Residents in Durban fear a repeat explosion, at a plant that stores petroleum and highly toxic and volatile chemicals.

Durban - The eThekwini municipality and Transnet have come under fire for poor communication to the public after a large spillage of petroleum chemicals at the Island View chemical storage area in Durban Harbour, on the boundary of several densely populated residential areas.

A strong smell of chemical fumes in the vicinity of Island View was reported on Monday, and on Tuesday scores of fire and emergency, police and official vehicles lined up outside the entrance to Cutler Complex, a national key point that contains more than 1 000 storage tanks for petroleum and chemicals, some of which are highly toxic or volatile.

Five years ago, hundreds of residents fled from their homes in nearby Fynnlands, Marlborough Park and the Bluff after an explosion lit up the night sky above the complex, creating a fireball visible from uMhlanga and shattering windows in several homes on the Bluff.

This week, despite the fumes and presence of emergency vehicles, it was not until Wednesday that city officials released a statement confirming that an undisclosed volume of hydrocarbons and water had been found in an emergency drain for hazardous material.

Officials said the chemicals had been sucked up and emptied into a ballast operated by Engen, although the exact source of the spill was under investigation. Desmond D’sa, of the South Durban Community Environmental Alliance, said he had been trying to find out since Tuesday what was happening, but eThekwini and Transnet officials had not responded to phone calls.

In frustration, he sent an e-mail to several officials asking for information. A senior eThekwini official responded, saying: “What is the issue, Des? Most staff are currently in meetings and are unable to take calls.”

When The Mercury contacted senior eThekwini environmental health official Neil Larratt, he referred queries to the city’s communications office. Larratt responded to e-mail queries via eThekwini spokesman Thabo Mofokeng, saying that neither the volume nor source of the leaked hydrocarbons was known.

To his knowledge, hydrocarbons had not leaked into the harbour and had been contained in the emergency drainage system.

Asked why the city had not issued a statement until Wednesday, Mofokeng said: “The event appeared to be fully contained with little possibility of off-site consequences, hence the need for widespread dissemination of information was not deemed necessary. The need to communicate with outside parties would normally be made by the emergency personnel on the scene, in consultation with city management.”

Transnet ports authority spokesman Zama Mncwabe said there was “no foreseeable impact on the environment and community”.

Although the statement was dated November 13, The Mercury did not receive it until Wednesday. According to D’Sa, residents were given “no information” and had to rely on unofficial sources.

Residents had been asking the city to develop a proper emergency evacuation and communications procedure since 1997, he said.

Apart from the major explosion at Island View in 2007, there have been a number of fuel and toxic chemical spillages in recent years.

In 2002, Island View was cordoned off after a rusty storage tank spilt tetra ethyl lead, a potent brain and nervous system toxin.

In September this year, there was a spill from a petrol line owned by Engen. The company said the source of the spill this week was being investigated and there was “no evidence that this points back to Engen”. Sapref, the other major petroleum handler in the harbour, referred queries to Transnet.

Other than petrol, a variety of fuels and other products are handled at Island View, including jet fuel, solvents, spirits, power paraffin, methylene chloride, vinyl formic acid, isopropylamine, propylene oxide, ethers and phenols. - The Mercury

Police in KZN are questioning the legitimacy of a claim that 10 women were being held captive in a container.

KwaZulu-Natal -

Police in KwaZulu-Natal are questioning the legitimacy of a claim that 10 women were being held captive in a container somewhere in the province, after their almost two-month investigation drew a blank.

Acting on information from an Nkandla woman who police “rescued” from a Pinetown post office, where she claimed to have gone to withdraw ransom money to give to her captors on September 26, a manhunt was launched to find the women – and the four men holding them against their will.

The women were being repeatedly raped, police were told. But there was no sign of them, police spokesman Colonel Vincent Mdunge, said oN Wednesday.

“Up to today there has not been a single parent who has come through to say their daughter could be one of those in this container.

“We even appealed to the public to report suspicious containers. Again, no one came forward,” Mdunge said. “We will now consider investigating further to establish if the initial complaint is legitimate.”

The complainant had claimed she was abducted from a taxi rank in Eshowe on September 12 and driven to a field and then to a container where other women were being held.

She said one woman who had tried to flee was shot dead and her body disposed of.

The complainant was rescued in Pinetown where she said had gone to withdraw R2 000, part of the ransom demanded by her captors.

The money was deposited by her worried family, who had been alerted.

Mdunge said police had worked tirelessly on the case and followed every lead that they could think of, but all their efforts have proved fruitless.

Speaking to the Daily News on Wednesday, the woman’s mother said she was doing very well considering what she had gone through. - Daily News

A South African medical malpractice law firm will apply for jurisdiction in the UK, to sue a hip implants manufacturer.

Durban - A South African medical malpractice law firm is set to apply for jurisdiction in the UK, where it plans to sue a British hip implants manufacturer on behalf of more than 120 claimants.

If given the go-ahead this could be one of the largest medical malpractice group action cases in that country.

For the past week, CP van Zyl Attorneys Incorporated have been hosting briefing sessions across the country where legal experts met members of the public who thought they may have been harmed by the metal-on-metal hip implant, made by Johnson & Johnson affiliate, DePuy.

Speaking in Durban on Wednesday, Sunelle van Heerden, a CP van Zyl consultant, said there were more than 120 South African claimants who had been harmed by the DePuy implants.

“We are receiving calls on an almost daily basis from patients who have been harmed by the implant and who have to undergo a second operation to replace the failed DePuy implant,” she said.

The operations were performed on more than 3 300 patients in South Africa between July 2003 and August 2010.

“DePuy admitted that the hip joints were faulty and recalled them in August 2010,” said Van Heerden.

“While they are willing to pay for another hip implant, there is a dispute about the compensation they are prepared to pay.”

She said initially only about eight cases would be taken to the UK court to establish a precedent on jurisdiction.

A ruling on this is expected in February or March.

The firm is working with an English legal team and has secured a British barrister, Hugh Preston QC, an expert litigator in the fields of medical negligence and product liability, to represent claimants in the group action in the UK.

“If the UK court finds in our favour, the rest of the cases will follow,” Van Heerden said.

Preston said the clients’ compensation would be based on their general pain and suffering, loss of income, and medical expenses – an amount previously estimated by the firm as ranging from R300 000 to R3 million. - Daily News

Dave Williams, the man convicted of conspiring to kill his wife will begin his fight to appeal both his conviction and sentence.

KwaZulu-Natal - Dave Williams, the man convicted of conspiring to kill his wife and sentenced to seven years in prison, was expected to begin his fight to appeal against both his conviction and sentence on Thursday.

Williams, 52, was hauled off to prison earlier this month for plotting to poison his “nagging and clingy” wife, Vino. The couple have been married for 21 years. They have two children.

Williams approached Xolani Madladla to kill Vino. Madladla contacted the police and Williams was then the subject of a sting operation by the Organised Crime Unit.

Warrant Officer Mack Makhanya acted as a “hit man” who was going to provide Williams with an “undetectable poison” to kill his wife.

Williams conspired to poison his wife between September 26 and October 4 last year. During this time he met Madladla and the “hit man” twice where the plot was discussed and recorded on a wiretap. These recordings were played in court.

Williams pleaded not guilty to a charge of conspiracy to commit murder and maintained he wanted the poison to commit suicide and that at no stage did he intend to kill his wife.

He gave evidence that he felt inadequate as a man because he was unable to provide for his family, and that his wife's “nagging and clinginess” was driving him crazy.

Magistrate Mpume Linda rejected Williams’s version and found the most chilling factor was that Williams had plotted to kill his wife since 2009.

Williams’s attorney, Nasen Naicker, has confirmed that he will apply to the court for Williams to be released on bail pending appeal, if the application succeeds.

In a document handed to the court on Tuesday in support of the appeal, Naicker submits that Williams was not discredited as a trial witness, and the court should have found that his version – that he’d purchased what he thought were poisonous capsules to commit suicide and not to kill his wife – was reasonably and possibly true.

He also submits that the court should have given consideration to the fact that the capsules contained glucose and not poison. He suggests that, being non-toxic, nothing had prevented the police from allowing Williams to administer the “poison”. - Daily News

A senior eThekwini Municipality internal auditor has been fingered as the main culprit behind a string of armed robberies.

Durban - A senior eThekwini Municipality internal auditor has been fingered as the main culprit behind a string of “follow-home” armed robberies in Durban.

Njabulo Morrison Ngcobo, who has indicated he will plead not guilty, is applying for bail in the Durban Magistrate’s Court after he was arrested in September on six counts of armed robbery.

The State alleges that Ngcobo and his co-accused, Nkanyazo Ntenza, were “spotters” in knocker-style robberies – that they would go into banks and look for people who were withdrawing large sums from ATMs or at the counter.

They would then allegedly alert gang members who would rob the victims once they had left the bank.

Opposing bail on Wednesday, the investigating officer, Warrant Officer Dhanpal Mundhree, told the court that CCTV footage placed Ngcobo at the various banks.

Mundhree said that once a target was identified by the “spotter”, a message was sent via cellphone to gang members outside the bank.

Referring to the CCTV footage, Mundhree said after a complainant was seen leaving the bank, Ngcobo was allegedly seen making a call. Within minutes, the complainants were robbed at gunpoint.

“Since the arrest of this gang, we have had no reported cases in KZN,” Mundhree said in his affidavit.

Prior to the arrest, he said, three cases a week were reported in the Durban area.

In September, the Daily News reported on the rise in incidents of bank customers being robbed of large sums of money. There had been almost 40 attacks since January.

According to statistics released by the SA Banking Risk Information Centre at the time, there was a 90 percent hike in “follow-home robberies” in KZN.

The statistics revealed that criminal gangs had robbed KZN bank clients of more than R5 million since January by following them to or from banks.

Mundhree told the court on Wednesday that he was opposing bail on the grounds that Ngcobo was allegedly present at all the robberies concerned. If released on bail, he said, the safety of the witnesses would be compromised.

“Some victims have claimed that they were scared to co-operate with police as the suspects knew where they lived.”

Mundhree said he also believed that Ngcobo was a flight risk. He said on the day of his arrest, Ngcobo tried to flee from police, causing a high-speed chase from uMhlanga Ridge to Inanda where he was cornered.

In his statement, Mundhree described the gang as notorious for armed robberies, hijackings and house robberies.

He said it might be in Ngcobo’s best interests to remain in custody, pending his trial, due to the fact that he was the “main link” to the gang and therefore might be in danger.

Investigations were under way and more arrests were pending, he said. Mundhree said this case had received a lot of media attention and even warranted the intervention of the national police commissioner, General Riah Phiyega.

In his affidavit in support of his bail application, Ngcobo said that he was the sole breadwinner in his family. But Mundhree informed the court that Ngcobo’s wife was in fact employed by the provincial Treasury as an auditor.

He said Ngcobo’s wife had told the municipality that Ngcobo was in hospital, when in fact he was in custody.

The municipality has launched an internal investigation into Ngcobo’s alleged conduct.

“No action can be taken against him for now,” eThekwini spokesman, Thabo Mofokeng, said on Wednesday.

“His days in custody will be regarded as leave days.”

Mofokeng said a course of action would be determined once the inquiry had been concluded.

Ntenza, previously released on R5 000 bail, is back in custody awaiting another bail hearing after being arrested on a fresh robbery allegation.

Prosecutor Krishen Shah said the State was considering charging the men with racketeering.

Magistrate Vanitha Armu was expected to make a decision on Ngcobo’s bail application on Thursday. - Daily News

A man wanted for a string of crimes was shot dead by police in the Sonkontshe area in Hammarsdale, KZN police said.

Durban - A man wanted for a string of crimes was shot dead by police in the Sonkontshe area in Hammarsdale, KwaZulu-Natal police said on Thursday.

Colonel Vincent Mdunge said police went to look for Zama Vilakazi on Wednesday as he was wanted for more than 20 crimes, including murder, business robbery, house breaking and attempted murder.

“Members trying to locate the suspect's house spotted him with two unknown men.” Police approached the three men and confronted them. Two of the men fled, while Vilakazi drew a firearm and fired shots at police. Police returned fire, and Vilakazi was shot.

An unlicensed firearm was found on the scene.

Sapa

The KwaZulu-Natal legislature's longest-serving member, Samuel Mtetwa, died, the African National Congress in the province said.

KwaZulu-Natal - The KwaZulu-Natal legislature's longest-serving member, Samuel Mtetwa, died on Thursday, the African National Congress in the province said.

“Comrade Mtetwa was a committed member of the party, whose life was defined by his continued activism and dedication,” spokesman Senzo Mkhize said in a statement.

“He impacted positively on many lives in this province.”

Mtetwa died from natural causes in a Durban hospital in the early hours of the morning. He had served in the provincial legislature since 1994 and became deputy chief whip in 2004.

In 2007, he took over as chairperson of committees, a position he retained until 2009. Mtetwa was also a member of the provincial rules, programming, and disciplinary committees. - Sapa

A taxi operator has been shot dead in a drive-by shooting in Isipingo south of Durban, KwaZulu-Natal authorities said.

KwaZulu-Natal - A taxi operator has been shot dead in a drive-by shooting in Isipingo south of Durban, KwaZulu-Natal authorities said on Thursday.

Transport department spokesman Kwanele Ncalane said Bhekayena

Mnguni was shot on Wednesday.

Police spokesman Captain Thulani Zwane said three armed men carried out the attack at a taxi rank in Alexandra Road.

Provincial safety MEC Willies Mchunu condemned the killing.

Mchunu said he was concerned about the on-going tensions within the Folweni Taxi Association. Five people had been killed in recent months within the association.

“It is unacceptable that people are resorting to violence instead of resolving their disputes amicably.” - Sapa

A man died when his truck plunged down a 30 metre embankment in Durban, paramedics said.

Durban - A man died when his truck plunged down a 30 metre embankment in Durban on Thursday, paramedics said.

“Indications from the scene are that the driver of the truck lost control while driving on the east-bound lane of the M13 near Blair Athol Road,” Netcare spokesman Chris Botha said on Thursday.

The driver died on impact. It took rescue workers three hours to free his body, which was trapped under the truck, Botha said. - Sapa

A KZN teacher who has been on sick leave for 8 years has been receiving a salary from the education department, a report said.

Durban -

A KwaZulu-Natal teacher who has been on sick leave for eight years has been receiving a salary from the education department, The Witness reported on Friday.

The teacher, from Zululand, had not been in the classroom since October 15, 2004 and had cost the department R397 911 for 1 615 teaching days.

Another teacher from the eThekwini region last taught on April 18, 2007, costing the department R1 022 484 for the 1 119 days he spent on sick leave. This teacher earned more because he was on a higher salary grade.

Both teachers appeared on a list in the department's budget performance report for 2012/13.

Provincial education spokesman Muzi Mahlambi said teachers on the list would receive random visits from teams set up by department head Nkosinathi Sishi and MEC Senzo Mchunu.

Those deemed fit would be instructed to return to work.

The department intended recovering the money that had been paid to them while they were on sick leave. - Sapa

If the National Freedom Party (NFP) wants to be taken seriously, disgraced former eThekwini councillor Vusi Khoza must be fired.

Durban - If the National Freedom Party (NFP) wants to be taken seriously, disgraced former eThekwini councillor Vusi Khoza must be fired after having been found guilty of public violence.

This is the view of political analyst Protas Madlala following the party’s announcement on Thursday that Khoza’s membership would not be terminated despite his conviction.

Two foreigners died in the incident in Dr Yusuf Dadoo (Broad) Street in central Durban in 2009. On Wednesday, Khoza “voluntarily” submitted his resignation as the NFP’s provincial secretary, saying he wanted to protect the party’s reputation. Provincial chairman Vikizitha Mlotshwa said yesterday that the NFP would await Khoza’s sentence before deciding if it would take further action. Sentencing is due to take place in the Durban Regional Court on Monday.

Khoza intends appealing against his conviction.

Mlotshwa revealed that the party was in the middle of an audit of all its leaders and councillors.

Last month the NFP terminated the membership of Nqabeni Mbatha, a councillor from the Emnambithi/Ladysmith local municipality, after he was found guilty of murder.

Madlala believes the NFP is being contradictory. “It is strange the other member was fired. The party needs to show consistency,” he said. “Khoza is having a taste of his own poison now. He was quick to call for people to be fired. There is clear favouring and this could destroy the party.” But Mlotshwa defended Khoza, saying his case had started in 2009, “way before the NFP had been established in 2011”.

“As much as we respect the decision of the court, we believe comrade Khoza when he says he is innocent and was not part of the crime he is accused of,” he said. He also revealed that Khoza’s resignation was “provisional” until the court appeal was finalised.

Mzwamandla Mzobe, the deputy provincial secretary, was appointed acting provincial secretary. - The Mercury

KwaZulu-Natal Education MEC Senzo Mchunu has unveiled a master plan to overhaul the province’s schooling system.

Durban - KwaZulu-Natal Education MEC Senzo Mchunu has unveiled a master plan to overhaul the province’s schooling system.

Spurred on by teachers who score 10 percent in tests on the subjects they teach and classrooms “shockingly” devoid of teaching and learning aids, Mchunu made public a draft discussion document on the task ahead on Thursday.

“Our schooling system is almost in tatters from where I stand,” he told government officials and union and civil society representatives in Pietermaritzburg during the first of several consultative meetings. There could be no improvement in education unless the school system underwent radical change.

The revamp will include:

- Increasing access to technical, agricultural and maritime schools.

- Ensuring that children are able to enrol in two years of early childhood development programmes before they start Grade 1.

- Creating uniformity in having only two types of schools (primary, from Grade R to Grade 7, and secondary, from Grade 8 to Grade 12).

- Proposing the merging and closing of KZN’s 1 372 so-called non-viable schools.

Non-viable schools have fewer than 200 pupils and are plagued by problems such as low government funding and few teachers. They include 757 schools on private property – often farms – which are referred to as Section 14 schools.

A proposal to close 27 schools in the Western Cape has been criticised.

However, education experts, such as the University of KZN’s Edith Dempster, have argued that in certain instances tough choices need to be made about schools that struggle to attract teachers or that employ unqualified staff.

Mchunu has emphasised that the principles on which the draft document rests are “decisions by consensus” and “consultation, consultation, consultation”.

The document does not stipulate time frames, or cost.

Mchunu is to present the document to all 12 education districts, leading up to a meeting on November 29 when stakeholders will respond.

He took the opportunity to say he did not believe that most teachers affiliated to the SA Democratic Teachers Union were drunkards, on drugs or in debt, as anti-apartheid activist Mamphela Ramphele had said. - The Mercury

Some familiar faces will be absent from Durban’s beachfront after the metro police arrested 35 car guards over permits.

Durban - Some familiar faces will be absent from Durban’s beachfront – for a while at least – after the metro police arrested 35 car guards who did not have permits on Thursday.

eThekwini metro police spokesman Eugene Msomi said 34 men and one woman would appear in the Durban Magistrate’s Court on Friday.

Msomi said the operation was to inspect who was working along Marine Drive (between Suncoast and uShaka Marine World), and to see if they were compliant with the by-laws.

The operation was led by the Private Security Industry Regulatory Authority with the eThekwini metro police and SAPS.

Authority spokeswoman Siziwe Zuma said the operation was held after a number of public complaints.

“The concern was that the car guards are not registered,” she said.

“There have also been incidents of motorists being harassed by guards demanding money.”

There had also been a rise in vehicle break-ins and “remote-control” crime in which cars’ locking systems were jammed with a special device, Zuma said.

All those arrested were interviewed and checked to ensure they were registered on the authority’s system. One of those arrested was wanted for housebreaking and theft.

Msomi said crime at the beachfront increased in the holidays and that it was no secret that car guards were involved in crime.

“We do not want problems during the festive season,” Msomi said.

The law says no person can do security work for remuneration unless they are registered as a security service provider.

Msomi added that people operating as car or security guards needed to be trained and registered by the authority.

They also needed to wear identifiable uniforms and carry cards visibly displaying their registration numbers.

Some car guards arrested were wearing Car Watch North Beach Police Community Forum bibs.

The guards said that, to the best of their knowledge, they were registered. - The Mercury

Paralympic swimming champ Natalie du Toit will swop her fins for cleates when she takes part a cycle challenge in Joburg.

Durban - For the first time since losing her leg in an accident in 2001, Paralympic swimming champion Natalie du Toit will ride a bike on Sunday when she takes part in the 94.7 Cycle Challenge in Joburg.

After a training session on Thursday, she said it was “quite challenging” pedalling with her prosthetic leg and keeping it strapped in.

“I don’t have the same amount of weight on both sides, but I have 94.7km to get used to it,” she quipped, adding that she was a regular cyclist before her accident.

“I have a history of cycling, and was on a bike for many years. I used to cycle around Cape Town to training and back home – it was my only mode of transport.”

Riding with the likes of Bafana Bafana coach Gordon Igesund, Du Toit will be part of the SA Institute for Drug-Free Sport’s “I Play Fair” team on Sunday, which aims to eliminate doping from sport.

Since competing in the Paralympics in September, Du Toit said she had not spent any time in the pool and had been up to “crazy stuff”, such as motivational speaking and racing around Kyalami racecourse.

She retired from professional swimming after this year’s London Paralympics.

Du Toit said at the time: “After everything I’ve gone through, it’s actually quite a relief that it is my last Games.”

“It’s a great feeling to be able to walk away and know that I’ve achieved everything I wanted to achieve and there’s nothing else that I could have done.

“It’s not about the golds, it’s about taking part,” she said. - The Mercury

Four years after a client of a banking conman lost several millions in a bad deal, the court has awarded her R2.5m.

Durban - Four years after former FNB financial adviser Clynton Cotton pleaded guilty to stealing R12 million from his clients, one of them has finally won a court battle with the bank to be repaid R2.5m that she invested through him.

The money that Carmen Goodman entrusted to Cotton was part of a substantial pay-out from the Road Accident Fund to her husband, Lance, who sustained serious injuries in a vehicle accident.

Goodman was appointed as curator bonis of his estate, and the funds were to be invested for his benefit.

Cotton, then 40, pleaded guilty in May 2008 to 40 counts of fraud and one of money laundering after making a full and voluntary confession of his crimes to the bank.

He was sentenced to an effective 10 years in prison but only served three years in jail, the rest of his sentence being changed to correctional supervision. He was released from jail last year.

As part of an agreement with the State, he paid back R160 000 to the bank and agreed to the seizure and restraint of his assets.

The bank compensated many of his victims, including another claim lodged by Goodman of R600 000. But it denied her claim of R2.5m, pointing to the contract she signed with Cotton, on behalf of FNB, which stated that he would render services in accordance with accredited products. The bank argued that the loss of R2.5m had been through an investment or loan he had made on her behalf in a company which was not an accredited product.

In a recent judgment, Durban High Court Judge Mohini Murugasen said the evidence showed that Goodman had initially invested R4.6m in a Liberty product through Cotton, which was to be “ceded” to the Master of the high court as a bond of security over her husband’s estate.

On the advice of Cotton – but without the Master’s approval – Goodman withdrew R2.5m from the investment and reinvested the money in a Stanlib product.

From there, the money was withdrawn and lent to Macro Steel, Cotton misrepresenting to the owners of that company that he was the investor and that it was his money.

Macro Steel repaid the R2.5m with interest of R250 000. On the instruction of Cotton, about R2.2m was paid into Securitised Endowment Traders cc (SET), which was controlled by Cotton, and R500 000 to a lawyer’s trust account.

On Cotton’s instruction, the R500 000 was then split up and paid to SET, to a foreign company and another close corporation in which Cotton had an interest.

Goodman, in her evidence before the court, said she had trusted Cotton “absolutely”.

The judge said: “She was aware that he was employed by FNB. He had a dedicated secretary and she believed he was the branch manager.

“She also did not concern herself about the Master’s approval as she assumed that as Cotton had met with the Master and the Master had approved the initial investment, there was no need to go through the process.”

Goodman further said she had assumed that all the investments were accredited by the bank.

The judge said the pertinent and undisputed evidence was that Goodman had consulted Cotton in his office at the Overport branch of the bank, as an employee of the bank. He had offered her advice on investment products which she had accepted and acted on without any adverse result or effect on the estate until the last investment.

“She was consequently susceptible to inducement by Cotton. Not only did she trust and rely on him, the inducement was attractive because he advised her that she would get better returns.”

The judge said that Cotton, in his interaction with Goodman, had conducted himself as a financial consultant in the employ of the bank and had recommended or proposed products which ostensibly lay within his mandate.

“There was no need for her to question or be suspicious. His unlawful conduct was closely allied with his employment with FNB,” the judge said, adding that it appeared that at the time there were no specific safeguards to alert the bank to the fraud and theft committed by Cotton and for the protection of his clients.

The judge granted judgment in favour of Goodman for R2.5m, with interest from 2006 and her legal costs. - The Mercury

The rape, torture and murder of a Hammarsdale woman was barbaric and inhumane, and deserves life in prison.

KwaZulu-Natal - The rape, torture and murder of a Hammarsdale woman was barbaric and inhumane, and deserved life in prison.

This was the submission made by State advocate Ruan du Preez, on Thursday, while arguing in aggravation of sentence in the Pietermaritzburg High Court.

Judge Isaac Madondo convicted Sihle Zuma, 23, and Nkanyiso Mkhize, 22, of robbery with aggravating circumstances, rape and murder. They attacked Mildred Mdlalose, 50, on December 18, 2009.

She was walking home with her niece and brother after a night vigil for a relative, in Mpumalanga. Zuma and Mkhize had been at a tavern before they came across the three and decided to rob them.

Mdlalose’s brother was beaten unconscious, while her niece escaped. The men dragged the woman off to an area away from the road.

There, they took turns raping her, committed brutal acts on her, then drowned her in a waterhole.

Zuma and Mkhize made confessions on their arrests, but later retracted them.

However, Madondo found that the confessions were admissible as evidence.

Du Preez submitted that the men had subjected the woman to complete humiliation and had violated her dignity in the worst possible way, gang-raping her and then torturing and drowning her.

Di Franklin and Julian Butler, advocates for the accused, submitted in mitigation that the men were young and capable of rehabilitation.

Madondo was expected to sentence the men on Friday. - Daily News

At least 26 birds at the Umgeni River Bird Park have been tested following the death of a bird from Salmonella enteritidis.

Durban - The eThekwini Municipality is awaiting the results of tests on swabs taken from 26 birds at the Umgeni River Bird Park after the death of a Buffon’s Macaw forced the park to close last month.

City officials quarantined the park late last month after the bird was found dead in its cage. A post-mortem revealed that the bird died from the bacterial infection Salmonella enteritidis.

Environmental protocols kicked in, with the Department of Agriculture and Environmental Affairs ordering the KZN state vet to quarantine the park and test the other birds for a possible outbreak of the disease.

Christo Swart, the deputy head of parks at the municipality, said the Department of Agriculture and Environmental Affairs classified caged birds in the same class as poultry.

“Therefore the state vet for KZN was instructed to quarantine the park until further tests were taken,” he said.

In addition, a consulting veterinarian advised the staff to isolate and perform tests on the female macaw that shared the enclosure with the dead bird.

Swart said the female was given a clean bill of health and the birds’ enclosure was emptied and disinfected.

On October 29, the state vet took 26 swabs for testing. The results have not yet been released by the state vet.

Swart said he hoped to have the park would reopen soon.

“All is well at the Umgeni River Bird Park. We hope to have the results released in due course and have the park opened to the public,” he said.

Swart said this bacterium was something similar to food poisoning and he expected full feedback from the state vet later on Friday. - Daily News

South Africa last year has lost more working days through strike action than any other country in the world.

Durban - South Africa last year lost more working days through strike action than any other country in the world, bar Canada, but the figures from this year were expected to be worse.

In 2011, there were 67 strikes and 2 806 656 working days were lost.

“This year, there is no doubt that this figure will increase significantly as will the number of strikes,” said Irvin Lawrence, of law firm, Edward Nathan Sonnenbergs, at its employment law seminar in Durban on Thursday.

He pointed out that since the strike at Lonmin’s Marikana mine, there have been more spontaneous strikes initiated by employees themselves instead of the unions.

According to the statistics from the Department of Labour’s annual industrial report, 1998 had the highest number of strikes, at 527, losing 3.8 million days.

But, in 2010, the country lost a record 20 674 737 working days with just over a million employees involved in 74 strikes.

Lawrence said a trend in the past was that as unionisation decreased, the number of strikes increased. This, he said, was as a result of a rise in unprotected strike action.

A protected strike is when all the requirements of the Labour Relations Act are met before the start of strike action and employees are protected from being dismissed for breach of contract.

Failure to comply with the act could result in employees being fired for misconduct or breach of contract.

“Presently, that landscape is changing with unprotected strikes taking place spontaneously and with fewer strikes being orchestrated by unions.

“The irony is that the liability the courts have imposed on unions has perhaps contributed to the perception that they [the unions] are weak,” Lawrence said.

With unions being held liable by the courts, Lawrence said the established ones were more cautious and did not rush through negotiations.

“The newer unions appeal to employees. They have grassroots popularity,” he said.

Further, Lawrence spoke about unions’ liability to members.

He said the courts had, as recently as this year, accepted that unions may be liable to their members for damages suffered by them.

“A threat of violence may cause all around to sit up and take notice. However, the Constitutional Court has laid down the law – unions may be accountable for damage during strikes,” Lawrence concluded. - Daily News

Five suspects were expected to appear in the Durban Magistrate’s Court on Friday on various charges.

Durban - Five suspects were expected to appear in the Durban Magistrate’s Court on Friday on various charges.

The arrests were made as part of an operation by the SAPS Durban flying squad narcotics team.

An alleged drug dealer, 49, was arrested in Umbilo after he was found in possession of a 9mm pistol and 10 rounds of ammunition, police spokesman Captain Thulani Zwane, said.

In Westville, a 22-year-old man was bust for 1 000 ecstasy tablets and 80 mandrax tablets. In Newlands East, a 26-year-old man was allegedly found in possession of 450 mandrax tablets and 1.5kg of dagga.

On the Bluff, a 29-year-old was arrested after he was allegedly found with 252 ecstasy tablets, 7g of cocaine and more than 30 boxes of steroids.

Police also arrested a 30-year-old man in Greenwood Park with 48 copper pipes.

He urged the community to report any drug-related incidents to the police or call Crime Stop at 086 001 0111. – Daily News

Bob Hewitt has been suspended from the SA and International Tennis Hall of Fame after sexual abuse claims.

Durban - Tennis great Bob Hewitt has been dropped from the South African Hall of Fame in the wake of his suspension from the International Tennis Hall of Fame after a probe of claims that he sexually abused girls he coached.

General manager of the South African Sports and Arts Hall of Fame (Sasahof), Ryan McGee, confirmed this on Friday. Hewitt’s name had been removed from the list of inductees.

This came as International Hall of Fame chief executive, Mark Stenning, announced a unanimous vote on Wednesday to suspend him indefinitely after an outside investigation deemed credible the allegations of several women who said they were abused by Hewitt while he was coaching them decades ago.

“His legacy ceases to exist in the Hall of Fame,” Stenning said. “As of today, his plaque will be removed from the Hall of Fame. His name will be removed from our website and all other materials, and from the perspective of the Hall of Fame, he ceases to be a Hall of Famer.”

The Australian-born Hewitt won 15 Grand Slam titles in his heyday in the 1960s and 1970s. He retired in 1983, and was inducted into the hall in 1992.

By Friday morning, Hewitt’s name had been erased from the roll of 224 global Hall of Famers. It no longer appeared on the alphabetical list next to the famous world No 1 of the 1950s, Australian Lew Hoad.

The only South African still on the honours list at the Hall of Fame in Newport, Rhode Island, is Frew McMillan, Hewitt’s partner in what was a legendary doubles team. They won Wimbledon three times, and many other major tournaments.

Attorney Michael Connolly of the firm Hinckley, Allen & Snyder, who the Hall hired to conduct the inquiry, said he interviewed more than 24 people over several months.

The former federal prosecutor spent 10 hours interviewing Hewitt, who was accompanied by two South African lawyers, in September. But he would not characterise those discussions.

Connolly said: “We identified as many of the victims as we could, spoke to them, spoke to their family members and spoke to a host of others with relevant information.”

The lawyer made a final presentation to the Hall in New York on Wednesday.

Stenning and Christopher Clouser, the Hall’s chairman, also travelled to South Africa to interview Hewitt.

“In the beginning, we were slow to start because this was entirely unprecedented ground for us,” Stenning told the Boston Globe.

“But we didn’t take the matter lightly. We expended tremendous resources and time on it and feel comfortable that we have done the right thing.”

In a letter to every member of the Hall of Fame, Stenning described the suspension as “the appropriate course of action for the Hall of Fame, for the women who have made these allegations, and our sport”.

Amanda Wienhold of Durban, among the nine or so women who came forward, told the Daily News on Friday:

“I would like to applaud the International Hall of Fame.

“I know this has been a very long investigation for them, spanning different continents, and would like to thank them for all their effort.

“I hope the SAPS investigation will yield the same results so we can all finally have some peace and move on,” she said.

Suellen Sheehan of Johannesburg said: “When we embarked on this we set out to have him removed because we didn’t feel he belonged.”

“We have expended huge amounts of energy. I can’t say I woke up this morning feeling different because I haven’t slept. But I feel like I’m walking on air.

“My work is done. In terms of the criminal matter, that is in the hands of our justice system.”

She was 12 when Hewitt first allegedly had sex with her after a coaching session.

Hewitt, now 72 and living near Addo in the Eastern Cape, has denied the allegations. In a recent interview with You magazine, he said: “Overnight my life changed for the worse. It’s been traumatic for us all.”

Heather Conner of West Newbury, Massachusetts, said she had just turned 15 in 1976 when Hewitt had sex with her.

Conner filed a report with police more than two years ago, accusing Hewitt of rape.

She also reported the allegations to the Hall of Fame in 2010, and the US Tennis Association and Women’s Tennis Association.

On Friday a children's rights group also welcomed the suspension of Hewitt from the International Tennis Hall of Fame.

“WMACA (Women and Men Against Child Abuse) applauds the Hall of Fame whose decision reflects that children's rights must be protected at all times,” spokesman Luke Lamprecht said in a statement.

In the months after the Globe report, the tennis community slowly began to express outrage. Among them was Billie Jean King, an inductee and life trustee of the Hall of Fame who partnered with Hewitt in 1970 to win the mixed doubles title at the French Open.

“I’m very upset, and he needs to be in jail,’’ King told the Washingtonian magazine in June.

In the evidence against Hewitt are several handwritten love letters he allegedly sent one of his students, Twiggy Tolken. Tolken, who said Hewitt became sexually involved with her when she was 12, provided copies of the letters to the Globe and Hall of Fame.

Stenning said Connolly hired a handwriting analyst to examine the letters before he presented his findings to the executive committee.

Daily News