E-NEWS BULLETIN 29 March 2018Links to present possibilities
Editorial
Around this time about 2000 years ago, Pontius Pilate was considering the fate of one Jesus Christ. Much of our present-day preoccupations seem to be finding suitable prosecutors and messiahs to people modern versions of the same trope so that we may be able to argue our points with the righteous indignation that conviction craves. Like casting Julian Assange against US imperial masters and Facebook’s Zuckerberg starring as Judas. Or seeing in Putin’s Russia a liberatory alternative to a unipolar world dominated by Western powers. There is a tendency, as one opinion columnist included here puts it with reference to Facebook’s data mining, to stoke enough outrage to blind us to the real politics at play. Excepting of course Australians; there was no redeeming the land down under this week.
Statistics South Africa has released a report on the top 10 leading causes of death in South Africa, based on all death notification forms maintained by the Department of Home Affairs. The results on mortality levels and trends indicate that mortality has continued to decline. businesstech.co.za/
In the week of 12 to 18 March there were 65 land occupations, according to the Mayco member responsible for informal settlements Xanthea Limberg. She says “large-scale orchestrated land invasions” are taking place. groundup.org.za/
Chair of Icasa Rubben Mohlaloga and five others were accused of defrauding the Land Bank to the tune of R6m when he was chair of Parliament’s portfolio committee on agriculture. The Icasa Act prohibits anyone convicted of fraud from serving as one of its councillors. businesslive.co.za/
SAFTU is outraged by yet another serious allegation that former president Jacob Zuma is being investigated by the Hawks for allegedly accepting a R1m cash bribe from a Western Cape abalone dealer in exchange for keeping Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Senzeni Zokwana in his Cabinet. saftu.org.za/
The South African Federation of Trade Unions joins the growing chorus of people demanding that Parliament gives more time to debate the Minimum Wage Bill and amendments to the labour laws, and to properly consult those most affected – South Africa’s workers. saftu.org.za/
On 27 February the Constitutional Court handed down judgment in a case that clarifies the correct interpretation of rules governing the CCMA and how a court should determine whether a dispute has in fact been conciliated before being heard by the Labour Court. groundup.org.za/
We are witnessing mass outrage over certain actions or non-actions of Facebook and a British political consulting firm, Cambridge Analytica, regarding the use of personal data for political messaging during the U.S. presidential elections. But digging into the issue, it is difficult to see what is really novel in the current disclosures. thehindu.com/
For the greater part of a decade the US, the UK and the EU have been carrying out a campaign to undermine and overthrow the Russia government and in particular to oust President Putin. Fundamental issues are at stake including the real possibility of a nuclear war. popularresistance.org/
Where weeks ago it was suggested that the US would pass $30-billion worth of tariffs on Chinese goods, today Trump doubled the figure to $60-billion. Trump has bypassed the US Congress to take unilateral action in a trade war that most of the Congress and the US Chamber of Commerce does not support. eurasiafuture.com/
Under the deal, workers will be allowed to reduce their working week to just 28 hours for a temporary period of up to two years. Employers will not be able to block individual workers from taking up the offer. telegraph.co.uk/
An attack on Mozambique human rights defender, Ericino de Salema, which took place in Maputo on the 27th March 2018 has gained international attention. Salema, a journalist, a rights activist and political analyst was kidnapped by unknown gunmen in the country’s capital city. wwmp.org.za/
Local news from Khayelitsha, East London, Port Elizabeth, Alexandra and Orange Farm in English and isiXhosa
We’ve ended up with an internet built not for us – but for corporations, political parties, and the state’s increasingly nebulous ‘security’ demands. We need to better understand this problem so that we can challenge it. opendemocracy.net/
Uber, the embodiment of the sharing economy, was once again propelled into the spotlight on March 19, 2018, after one of its self-driving cars struck and killed a pedestrian in Arizona. truth-out.org/
Disclaimer:
This newsletter is intended as a special and alternative news, information and knowledge source for all who are interested in issues relevant to promoting political, social and economic equality and the eradication of poverty. The articles contained herein are obtained from various electronic media platforms and do not necessarily reflect the views of WWMP.
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