Asia-pacific

Activist Nguyen Thuy Hanh (2nd from R) is greeted by friends in Hanoi on her release from detention on Oct. 7, 2024. Vietnamese authorities have released political prisoner Nguyen Thuy Hanh, who has been detained since April 2021 on charges of “anti-state propaganda,” her husband told Radio Free Asia on Monday. Huynh Ngoc Chenh said his wife was sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison at a secret trial on July 31, 2024. Hanh, 61, spent the first year of her detention in a Hanoi prison, before being moved to a mental institution in the capital in 2022 to be treated for depression. In January this year, her husband said Hanh had been diagnosed with advanced stage cancer. More than 200 people signed a petition calling for her immediate release but, following treatment at Vietn...

PRETORIA, SOUTH AFRICA – JUNE 29: Suspended SARS Commissioner Tom Moyane is flanked by his legal team, advocate Dali Mpofu and Eric Mabuza during a break in the proceedings of the Nugent commission of inquiry on tax government and administration on June 29, 2018 in Pretoria, South Africa. Moyane’s lawyer, advocate Dali Mpofu said an inquiry into the operation of the agency should be halted pending a disciplinary hearing against his client Moyane. (Photo by Gallo Images / Sunday Times / Masi Losi) There were snide comments and accusations floating thick in the air at the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture on Monday 30 November. However sanitized the podium was, the tension was still palpable among the legal trash talk. Dali Mpofu, representing former South African Revenue Service...

2004 | Patricia de Lille takes the stand at the Durban High Court to testify against Schabir Shaik, a Durban businessman who was charged with fraud and corruption charges. (Ziyaad Douglas / Gallo) Here’s a look at what happened on this day, 30 November, throughout history. We remember the news, events, and people that influenced the course of history forever. ON THIS DAY: 30 NOVEMBER 1954 | D.F Malan retired as Prime Minister of South Africa and was succeeded by J.G Strydom. 1981 | Bulelani Ngcuka is arrested and jailed for refusing to testify in the political trial of Patrick Maqubele. 1993 | The South African government signs the Investment Incentive Agreement with the United States of America. 2004 | Patricia de Lille takes the stand at the Durban High Court to testify again...

Weather data provided by the South African Weather Service. For a detailed forecast of your province, click here. SEVERE WEATHER ALERTS IMPACT-BASED WARNINGS: Nil. FIRE DANGER WARNINGS: EXTREMELY HIGH FIRE DANGER CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED OVER THE BEAUFORT WEST IN THE WESTERN CAPE AND KHAI-MA MUNICIPALITIES IN THE NORTHERN CAPE. ADVISORIES: Nil. GAUTENG: Temperature: Cloudy to partly cloudy and warm with scattered late afternoon showers and thundershowers. The expected UVB Sunburn Index: High. MPUMALANGA: Temperature: Morning fog and drizzle along the escarpment were it will be cool, otherwise partly cloudy and warm with isolated showers and thundershowers but scattered over the Highveld. LIMPOPO: Temperature: Partly cloudy and cool to warm with isolated showers and thunder...

Gauteng Education MEC Panyaza Lesufi. Image via: GDE Gauteng Education MEC Panyaza Lesufi has said 181 119 Grade 1 and Grade 8 learners (81.48%) have been successfully placed in schools around the province, for the 2021 academic year. Lesufi gave an update on the online school admissions process on Sunday, 29 November 2020. This means the department is slightly behind in allocating schools to learners as the admissions process got underway on 1 October 2020 and was set to conclude on Monday, 30 November. A total of 88 503 Grade 1 applicants and 92 616 Grade 8 applicants are placed. “We can confidently inform parents that out the 181,119 applications were properly placed and unfortunately, 41,146 parents have not received their placements. Of the total number that we received, we have ma...

Image via Flickr/GCIS Just a day before World Aids Day, President Cyril Ramaphosa has placed focus on the global epidemic, which seems to have taken a backseat in light of COVID-19. In his weekly newsletter, Ramaphosa has said, as another public health challenge South Africa, HIV/AIDS cannot be ignored. Ramaphosa said for three decades, the country has been engaged in an ongoing struggle against HIV and AIDS, which has cost many lives and caused great hardship and suffering. The president said the country’s treatment programme has contributed to a reduction in the number of deaths due to AIDS by 60%. He added that there had been a greater reduction in HIV-related deaths among young people. Ramaphosa attributed the feat to government’s extensive antiretroviral programme reaching millions...