Making the police a `humane` service

25 April, 2009 in Botswana

source: Mmegi
BASHI LETSIDIDI
Correspondent

The Botswana National Front says in its 2009 election manifesto that upon assuming power it will tackle police brutality by teaching officers to be ‘humane.’

The implication is clear; that under the Botswana Democratic Party government, the training of police does not make them humane enough. As a matter of fact, the BNF’s secretary general, Mohammad Khan, says as much.

“There are instances when police bully and brutalise people,” Khan says.

What a BNF future government will do, he adds, is educate police officers on the genesis of crime as a social malady and in that way enable them to reach a deeper appreciation of the criminal mentality and assist in rehabilitating them. Khan says that [continue reading]

South Africa: ANC`s grip on two-thirds `slips`

25 April, 2009 in South Africa

source: IOL
April 24 2009 at 08:10PM
By Emsie Ferreira

The African National Congress looked in danger late Friday of losing its grip on a two-thirds majority in this week’s elections that swept Jacob Zuma to power.

With nearly 16 million votes counted, the party saw its runaway lead in the fourth post-apartheid poll contract to 66.3 percent, making Zuma’s earlier boast that he saw 70 percent beckoning seem idle.

But even if it narrowly misses the majority needed to change the Constitution, no opposition party could deny that voters had handed Zuma a resounding mandate in an election marked by attacks on his integrity.

The Democratic Alliance, which launched a ‘Stop Zuma’ campaign after he was let off the hook on corruption and fraud charges recently, was lying at around 16 percent and [continue reading]

South Africa: DA wins clear majority in W Cape

25 April, 2009 in South Africa

source: IOL
April 25 2009 at 06:53AM

The DA can take sole control of the Western Cape government after winning an outright majority in the province with more than 51 percent of votes.

The Independent Electoral Commission said early on Saturday that the party had taken 51.46 percent of the vote, nearly double its tally in 2004 and a resounding victory over the ANC whose vote share fell sharply to 31.55 percent.

“Yes, the DA won an outright majority,” IEC communications manager Trevor Davids said, but added that the results had yet to be formally declared.

It is the first time since the end of apartheid that a party has scored an overall majority in the province and the result of a driven campaign by DA leader Helen Zille to [continue reading]