go back to work,” Kahn said.

“It (the agreement) could also form the basis for a recommendation to the Minister of Labour and the Employment Conditions Commission.”

Kahn called on organised business and labour to consider their offer to use the mediation services.

“We believe the interests of employers, workers and farming communities will be best served through a mediated and negotiated outcome.”

On Friday, the Western Cape Congress of SA Trade Unions (Cosatu) said town-by-town discussions with farmers in the province was progressing well.

Cosatu provincial secretary Tony Ehrenreich said workers were willing to compromise to around R110 per day.

The individual farmers agreed to a meeting organised by Cape Orchards Company chairman Gerhard de Kock. The company represents 12 farms in the De Doorns Hex River Valley, which together produce approximately three million boxes of table grapes a year. - Sapa

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