Crime

Young, high and dangerous: youth gangs and violence in Khayelitsha

They fight to kill - with pangas, knives and their bare hands. They don't know why the fighting began but it doesn't seem to matter. Proving your manhood doesn't require a reason.

Words: Pharie Sefali Images: Don Pinnock Editing: Guy Lamb

News | 27 May 2014

Angy Peter trial: Court hears that evidence submitted by police was incorrect

The Angy Peter case resumed on Monday with a brief but significant submission from Nobuntu Sifuba, a member of the Street Committee in the area where Rowan Du Preez lived.

Adam Armstrong

News | 27 May 2014

An ‘oasis of excellence’ in the arid karoo

For all the special pleading by the major teachers’ union, Sadtu and the assertions by basic education minister Angie Motshekga that all is well, our schooling system is in crisis.

Terry Bell

Opinion | 26 May 2014

Angy Peter trial: Was murder victim’s dying declaration likely?

State prosecutor, Advocate Phistus Pelesa, continued to cross-examine Dr Almin Steyn in the Angy Peter trial on Thursday.

Adam Armstrong

News | 23 May 2014

Angy Peter trial: Dying declaration unlikely testifies surgeon

Dr Elmin Steyn testified in the Angy Peter trial yesterday that it was “extremely unlikely” that someone in Rowan du Preez’s condition would have been able to “have a long and complicated conversation” in which he identified his assailants.

Adam Armstrong

News | 22 May 2014

Laws of physics suspended - prosecutor in Angy Peter trial

Forensic specialist Dr David Klatzow testified yesterday in the Angy Peter murder trial. The court is currently hearing a “trial-within-a-trial” which will determine whether it was possible for the murdered man, Rowan du Preez, to have made his dying declaration, as the state alleges.

Adam Armstrong

News | 21 May 2014

Capricorn violence: taxi drivers killing each other

Residents from Capricorn near Muizenberg are afraid to go to work and school because of violent clashes. There appears to be a taxi war with racial overtones.

Pharie Sefali

News | 20 May 2014

Angy Peter trial: parties contest whether victim could have spoken before his death

Yesterday in the murder trial of Angy Peter, a medical expert for the state, Dr Estie Meyer, testified that she saw “no anatomical reason” why Rowan du Preez could not have spoken to the police after he was assaulted.

Adam Armstrong

News | 20 May 2014

“In a matter of seconds a man is dead “¦ for snatching a handbag”

“We don’t need to focus on fighting crime ... we need to heal our communities,” testified Professor Pumla Gobodo-Madikizela at the Khayelitsha Inquiry into policing this morning. Her testimony described the social and psychological trauma of the Khayelitsha community, and how that results in vigilante killings.

Adam Armstrong

News | 16 May 2014

Empty promises or promising new beginnings? South African government launches three-year gay rights campaign

Things are looking up, right? Just days ago, our beloved Caster Semenya was in the headlines of none other than the Daily Sun, not because her gender or hormone levels were, once again, put under a degrading spotlight, but because she had announced her soon-to-be marriage to her girlfriend.

Laura Pascoe

Opinion | 16 May 2014

Guide to being tried for murder in South Africa

Perhaps you have been following the Angy Peter murder trial closely. Or maybe you have been watching the Oscar Pistorius one. Like us, you have lots of questions about how our legal system works. We asked a lawyer to answer them.

GroundUp Staff

News | 16 May 2014

Angy Peters case: a trial within a trial

The case against Social Justice Coalition (SJC) activist Angy Peters and three others on trial for the kidnapping and murder of a Mfuleni man 18 months ago, was postponed today.

Barbara Maregele

News | 15 May 2014

Arrests not enough to end police corruption says expert witness

This morning the Khayelitsha Inquiry into policing heard testimony from Dr Liza Grobler about corruption in SAPS.

Adam Armstrong

News | 14 May 2014

Angy Peter trial: Police head says “stupid mistakes” made

The trial of Social Justice Coalition leader Angy Peter and her husband Isaac Mbadu continued yesterday in the Cape High Court after a week’s postponement.

Simone Haysom

News | 13 May 2014

Frayed tempers at Khayelitsha Inquiry as O’Regan and Arendse spar

Phase 2 of the Inquiry into policing in Khayelitsha is underway under tight time constraints.

Adam Armstrong

News | 13 May 2014

Expert witness: SAPS must be held accountable for how they spend their budget

Police oversight should be extended to include how SAPS spends their budget. This was the testimony of Sean Tait, coordinator of the African Policing Civilian Oversight Forum, at the Khayelitsha Commission of Inquiry this morning.

Adam Armstrong

News | 13 May 2014