A round-up of the day’s news from South Africa.

More than 20 boys died at Mpumalanga initiation schools in the last week. This follows the death of almost 50 young men in only three weeks at the schools last July. There are examples of the practice improving and becoming more regulated. But with oversight shunted to provinces, local government and traditional authorities, there are schools operating with little accountability under a confused mixture of different authorities. By GREG NICOLSON.

The Northern Cape Afrikaner enclave of Orania is a topic much beloved by documentary-makers and journalists. This is for one good reason: however much you might deplore the principle of cultural self-determination, Orania is fascinating. The volkstaat has its own currency – the Ora – and the streets appear to be lined with North Korea-style billboards urging self-sufficiency. But a recent documentary, “Orania”, neither satirises nor explicitly judges the Orania community. Primarily, it reveals what appears to be a suffocating sense of boredom hanging over the town. By REBECCA DAVIS.

This week, Gauteng Commissioner of Police Mzwandile Petros announced that 560 protests had taken place in Gauteng between 1 April and 10 May this year. Petros warned that his charges did not have the resources to adequately police these protests. State Security Minister Siyabonga Cwele has also been talking about the issue in Parliament – he’s vowed to stamp out the incidence of violent protest. By KHADIJA PATEL.

A round-up of the day’s news from South Africa.

In the process of completion of De Wet Potgieter’s expose, Daily Maverick afforded the right of response to Junaid and Farhad Dockrat as well as other individuals mentioned in the story. Within two-day period, we have received only a short statement from the African Continental Development, a company that owns Tsitsikamma Coastal Golf Estate. A further 48 hours later, Farhad Dockrat issued the following press statement, which we publish in its entirety.

Lord’s is a special cricket ground, and for the New Zealand team about to play England there on Thursday, it’s a massive occasion - with only three out of the presumed starting XI having played there before. From sampling the lunch to strolling out of the pavilion, it’s an occasion to relish, with the Black Caps hoping to top it off with a special performance. By ANT SIMS.

Helen Zille’s latest DA Today newsletter puts the blame for SA’s parlous education system squarely at the feet of teachers, based on a report released just over a week ago. But education activists continue to insist that the conditions under which teachers work are equally important. The latest organization to try to lend a hand to setting educational standards in the country is the SA Human Rights Commission, whose Charter of Children’s Basic Education Rights aims to flesh out what we mean when we talk about someone having the “right” to education. By REBECCA DAVIS.

The Limpopo textbook scandal came to our attention courtesy of public interest law group Section27. The organisation has been criticised by the state and drawn controversy from its inception. GREG NICOLSON meets the team and finds that not only are they committed to ensuring the rights of South Africans are met, but they’re a group of committed “crazy people”.

The much-anticipated report on the government investigation into the irregular landing of a private plane carrying Gupta family wedding guests at Waterkloof Air Force Base is to be discussed on Wednesday by ministers in the justice, crime prevention and security cluster. It may or may not be complete, may or may not be made public, and may or may not contain recommendations to prevent the recurrence of such a national security breach. But whatever the report contains, the heart of the problem is the ANC’s inability to stop the corrupting influence of business people, and their money, on its leaders. By RANJENI MUNUSAMY.

On Tuesday, Statistics South Africa (StatsSA) released its 2013 mid-year population estimates. This release is normally uncontroversial, but this year’s numbers clash quite glaringly with the 2011 census results. By PAUL BERKOWITZ.

Too much aggression and testosterone are often factors which get the blame for South Africa’s horrific rape statistics, but one brave survivor has teamed up with rugby teams to turn these integral parts of the game into something beneficial for the fight against violent sexual abuse. By KEN BORLAND.

Alviro Petersen has been named as the replacement for Graeme Smith in South Africa’s Champions Trophy squad. The other contenders, Quinton de Kock and Henry Davids, will have to wait a while longer to get their chance at a major tournament. By ANT SIMS.

A round-up of the day’s news from South Africa.

As the Marikana commission of inquiry continues, so does the bloodshed on the ground. The body count is rising as a climate of fear spreads through the platinum belt. And the violence looks unlikely to abate soon. By GREG MARINOVICH & THAPELO LEKGOWA.

The NUM has lost thousands of its members, mining bosses are under the profit cosh and the mining minster is under the job loss whip. However, it is Joseph Mathunjwa, the leader of AMCU, a union that has had only one leadership conference in its 12 year existence, who is the focal point of this year’s wage negotiating season. And he is the guy who has to deliver – despite AMCU’s non-existent track record. By STEPHEN GROOTES.

The Democratic Alliance’s “Know Your DA” campaign, launched a month ago, has attracted criticism from those who accuse the opposition of airbrushing its history and attempting to co-opt ownership of the struggle against Apartheid from the ANC. But the DA is unbowed. On Monday, the party launched a video to accompany the campaign which it intends to show to one million South Africans, and leaders insisted that the campaign is working exactly as they had hoped. By REBECCA DAVIS.

If you were hoping the Department of Public Works task team on the upgrades to President Zuma’s Nkandla residence would shed some light on who’s responsible for the R206 million spend, don’t hold your breath. The president’s house is a national key point so his allies can “justifiably” say releasing the juicy details of the report might compromise national security. By GREG NICOLSON.

The Department of Communications called a press conference on Monday to encourage the Sunday Times to stop publishing investigative stories into the minister Dina Pule. This is after it issued a statement on Friday to say that she would not apologise to the paper for attacks she launched against it and its journalists at the end of April. This is all just a curtain-raiser for the hearings before the joint committee on ethics and members’ interests, which were sparked by the ST reports. By SIPHO HLONGWANE.

Readers could reasonably be excused for thinking the 2016 US presidential campaign was still years away. Nevertheless, seeds for this battle were already planted back in September 2012 – and they may just be breaking through to the surface. By J BROOKS SPECTOR.

Football in Turkey is something quite extraordinary: whether it’s the presence of riot police and teargas or the atmosphere of a sold-out 32,000 seat stadium full of chanting. ANT SIMS was in Istanbul for Besiktas’ last match and got to experience it all first hand.

A round-up of the day’s news from South Africa.

In a significant escalation, mineworkers in the Marikana area are blaming the NUM for the murder of an AMCU member who was due to appear at the Farlam Commission of Inquiry into last year’s massacre. Under pressure to protect its members and fight to retain its position as mining’s leading union, it appears the NUM is becoming more militant. By GREG NICOLSON.

“I’m not a card-carrying member of any political party. I have over the years voted for the ANC, but I would very sadly not be able to vote for them after the way things have gone.” These are the words of Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu, who wrote last week that it was “a very huge ache” to see South Africa deteriorating the way it is. It is no secret that Tutu is angry and disenchanted with the ANC. His is no ordinary voice, but does what the elders say matter, and do they impact on the mindset of South Africans? By RANJENI MUNUSAMY.

Feet-up Bulls stretch Conference lead to five points as Sharks and Stormers kiss playoff chances goodbye and Cheetahs disappoint. By KEN BORLAND.

For arguably the first time ever, Cricket South Africa has acted quickly and decisively. Just a few hours after Gary Kirsten announced that he would not be renewing his contract as national coach, his deputy, Russell Domingo, was announced as successor - and it’s the best thing CSA could’ve done. By ANT SIMS.

A round-up of the day’s news from South Africa.

The police’s specialised unit, Crimes Against the State (CATS) and the State Security Agency (SSA) have been monitoring the training of al-Qaeda terrorists in South Africa for several years, without taking any action. A year-long investigation by the Daily Maverick’s DE WET POTGIETER has revealed surprising inaction by police despite incriminating evidence about secret military training camps and sophisticated sniper training at three well-documented locations as well as several others across South Africa. These subversive activities have taken place at a farm near the notorious Apartheid police hit squad camp at Vlakplaas outside Pretoria, as well as a secluded farm in the mountains of the Klein Karoo.

Exactly why the World Economic Forum on Africa invited King Mswati III of Swaziland to sit on a panel is a slight mystery. Throughout the WEF, the values of transparency, accountability, good governance and anti-corruption have been highlighted over and over again as essential to Africa’s growth. These values are the antithesis of what King Mswati’s rule has meant to Swaziland. But he insisted on Thursday that the Swazi people are very happy with their feudal status quo. By REBECCA DAVIS.

A point frequently returned to throughout the World Economic Forum on Africa has been the inescapability of the fact that Africa’s economy will be shaped by its reserves of natural resources for the foreseeable future. Introducing the 2013 Africa Progress Report on Friday, Kofi Annan and his colleagues said that Africa’s mineral wealth has the potential to transform the continent, but resource-rich countries are leaving their poor behind. He also hit out at “shady deals” between mining houses and countries. By REBECCA DAVIS.

“This is a moment of renewal,” President Jacob Zuma said at his inauguration as South Africa’s fourth democratically elected president. Following an incredible political comeback after being fired as deputy president and two turbulent court trials, Zuma looked ready to lead the country into a new era. It was the age of innocence: Julius Malema was still en vogue, Zwelinzima Vavi and Blade Nzimande still liked each other, Kgalema Motlanthe still had a political future and we had never even heard of Riah Phiyega. Or Waka Waka. Lonmin was just a platinum company and Dina Pule was wearing normal shoes. By RANJENI MUNUSAMY.

On Thursday the Indian High Commission hosted a press briefing on the upcoming India Africa Festival. Few journalists who made it to the event were, however, actually interested in the festival itself. It was the role of the Indian High Commission in securing landing rights for the aircraft chartered by the Gupta family that had drawn most to the briefing. By KHADIJA PATEL.

Former ANC soldier and soccer star-cum-community paralegal Bricks Mokolo is furious after he spent some six hours trying to access Baragwanath Hospital’s x-ray department with an injured employee. Mokolo says Gauteng’s public health system is a disaster that violates basic human rights; civic research backs this up. Now the human rights activist want to make politicians give up private health care, and to start using the system they brought to its knees. By MANDY DE WAAL.

Day one of the World Economic Forum on Africa was a day for “C” words – from cross-border trade to call centres, competitiveness, commodities, commuters, common markets, consumer loans, capitalisation, Cape Town-to-Cairo, current demographics, conurbations, community commissions and communism – all of which combined appeared to cast conferees onto a wave of currently uncommon confidence in the continent. China and corruption were the conspicuous elephants in the room. By J BROOKS SPECTOR.

City of Johannesburg mayor Parks Tau delivered his state of the city address on Thursday, making big promises to spend on infrastructure and economic development whilst fighting crime and corruption. Skeptics are not convinced, claiming there is not enough acknowledgement of just how bad things are in the city. By SIPHO HLONGWANE.

It’s been a bad few months for gay rights in Zambia, with virulent anti-gay rhetoric from public figures being matched by the arrests of a gay rights activist and two men accused of “unnatural” and illegal sex. Ironically, the negative international headlines generated by all this might force the Zambian government to rethink its views. By SIMON ALLISON.

Earlier this week, Daily Maverick published an article by Jared Sacks exposing some of the suffering experienced by those seeking adequate housing in the Western Cape. Here, in the interests of debate, is the response from the Housing Development Agency.

A round-up of the day’s news from South Africa.

It’s taken as axiomatic that Africa cannot prosper without good governance. At a panel discussion held to round off Thursday’s sitting of the World Economic Forum on Africa, certain key themes were returned to repeatedly: the need to stamp out corruption; the need for greater openness about the disposal of a country’s natural resources; the role of civil society and the private sector; and the importance of transparency. But as several speakers made clear, the beloved buzzword “transparency” is nowhere near sufficient on its own. By REBECCA DAVIS.

Despite coach Naka Drotske talking up the attacking prowess of unlikely Conference candidates the Cheetahs, this vital result will be decided by the extent to which their defence can frustrate the Hurricanes into making mistakes. For the Stormers, already trailing the Bulls by eight points, a loss to the Waratahs in Sydney could sink their season. And at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, the Kings will have to summon the sort of early-season chutzpah and resilience that has kept them above Saturday’s bottom-of-the-log opponents, the Highlanders. By KEN BORLAND.

At a small discussion at Thursday’s World Economic Forum on Africa, the issue of gender equality in African politics took centre stage. While all panelists agreed on the need for more women in positions of leadership, Malawian President Joyce Banda was on hand to remind the audience that sometimes getting to the top is just the beginning of the struggle. By REBECCA DAVIS.

President Jacob Zuma took the stage at the World Economic Forum on Africa on Thursday to participate in a panel discussion on the relationship between Brics and Africa. Zuma strongly stressed that a Brics bank is necessary to deal with African financing challenges that the “older” financial institutions have been too slow to deal with. But, as has been the case with all previous discussions of the bank, details of what it would look like were in short supply. By REBECCA DAVIS.

The Africa Competitiveness Report, released annually by the World Economic Forum, the World Bank, the African Development Bank and the Denmark Foreign Affairs Ministry, reflects both good and bad news. For South Africa, things are looking relatively peachy: we’re one of only two African countries sitting in the top half of the Global Competitiveness Index. But the report also shows that 14 out of 20 of the world’s least competitive economies are in Africa, and the continent remains the lowest-performing region globally. By REBECCA DAVIS at the World Economic Forum (Africa).

City of Johannesburg mayor Parks Tau is due to deliver the state of the city address for 2013/2014 on Thursday, and as usual the official opposition party the Democratic Alliance presented its notes first. It wants the city to focus on crime, housing delivery, infrastructure spend, the billing crisis, corruption and growing the city economy and its equitable share. By SIPHO HLONGWANE.

It was always an awkward marriage, and never a permanent solution, but Zimbabwe’s government of national unity has just about managed to keep the peace and revive the country’s moribund economy. But with its mandate set to expire in just two months, the unity government is looking as divided as ever, and no one can agree on what comes next. By SIMON ALLISON.

South African media have been filled with reports, analyses and commentary on the implications of the Gupta aircraft’s landing at the Waterkloof military airbase in Pretoria, leading some South Africans to question whether the entire saga has been blown out of proportion. KHADIJA PATEL and THAPELO LEKGOWA hit the streets of Johannesburg to find out what people made of the situation.

Bloemfontein-born Anne Hirsch is one of a growing number of global comedians and entertainers who aren’t sitting around waiting for a TV broadcaster or record label to pull it together to offer them exposure. Instead, they’re using their own YouTube channels to get their material out there. And, in the case of 'The Anne Hirsch Show', it’s far funnier and fresher stuff than the normal content on local TV. By REBECCA DAVIS.

The number of unemployed people increased by 100,000 to 4.6 million in the first quarter of this year, StatsSA announced this week. “This is preposterous!” screamed Cosatu. “A tragedy” and “simply unacceptable”, the Democratic Alliance said. Neither the ANC nor government bothered to react or even put a positive spin on figures in the survey which do indicate some employment growth. Eleven months before an election, these figures should be deadly to the governing party; luckily for the ANC, elections in South Africa are not yet fought on real issues. By RANJENI MUNUSAMY.

There is a sense of the confessional permeating the new show by Pieter-Dirk Uys. For all that he dresses up as different characters, it feels like his own personality is the character most laid bare. As if, after years of presenting his views through the mouths of others, it’s time to strip off the make-up and tell us more about himself. By LESLEY STONES.

The Constitutional Court will hear the Rivonia Primary School case today. The implications are far-reaching. The matter concerns the balance of power between a school governing body (SGB) and a provincial department of education. The court’s decision will answer crucial questions for South African education: can pupils be excluded according to SGB admission policies? What language will pupils be taught in and how many pupils can a school accommodate? By GREG NICOLSON.