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President: Overcoming inequality key to addressing racial tensions

President Cyril Ramaphosa says concerted efforts are needed to overcome inequality and the material conditions that divide society along racial lines.

“Building social cohesion requires a concerted effort to overcome inequality and social depravation.

“It also requires that we overcome the unequal material conditions that divides society along race, gender and class lines,” the President said on Friday, when responding to oral questions at a hybrid sitting of the National Assembly.

ANC MP Tidimalo Legwase had asked what additional measures government will implement to advance social cohesion and nation building, in light of the recent unrest that exposed underlying racial tension in society.

The President said acts of violence and destruction in parts of KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng in July revealed many of the challenges in the path to building a united and cohesive society.

“We must build integrated communities with social infrastructure and services for all. We need to ensure that young people have equal access to quality education, sporting and recreational opportunities, social support and employment opportunities.”

As part of its response, eThekwini Metro is focused on various programmes aimed at youth, including psycho-social support in school, a food security programme, youth employment initiatives and unity games in Phoenix, KwaMashu, Inanda, Tongaat and Newlands.

“The achievement of social cohesion and nation building is closely tied to the work government is undertaking to drive economic growth, create employment and transform the economy,” said President Ramaphosa.

Police Minister Bheki Cele on Thursday said so far, 56 suspects have been arrested by the detective team deployed in Phoenix to investigate the brutal murder of 36 people in that area during the unrest .

President Ramaphosa said part of the work that must be done is to critically examine the preparedness for and response of security and law enforcement services to unrest.

In August, the President appointed a panel of experts to investigate the issues around the unrest, which will guide the measures that need to be taken to prevent the recurrence of such events.

“Another critical part of the work that government must do is to address the social and economic factors that also contributed to the violence and destruction that we saw.

“A deeply disturbing aspect of the unrest was the emergence of the racial tension in parts of Ethekwini, particularly between African and Indian communities. This was occasioned by terrible scenes of violence and killings in Phoenix.”

He said law enforcement agencies have made significant progress in arresting individuals alleged to have been involved in this violence and the law must take its course.

The President said there is the broader task of addressing both the underlying racial tensions that may have contributed to these events, and the further tensions that these events have given rise to.

He welcomed the investigation by the Human Rights Commission into these incidents, saying government supports the ongoing work by the religious fraternity and civil society in promoting racial integration and co-existing in affected areas.

The President said the Social Cohesion Advocates, a group of eminent persons and experts, has been particularly active in this regard. The body was established after the 2012 national cohesion and nation building summit to assist government to fight discrimination.

He said the group, in partnership with the Department of Arts and Culture and civil society, has conducted numerous social cohesion engagements to ascertain the root causes of the discord that occurred and the killings that ensued.

Source: South African Government News Agency

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National State of Disaster extended

Cabinet has approved the extension of the National State of Disaster to next month.

“Cabinet approved the extension of the National State of Disaster to 15 October 2021, in terms of Section 27(5) (c) of the Disaster Management Act, 2002 (57 of 2002),” Minister in the Presidency Mondli Gungubele said on Thursday.

In addition, Cabinet approved that the country should remain on Adjusted Alert Level 3 of the national response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Source: South African Government News Agency

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NCOP approves GBV bills

The National Council of Provinces (NCOP) has passed gender-based violence (GBV) bills during its virtual sitting on Wednesday.

The three bills – namely the Criminal and Related Matters Amendment Bill, Domestic Violence Amendment Bill and the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Act Amendment Bill – will change the landscape in terms of how government departments, law enforcement and the courts deal with cases of violence against women and the vulnerable.

The bills were introduced in Parliament following a Presidential Summit against Gender-Based Violence and Femicide (GBVF) held in November 2018.

The summit resolved, amongst others, to fast track the review of existing laws and policies on gender-based violence, making them victim-centred, ensure all other relevant laws respond to GBV, revisit and fast track all outstanding laws and bills that relate to GBVF.

Criminal Law Amendment Bill

The Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Act Amendment Bill proposes amendments to the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Act 32 of 2007, being one of several legislative measures identified to strengthen South Africa’s response to GBVF, in particular the legislation regulating the National Register for Sex Offenders (NRSO).

The bill aims to expand the scope of the NRSO to include the particulars of all sex offenders and not only sex offenders against children and people who are mentally disabled.

It also aims to expand the list of persons who are to be protected to include other vulnerable persons, namely, certain young women, persons with physical, mental, sensory or intellectual disabilities and persons over 60 years of age who receive community-based care and support services.

It also aims to increase the periods for which a sex offenders’ particulars must remain on the NRSO before they can be removed from the register.

The bill further proposes to expand the ambit of the crime of incest, and introduces a new offence of sexual intimidation.

Domestic Violence Amendment Bill

The purpose of the Domestic Violence Amendment Bill is to amend the Domestic Violence Act 116 of 1998 to, amongst others, further provide for how acts of domestic violence and matters related thereto must be dealt with by certain functionaries, persons and government departments.

It also aims to further regulate the obtaining of protection orders in response to acts of domestic violence.

Criminal and Related Matters Amendment Bill

The Criminal and Related Matters Amendment Bill aims to amend four acts, namely the Magistrates’ Courts Act 32 of 1944, the Criminal Procedure Act 51 0f 1977, the Criminal Law Amendment Act 85 of 1997 and the Superior Courts Act 7 of 2013.

The bill’s purpose is to amend the Magistrates’ Courts Act to provide for the appointment of intermediaries and the giving of evidence through intermediaries in proceedings other than criminal proceedings.

The bill also amends the Criminal Procedure Act to further regulate the granting and cancellation of bail and the right of a complainant in a domestic-related offence to participate in parole proceedings.

It also amends the Criminal Law Amendment Act to further regulate sentences in respect of offences that have been committed against vulnerable persons, and amend the Superior Courts Act to provide for the appointment of intermediaries and the giving of evidence through intermediaries in proceedings other than criminal proceedings.

“The House passed two of the bills – the Domestic Violence Amendment Bill and Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Bill with amendments, and the two Bills will now be sent back to the National Assembly. The Criminal and Related Matters Amendment Bill will now be sent to the President for assent,” Parliamentary spokesperson, Moloto Mothapo, said.

Filling of NYDA Board vacancies adopted

The NCOP has also adopted the report of the Select Committee on Health and Social Services on the filling of vacancies for the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) Board.

The names of the 17 recommended candidates, which were approved by the National Assembly on Tuesday, will now be sent to the President for the appointment.

Source: South African Government News Agency

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SA eyes Special Economic Zones to ramp up job creation

The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition says the country must leverage the potential of Special Economic Zones (SEZs) to create jobs and industrialise the country.

Addressing the Limpopo Investment Conference on Wednesday, Trade, Industry and Competition Acting Deputy Director-General of Spatial Industrial Development and Economic Transformation, Maoto Molefane, said SEZs have attracted more than R56 billion worth of private investment in 10 operational zones, with 222 companies having invested in the zones.

“We recently undertook a SEZ programme review to look at what works and what is not working. We introduced a new approach aimed at solidifying a number of instruments, including a strong involvement of national government in terms of assisting provinces to ensure that all the SEZs are accelerated, attract investment and that they are operational,” Molefane said.

As a result of the review, the acting DDG said provinces, municipalities, communities and the private sector will be strongly involved in the planning, development and management of the zones.

“Our focus in the Musina region is to ensure that we develop a city. We use SEZs either to expand or create a new city through a tripartite partnership agreement with provinces and municipalities. The agreement is to ensure that we clarify roles and responsibilities of social partners as they have a critical role to play,” Molefane said.

To address the high unemployment rate, which currently sits at 34.4%, Molefane said the ultimate goal for government is to see SEZs creating decent jobs, developing the regions and transferring skills to small, micro and medium enterprises.

He reiterated that to attract investors, SEZs need to develop the communities in which they operate.

“We also want to see regions competing competitively with other regions. We would in future want to see the Musina and Tubatse SEZs competing with the cities of New York and London. We can only achieve this through the creation of state-of-the-art infrastructure in our provinces, and a specific tax incentive that will enable and create a conducive environment for these businesses to thrive.

“We are also looking at other incentives such as 15% corporate tax, accelerating the building allowance for those companies that invest in buildings and employment tax incentives, and also providing state-of-the-art security apparatus to ensure that our investments are well protected.”

Molefane stressed that all the developments will not be implemented at the expense of the environment, as all partners and spheres of government are obliged to ensure that all of SEZs are environmentally and industrially sustainable, while creating decent jobs and attracting investments.

Special Economic Zones are specified as geographically designated areas of a country set aside for specifically targeted economic activities, which are supported through special arrangements and specific systems.

SEZs offer various incentives such as reduced corporate tax rates, VAT and customs relief, building allowances and an employment tax incentive.

Source: South African Government News Agency

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Government cannot fund institutions that fail to account for public funds

The Department of Sport, Arts and Culture has emphasised the importance of institutions funded by government to account for public funds.

This comes after Wednesday’s announcement of the closure of Liliesleaf national heritage site, which was attributed to a funding crisis that was faced by the organisation for several years.

Between 1961 and 1963, Liliesleaf served as the secret headquarters and nerve centre of the African National Congress (ANC), South African Communist Party (SACP), Umkhonto weSizwe and Congress Alliance.

Liliesleaf is home to extraordinary exhibitions that tell the story of the journey to democracy in South Africa. The heritage museum is also a site of memory that keeps the history of the liberation alive.

In 2015, the Department entered into a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) with Liliesleaf Trust to upgrade and enhance the facility’s exhibition infrastructure.

“Based on this contract of R9 million, a first tranche of R8.1 million was transferred to the trust. The remaining R900 000 could not be honoured due to failure of Liliesleaf Trust to account on the initial payment of R8.1 million.

“An obligation was spelt out in the MoA between the Department and Liliesleaf Trust. In terms of Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) Section 38, government cannot continue funding an institution that fails to account for public funds that it receives from government,” the Department said on Thursday.

Consequently, on the 4 May 2021, the Department, led by Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture Nathi Mthethwa, escalated the failure of the CEO to report and account for the R8.1 million to the Liliesleaf Board, led by former President Kgalema Motlanthe.

“The Board committed to do a forensic investigation into the matter and report back to the Department. The Department is still awaiting feedback from the board in this regard.

“Liliesleaf Trust is ineligible to receive yearly operational funds from the Department since the site has not been designated as a Declared Cultural Institution under the Cultural Institutions Act and a Schedule 3 A Public Entity under the PFMA.

“Numerous suggestions in this regard by government have not been found favourable by the trust. However, they refused to be declared, preferring to remain independent and self-sufficient.

“For the 2020/2021 financial year, an additional R1.8 million was budgeted for the trust. All this is being done against an understanding of the historical significance and contribution of Liliesleaf to the liberation of our country,” the Department said.

Source: South African Government News Agency

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Government aims to vaccinate 40 million people by end of December

Deputy President David Mabuza says government aims to meet its target to vaccinate 40 million people by 31 December 2021 in order to achieve herd immunity.

“We need to get out of this situation. Our economy is devastated and our people have lost jobs, so, we can’t stay in this situation forever. Seventy percent is roughly 40 million, we reach that and we still go ahead to vaccinate the remaining [people],” the Deputy President said.

Mabuza made the remarks during a COVID-19 vaccine rollout outreach programme, in Mogale City, west of Johannesburg.

Mabuza, together with members of the Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) on COVID-19 vaccines and Gauteng Premier David Makhura, visited a pop-up vaccination site at Kagiso Mall and Kagiso Taxi rank on Thursday, to assess the province’s COVID-19 vaccine rollout programme.

The IMC on COVID-19 vaccines identified three provinces falling short of their set targets to reach population immunity, including Gauteng Province. It then resolved to visit parts of the country experiencing challenges and identify areas of improvement.

The Deputy President visited the West Rand District Municipality, as it has been identified as the lowest performing sub-district, with only 8% of the total population vaccinated.

Mabuza called on scientists, including experts and healthcare workers to come forward and explain the benefits of getting a vaccine, as most people are reluctant to get a jab due to fake news surrounding the vaccines.

He maintained that people understand and want to vaccinate, but the problem is fake news.

“How do you deal with fake news, is to come with correct news so that you help people to understand better why they should vaccinate. Our strategy now is, let’s go to the people, let’s not sit at our vaccination sites and wait for people to come.

“From all the people we talk to, all of them said they are going to vaccinate, and they are happy that we are here and encouraging them to vaccinate. We are going to work with our councillors, using the District Development Model [and] all of us will go [out]. We are going to use this approach, going forward,” the Deputy President said.

New variant under control

The Deputy President has also allayed fears over the new COVID-19 variant C.1.2, saying it is still under control.

“For now, there is nothing to worry about. If we feel that this new variant is now a problem, the Minister of Health will announce how best we deal with it. But for now, we are tracking it … no reason to worry for now,” Mabuza said.

Significant turnaround in mineworkers

Makhura said the provincial government understands the nature of West Rand District, which is a mining area, and one of the things they do to crack the hesitancy, is working with the mine houses.

“We visited them two weeks ago [and] they are now the ones who are driving [vaccination campaign], so we have lots of mineworkers who are working in the mines. We have vaccination sites in those workplaces in the mines, and that campaign is going very well. In the last seven days they’ve been doing very well in terms of how many people are vaccinated a day, so, you will see a significant turnaround,” Makhura said.

Makhura said the second element includes door-to-door work and bringing mobile sites into the communities.

He said the province has trained the community healthcare workers, as well as different community workers.

The Premier said from 1 September, the principal focus will be door-to-door work, checking how many people were living in a household; how many elderly are in there; who has and has not been vaccinated and what are the reasons.

“Where there is real resistance, they will bring the health care professionals to give them information and advice … we have a whole programme,” Makhura said.

Source: South African Government News Agency