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The difficulty of creating a believable country narrative

Truth is not critical to persuasion but any story has to at least be believable, writes Itumeleng Mahabane

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• National

  TOP STORY

  

  NUM risks losing nearly 60% of its membership

  According to general secretary Frans Baleni’s report, members do not believe the union is fighting for their collective interests as strongly as it did before

  Politics

  • Claims of improved services decried by opposition
  • ANC ‘sidelines’ Cosatu in bid to rescue ailing unions

  Media

  • SABC presenter Mbuli hailed as patriot and ‘zealous newshound’
  • Dawes leaving Mail & Guardian for Indian paper

  Labour

  • NUM risks losing nearly 60% of its membership
  • ‘Significant’ wage gap fans fears of sugar strike

  Science & environment

  • Whale watchers must watch for minister
  • State’s mining, biodiversity guideline cautiously welcomed

  Law & constitution

  • Black lawyer urges ‘excluded colleagues’ to ‘act against racism’
  • Maritime law’s little closed shop of ‘racial horrors’

  Education

  • Western Cape takes early-bird approach to procuring textbooks
  • Report highlights keys to maths skills in young children

  Health

  • Pharmacies get tough on codeine abuse
  • Firms are ‘ill prepared’ for malaria risks on the continent

  Opinion

  • EDITORIAL: State must act to end labour strife
  • Name-dropping is corruption and should be punished

  Columnists

  • Guptagate a serious blow to Zuma’s credibility
  • Survé must come clean on funding and owners
• Africa

  TOP STORY

  

  Eritrea’s Issaias revered and reviled

  The ‘isolated and mercurial dictator’ has become increasingly paranoid, fearing assassination attempts he said were backed by the CIA

  African News

  • Door closing on Angolan asylum seekers
  • World Bank promises $1bn to Congo
  • Eritrea’s Issaias revered and reviled
  • Mugabe signs Zimbabwe constitution into law
  • Impoverished Malawi sells presidential jet for $15m

  African Business

  • New taxes will harm Namibian mining sector, chamber warns
  • Ghana central bank raises rates on inflation fears
  • Authorities probe Zambia Sugar for tax evasion
  • Mr Price still committed to Africa agenda

  African Perspectives

  • Nkrumah’s dream of African unity unfulfilled 50 years later
  • Africans march upward to economic purgatory
  • Can Africa’s lions match Asia’s tigers?
  • How Africa can deliver on its promise
  • Are good values good for business?
• World

  TOP STORY

  

  Suspects in London soldier slaying probed before, says UK official

  Investigators search several locations and try to determine whether Wednesday’s attack was part of a wider plot to instil terror on the streets of London

  Africa

  • Eritrea’s Issaias revered and reviled

  Europe

  • Suspects in London soldier slaying probed before, says UK official
  • Pearson effects changes to boost performance

  Asia-Pacific

  • China factory activity shrinks for first time in seven months
  • Bank of Japan targets bonds

  Middle East

  • Ahmadinejad to challenge aide’s ban from election
  • Hague warns of increased backing for Assad

  Americas

  • Bernanke offers no hint of pullback in Fed stimulus
  • US tax official uses Fifth Amendment

  Opinion

  • Threat to key tool in the fight against malaria
  • DAWN: Women on top of the world

  Columnists

  • A country of illusion and deceit
  • Africans march upward to economic purgatory
• Opinion

  TOP STORY

  

  EDITORIAL: State must act to end labour strife

  It is incumbent on the government to take decisive action to end the current labour turmoil in the country

  Editorials

  • EDITORIAL: State must act to end labour strife
  • EDITORIAL: Independent, or not really?

  Columnists

  • Evraz and atoms — a mystery tale
  • IN THE MARKETS: Time for African Bank to consider all its options

  BD Alpha

  • Barber’s approach is not solving economic malaise

  Letters

  • LETTER: Cronin offers a school of red herrings
  • LETTER: Aircraft details missed

  Blogs

  • Toyota’s new promotion: fancy that!
  • Jolie’s preventive mastectomy opens a medical Pandora’s box

  Polls

  Third Umpire

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• Markets

  TOP STORY

  

  Rand strengthens after Reserve Bank keeps repo rate steady

  Rand strengthens in afternoon trade following the Bank’s monetary policy committee’s decision, but remains within reach of weakest level in four years

  More News

  • Rand strengthens after Reserve Bank keeps repo rate steady
  • JSE plunges on Bernanke comments
  • Global stocks fall on China growth woes, Fed concerns

  Markets Blog

  • Spanish government between a rock and a hard place
  • Stricter rules needed to support growth of African bourses

  JSE Today

  All Share

  40855.89

  0.00%

  same

  Top 40

  36312.44

  0.00%

  same

  Financial 15

  11688.69

  0.00%

  same

  Industrial 25

  46366.22

  0.00%

  same

  Resource 10

  46042.72

  0.00%

  same

  All data is delayed by 15 min.
  Data supplied by I-Net Bridge

  Commodities

  Gold

  1392.7850

  0.09%

  up

  Platinum

  1454.5000

  -0.10%

  down

  Silver

  22.5690

  -0.02%

  down

  Palladium

  738.5000

  0.75%

  up

  Brent Crude Oil

  102.370

  -0.07%

  down

  

  All data is delayed by 15 min.
  Data supplied by I-Net Bridge
• Economy

  TOP STORY

  

  Hands off rates at Reserve Bank as inflation bites

  Bank’s monetary policy committee keeps key repurchase rate unchanged, amid concern about SA’s deteriorating inflation outlook

  More News

  • Ravaged rand continues its downward trajectory for 11th straight session
  • Bright-eyed graduates start year on positive note
  • Weaker rand fans inflation
  • FW de Klerk takes swipe at ‘prophets of gloom’

  Economic Indicators

  Petrol price (95)

  R12.47

  -73c/l

  same

  Repo rate

  5%

  0.0pp

  same

  Prime rate

  8.5%

  0.0pp

  same

  GDP (Q4 12)

  2.1%

  0.9pp

  same

  CPI (April)

  5.9%

  0pp

  same

  PPI (Mar)

  5.7%

  0.3pp

  same

  Last updated on May 22

  Opinion

  • Jordaan ‘likely to be missed on Twitter’
  • EDITORIAL: State must act to end labour strife

  Columnists

  • IN THE MARKETS: Time for African Bank to consider all its options
  • Evraz and atoms — a mystery tale
• Business

  TOP STORY

  

  Private sector needs ‘bigger role’ in economic zones

  Organised business strongly urges that private sector be given greater role in the process of setting up and managing special economic zones

  Trade & Industry

  • Poultry group denies tariff would cause steep price rises
  • Severe lack of supply chain skills ‘hindering trade for SA’
  • Meat group cries foul over poultry body’s secret figures

  Management

  • Celliers’ appointment ‘will not affect transformation’
  • Jordaan ‘likely to be missed on Twitter’
  • Phaswana appointed as co-chairman at Mondi

  Sectors

  • Energy
  • Financial Services
  • Healthcare
  • Industrials
  • Land & Agriculture
  • Media & Advertising

  Green Business

  • Is greener company travel still stuck in the slow lane?
  • ASK THE EXPERT: Independent eco-ratings for products in SA
  • SA’s green jobs: how are they growing?

   

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  Business Education

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• Companies

  TOP STORY

  

  PIC considers Altron buyout offer for Altech

  Six years ago, the PIC’s shareholder activism scuttled Altron’s plans to buy out Altech’s minority shareholders

  More News

  Sectors

  • Energy
  • Financial Services
  • Healthcare
  • Industrials
  • Land & Agriculture
  • Media & Advertising

  Business Education

  • Course Directory
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  • Mining
  • Property
  • Retail & Consumer
  • Telecoms & Technology
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• Personal Finance

  TOP STORY

  

  Absa says miscalculated interest on car loan was ‘isolated error’

  South Africa’s largest retail bank overcharges customer for almost two years, by mistake

  More News

  • Retirement dream need not be a nightmare

  Columnists

  • Fame & Fortune: Oh Schucks ... all those rugby bucks
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  In Depth

  • Medium-term budget 2012
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• Life

  TOP STORY

  

  Disrupting the cosy conceptions of art

  The art of Johannes Phokela, who will represent South Africa at next month’s Venice Biennale, is not always earnest, writes Chris Thurman

  Arts & Entertainment

  • Disrupting the cosy conceptions of art
  • FILM: The Sapphires; 360; Fast and Furious 6

  Travel & Food

  • A new paradise found — and with tea

  Business Education

  Gadgets & Gear

  • TECHNOLOGY: New gadgets not required at the Google jamboree
  • The antisocial network is not good for the soul

  Books

  • Putting a much-needed smile into S&M
  • BOOK REVIEW: The Stuff You Can’t Bottle

  Health

  • Star microbiologist sets sights on next superbug enemy
  • Cancer immunotherapy medicines could rake in $35bn a year

  Motoring
• Sport

  TOP STORY

  

  Baxter calls for improvement in officiating

  Kaizer Chiefs coach Stuart Baxter wants a review system to be put in place to improve the standard of refereeing in domestic top-flight football

  Rugby

  • Cheetahs trio called up for Bok camp
  • Bulls ‘doing best’ to keep senior players

  soccer

  • Baxter calls for improvement in officiating
  • Dortmund shows how to beat the odds

  Cricket

  • Underdog Australians upbeat ahead of Ashes series
  • Warner’s Twitter rant earns him maximum fine

  Other Sport

  • Woods finds Garcia’s ‘joke’ unpalatable
  • Els hails belly putter for British Open win

   Top Stories

  • Khumalo slams ref ahead of final
  • Umpire Rauf withdrawn from Champions Trophy while under investigation
  • Beast returns for the Sharks
  • Beating Mourinho 'extra motivation' for Barca's Xavi
  • McIlroy slumps as SA's Kingston leads at wintry Wentworth
  • Raikkonen would rather be left alone

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