The brilliant Catherine Tate as “Derek”, making fun of prejudice.
This blog deals with political and social issues in South Africa, mostly from the perspective of Constitutional Law. Written by Pierre de Vos
Quote of the week
February 2, 2012 | 15:28 pmGovernment’s inability to accept criticism and facilitate dialogue was highlighted in the recent vociferous debate about whether Cape Town is a “racist city”. The phrasing of the debate is unproductive, but the truth is that there are few cities in South Africa where our nation’s divided past is so stark. Although our city has made some progress since 1994 in providing services to historically neglected communities, we must accept that Cape Town’s racial and class divisions remain largely intact. You just have to drive the short distance from Cape Town’s leafy suburbs to the sprawling shantytowns at the city’s margins to see this. Finding lasting solutions requires us to be honest about these difficult realities. - Gavin Silber in an article on Politicsweb
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New from Seminar Room
- `ANC presentation on regulation of the Press
- Former Chief Justice Arthur Chaskalson – “Without fear, favour or prejudice: the courts, the constitution and transformation”
- SCA judgment declaring Menzi Simelane appointment invalid
- Transcript of Secrecy BiIll Parliamentary Proceedings
- Justice Kate O’Regan’s Helen Suzman Memorial Lecture
- The “Pinkwashing” of Israel
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Archive for New from Seminar Room »
New from Updates
- SANDU media statment about deployment of soldiers
- Chief Justice on passing of JP Fikile Bam
- Thabo Mbeki responds to allegations by Willem heath
- FUL and Bingham Centre for the Rule of Law joint statement on recent events in South Africa
- Civil Society statement on attacks on the judiciary
- Casac statement on Menzi Simelane ruling of SCA
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Merry Christmas to you friend. Thank you gifts, Christmas magkakakulay. Happy,
Ha ha ha ha…love it.
Great Prof: Had a best friend once just like this character. He always had us smiling and was the toast at any party, unfortunately now deceased.
Looks like Huntley’s claim has just been confirmed by recent events in Hermanus. I recall that in a former post I indicated, as a Canadian, not to be too certain Canada will overturn the Huntley decision. Its rather pleasant to see that the smug Cdn foreign affairs official, who having bent over for SA’s ‘poor me – how dare you’ attitude, now has egg on his face.
Considering that in ten years I’ve been attacked 3 times by black South Africans I’ve certainly had empathy for Huntley. What I haven’t understood is why white South Africans, including yourself, were so offended by Huntley’s action. Could it be denial?
Sirjay, did a quick search of Google news, it’s interesting to read the opinions of Canadians in the comments section. Is CBC a conservative channel?
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2009/12/24/south-africa-stern-martin-janet-attack.html
And another interesting Canadian article I chanced upon
“Earlier this month, a Canadian priest narrowly survived an armed assault that killed another priest. Father Guido Bourgeois, a 70-year-old Catholic missionary from Canada, was able to barricade himself in a room when his house was attacked by armed robbers near Johannesburg, but another priest in the same house, 70-year-old Father Louis Blondel of France, was shot dead. He was the fourth Catholic priest to be killed in South Africa this year.”
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/south-african-violence-strikes-canadians/article1411231/
Any truth in this?
Seems it is true – also interesting the comments on this site.
http://www.sacbc.org.za/Site/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=397:murder-of-fr-louis-blondel-in-diepsloot-pretoria&catid=1:latest&Itemid=100
Also found this – did these events even make the news in South Africa? I don’t recall reading about this? Or perhaps its just not news worthy?
http://www.cathnews.com/article.aspx?aeid=12262
PS: The video is rather good.
Catherine Tate did another one on cultural differences and prejudice which is a also quite funny.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FaJi3M7xPIk
Kameraad: Canada is in a sense a conservative country, and certainly the CBC, initially based on BBC formats speaks to conservatism. However, Canada like the US has three cultural classes, one extremely conservative, often bible thumpers and subtly or not so subtly racist, two the outgoing California influenced, modern and with it, and new agers; and three, a portion of the working and middle class who go with where ever the wind is blowing strongest.
Many thanks for the links.
Hope its not too late for the following festive poem;
“Whatever be the colour of your eye,
Whatever be the colour of your hair,
Whatever position you occupy,
Whatever religion you might declare,
Whatever be the colour of your skin,
Whatever be your political thought,
Virtue be in your heart, or deadly sin,
Whether you have treasures, or possess nought,
In this Festive Season please turn your face
Towards a stranger and hold out your hand,
Offer him, or her a friendly embrace
And try to make him, or her understand,
That we are all of the same family.
There is no place for violence, or hate,
There is no need for quarrel, or enmity,
That a just, peaceful world we must create
And we must learn to live in harmony,
Putting behind us all our bloody past,
Securing safety for our progeny,
For them to live on Earth in peace at last.”
By Peter J Oszmann
16 January 2010
The Advocates of Transformation
South African Advocates
South Africa
Dear Sirs/Madam
It is with providence that I came across your website at 4am while I could not sleep but browsing the web for a word that I could not remember, which concretizes my search from the world of lawyers and advocates and the judiciary who are truly following their code of conduct, ethics and professionalism and with honesty and integrity, as I could not find for the last over 8 years such people in Namibia and am still suffering with physical, emotionally, psychological, mental and financial torture, because of corruption, fraudulent conniving and corrupt practices, bribery and racism of the legacy of apartheid, where the legal representatives of my employer become the applicants, respondents, the jury and judges, prosecutors and executors and more over when they failed in about 8 verdicts, written, signed, stamped, sealed and documented, in my favour of over R1.2 million by 03 December 2004, including R240 295,52, with my full name on the cheque from my employer, through First National Bank to me, dated 15 December 2003, which is never paid to me to date,
but that both parties legal representatives and a senior judge stole from me under false pretence with illegal R25 500.00 undeserved outstanding and N$11 029.50 legal fees and cost, and the Commercial Branch of the Police which had opened, one of four such criminal cases against them, with Theft Under False Pretence, in May 2004 was bribed not to take action, though he had vowed and threatened to arrest and charge them, even after I had begged them that I did not want their arrest but only my money, who was even the one who had shown me my full name on the cheque, they become “coaching, patronizing and assisting an Acting black Labour Court Judge to be given permission for oral evidence to settle between two white legal counsels for a mere R72 000.00” which the following racist judge approved for them in 2005 to give oral evidence, like the apartheid period for settlement of the so called N$72 000.00, gave judgment in their favour on 28 April 2006, illegally, with prejudice, bias and racial discrimination and racism, against the four educated, learned and experienced 3 Magistrates written, signed, sealed, stamped court judgments of 04 February 2002, 09 August 2002 and 03 December 2004 of over N$/R1.2 million, including their stolen bank security guarantee of N$/R240 295,52 First National Bank cheque my full name written on it as payment from my employer, as my first court alternate award, dated 15 December 2003, but they put it in Their Trust Account.
(minus about R28 000.00 income tax on it, minus about R450 000.00 legal fees from me and the Government’s Legal Aid paid to them on my behalf, without any legal services with code of conduct, ethics and professionalism, honesty and integrity, spoiling the good name of other good professionals and the profession itself, minus of about N$70 000.00 for six illegal costs against me,
in order to discourage me not proceed with my quest to restore my court judgments and justice and reparation for my damages to date, and after I had refused to accept several illegal and against the law settlement offers after my competent court awards during 04 February 2002 for R660 000.00 ordered to be paid to me by 18 February 2002, followed by warrant of execution on 20 February 2002, with a mere R110 000.00, plus half of my legal fees, reducing it to R96 000.00, reducing it to no payment for loss of income but simply reinstatement, knowing full well that they had the third white General Manage in my place and that they would suspend me and dismiss me again the second time, as they did on 01 November 2002, without paying me the balance of their own boastfully and illegally won alternate reinstatement with loss of income of N$240 256.79, but they paid me only N$/Rand par 36 000.00 to date;
My second unfair dismissal obtaining me also N$/R985 292.00 on 03 December 2004, by the District Labour Court of Windhoek, with a warrant of execution of at least N$415 000.00 for my salary part, before they were given the second balance warrant of execution for my benefits and compensation part of about N$24 000.00 of my employment contract package they ran to the wrong court the Labour/High Court where their friends are, yesterdays instructed legal counsels, today’s judges/racists also, so that with their “urgent applications” without review or appeal or condonation application at the District Labour Court level first as the law demands, and both the first and this second unfair dismissal court awards never heard even once at the Labour Court, but insisting on settlement offers and demands of N$110 000.00, reducing it to N$96 000.00, then to O Cents, then to N$72 000.00 – N$85 000.00, supported by the racists of both legal practitioners “coached, patronized and assisted oral evidence to settle for N$72 000.00”, supported by illegibly, illegally and freshly handwritten NOTE, without single name of min, no letterhead, and with who I must make the settlement, which the racist judge gave them mandate to do so on 28 April 2006, against my written, signed, sealed, stamped and documented competent court judgments of over N$1.2 million by 03 December 2004, including their stolen N$240 295.52 stolen from me by them, after my employer with its First National Bank cheque with my full name on it, since 15 December 2003, to date, with a senior judge.
Without adding the physical, emotional, mental, financial tortures, insults and humiliations and insult attacks such calling and the racists accusing me falsely, to the racist judge, as “a thief” because of exchanging my own court application of objection letter to the illegal “oral evidence of settlement based on hearsay”, dated 04 and 07 February 2005, from 21 to 15 pages, upon consent, not to preempt the racist N$72 000.00 judgment of the racist judge; “a woman dragger from the front part of the courtroom/Bar to the door of the courtroom” because of taking back from the racist advocate my own such court application letter that she snatched off from my in-between hands after my warning and strong objections to destroy it, always speaking in Afrikaans, against my begging to speak in English, the national language that I understand, and the racist Clerk of the Court also looking down on me from the set of the racist Judge reprimanding me to behave myself, while conducting my own labour court case, after my employer directors and legal practitioners were bribing my own legal practitioners,
as they had threatened that I would never get any justice in the courts, and that I must have thought of the consequences of my going to court against them in the first place, the same racist advocate calling me “a woman killer by hiding a piston in his briefcase, that is why I am shivering and brought two more policemen, in addition to the one who is already in the courtroom and I want his briefcase to be checked as I am afraid for my life”, while they/the racists, the racist judge himself, his racist Clerk/Secretary, the police officer on duty, the tape-recording and others in the courtroom, had seen me for two days on 08 and 09 February 2005, that I did not have anything else in my briefcase except taking out and putting in my court documents and prayer book that I had given to the Clerk of the Court for my own evidence in chief, as they had defiled the Holy Bible with their lying that I had given them mandate to settle for a mere N$72 000.00 when they knew it was not the truth, but blatant lying, perjury, forgery and fraud, as the Supreme Court of Namibia.com, on 07 July 2009, Southern Africa and Google.com and Namibian electronic and print media, have put Belete Worku on the map of a fighter for justice, with my “truthfulness, honesty and integrity, loyalty, obedience and good wisher for government laws, rules and orders” as a principle of Faith;
After fighting the illegal Labour Court hearing among officers and officials of the court and the judiciary who are friends and colleagues, while I was conducting my own labour case, defending my court awards of over N$1.2 million, including my N$240 295.52, against their “oral evidence and hearsay” of five whites legal practitioners, three of them my own former ones, supported by the racist judge, and approved for them on 28 April 2006, after he was promoted to the Supreme Court Bench, since 01 February 2006, disregarding my written signed, sealed, stamped documents in the court record of 04 February 2002, 09 August 2002, 28 October 2002, 22 October 2003, 15 December 2003, 05 April 2004 and 03 December 2004 by six blacks and one white man in my favour.
Other than the Hon. Speaker of the Namibian Parliament for the first 15 years of Namibia’s Independence from the Apartheid Racist Government, Dr. Mose P Tjitendero, Sworn Affidavit, plus other four notables writing to the racist judge of the unjust treatment that I had received from both parties legal practitioners and judges, plus numerous letters of my own and subsequent legal practitioners, my cross examinations and evidence in chief in the ten months of 2005, in about 1450 pages proving “Tales of Legal Corruption by Licensed Legal Corruption/Self-Confessed Lying” the Law Society of Namibia, the Society of Advocates, the Disciplinary Committee of Legal Practitioners, the Ombudsman, the Judiciary/Magistrates/Anti Corruption Commissions, the Minister of Justice and Attorney General, the Prosecutor General, the former and present Heads and States, the Prime Minister and other Ministers and Deputy Ministers have been reported to, the corruption of the officers and officials of the court and the judiciary since July 2002 until 08 December 2007, and they read it in the print media and hear and see it in the radio and TV broadcasts but nothing they have done as millionaires and racists have to always win by being over the Namibian Constitution, its Bill of Rights, Human Rights, the Rule of Law, the Rule of Natural Justice, Common Law and Common Sense, the Labour Act of Parliament, its Laws, Rules and Orders are attacked and are made to no value,
after the racists failed to antagonize, irritate and unseat me, through their laughter, mocking, dancing, giggling, gossiping and backbiting, all in Afrikaans, translated for me by a moral supporter and advising me to keep cool and calm, and smoking in the courtroom, knowing full well that because of principle of Faith that I do not like its smoke and scene and when I complained to the police officer on duty for two days to call them into order not to smoke in the courtroom as it was making me very sick, and the black police officer ordered the racist to stop but refused by dancing in circles with the cigarette in her between hands exclaiming “Where is the NO SMOKING SIGN on the wall of the courtroom and which law forbids me not to smoke in the courtroom” though the Namibian Cabinet had sent a circular out in 1997, repeated in 2004 that public buildings and offices must be exempted from smoking cigarettes”, even if it was not so, it is common knowledge and common sense to stop when another requests it as a matter of courtesy, decency and civilized human norm.
I am sorry I was not to go ahead all this way by writing my introduction, but I hope and pray that your esteemed Advocacy also would spread its wings to Namibia, former South African colony, and present partner in development, about 95% of all inputs are from South Africa to Namibia, plus we are members to SACU and SADC and AU, NEPAD etc with the closest geographic proximity that I need your assistance if you can assist me either to execute my judgments here in Namibia or in South Africa with Equity Aviation.co.za, whose Head Quarter is in Johannesburg, while I am attaching a general approach I sent to Human Rights Organizations and ILO got your complete information please and if you need more input please do not hesitate to contact me at your earliest convenience so that my over 8 hears suffering would come to an end through your ardent desire and effort please as it is only bringing the solution not only to me but to all human solidarity and solve the dilemma of Transparency International 2007 Exclusive Annual Report of “The judiciary is a corruption tainted system”.
Sincerely
Belete Worku (Mr.)
Email: transformtioncoach9@yahoo.co.uk,workub2003@yahoo.co.uk
Sorry please, I want to add to the above, the following missing link paragraph, between the last two paragraphs of “civilized human norm” to “I am sorry”
The very fact that my employer has so far seven General Managers after me in the last over 8 years since September 2001, proves beyond of any of a doubt, with the four whites and blacks that I could not agree with their racism and racial discrimination, bribery and corruption, fraudulent conniving and corrupt practices, bribery, blatant untruths, perjury, forgery and fraud, and illicit diamond dealings and wheeling, that I did not dismiss one of the employees whom they accused of collaborating with the Commercial Branch of the Police to arrest them for their such illegal diamond dealings, that I did not employee their relatives and friends, that I did not give business for their friends or relatives, and one I did it only for about N$7 000.00 when they wanted to give it to their friend for about N$47 000.oo for an event organizing and that I invited the Minister of Trade and Industry and the Prime Minister together for such Cargo Terminal Ribbon Cutting Inauguration Ceremony,
without knowing that they were on the opposite side of the political field playing, as it is going on now, and that I gave, by the Board of Directors instruction, upon the recommendation of our company’s auditors, a civil case to one legal practitioner, while they had wanted it to one of their friends or that I did not give them the minutes of the Board to one of the two Namibian Directors, because I was not the Secretary of the Board, but a British in Britain and I did not see the look at it till today, and that because of a principle of Faith, they could not force me to do illegal things, thus personal vendetta against me to date for the last 8 years, my own African brothers, telling me that they will pay not only their own, but also my own legal representatives and advisors and that the money of such payment would go to the Inland Revenue of the Ministry of Finance, instead of paying me my court awards,
and that I would suffer more, and that they are personally against me, as they claim, falsely, that I take orders from whites and not from them my Africa brothers, because the white, turned racist and with a double standard against me after he took all my client/attorney intimate relationships, privacy, confidentiality and trust , legal advisor and my immediate supervisor in Britain after consultation advised me not to dismiss the employee because of the illegal diamond conflict between the Director and the employee as that was personal and the court would reinstate him and that I would end up paying the employee all his loss of income, whether the case took a year or two, like my case not, knowing full well he has lost the racist turned legal advisor of mine, still eats the money of my employer for the last over 8 years though he had lost all his case with his 6 appointed legal counsels against me, in accordance to the advise he was giving me “The Namibian Labour Law is very strict, you cannot dismiss an employee without any reason, cause and fault, warning and disciplinary hearing.
Even if he volunteers to resign as you asked him, the labour court still takes as if that was made under duress and threat and still will be considered as unfair dismissal and will have the same compensation as unfair dismissal. And your won case is similar why you ask me to give you advice, as you know the answer already”, but turned against me after he took all my confidential information and strategy, refused to stand for me on 06 September 2001 and using it to date, which had forced me to complain against his racism and double standard, with his instructed racist legal counsel to the Law Society of Namibia, the Society of Advocates and the Disciplinary Committee of Legal Practitioners and the Police for crime injuria, since July 2002, as my simple labour case had become between these and their other six legal counsels and their supportive judges with personal and conflict of interest, as applicants, respondents, a jury, judges, prosecutors, executors and “coaching, patronizing and assisting with oral evidence to settle between them and my legal representatives for a mere N$72 000.00” supported by unsigned but typed DEED OF SETTLEMENT offer for a mere N$85 000.00
and illegibly, illegally and freshly handwritten NOTE, with no single name of mine, no letter head and no date of fact, but a blatant lie, perjury, forgery and fraud becoming a law by the racist judge making it their self-appointed-blatant lying mandate to settle for a mere N$72 000.00 of biased, prejudiced and racism of the first order in an independent Namibia, worst that the Labour-Hire and Contract Workers companies of Master/Slave/Servant relationships, where “might is right” and “white is always right and might, even if he is wrong and black is always wrong and weak, even if he is right” is still the order of the day, the strong white Law Society of Namibia is still the strongest and the weak Black Law Society of Namibia is still the weakest in an Independent Namibia almost 19 years after 19 years Apartheid Racism Rule is supposed to be dismantled, and the legal counsel of my employer’s claim that he “has a settlement with Mr. Worku’s legal counsel, whether they have misunderstanding or not or whether he/Mr. Worku agrees or not orally” against six black and white written, signed, sealed, stamped and documented court records in my favour awards and verdicts.