8/8/2019 2007 - Edition 6

1/12

The Oppidan PressEdition 4, 25 April 2007

The Oppidan PressEdition 5, 9 May 2007

The Oppidan PressEdition 4, 25 April 2007

53 Bathurst St Grahamstown. Tel 046-622 2950/622 8700. Tim: 082 800 9276 Kevin: 082 772 0400

PG GLASS wishes all students the best of

luck for exams!

The Oppidan PressEdition 6, 23 May 2007

According to Registrar Dr StephenFourie: Rhodes recently acquired anew version o the soware that allowsor the timetable to be set up here.Unortunately, the programme doesnot unction automatically and stillrelies on manual input. Tis meansthat people rst need to be trained toenable them to work the programme.

As a result o time constraintsRhodes Administration could notget their own sta to do the manualinput. Te setting up o the timetablewas outsourced to a private companyin Pretoria. Te company, however,ailed to realise that 16 June is a publicholiday. In response to this mistake,Fourie said: We had one o threechoices: they could start the wholesetting up process again, they couldchange the timetable or [students]could deal with it.

Te SRC, class reps and otherrelevant parties were consulted aerthe release o the rst dra. However,the South Arican Students Con-gress (Sasco) was the most vocal incomplaining about students having towrite on the public holiday. A letterwas sent to the Registrar expressingdissatisaction with the schedule.Aer a ew negotiations, it was agreedthat all exams on 16 June would berescheduled or another d ay.

While this issue may have beenresolved, students remain dissatisedwith the process o scheduling exams.

BJourn student, Jessica Cash, ques-tioned: I a university like Stellen-bosch can release the exam timetableat the beginning o the year then whycant Rhodes do the same?

Jesse Burton, a History Honoursstudent, also criticised the timetableprocess: Rhodes administrationknows that exams must be written sowhy is there no permanent timetable?she asked.

In response to this concern, Fouriesaid: Tis would greatly limit thesubject choices that students have.Rhodes allows or inter-aculty subjectselections and this would not be pos-sible i there was a xed timetable. Ithere was a permanent exam timeta-ble, students would have to check boththe lecture timetable and the examtimetable at the beginning o the yearand select their subjects around this.

Vague regulations take the

un out o unnelling

By Delia de Villiers and Mzoxolo Budaza

aware that the misuse o alcohol is incontravention o both the Universitysand the Sports C ouncils codes oacceptable behaviour.

According to Madatt, what happenedat the sports clubs Cheese and Winewas not unnelling. Funnelling, Madattbelieves, is determined by three actors:the aim o the event at which thealleged unnelling occurred, the type oalcohol consumed and the amount oalcohol consumed.

Seeing as the clubs Cheese and Winewas a celebration o club membersgraduating, and only one beer permember was unnelled, according toMadatt the event cannot be equatedto his denition o unnelling wherethe idea is getting drunk as quickly aspossible.

Bernatzeder pointed out the irony obeing investigated by the newspaper ora once-o incident because, accordingto her, Were a chilled club. Its not like

were a crazy club.She explained that it was the rst time

that something like this had happened atthe Underwater Club, that unnelling isnot a club initiation ceremony and thatthere was no mixing o drinks involved.

Montoya-Maya explained his rolein initiating the drinking incident: InColumbia where I come rom thatswhat we do w hen divers graduate. Wedid it here or the rst time and I wasntcompletely aware o the repe rcussionsor the Underwater Club.

Diving does not go with alcohol,Montoya-Maya said. I do not allow thedivers to consume alcohol or at least 24hours beore they go unde rwater. Butthe graduation was a special night tocelebrate. I apologise.

Madatt said that new club committeesare given a guide containing all SportsCouncil regulations, and are amiliarisedwith the contents o the guide by theirSports Ocer. Tis ye ar, committeeswere also given an orientation workshopat the start o the year, where committee

ATe incident highlights the need or

greater clarity in the alcohol misusepolicy at Rhodes. At present, there isone set o guidelines or sports clubsin addition to the universitys StudentDisciplinary Code. A new AlcoholMisuse Policy has recently been draedby the Dean o Students and will benalised at the end o the third term.

On Tursday 10 May, the Underwater

Club held a graduation ceremonycombined with a Cheese and Wine attheir clubhouse on the Great Field. Aphotographer or Te Oppidan Pressattended the event to take photos o whatwas expected to be a straightorwardcerticate hand-over. Events took anunexpected turn when Phanor Montoya-Maya, the warden o Botha residencewho was attending the event in hiscapacity as a diving instructor, askedgraduates to drink a can o beer whichhe poured through their snorkels beorehanding them their certicates. Aerphotographing our graduates, ourphotographer was approached by theUnderwater Club chairperson AndreaBernatzeder, and was asked not topublish the photographs because Sports

Admin would not approve. She also saidthat it was not the image she wanted theUnderwater Club to portray.

In response to an initial inquiryrom Te Oppidan Press, Head o SportAziez Madatt told us that unnelling isoutlawed on campus. Madatts responseprompted a uller investigation into theuniversitys policies byTe OppidanPress.

Te Sports Council guidelines do notexplicitly outlaw or dene unnelling.However, two clauses, which may beapplicable to unnelling, state: Clubsshould discourage the excessive use oalcohol amongst their members rom apersonal health and perormance pointo view, and Club members should be

members were trained in regulationsregarding their specic portolios.

Bernatzeder was unable to denitivelyanswer Te Oppidan Presss initialquestions about the possibility thather club broke Sports Admin rules atthe Cheese and Wine. I cant tell youwhether Ive specically read anything

regarding unnelling. Tats not necessarilySports Admins ault. Tey do give usthe documents, she said. She laterconrmed that the Sports Council alcoholguidelines were included in her sports clubcommittee manual, but that she had notread the guidelines beore.

When questioned whether theregulations as they stood were too vague,Madatt said: Its a dic ult thing, inthat do you then speciy everything inlie? When it comes to club committeeshaving to make decisions on-the-fyduring an event and being hamperedby the vague regulations, Madatt said:Tose who are responsible or theunction must monitor it.

Madatt later concluded that the

incident at the sports club unctiondid not constitute unnelling, and thatconsequently there is nothing to be undulyconcerned about at this moment in time.

Dean o Students Proessor Vivian deKlerk said: Sta at the university mustremember that they are role models. DeKlerk indicated, however, that she had

spoken with Montoya-Maya and hadreassured him that the incident wouldblow over.

Once Sports Admins position becameclear, Montoya-Maya contacted TeOppidan Press to retract his earlier apologyor the incident: We did not have ouracts together beore we met you and thatmade us apologise or something thatnow we understand was not wrong at all.I do recognise that alcohol is a problem atRhodes but what we did that night was notunnelling as it is: we did not consume alarge amount o alcohol in a short space otime. So please let us stop using that word.

By Leon Schnell and Lionel Faull

Murky waters

Pic:

LeonSchnell

Calm before the storm:Pre-exam relaxation techniques

page 7

page 3

Grahamstowns soldiersIn the trenches and the township

o see highlights o the new RhodesUniversity Alcohol Policy draf, visit ourwebsite www.TeOppidanPress.com

8/8/2019 2007 - Edition 6

2/12

HE OPPIDAN PRESS

2 Editorialpage 9Trade unions

Editor: Lionel Faull

Deputy Editor: Ines Schumacher

Managing Editor: Mike WinnAdvertising Manager:Tasmin VoslooMarketing Manager: Julia Housdon

Web Manager: Bonele Lusithi

Assistant Pictures Editor: Leon Schnell

Art Director: Alex Dubb

Arts Editor: Sarah Laird

Business Editor: Shingirirai Chaza

Chie Designer: Jacky Smith

Chie Sub-Editor: Jade Fernley

Chie Sub-Editor: Simon Allison

Entertainment Editor: Kele ScheppersFeatures Editor: Michael KaefeinNews Editor: Claire Carr

Opinion Editor: Lara Faris

Pictures Editor: Gaynor Barnard

The Oppidan Press

STAFF

Letters to the Editor

Political Editor: Boitumelo MpeteSciTech Editor: Andrew Slaughter

SciTech Editor: Seranne Howis

Sports Editor: Saint-Francis Tohlang

Website Advisor: Mike Winn

Website: www.TheOppidanPress.com

Lionel Faull

editor.oppipress@gmail.com

Eds viewpoint

Illustration:

AlexDubb

National strike explained

Editor,

I am writing in response to a lettersubmitted by Comrade Young Musango.First o all, I would like to be the rstto congratulate you, Musango, onnally coming orward and speakingor the ruling par ty. Apart rom withinZimbabwe, there are ew supporters oZanu PF with the courage to deendthe ruling party anywhere else! Tereis a good reason or this. It is utterlyludicrous to deend the murderous greedo the Zimbabwean government, whichhas shattered the hopes and dreamso all those they initially purported torepresent.

I know, and you know, that things inZimbabwe are not ne, and the problemsat home are not a result o sanctionsor any other political or economic

pressures exerted rom abroad. You mustavoid sliding into the absurd rhetoricthat deenders o the regime have leanton or so long blaming the West,blaming the whites, blaming droughtand the MDC. Te act remains thatnearly ONE HIRD o the populationhas fed the chaos. Te lucky ones run tothe very people whom the governmentblames or the collapse! Te problems inZimbabwe lie within the power-hungrydictatorship. Te leaders are too terriedand greedy to let go o the single partystate that they built through the 80s and90s, on the reliance that the people theyhad liberated were too caught up in theirnewound liberty to immediately startchallenging their iconic leaders. Absurdis how I eel right now, spelling out theseacts. We need to move past debating

who is to blame; everybody knowswho it is. As the uture o the country,

we should seek a better uture orZimbabwe. We should seek to make it aplace where people actually want to live.

As ar as intimidation on campusgoes, there has been some. Perhapscoming rom Zimbabwe, whereintimidation is much more dangerousand overt, has made you numb towardsit and you wonder what the big dealis. Its just a ew threats and grimacesaer all. Its just the ripping down oposters advertising events ocusedon the problems at home. We are in aliberal space here and its a real noveltyor Zimbos, and I wish that they woulduse it! Having said this, I promise youthat the undercurrent o animosity hasscared Zimbabweans here. People arearaid that the police or the CIO or the

army orces ironically meant to protect thecitizens, will carry out retribution on theiramilies at home. I certainly ear inducingsuering on my amily. Nevertheless, acareul and unied voice must speak outrom Zimbabweans at Rhodes. We mustnot orget the suering at home, and thediculties our parents endure in sendingus here.

Although you would gain VERY littlesupport, you should hold a march i you eeloppressed. Alternatively, please attend oneo the unctions advertised by the inormalgroup trying to end the silence. Tere isalways room to air your views without thethreat o violence or intimidation. I want toknow more about your experiences o beinga ZANU PF supporter.

The Oppidan Press publishes letters that are bona de expressions o opinion as long as

they are not clearly libellous, deamatory, racist or sexist. We reserve the right to shorten

letters due to space constraints and to edit them or grammatical inaccuracies. Any letters

that do not make it into our print edition will be published on our website.

Do you have something to say? Write a letter to the Editor and email it to

editor.oppipress@gmail.com.

Dear Editor,

Is the environment more importantthan student saety and security? Tisis the question that one would be posedwith attending the recent studentorum meetings. I must point out romthe outset that I certainly do supportinitiatives driven towards protectingour environment, however as you willdiscover upon reading this letter, I amnot convinced that the creation o anenvironmental representative is justi-able based on reasons which shall nowbe discussed.

Te idea concerning the creationo the environmental representativeportolio was recently put beore theSRC by various interest parties who ex-pressed their concern about the lack oan environmental representative. Tis

is important, certainly, but surely not asimportant as a representative which ad-dresses the issue o saety and security.

It is my humble opinion that bothviewpoints be put to public debate. Istudents eel that they would ratherhave an environmental representa-tive, then I have nothing urther to say.However, in light o the recent wave ocrime which has plagued the studentbody, in particular the Oppidan com-munity, I am o the opinion that most

students would agree that the issue con-cerning security should be the number

one priority.I certainly do believe that prevention

is better than cure. We cannot wait untila tragic incident occurs (be it on oro-campus) until we decide. Te ques-tion is not about what the University isgoing to do or us to ensure that we aresae and secure. It is about what we asstudents are willing to do to ensure thatour saety is guaranteed (at least to acertain extent).

I would like to repeat that I am notagainst protecting our environment. Iam merely o the opinion that, althoughboth o these issues are pressing mat-ters which demand attention, one candeduce that the security issue is moreimportant (especia lly rom a studentperspective). As or which o these is-

sues is the more important one to you make that choice on your own. Inconclusion I would like to wish all Op-pidans the best o luck in the upcomingexaminations and to thank those o youwho have taken your time to read myletter.

Kindest regards,Samuel Simango,Oppidan Union Senior StudentOppidan Committee Chairperson

Harry

Te Underwater Club were under-standably mortied when word o ourinvestigation leaked out, in case theirbeloved club should be shut down bySports Admin. We have been accusedo ambush journalism and bad aith,but nothing could be urther rom thetruth. Our photographer was not sent

to the event with an expos in mind.When the club chairperson asked himnot to publish the snorkel photos, ourphotographers initial and inadvertentresponse was to consent. We would stillbe within our legal rights to publishthem now, but that would be goingagainst our word. We have also beenaccused o ratting on the UnderwaterClub by explicitly naming Montoya-Maya, Bernatzeder and the UnderwaterClub to Sports Admin when we rstenquired about the legality o events atthe unction. We enquired, yes, but wewere astidious in not naming anybodyto the university authorities until it be-came clear that b oth Montoya-Maya andBernatzeder had been to see the Head oSports and the Dean o Students o theirown accord.

I strongly believe that we are justiedin publishing the outcome o our inves-tigation, or three reasons. Firstly, in thecontext o Rape Awareness Week lastweek, it is important or the universitycommunity to recognise the connec-tion between alcohol consumption andincidents o rape. It wasnt too long agothatActivate reported an alleged rapethat occurred on a sports eld outside aclub Cheese and Wine.

Secondly, it is important to clear upexactly where sports clubs stand in rela-tion to the complex web o oen vaguerules to which they are held accountable.By the same token, the university ad-ministration must understand the rulesby which it governs. Te dra AlcoholMisuse Policy will be released or public

comment this week. Whatever youropinion may be about our ront page sto-ry, YOU need to make sure you read thedra policy and comment on it beore itis nalised at the end o third term.

Tirdly, our ront page story is anopportunity or us all to debate the roleo student newspapers at our university.I we call ourselves a student newspaper,should we only hold admin and the SRCto account? Should we hold back onreporting on incidents that might notportray our riends and lovers in the bestlight? How can student newspapers beheld accountable by their readers? Watchthis space.

Wouldnt you rather be sae than green?Ludicrous to deend murderous Zim govt

8/8/2019 2007 - Edition 6

3/12

HE OPPIDAN PRESS

3OpinionThe Oppidan Comm ent

Pic:

MikeDexter

The Peppergrove Mall Tel: (046) 622 5579

- Brands on Offer:CK, Seiko,Citizen, Swatch, Police, Elle

- Great 21st gifts:

bracelets, chains, ID discs etc.

- Engraving

Te judgment: the honourable JudgePresident Somyalo passes sentence on theather. He is guilty. But not that guilty. Be-cause, according to our honourable Judge,the rape was not that bad.

Tere were mitigating actors. Te girlhad no physical injuries, or a start. Nophysical injuries? Her ather repeatedlystuck his penis into her she was eight,remember and there were no physicalinjuries? Tat is absolutely ridiculous.

Another mitigating actor cited wasthat the girl seemed to be coping. On

In the army: where the real men are

Why Ive lost aith in our honourable judiciaryAllison Wonderland

Being in digs surely means onething or most people: to mind myown business. Tis translates as: Ido not want to be disturbed what-soever, so bugger o. But surely itshould not be like this youre still

part o a broade r community. Everynow and again we do eel lonely inour digs, always acing the same oldwalls: the V is boring, the sameCD has played over and over againand youve been drunk more thanenough. Why not then de-tox allthe alcohol and boredom by takingyour racquet, basketball, swimmingcostume and, most importantly, yourdigsmates out to play. Lie is un iyou add some spice to it and I thinkany kind o sport will do the trick.

My plea is to all the Oppi girlsout there: stop thinking about books,EQ, the Rat and Parrot or Friars or achange and spend those girl-outingson the sports eld playing soccer oneither Saturday mornings or Sundayaernoons. You dont need to be asporty person to be on the elds, allthat is required is passion and yourtime. Hope to see you out there!

Hazvineyi Mushambadope is SportsRep on the Oppidan Committee.

I happen to be on speaking terms

with some o these army olk aer achance introduction at the semi-dodgyChamps Action Bar, where championsmeet other champions. I must be honest:there isnt much to say to these lads.Conversation ranges rom jumping outo airplanes, to tackling obstacle courses,to rearm handling and, o course,Metallica. In one such conversation, ina very strong Arikaans accent, I wasanimatedly told o a recent eld missionwhere we go into the bush and two ous dig a trench. Do you know a trench?Not personally, no, it sounds very 1914to me.

wo o us guys is living in thistrench or a week, securing the trenchusing strategies and tactics. Tese tacticsare o high military standard; any op-

ponent is accurately aimed at and shot.Nice twist to paintball dont you think? Idid learn something new though: wateris the most important provision theytake with them because when you arethirsty, you drink.

On urther investigation o theseimportant survival provisions, pointingat dierent areas o his belt, this armyboytjie explained: Over here you haveyour water bottle, and over here youhave your rst aid kit, over here youhave your eating utensils, and over here[hands now crossing his proud chest]you have your magazines. My imme-diate thought process was as ollows:

By Lara Faris two men in a trench, or a week, alone,magazines, Playboy. I oh-so-cleverlysay: Your Playboy magazines? Noman! he protests. Ten I click: he meansammunition magazines. So I tease: Ohsorry, Hustler? No man! He turns toa tall army comrade, hits him on theshoulder and says: Jis man! Wat is magazine in Engels?

Tese men have dedicated their youthto discipline, intense physical train-ing, military instruction, and adrenal

stimulation skills. All jokes aside, regret-tably not all encounters with the armylads are a laughing matter. My armyacquaintances oen inorm me that orsome consecutive weeks they sit aroundwasting time, oen going out at night tocompensate or the monotony o lengthydays. Many people in the township arenot so accepting o the military locationor this particular reason. A number oarmy boys (not taking into account theones I know), are known or raternis-ing with young township girls on theirnights out. Te military as a whole areblamed or causing kak in the township.Tis includes contributing to a propor-tion o the increasing pregnancy rates,drunken violence and other relatedincidents.

Tis takes me back to my point o thereal men o the military. In the movie300 an outnumbered Spartan army ghtsor their survival, only to be deeated bytheir weakest link: one o their own whoraternises with the e nemy. In Graham-stown the army lives to deend citizens,but it is ironically these same citizensthat are subject to some soldiers badbehaviour. Teir actions damage thearmys otherwise good intentions. Tisprinciple holds outside o the army: weare all real men and women, trying tobe honest, but more oen than not themajority is orced to take the all or thecowardly ew.

purely theoretical grounds, this is

rubbish the reaction o the victim iscompletely irrelevant to the crime. Imy car gets stolen, is the robber goingto get a lighter sentence because I didntcry enough? But on actual grounds thismitigating actor is also rubbish thetrial had to be halted a number o timesbecause the girl broke down in court.Not the reaction o somebody who iscoping.

And on these grounds, our honour-able Judge did not impose a lie sentence,giving the convicted rapist only 20 years:My conclusion is that this particularrape was not the worst one.

Lets analyse this logic or a second.Well use mass murderers. Well giveHitler lie he killed six million Jews,thats quite a lot. Pol Pot only manageda million Cambodians, clearly not inthe same league. 20 years or him. What

about Osama bin Laden? He hardly

registers on the scale a ew thousandin New York is nothing in the grandscheme o things. Well give him a slapon the wrist and a warning.

You see how absurd that is. By apply-ing this logic in his courtroom, the hon-ourable Judge Somyalo has underminedhis authority and that o the e ntirelegal system o this c ountry. I submit,respectully, that he has ignored the basicprinciples o justice and decency whichare meant to be the basis o the law, anddelivered a judgment so ill-thought outand careless that the ght against rapehas been signicantly set back.

However, the judge, understandingthat his verdict would be controversial,deended himsel: Communities aroundSouth Arica are up in arms againstrape, in particular when it is committedagainst young children. Tis, however,

doesnt mean that the courts have to bow

down to these social pressures.Courts dont have to bow down to

social pressures, and they shouldnt. Butwere not talking ab out social pressures.Were talking about right and wrong.Te rapists daughter is going to suerthe psychological eects o being rapedby her ather or the rest o her lie, andthe man responsible will walk away aer20 years.

Aer the Jacob Zuma trial, manypeople began to question the legalsystem o this country that the courtswere not as impartial as they shouldbe, that women were not protected orlistened to, that rape was not taken seri-ously. In that instance, I dont think thecriticism was air. However, the honour-able Judge Somyalo has just proved theirpoint, and given the rest o us somethingto be very worried about.

By Simon Allison

Sport passionsBy Hazvineyi Mushambadope

Pic:GaynorBarnard

8/8/2019 2007 - Edition 6

4/12

HE OPPIDAN PRESS

4 Features

Open an account with Wallaces for high-quality pharmaceutical care and give-aways!

Peppergrove Mall

Tel: 046 622 7373

Email: wallace@intekom.co.za

NEW & IMPROVED

Open an account with Wallaces forhigh-quality pharmaceutical careand give-aways!

Peppergrove Mall

Tel: 046 622 7373

Email: wallace@intekom.co.za

Wallaces Pharmacy

28 New Street

9am - Late

Tel

(046) 622-3042

Open

6pm - 12pm

Deliveries Fee

R2-50

Deliveries

Telephone

(046) 622-3042

You Ring We Bring

The bigger, better burger

Charles Young, head o the RhodesCounselling Centre, said that o allclients seen, 17 percent suer romdepression, which is a worryingly largenumber. Te number increases through-out the year not because o any suicideseason, but be cause aer some timestudents are more comortable and con-dent to go to the Counselling Centreand seek assistance.

Tere are three main ways in whichhelp is oered to people suering romdepression: psychological therapy, Cog-nitive Behavioural Terapy (CB), andpsychiatric therapy where a psychia-trist comes to the Counselling Centreand is able to prescribe anti-depressants.

Dealing with depression

Riding with the donkey cart men

With exams just around the corner, the heat is on or Oppies in par-

ticular as we juggle end-o-term essays, revision and the daily admin

o digs lie. I you are taking strain, read on...

By Laura Durham CB has developed notably in the lastdecade and takes a practical approach,looking at how a client interprets events.A depressed person will interpret any-thing negatively, and this therapy aimsto rectiy these thoughts. Depression isan illness with episodes that come andgo but through CB, uture episodes areprevented.

Not all depressed people think aboutsuicide on a serious level, but rather havesuicidal idealation, according to Young,and this needs to be dealt with beore itbecomes dangerous. Intervention canoccur, by contacting the parents and insome cases hospitalisation, but this isusually done with the consent o the de-pressed person, as negotiation provides abasis or therapy.

According to Inspector Coetzer o theSouth Arican Police Services, suicidestatistics cannot be released out orespect or the amilies, but the numbero unnatural deaths (most as a result osuicide) was eight in April, and alreadyve this month. It is very emotionallydraining or all involved in a suicidecase, and caseworkers nd the imagesdicult to deal with long aer the casehas been closed.

For any assistance in dealing withdepression, please contact the Counsel-ling Centre (top foor o Union Build-ing); email: counsellingcentre@ru.ac.za;Lieline: 0861 322 322; SMS Suicide line:31393; CPU: 046 603 8146/7

Exam stress = greasy hair. Buy new Aqua Shampoo(or sensitive scalps) or only R25.00.

BioPlus efervescents or only R37.50 or 10.

Turbovite sachets or only R2.60. For more content, visit our website:

For all advertising queries contact Tasmin at advertising.oppipress@gmail.com or on 072 218 8346.

www.TheOppidanPress.com

decade. Annerie describes cases whereanimals are stabbed and sometimes evenkilled. Tis is mainly because rivalrybetween donkey cart owners is erce.

Donkeys have had their ears or tails cuto and one even had an iron rod pushedup its rectum. Annerie explains thatwhen a donkey owner makes a mere R60a day, the donkey always comes last.

Ever since the Makana Donkey As-sociation was established, the commu-nity and the donkey owners have beenencouraged to cooperate in report-ing any ill treatment o the donkeys.Concerned motorists oen call in toreport when a donkey cart is overloaded.Legally, the associations cause is gainingground there have been three success-ul prosecutions o animal abuse againstdonkeys in Grahamstown.

With Annerie and the MakanaDonkey Association keeping an eyeon the donkeys that work tirelessly toprovide many amilies with a livelihoodand rewood, it is reassuring to knowthat they are being treated in anincreasingly humane way.

Patric Doyi owns two donkeys. Hewas given his rst by his ather and thenbought another one or R250. With thispairing, called Blackie and Whitie, hecan oen be seen making his way alongBeauort Street with his cart on the wayback to the township. He makes his liv-ing carrying loads o rewood rom theorests outside Grahamstown and sellingthem in the township.

It takes Patric and his riend an hourand a hal to make their way through

town to etch wood and return to thetownship. Tere they sell the wood orR40 a load and their days work is done.Patric insists that he takes good care othe donkeys; they sleep outside at nightand are allowed to roam ree. He eedsthem carrots and cabbage and they arewatered in the breaks between carryingloads. Every now and again he gives peo-ple rides he remembers giving a ride toa oreign amily during Festival, becausethey wanted to experience Grahamstownrom the back o a donkey cart. He sayshe would even give students a ride, at R5a pop.

Patric says that he never has any

By Cara-Ann Carstens and Michael Kaeein

problems rom the police or trac o-cials, nor motorists, who have learnedto tolerate the donkey carts in the streetso Grahamstown.

Patric is one o the 56 cart ownersregistered with the Makana DonkeyAssociation. Te association ghts toprotect the rights o donkeys and toensure that they are treated in a humanemanner. Te association was ounded5 years ago by Annerie Wolmarans,a ormer SPCA employee, who wasconcerned about the abuse that thedonkeys were suering because theirowners overwork them so they can earnmore money. For Annerie to regulate theway donkeys were treated around town,she asked the donkey owners to becomemembers o the association. At present,members o the association total about90% o Grahamstowns donkey owners.Tey meet every other month in thetownships.

Annerie has a passion or donkeys

that has been with her since childhood.I have a photo o me as a three year old,perched on top o a donkey; maybe thatswhere the love c ame rom, she says.

On its mission to educate, theMakana Donkey Association sent eightdonkey owners to Cape own on acourse to teach them how to look aertheir donkeys. Tese eight owners nowtake the liberty o sharing their know-how with the rest o the donkey ownersin the Grahamstown community. Sincethen, things have improved a hell o alot or the Grahamstown donkeys, saysAnnerie.

Donkey abuse has been rie in the last

Pic:

LeonSchnell

8/8/2019 2007 - Edition 6

5/12

HE OPPIDAN PRESS

5Politics

The World View

By Muzoxolo Baduza, Tinyiko Mushwana

and Simon Allison

In a country where the ruling party hasmore than a two-thirds majority, this is a vitalquestion. Democracy works on the principle ochecks and balances, and a strong oppositionparty is central to maintaining this. Te ANCneeds to be held accountable, and as the ocialopposition, the DA should be responsible orthis.

But the appeal o the DA and Zille iscentred in mainly white, urban areas. Te DAis oen perceived as a white party that doesnot represent the needs and interests o thecountrys majority black population. Critics saythey will never be able to attract black voters

because o this, and will never really be able tomake signicant inroads into the ANCs sup-port base something that needs to happen ithe DA is to become stronger and more eec-tive as an opposition.

However, politics lecturer and expert onSouth Arican politics Dr Tabisi Hoeane ar-gues that this is a simplistic analysis. We needto be careul o highlighting race issues as a

point o discussion in voter b ehaviour, he says,adding that skin colour is not the determin-ing actor in getting votes. He argues that the

DAs problems stem rom their p olicies, whichare not all that dierent rom the ANCs. In asubstantive manner the DA is oering exactlywhat the ANC is already oering. It is shingin the same pond as the ANC, he says.

However, it might take more than poli-cies to change popular perceptions. Hoeanefoats the possibility o an ANC-DA alliancesometime in the uture. Tis would be thebest thing that would ever happen in SouthArica. It will also go a long way in eradicatingthe race issues that South Arica has aced andcontinues to deal with, he says. Tis wouldalso help South Aricans realise that they have

very common interests.Do the ANC and the DA really have that

much in common? Rhodes SASCO presidentAwethu Zumana doesnt think so. We believethat even i the DA had a black leader it wouldstill not get black votes because o its neo-liber-

al agenda, which, according to Zumana, doesnot cater or poor blacks in South Arica. Hesaid that the DA needs to change its policies iit wants to realise more popular appeal.

Either way, the DA needs more support iit is to properly ull its role as South Aric asocial opposition and keep the ANC in check.How Zille will do this is not yet known; thatshe has to is clear.

Does anybody care?

By Melissa Nedt

I dont care and I dont have timeto worry about it, says Clare Hoggan,a third year BAcc Oppidan. Marchesare un and exciting but meetings areboring.

Lucie Pinson, a third year BAOppidan, agrees. She says that studentssee marches as revolutionary activities,an opportunity to shout and makenoise and to show that youre active andcare or things other than themselves.Meetings, on the other hand, are tedious,and there is no one to acknowledge yourinvolvement and praise you or beingthere. So in brie, students see meetingsas a waste o time, which is the sad truthabout human nature, she says.

Te lack o student participation inthe review process means that the newSRC Constitution is an entirely SRC-runprocedure. Tis shows a huge amounto trust on the part o the student bodythat the SRC can examine and correctitsel. I things go wrong later down theline, students will have only themselvesto blame.

Compiled by Simon Allison

Le Monde DiplomatiquePARIS Tough he claims that the state will protect

France and the French people, his economic and socialprogramme draws on old Tatcherite remedies andavours those whom ortune has already avoured. Hisrepublican sallies cannot obscure his security-based vi-sion o society in which repression is the only answer tothe claims o the lower classes and the young.

Te Pittsburgh ribune-ReviewWASHINGON DC With some 85% o the

population voting, France took an irrevocable step tothe right. President Sarkozy promised tough policingand anti-immigration measures, ewer taxes and statehandouts, a smaller bureaucracy and a renewed workethicSarkozy has already begun to undermine thesensual, rhythmically slower France much loved byexpatriates long meals, ne oods and wines, extended

vacations and always a backdoor approach to gettingthings done.

Te Mail & GuardianDAKAR Te weekend election o right-winger

Nicolas Sarkozy as the new president o France hasraised ears in Arica because o his tough line on im-migration. But some on the continent also hope or aparadigm shi in ties with Frances ormer colonies,removed rom the so-called Francarique network opast French leaders who maintained relations withsome dubious Arican leaders. Sarkozy was the architecto Frances tough immigration policy and as interiorminister stepped up the expulsion o illegal immigrants,prompting sharp criticism rom rights groups.

Financial imes

BRUSSELS Nicolas Sarkozys declaration thatFrance was now back in Europe was greeted with amixture o relie and oreboding in European Unioncapitals, where the new French president has as manyenemies as admirersYet, or al l Mr Sarkozys bruisingGaullist style, his election was greeted with relie in theEUs biggest power centres Berlin, London and Brus-sels where he was seen as the best candidate to dragFrance into the 21st c entury.

By Melissa Nedt and Lionel Faull

At the second student orum sittinglast Saturday evening, the assembly wait-ed or 20 minutes until one latecomerarrived to ull the two-thirds quorum.Quorum was insucient or Constitu-tional changes to be ratied, however,as student delegates started driing outo the meeting almost as soon as it hadbegun. As a result, delegates had to becontent with discussing the inconsisten-cies and muddles which Bryony Greenhad identied in the dra constitution.

A ve-person working group hasnow been set up to incorporate the latestamendments. It is unclear what the ateo the amended Constitution will be ia third student orum does not meetquorum this week.

Te lack o student interest shown atthe two student orums so ar is surpris-ing considering the urore two monthsago when Paul Hjul led a crusade againstthe SRC. More than three hundredstudents attended that meeting, whereit was agreed that the SRC Constitu-tion is seriously fawed. However, oncethe Constitutional review process wasunderway, less than ten students intotal attended the three working groupmeetings.

At the rst student orum two weeksago, many participants were not inter-ested in being involved, and some wereseen to be voting with the majority justso that the process would be over sooner.

Illustration:

AlexDubb

8/8/2019 2007 - Edition 6

6/12

8/8/2019 2007 - Edition 6

7/12

HE OPPIDAN PRESS

7

Well, on Christmas, which also hap-pens to be my birthday, I got an emailand a phone call rom his soon-to-beMrs. I was distraught, but, aer somesweet talking rom Ex, I was convincedthat I was dealing with a group o haterswho were jealous o what we had. I wasnave enough to believe him. But thestory doesnt end just yet. Ex twisted theknie that was already stuck in my backeven urther by sleeping with a herpes-

inected streetwalker (at least thats howI think o her). o top it all o, she hap-pened to be in one o my classes. Aera year o devotion to a verbally abusiveogre, I decide d Id had enoughandwhats more, I would stop at nothing toget revenge.

I thought o attacking his most prizedpossession. Yes, chopping o his peniswas an option but I was put o by theidea o having to wear an orange prison

jumpsuit or the rest o my lie. His Japa-nese car was like a precious baby to him,so I thought o scratching the old hunk o

junk with my keys rom bonnet to boot.One o my darling riends even advisedme to pour sugar into his petrol tank andassured me that this would wreck thecrusty thing or lie. Others advised that

I get with his brother or send him hatemail. In the end, I did nothing. Planningrevenge is time-consuming and draining,and Im not that kind o person.

When someone betrays you, you gothrough a wave o emotions. Youre an-gry: at the other person or treating youso badly, and yoursel or being oolishenough to let it happen. You mourn orwhat could have been, eeling completelydeeated. And nally, you pick yourselup and begin the healing process. In myexperience, this is the most painul parto it all.

Its been a year since my PrinceCharming went riding o into the sunsetwith another woman, and Id be lying iI said that the experience hasnt le mebitter and skeptical about relationships.Even though Ive moved on and dated

other people, my heart still hurts when Isee them together because Im remindedo how they began their aair at myexpense. But Ive come to realise thateach moment that I spend crying over itis another moment that I allow him tobreak my spirit even urther.

Te best revenge that you can ever geton a person is touse your experi-ence to becomea wiser, strongerperson. Putting all thatenergy into leading asuccessul, ulllinglie will make youeel much betterthan any sugarin a petrol tank

ever will.

EntertainmentHitting theG-spot

The sex and relationship column oThe Oppidan

Press, Hitting The G-Spot, is intended to explore

sex and sexual relations in a responsible and

inormative way. Sex whether youre getting it

or not is a big part o being a young adult and

Hitting The G-Spot is here to promote personal

saety, physical health and emotional wellbeing.Pic:Leon

Schnell

Tassenberg 750ml 12.99 each, was 14.99

St Anna 16.99 each, was 18.99

Jumbo burgers 9.99 each, was 14.99

Banana loaves 6.99 each, was 9.99

Prices valid till 27 May

MASSAGEFor those nights when youve beenstudying till your neck cant turn andyour back eels like its been dismantled,you can pop into ranquillity andget yoursel a back,

119 HIGH STREET,

GRAHAMSTOWN

FABLES

BOOKSHOP

WE BUY AND SELL

TEXTBOOKS FOR MOST

DEPARTMENTS

WE PAY CASH

JUST DOWN FROM KING PIE

TEL/FAX 046 6361525EMAIL rhodope@fables.co.za

By Malebo Mogorosi, Nelisa Mniki,

Solomzi Khoza and Zinziswa Mani

our true selves and release the tensionin the body. Te workshop will be heldtwice a week on Sunday aernoons(14:00-17:00) in the Bot Gardens dur-

ing the exam period.

CAPOEIRALast but not least, Capoeira is alwaysa welcome alternative or de-stress-ing. Capoeira is normally dened asa Brazilian martial art with rhythmand music, but this doesnt seem todo it justice. It can be a way o liewhen exercised properly. Gone are thestuy ormalities and coloured belts otraditional martial arts. Instead, theyare replaced with musical instrumentsand dancing. Its like working out, butwithout the work.

ypical Capoeira games consist otwo people in a roda (circle) while thebateria play the instruments. Te bat-eria will have three berimbaus (gourdbows), twopandeiros (tambourines),a reco-reco (rasp), an agogo (gong bell)and, optionally, an atabque (drum).Te people orming the roda will singabout what is happening inside it.Oen, call and response songs abouteveryday lie and love are used. Tetwo players acing each other do notmake any physical contact but showtheir ability to attack and deend aswell as some gymnastic moves. Notwo games are ever the same though,as there is much room to reestyle andyou can progress at your own pace.

So, or a great way to express yourseland relax while getting t, join LaraBeryis and Ricardo Rorich or Capoeiraat the Princess Alice Hall on AricanStreet on uesdays andTursdays, 19:00-21:00. Lessons cost R5.

Each puzzle has a unique solution which canbe found by logic alone.

Sudoku

PuzzlerM

ediaLtd.

2007

Sweet RevengeBy Takondwa Nyasulu

Pic

:G

aynor

Barn

ard

neck and shoulder massage or onlyR100. ranquillity is a health and beautyclinic on the corner o High Street andSomerset Street, owned by Lizelle Jacobs.

Te garden is laced with beautiul purplefowers and green trees or a relaxingenvironment an ideal setting to enjoypeace o mind. Other options on oerinclude Indian head massages or R75,stress reducing back massage or R150 orthe de-stress aromatherapy or R200. Ja-cobs says: Tere is no place in the worldyou would rather be than laying on the

massage table being taken to newheights. Its the perect

excuse to neglect yourstudies or hal anhour and lower the

stress levels or thenext round o cram-ming.

Set up an appoint-ment by phoning

046 622 6077or going

there

yoursel. ranquillity is open Monday toTursday rom 08:00 to 19:00, Fridaysrom 08:00 to 17:00 and Saturdays rom08:00 to 16:00.

ASHANGA YOGAI youd like something slightly more ac-tive, ollow Madonnas example and giveAshtanga yoga a try. Alan Parker, a localyoga instructor, says that Ashtanga yogais a orm o meditation and a method odeep breathing and movement that canimprove strength, fexibility and stamina,as well as relieving stress. As a bonus,throughout a yoga session you are alsoremoving toxins rom your body andgetting rid o mental distractions.

Yoga classes are run by the Dramadepartment and take place three timesa week. Mondays (18:00-19:30) are orbeginners, while uesdays and Turs-days (13:05-14:05) are or the moreexperienced. Te rst class is a ree trial,aer which you can attend at a rate oR12 per session.

MOHER EARH WORKSHOPSAnother relaxing option is the Moth-

er Earth Workshop. Tis is aworkshop that deals with many

types o relaxation. Tis is anopportunity or ree spiritedpeople to get together andbe one with nature, taking abreak rom all the stress o

varsity. Te purpose o theworkshop is to allow you to

rediscover your Inner Child.Te Mother E arth Workshop

comprises o a variety o play activitiessuch as drawing, letter writing, ngerpainting and trust exercises. Tese ac-tivities are said to help reconnect us with

8/8/2019 2007 - Edition 6

8/12

HE OPPIDAN PRESS

Sciech

Pic:

Supplied

Pics:

SimonCapstick-

Dale(bottom)andsupplied(top)

Pelargonium reniorme and Pelar-gonium sidoidesare two species in theplant amily that are commonly knownas Geraniums. P. reniorme is limitedto a small area between Grahamstownand Port Elizabeth and is ranked as the28th most traded plant in the EasternCape. P. sidoides has a wider distribution

throughout the Eastern and WesternCape. Te root tubers o both speciesare used by traditional healers to treatstomach complaints and respiratory tractinections (including tuberculosis).

Extracts made rom plants mayhave up to 50 or more phytochemicals(plant-produced compounds) dis-solved in them. Many o these bioactivecompounds can have an antibacterialeect. Te antibacterial properties o atleast one o these compounds has beenstudied by Rhodes student AndrewWhite, who undertook his MSc on theharvesting and extraction o bioactivecompounds in P. sidoides.

Te last 20 years have seen a growinginterest in and utilisation o plant prod-ucts in the international pharmaceutical

industry. Four years ago, the interna-tional market began to take an activeresearch interest in the two Pelargonium

species, with an esti-mated ve tonnes oplants exported rom

the Grahamstown areaon a weekly basis. Extracts

rom Pelargonium (marketedas medicinal products) are

available or purchase in theoverseas market, with

up to US$6 milliongenerated annuallyin central Europe.

Tis internationaldemand is having a

Last week astronomers had thechance to watch the brightestexploding star ever recorded. Tisexplosion was a hundred times moreenergetic than a typical supernova.

Te star that exploded (namedSN 2006gy) was estimated to havebeen 150 times the size o our sun.Tis is as large as the laws o physicsallow a star to get. Many o the rstgeneration stars in the universe arebelieved to have been this massive,and this rare supernova allowed as-tronomers a glimpse o how the veryrst stars would have died. Superno-

vas usually happen when extremelylarge stars exhaust their uel and col-lapse, but SN 2006gy did somethingdierent. Tere is evidence that the

very distant SN 2006gy expelled alarge amount o matter just beoreit exploded. A much closer massivestar in our own galaxy (named EtaCarinae) appears to be ollowing thesame course o action.

Researchers have recently appliednanotechnology to a new ashionline, aptly named Glitterati.

extiles are coated with silvernanoparticles that give the abricsthe ability to combat many harmulbacteria and viruses. Tis meansthat the wearer o the garment hasa much lower risk o catching com-mon ailments, such as fu, which aretransmitted by these microbes. Tesilver nanoparticles are electro-statically charged, which creates acharged shield around the cottonbres in the garment. On the na-noscale, the antibacterial propertieso silver are enhanced to the extentthat they neutralise any viruses andbacteria that come into contact with

them.At a mere $10,000 per square

yard, this new ashion breakthroughused with nanotechnology is a mustor beating the winter colds and futhat will soon be upon us.

SciTechshorts

By Seranne Howis

By Jessica Cockburn

DROSTDY RENTALS

DIGS 2008!COME VIEW OUR HOUSES AND GET THE

BEST DIGS EARLY

AVAILABLE NOW:

LOVELY 2 BEDROOM TOWNHOUSE/FLAT, VERY

SECURE, MODERN KITCHEN

RENTAL R 3300-00

CALL US AND COME VIEW

AVAILABLE NOW:

FAMILY HOUSE WITH HUGE GARDEN

PERFECT FOR KIDS!!! CALL US FOR MORE

INFORMATION.

ROOMS IN DIGS CLOSE TO CAMPUS!

Tel: 046 636 1388Cell: 083 268 8808

Email: rentals@eragrahamstown.co.za

We offer top quality service and exceptional customer care. Contact

the rental agents on 046 636 1388

COLLETE Son

Gadget o the week: the oating bedTe foating bed is based on the big blackalien monolith rom the movie 2001: ASpace Odyssey. It foats 40cm above theground, completely clear o the foor.

Tis eerie eect is achieved bypowerul magnets in the foor and theunderside o the bed, which repel eachother with enough orce to li 900kg. o

prevent the bed foating o across thefoor, it is tethered at each corner. Te

visual eect achieved by the designers isas though the bed were alling upwards.Its use isnt limited to only a bed; it canalso be used as a soa, a Japanese diningtable or even a display platorm. Tefoating bed is available or purchase

now, or the trifing sum o US$1.5million. Buyers should probably beadvised to remove their earrings beore

vacuuming underneath.o nd out more, go towww.universearchitecture.com.

Gadget discovered by Seranne Howis

Pelargonium sidoides and Pelargonium

reniforme, also known as Geraniums.

damaging eect on the species. ra-ditional harvesting methods leave aportion o the Pelargonium plant in theground, having little impact on actualnumbers o plants and allowing tubers toregrow (this is called sustainable harvest-ing). Commercial harvesters requentlyremove the whole plant, leading to thewiping out o entire populations.

Andrew Whites research ound that(aer using the traditional harvest-ing method) greenhouse grown plantsshowed regrowth rates six times that oplants le to regrow in the wild, sug-gesting that the best possible method omeeting export demands could be thecommercial greenhouse cultivation oPelargonium.

Te majority o commercial harvest-ers who destructively collect Pelargo-

nium plants rom the wild are impov-erished and unemployed, and they arepaid a paltry R3 to R15 per kilogram oharvested root. Te middlemen who sellthese roots on to French syndicate buy-ers in Cape own can easily make up toR1000 per kilogram.

Te majority oPelargonium rootsthat are commercially harvested are ex-ported by large corporations in Germanyand France. P. sidoides has been usedin Germany to develop a treatment orbronchitis, creating a multimillion-dollarindustry in Europe based on this SouthArican plant.

Te South A rican governmentsWhite Paper on the Conservation andSustainable Use o South A ricas Bio-logical Diversity aims to control access

to indigenous resources through theintroduction o legislature. Harvest per-mits are required to harvest Pelargoniumin the Eastern Cape. Despite this, illegalharvesting and abuse o issued permitscontinues. Te Department o Conserva-tion, deciding that the permit issuingpolicy is inadequate, have declared amoratorium on all harvesting o indig-enous plants. Tis is highly problematicgiven that most people in the EasternCape rely on medicinal plants or theirhealth care, in an area that is known asthe poorest region in South Arica. Tismoratorium also means that traditionalharvesters may be arrested or collectingwhat they see as communal propertyPi

c:

Supplied

vital or their pe oples well be ing.Initial attempts at stamping out

the pillaging o South Aricas naturalresources or European corporationsappear to have been less than successul.Further impending legislature aimedat hardening control over the collec-tion and export o South Arican plantmaterial could have dire consequencesor general botanical research. A strictreading o the proposed legislaturecould require that a researcher musthave a permit merely to go into a publicherbarium to inspect a sample o a plantthat has been stored there or the lasthundred years. Tis could have a nega-tive impact on research in this country.

Jillian

By Seranne Howis and Silvana Barbali

8/8/2019 2007 - Edition 6

9/12

HE OPPIDAN PRESS

9Business

economic indicators

Open 7 days per week

Mon - Sat: 8am - 8pmSun: 8am - 6pm

For Friendly, Fast Service

Tel: 046 622 956014 New Street

BUDDYS LAUNDROMAT

Wash

Tumble Dry

Iron

Fold

MATTHEW STRYDOM

I youve walked into Pick n Pay re-cently to pick up milk, you may havenoticed the sign telling you there is anational milk shortage. Current milksupply is not meeting the requireddemand and an international milkshortage, due to the drought in Aus-tralia, has also impacted on SouthAricas milk problems.

Te small and medium-sizeddairy armers in the country are putat the most risk by this, as they canno longer aord the rocketing inputcosts such as ertiliser and labour.Teir selling prices can no longermeet those o the big boys; largemanuacturers such as Clover andParmalat. I the shortage is main-

tained or much longer, other milkproducts, such as cheese, will also beaected.

Te shortage is orecasted to endonly by late November 2007.

Over the next two years, a monorailwill be built between Soweto andJohannesburg. Tis will mean thatcommuters will be able to get romthe one destination to the other inless than 15 minutes. Constructionis said to begin in September thisyear.

Te monorail will run on bothelectricity and solar-powered batter-ies. It will consist o rubber wheeledcarbon bre carriages, each o whichwill be able to carry 107 people.Rails will run between carriages anddock at aerial stations which will beaccessed by escalators.

Te reasoning behind this projectis to ease congestion on the roads

and enable people to commute easilyand aordably. It is hoped that themonorail will transport 1.5 millioncommuters a day between the twoareas.

Business shorts

By Shingirirai Chaza By Shingirirai Chaza

2007

Public Sector Unions, aliatedwith Cosatu, demand a 12% wageincrease.

2006

National Education Health andAllied Workers Union (Nehawu)

members rom provincialDepartments o Roads andransportation on a protected strikedue to conditions o employment.

2005

Unions aligned with the Congresso South Arican rade Unions(Cosatu) demand better wagesor teachers, nurses and securityguards.

2004

Latest large public sector strike.Unions demand better wages andworking conditions.

2003

Notable strikes in the clothingand textile se ctor. Municipalitieswere aected by recurring workstoppages.

Ination leaves

workers behind

By Shingirirai Chaza

Statistics South Arica says that therecent increase in infation is the highestin three and a hal years.

rade unions are enraged and haveentered into negotiations concerning apublic wage demand increase, which issaid to be almost hal the rate o infa-tion. Te unions are united, demandinga 12% increase, and have reportedlyplaced a deadline or their demandsto be met by the end o May 2007. Itheir demands are not complied withby government, the threat o a nationalpublic sector strike could turn into areality. Recently, government oered an

initial increase o 5.3%, which was laterrevised to 6% this has been rejected bythe unions.

Tis initiative or an increase inwages is said to be long overdue andnecessary. Te burden o the increase ininfation has been most elt by the poor,the majority o whom are public sectorservants and are earning minimumwage, as they are unable to aord risingproduct costs. Additionally, as the higherand more elite employees receive higher

wages and bigger bonuses, the onlychange elt by those at the bottom is thewidening o the wage gap.

It is said that about 80% o pub-lic workers would benet rom thisincrease, and that the increase wouldalso better the public sector as a wholeby making jobs such as nursing, teachingand police work more attractive.

It is suggested though that the threato a strike is not so much linked to theneeds o public workers, but more as anillustration o the unions political infu-ence. Despite this, it is widely believedthat the most likely agreement will bereached at about 6.8%.

Te mainstream denition oinfation reers to a general rise inprices measured against a standard

level o purchasing power. It ismeasured by comparing two setso goods at two points in time, andthen calculating the increase in costwhich has not been aected by anincrease in quality.

Although an increase in infationis oen viewed as having negativeeects on the economy, its upsideis that in the short term it is oendicult to renegotiate pricesdownwards, so oen prices arereadjusted in the same direction.

Tis has been a problem or theunions because the expectationwith an increase in infation is anincrease in wages to meet the higherprices; however, this has not beenaddressed.

The role o ination

Exchange Rate (16 May 2007)

Weighted average o the banks daily rates at approximately 10:30am.

Rand/Dollar R6.9301

Rand/Pound R13.7580

Rand/Euro R9.4249

Interest Rates (May 2007)

Repo 9.00%Repurchase rate: Rate at which the private (sector) banks borrow rands romthe SA Reserve Bank.

Prime 12.50%Benchmark rate at which private banks lend out money to the public.

Infation Rate (March 2007)CPI 6.1%CONSUMER PRICES otal (metropolitan areas) 12-erm % change.

CPIX 5.5%CONSUMER PRICES CPIX - CPI excluding interest rates on mortgage bonds(metropolitan and other urban areas) 12-erm % change.

Pics:

Supplied

8/8/2019 2007 - Edition 6

10/12

8/8/2019 2007 - Edition 6

11/12

HE OPPIDAN PRESS

11Sport

By Shiraz Jogee

Te act there were two South Aricanteams in the Super 14 nal is testamentin itsel to the change in the standardo South Arican rugby. Te Sharks andBulls have dominated and really comeinto their own, giving us a nail-biting -nal on Saturday, with the Bulls liing thetrophy courtesy o a last-gasp overtimetry rom Bryan Habana.

In the semi-nal, Derick Hougaard

up-staged Daniel Carter in the Bullsmatch against the Crusaders. Carter,who is rated the best player in interna-tional rugby and is the highest earningrugby player in the world, looked aver-age to an in-orm Hougaard. Tat just

showed that in a game needing compo-sure and strong nerves under pressure,we have the talent to match the best.White may invite the Bulls fyhal andone more player to the original squado 46 to join the elite group. But, he willhave to get the approval rom Hoskins.

Te selection o the squad hasbrought about much debate, as one canimagine. Questions have to be askedabout choices such as Ashwin Willemse,who played only one match against theCheetahs, and Zimbabwean born onde-rai Chavanga, who has not played in theSuper 14 all season yet nds himsel inthe Springbok squad. Te Luke Watsonissue has been discussed on a number ooccasions with the relationship between

him and Jake White being described asa problem relationship or SA rugby.When asked i there would be urtherintervention by the selection leaders toinclude Watson in the nal 30 man dra,Hoskins said that he hopes it would not

be necessary.With the display o good scrum-

ming and running rugby seen rom theSouth Arican teams over this Super 14tournament, I look orward to seeingthe Boks in action. With the likes o JPPietersen, who has claimed the prize orthe most tries scored in the tournament,young Francois Steyn and veteran SchalkBurger, we can only expect the best romthe Springboks against the English. Wehave both speed in the back line playersand strength in the scrum. Watch outor a resh looking Springbok team nextweekend at the Vodacom Stadium inBloemontein.

Shiraz is a sports journalist with Sun-day Media in Cape own.

All eyes on the Springboks ater Super 14 thriller

Razzas Ramblings

Skydiving: its not as stupid as it looksBy Sa int-Francis Tohlang

But this rantic media coverageshould not prevent you rom satisy-ing that crazy quest to jump out o anaeroplane 10,000 eet above the ground.Skydiving instructors ollow very strin-

gent saety procedures and skydiving issaer than most people think.EP Skydivers has been clouded in

controversy, as there are question marksregarding their saety procedures.However, can the blame be levelled atEP Skydivers? Lisa Briggs, a proessionalskydiver, says: Skydiving is essentiallya risk management sport. Researchpresented at the IPC (International

Pic:

SimonCapstick-

Dale

Parachuting Commission) echnical andSaety Subcommittee Congress revealedthat skydiving accidents are causedby human error 92% o the time. EPSkydivers ensure the best possible saetymeasures, which leave it up to the indi-

vidual to practice sae skydiving. Tisresearch was based on 245,162 jumperswho made 4,848,025 jumps. EP Skydiv-ers were unavailable or their commentregarding the incident and this may beattributed to the rather unkind publicitythis has generated or their business.

What makes this incident interest-ing is the ac t that Houghton is an

experienced jumper who has 80 jumpsunder his belt, but his 3500 eet jumpdid not go according to plan. What leadto Houghtons rather hard landing wasdue to him not ollowing the correctprocedure o cutting his parachute intohis main canopy.

Regardless o the atalities that occur,some people will always be dedicatedto the course. Tose who have that

circumspect derision o skydiving willbe surprised to know that more peoplehave died o highway accidents thanskydiving.

Grahamstown Aviation DayPictures by Gaynor Barnard

Packing properly is vital for safety.

Pic:Supplied

Pic:

Supplied

8/8/2019 2007 - Edition 6

12/12

HE OPPIDAN PRESS

page 10Sport inside:Jakes Springbok selection headache News

Silence is not always golden

Tis Rhodes University SRC initiative wasorganised by the SRC trea surer, Xolani Nyali.He said: Tis is the rst time that the SRC hadendorsed a project on such a large scale. Heinsisted that politics was not on the agenda butthat promoting the respect o human rights andrestoration o the rule o law in Zimbabwe was theprincipal purpose or the Arica Day protest.

Rhodes leads nationwide Zim marchBy Joe Hanly and Paul Harris

Pic:

LeonSchnell

Name Answered the phone?

Oppidan sub-wardens Morning Afernoon Evening

Farayi Chikuni076 915 2972

Unavailable or healthreasons

Unavailable or healthreasons

Unavailable or healthreasons

Aameena Daya082 932 4057

Yes No No

Grant Howarth084 577 8669

Tis number does notexist

Tis number does notexist

Tis number does notexist

anya Milward082 300 2948

Yes Yes Yes

Samantha Mundeta083 673 8509

Yes Yes Yes

Garyn Rapson072 048 8499

No Yes Yes

Jen Torpe074 379 1460

Subscriber unavailable Subscriber unavailable Subscriber unavailable

Xoliswa Dzakwa072 382 8624

Yes Yes Yes

Oppidan sub-warden spot check

he proposed route or the Rhodes march isrom Drostdy Arch to the cathedral; however thisis yet to be conirmed. Ater a number o reports ointimidation, it has also been decided that maskswill be supplied, so that all those scared to show

their ace have a chance to voice their opinion, saidFelicity Sibindi. Sibindi organised the My BrothersKeeper march and vigil held in March.

At the march at UC, Rhodes SRC presidentFatema Morbi will make a statement along withother dignitaries, including a speaker romparliament and the President o the Pan AricanParliament Dr Gertrude Mongella. he marches willcommence at 1pm.

oday I was silent, standing in solidar-ity with all those women who cannotspeak about their rape. As the tape wasstrapped across my mouth this morning,I elt an overwhelming sense o panicrise up, almost choking me. With aneort, I had to ght this strangling emo-tion and try to keep calm. As I walked tolectures, I was aced with inquisitive eyes

As part o Rhode s Universitys RapeAwareness Week, 80 women volunteersspent last uesday with their mouthscovered with black duct tape, wearing-shirts that read Sexual violence =silence.

However, with negative reactionssuch as that o the male student men-tioned above, the Rhodes communitysapathy and lack o involvement inthe Rape Awareness Week is a majorconcern.

Te silent protest project, co-ordinat-ed by Larissa Klazinga, concluded witha Silence ake Back the Night candlelight march where students and sta metat the clock tower, led by the silenced

women who moved down High Street tothe Cathedral. Tis was ollowed by a 1in 9 Break the Silence Vigil that beganwith the volunteers unsealing theirmouths and breaking into song.

Te volunteers and supportingaudience were addressed by variousspeakers including the Dean o Students,Proessor Vivian de Klerk; National 1in 9 Campaign Co-ordinator, DawnCavanagh; SRC president Fatema Morbi;and volunteer and rape survivor, BiancaSampson. However, there were ew malesupporters and only a handul o Rhodessta present.

Klazinga elt that the week went rea-sonably well but was disappointed thatthere were not more Rhodes studentsand sta involved in the weeks events.

By Katie Wilter Rape just isnt an issue or people.Tere is more discussion on Britneyshairstyle than there is on rape, com-

mented Klazinga.Another event scheduled or the week

was the Men as Partners NO Perpetra-tors march that took place last Fridayaernoon. Tis opportunity or men totake action against sexual violence wassupported by only 130 male studentsand sta, who marched rom the Unionbuilding towards the ront steps o themain administrative building.

Since September last year, 55 rapeand indecent assault cases involvingwomen between the ages o 17 and 24years old have been reported to theGrahamstown Police station. However,as many victims do not report the crime,this is not a true refection o the actualamount o sexual assaults that occurdaily. South Arican statistics indicate

that only 1 in 9 rape survivors go on toreport the rape and o these, only sevenpercent are successully prosecuted.Tese statistics translate to approximate-ly 500,000 rapes annually.

and sensed a deep sel-consciousness.I kept thinking: Everybody must

be thinking something do they even

notice me? Sitting in my psychologyseminar this morning, I began to eelincreasingly isolated. I kept wanting tospeak, and was repeatedly remindedthat I couldnt. I couldnt express myselproperly or communicate with anyb ody.Oen people misunderstood my gesturesand in rustration I would give up. It was

just too hard to say anything.Te world took on a new perspective

today, as I lived with my own silence. I hadconstant thoughts trapped inside my head,unable to be voiced. I elt an inexplicablesense o solidarity with the other volun-teers that I saw on campus. It gave mestrength to know that there were othersout there, who knew and understood howI elt, and that I wasnt completely alone.

Troughout the day, I had a mixture

o responses to my presence. Sometimespeople elt awkward by my silence,averted their eyes, or ignored me com-pletely. Some were really encouraging,saying, Tumbs up! or You go girl!.Others walked past, saying, Oh, there arethose protestors, as i we couldnt hearthem. Only about 100 people out o 6000students came to the vigil this evening,which made me realise just how great thesilence on campus still is. Tis was con-rmed by one person, who commentedthat while its not exactly bad to com-memorate rape or the week, does it reallymake a dierence? It just reminded mewhat would happen i everyone was asapathetic. We would remain in silence,and no one would ever speak out againstthe horric violation o womens rights.

With Oppidan crime on the rise and Oppi sub-wardens being the supposed rst ports o call, Te Oppidan Press phonedeach sub-warden three times to test their availability. We phoned the cell numbers published on the Oppidan website.

TablecompiledbyCarolineEast

Pic:

LeonSchnell