Johannesburg – A Springs man who allegedly held his family captive for years is due to appear in court on Wednesday to apply for bail, after being arrested on charges of attempted murder, child abuse and obstruction of justice.

Sapa reported on Wednesday that the man will appear in the Springs Magistrate’s Court.

Beeld reported that the 36-year-old businessman also allegedly assaulted and tortured his wife and his five children between the ages of 2 and 16. The children were not allowed to leave the house and did not attend school.

According to the report, neighbours were not even aware that any children lived in the “house of horrors”. A neighbour said she was shocked that she had lived next door to a “monster” for years, adding that the man always looked smart and tidy and wore expensive clothes.

Escape

However, an 11-year-old boy escaped from the house last week Monday, fleeing to neighbours, who called the police. They also called the boy’s father, who took him back home and allegedly severely assaulted him.

Police officers visited the house the next day, and discovered the other four children and their equally abused mother. The injured boy had been hidden in the ceiling.

A warrant officer told Beeld that the house was dirty and there were rats scurrying about. Their suspicions were raised and they removed the wife and four children, launching a search for the missing boy. In the meantime, the father had taken the boy to a family member in the North West.

Beeld reported that the mother then found the courage to speak out against her sadistic husband, and told police where the boy was. The man was arrested on Friday.

According to the woman, the man repeatedly assaulted and tortured her and the children, including with electric wires and a blowtorch.

She and the children are staying with family members.

AFP reported that the man appeared in court on Monday and will appear again on Wednesday to apply for bail.-AFP

Sydney – Veteran Mark Bresciano said on Wednesday the Socceroos plan to “shock the world” as they departed for Brazil to headlines asking: “Will Australia be the worst team at the World Cup?”

The inexperienced Australians, the lowest ranked team in the World Cup at 59, face a daunting task against Spain, the Netherlands and Chile in Group B.

Bresciano, the 34-year-old former Parma and Lazio midfielder, said he was excited about heading to his third World Cup and believed the team could hold its own.

“It’s always a dream going to a World Cup, regardless if it’s your first or third,” he told reporters at Sydney airport where hundreds of fans saw off Ange Postecoglou and his squad.

“I guess the expectation is maybe a little bit high (this time) because, in the last nine or 10 years, we’ve been very successful as a nation.

“Saying that, we know that we are going to Brazil in a very tough group but we’re going to go there and just try and do our country proud and do ourselves proud and try and shock the world.”

His confidence is in stark contrast to the nation’s media which has largely written off their chances with the Sydney Morning Herald on Wednesday suggesting the Socceroos would be the worst team in Brazil.

“The bookmakers regard Australia’s World Cup possibilities as something worse than a snowball’s survival chances in hell,” said chief football writer Michael Lynch.

“As do the world rankings, which place Australia last of the World Cup qualifiers in 59th spot (between Mali and Burkina Faso).

“And judging by the social media response to the Socceroos’ stuttering 1-1 draw against a less-than-fearsome South Africa on Monday night, large numbers of the Australian public share that pessimistic view.”

The Australian newspaper’s Ray Gatt said the team were leaving “with the sound of doom and gloom ringing in their ears” and bookmakers offering in excess of 750-1 for Australia to win the tournament.

“One former captain (Paul Wade) believes they’ll be smashed, few fans hold out any hope they’ll get through the knockout stage and the critics believe they’ll be lucky to score a goal, let alone get a point,” he said.

The Socceroos will be one of the first teams to arrive in Brazil ahead of the showpiece tournament and Bresciano believes it will work in their favour.

“I think it’s worth getting there as early as possible – just to get the feel of the World Cup, get a feel of the atmosphere and get to know where we’re travelling … so you can focus on your training leading up to the friendly game and obviously the World Cup,” he said.

Australia’s squad of 27 will be reduced to 23 on June 2, before they face Croatia in a warm-up on June 6 ahead of their World Cup opener against Chile on June 13.

AFP

Johannesburg – Voting stations opened at around 07:00 for municipal by-elections across four provinces on Wednesday, the Electoral Commission of SA (IEC) said.

Twenty candidates representing nine political parties in six wards are set to contest the by-elections in Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, and the Western Cape, IEC spokeswoman Kate Bapela said.

Voting stations would close at 21:00.

Two by-elections would take place in Gauteng.

Ward 27 in Tshwane metro [Pretoria] would be contested by the African National Congress (ANC), the Democratic Alliance (DA), and the Pan Africanist Congress of Azania (PAC).

Ward 58 in Tshwane metro would be contested by the African Independent Congress, the ANC, the DA, and the PAC, Bapela said.

In KwaZulu-Natal, one by-election in ward two in Umvoti [Greytown] municipality would be contested by the ANC, the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), and the National Freedom Party (NFP).

Limpopo would only have ward four in Lephalale [Ellisras] municipality contested by three candidates from the ANC, the Congress of the People (Cope) and the DA.

In the Western Cape, ward 25 in the City of Cape Town would be contested by the ANC, the DA, the First Nation Liberation Alliance (Finla), and the Patriotic Alliance (PA).

Ward 6 in Matzikama [Vredendal] municipality would be contested by the ANC, the DA, and the PA.

A total of 58 053 people were registered to vote.

SAPA

Braslia – Brazilian police fired tear gas on Tuesday to break up a protest by bow-and-arrow wielding indigenous chiefs who joined forces with anti-World Cup demonstrators to condemn the money spent on the tournament.

Wearing traditional clothing including feather headdresses and face paint, about 500 chiefs mainly from the Amazon basin joined another 500 protesters rallying for various social causes in Brasilia’s government square and began marching toward the capital’s World Cup stadium.

As mounted police moved to block the march, some of the indigenous demonstrators rushed their horses and one fired an arrow in their direction – hitting an officer in the leg, Globo TV reported.

Some of the indigenous could be seen throwing stones at some of the 700 police encircling the stadium. Protesters also blocked streets around the government plaza, where the congress, presidential palace and Supreme Court are located.

Earlier, the aboriginal leaders climbed onto the roof of the congress building in a protest they said was aimed at protecting their rights.

The protest, which brought together 100 ethnic groups from across Brazil, included Kayapo chief Raoni, an 84-year-old leader famous for fighting to protect the Amazon rainforest alongside pop music star Sting.

“Climbing onto the congress building was an act of bravery, it shows we’re warriors who defend our rights,” said Tamalui Kuikuru, an indigenous leader from the Xingu region in the western state of Mato Grosso.

They soon came down from the roof and rejoined the rest of the protesters along the main avenue where Brazil’s government ministries are located.

“Who is the Cup for? Not us!” shouted demonstrators. “I don’t want the Cup, I want money for health and education.”

Anti-Cup protesters align

Full-blooded indigenous people in Brazil – who make up 0.3% of the country’s population of 200 million – have staged a series of protests in recent months, accusing President Dilma Rousseff’s government of stalling the demarcation of their ancestral lands and pursuing policies that favour large-scale farming.

In the run-up to the World Cup, which opens on 12 June, Brazil has also faced a wave of demonstrations by protesters angry over the more than $11bn budget for the tournament, which they say should have been spent on programmes to benefit the poor.

The indigenous leaders, who opened their protest with traditional prayers and drumming, aligned themselves to the broader anti-World Cup cause.

“Before organising the World Cup, Brazil should have thought more about health, education and housing,” said Neguinho Truka, a leader of the Truka people in the northern state of Pernambuco, who was wearing a headdress of red and blue feathers.

Last year when Brazil hosted the Confederations Cup – a World Cup dress rehearsal – protests brought a million people into the streets and turned violent at times, to the embarrassment of tournament organisers.

Since then the protests have drawn smaller numbers but grown more radical. In recent weeks they have mainly been organised by established unions, leftist parties and activist groups such as the Landless Movement (MST) and the Homeless Workers’ Movement (MTST), which was present at Tuesday’s protest.

Brazil has also been hit by a series of strikes ahead of the World Cup and a presidential election in October. Police, teachers, bus drivers and bank security guards have all gone on strike in recent weeks.

Bus drivers in Rio de Janeiro have called a new 24-hour strike for Wednesday. Two weeks ago they trashed hundreds of buses and caused traffic chaos during a similar strike.

Strikes have also paralyzed the bus networks in World Cup host cities Bahia and Sao Paulo recently.
AFP

Pretoria – The North Gauteng High Court has ordered an investigation into how best to deal with a recent discovery that two children were allegedly mistakenly swopped at birth in an East Rand hospital in 2010, The Star newspaper reported on Wednesday.

The two girls were born in Boksburg Hospital.

The mistake was discovered recently when one of the fathers requested a paternity test after the child’s mother sued him for maintenance.

The paper reported that both parents’ blood tests did not match the child’s.

The woman then reportedly wanted her biological child back, but the other woman did not want to give her daughter up, The Star reported.

The Centre for Child Law was tasked with investigating the facts and to make a decision on what was in the best interests of the children

It was not yet clear how the children were allegedly swopped.
SAPA

North West Premier Supra Mahumapelo has called on communities in the platinum belt to assist police investigations into the death of a man found hanging in a tree and condemned in the strongest terms possible the alleged assault of two miners.

“We are concerned that the death might be related to acts of violence and continued intimidation of non-striking mineworkers and call on police not to leave any stone unturned,” Premier Mahumapelo said.
According to police, the body of the man alleged to be a mineworker was found hanging on the tree in Leeukloof, not far from Hartbeeshoek Road in Broederstroom between Hartbeespoort Dam and Krugersdorp on Tuesday.
Brigadier Thulani Ngubane said that a schoolgirl who was on her way to school noticed the body of the man who was dressed in clothes similar to those used by mineworkers and alerted her mother.
A Volkswagen Golf apparently belonging to the deceased was found on the roadside. It had crashed into a tree.
 

“How the victim ended up being hanged in the tree is what police are investigating as a registered inquest,” Ngubane said.

The two mineworkers were allegedly beaten up near Impala’s UG2 shaft in Freedom Park near Rustenburg on Tuesday morning while on their way to work.

According to police, One of the men apparently worked at an engineering construction at Bafokeng Rasimone Mine and the other at UG2 shaft at Impala.

“The victims aged 33 and 37 sustained multiple stab wounds on the body and feet. No one has been arrested at this stage, as the police investigation continues,” Brigadier Ngubane said.
 

Premier Mahumapelo remains optimistic thatmediation by Labour Judge Hillary Rabkin-Naicker will assist to break the wage dispute deadlock and bring to an end the four monthsold strike.-TDN
Follow us on Twitter@Taung_DailyNews or @IceT_

Johannesburg- Sasol Banyana Banyana has qualified for the 9th Edition of the 2014 African Women’s Championship (AWC) following the withdrawal of Comoros on Tuesday, 27 May.

The Football Federation from the Island wrote a letter to the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to ask for a withdrawal after they lost the first leg of qualifiers 13-0 on Friday, 25 May.

Comoros was expected to travel to South Africa next week for the second leg scheduled for the Saturday, 7 June.

The 2014 African Women’s Championship will be held in Namibia from 11-25 October.

The tournament is also been used as qualification for the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup, with the top three qualifying for the finals in Canada.

“It is very unfortunate that Comoros had to withdraw from the qualifiers as it is not very good for the development of football in Africa. Even though I understand where they are coming from, I believe coming here to play their match would have been more beneficial for them as they would have learned a few other things,” said Banyana Banyana head coach Vera Pauw on hearing the news.

“But on the other hand I am quite ecstatic for qualifying for AWC in my first stint with Banyana Banyana, and I believe it is something worth celebrating. I am really looking forward to the tournament, but we should not forget the bigger picture is to qualify for the Women’s World Cup in Canada. Going to AWC means we are a step closer to achieving that dream.”

Pauw said the withdrawal has not dented her preparation programme.

“Just yesterday (Monday, 26 May) we were sitting down mapping the way forward and fine-tuning our programme. Despite the setback of Comoros not coming, we are already looking for a match to play for that weekend because we need to keep the girls active. We will still be in camp regardless,” added Pauw.
-TDN
Follow us on Twitter@Taung_DailyNews or @IceT_

North West Premier Supra Mahumapelo has in committing to an effective, efficient, transparent and clean administration that works seamlessly warned newly sworn in members of the Provincial Executive Council (Exco) against bling and extravagance.

“No celebrations are to be held and luxury vehicles purchased by members of Exco. Our responsibility as public servants is not to work for ourselves but to serve the masses of our people who should be at the centre of development,” Premier Mahumapelo gave the line of march in pledging a 21days turnaround to complaints raised by citizens,30 days payment to service providers and quarterly performance report back to communities.  
The Premier and his new Members of Executive Council took an oath of office in a ceremony conducted by Judge President of the North West High Court, Justice Monica Leeuw on Tuesday.
Mahumapelo announced his reconfigured Executive Council dominated by women. Six of the 10 members of Exco are women while four are men.

Some of the new appointees to Exco include Wendy Nelson who was sworn in as the MEC for Treasury and Enterprise Development, Madoda Sambatha as the MEC for Public Works and Roads, Former Mayor of Kagisano- Molopo Local Municipality, Ontlametse Mochwari as the MEC for Social Development and Gaoage Saliva Molapisi as the new MEC for Community Safety and Transport Management.
Dr Magome Masike will remain MEC for Health while Manketse Tlhape becomes the new MEC for Rural, Environmental and Agricultural Development. 

Tebogo Modise is now the MEC for Culture, Arts and Traditional Affairs while Desbo Mohono was appointed the new MEC for Tourism.
Wendy Matsemela who was MEC for Education is retained as MEC of the reconfigured Department for Education and Sports Development while Collen Maine who was MEC for Social Development has been appointed the new MEC for Local Government and Human Settlement.
Premier Mahumapelo said the new Exco collective should be accessible and focus its energy on accelerating service delivery in order to address the triple challenges of poverty, inequality and unemployment, adding that he will be consulting with experts, academics, churches, businesses and traditional leaders to map out ways to create jobs.
Mahumapelo announced a province wide citizen satisfaction survey that is to inform his inaugural State of the Province Address to be delivered on the 27
th of next month.
He pledged to stamp out corruption and warned that his administration will not embrace mediocrity.-TDN
Follow us on Twitter@Taung_DailyNews or @IceT_