Embassy of the United States

A Daily Review of U.S. Media Coverage of South Africa  

February 11-12, 2013

Compiled by the American Libraries in South Africa

This service provides selected news articles about South Africa in the US media.
Articles for which no internet link is available may be requested from irccapetown@state.gov

This service is also available via email. You may subscribe for daily  delivery of these documents by completing our online sign-up form

Please note that these articles are for informational purposes only, and should not be construed as an endorsement of the views contained therein.

• South Africa: Following Nelson Mandela By Hamilton Wende, CNN, February 11, 2013
  He founded modern South Africa. The boy who grew up herding cattle in the hills of the rural Transkei area and attended a Methodist missionary school where he was given the name "Nelson" has dedicated his adult life to opposing the racist and segregationist policy of apartheid. Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela at first advocated peaceful opposition to white rule in early work with the African National Congress, a liberation movement. But the stubbornness of the apartheid regime increasingly frustrated him, until he turned to armed struggle shortly after the Sharpeville Massacre in 1960 in which police killed some 69 black protesters, shooting many of them in the back. Shortly after the protest the regime banned the African National Congress and another liberation movement, the Pan Africanist Congress.
• Doctors Struggling to Fight 'Totally Drug-Resistant' Tuberculosis in South Africa By Jason Koebler, U.S. News and World Report, February 11, 2013
  In a patient's fight against tuberculosis—the bacterial lung disease that kills more people annually than any infectious disease besides HIV— doctors have more than 10 drugs from which to choose. Most of those didn't work for Uvistra Naidoo, a South African doctor who contracted the disease in his clinic. For those who contract the disease now, maybe none of them will. A new paper published earlier this week in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Emerging Infectious Diseases journal warns that the first cases of "totally drug-resistant" tuberculosis have been found in South Africa and that the disease is "virtually untreatable."
• George W. Bush’s words that saved millions By Michael Gerson, The Washington Post (Opinion), February 12, 3:09 AM
  Even among the few, odd, nerdy children who want to be speechwriters when they grow up (I was one), none dream of writing a State of the Union address. These tend to be long and shapeless affairs, lumpy with random policy, carried along by strained applause lines, dated before they are transcribed. There are a few exceptions: Lyndon Johnson announcing a War on Poverty; Bill Clinton, as a scandal unfolded, undismayed in the lion’s den. And then there were these sentences in the 2003 address 10 years ago: “Tonight I propose the Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief,” said President George W. Bush, “a work of mercy beyond all current international efforts to help the people of Africa. This comprehensive plan will prevent 7 million new AIDS infections, treat at least 2 million people with life-extending drugs and provide humane care for millions of people suffering from AIDS and for children orphaned by AIDS.”
• South Africa Reacts With Surprise as Pope Resigns By Anita Powell, VOA, February 11, 2013
  A senior Catholic Church leader in South Africa says the resignation of Pope Benedict came as a surprise, but that he will be well remembered for his work. Could Benedict’s departure signal the coming of an African pope? On that decision, Archbishop William Slattery said he defers to a higher power. News of the pope’s resignation caught most people off guard in southern Africa, where the Catholic Church claims a healthy following and is active in a range of social and charitable programs. Benedict is the first pope to resign in six centuries. He cited his advanced age - he’s 85 years old - as the main factor.
• As Pope Resigns, Africa Hopes for Rise of Its Own The Washington Post, February 11, 2013
  Catholic worshippers and clergy in Africa, where the church is rapidly growing, greeted the news Monday of Pope Benedict XVI's impending retirement with surprise, respect, and a question: Could the next pontiff be from their continent? Some 176 million people in Africa are Catholic — roughly a third of all Christians across the continent — according to a December 2011 study by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life. Meanwhile, the number of Catholics in Europe, the traditional stronghold of the church, has dropped in recent years.
• India's Cipla puts $215 million South Africa bid on hold By Tiisetso Motsoeneng and Kaustubh Kulkarni, Reuters (U.S. Edition), February 11, 2013
  India's Cipla Ltd has put on hold a $215 million bid for control of South Africa's Cipla Medpro, signaling it may be unwilling to sweeten its offer for the drug firm. Cipla, which has a supply agreement with the Cape Town-based company but has never owned a stake in it, in November offered to buy 51 percent of Cipla Medpro to gain a bigger foothold in Africa's growing market for low-cost drugs. But just days after the offer, Cipla Medpro won a 1.4 billion rand ($158 million) contract from the South African government to supply HIV/AIDs drugs to local hospitals, sparking speculation the Indian firm would have to increase its bid.
• Kapsch Sees Third Quarterly Loss on South Africa Toll Delays By Boris Groendahl, Bloomberg News, February 11, 2013
  Kapsch TrafficCom AG, the Austrian maker of road-toll systems, expects a third straight quarterly loss because of repeated delays to the start of a project in South Africa’s Gauteng province. Profit in the three months to Dec. 31 will be on a similar level as in the first and the second fiscal quarter, Vienna- based Kapsch said in a statement today. The company had net losses of 5.15 million euros ($6.9 million) in the second quarter and 5.93 million euros in the first. Both quarterly losses had already been caused in part by the delays in South Africa. “The executive board came to the conclusion that revenues which were so far expected until the system start are no longer to be realized,” Kapsch said in its statement. “This update will burden the third quarter results, which will be released on Feb. 27.”
• New panel to scrutinise ocean governance AFP, February 11, 2013
  Senior politicians on Monday launched an independent panel into management of the world's oceans, which are facing unprecedented overfishing, pollution and habitat loss. The Global Ocean Commission is spearheaded by former British foreign secretary David Miliband, ex-Costa Rican president Jose Maria Figueres and South African cabinet minister Trevor Manuel. The goal is to place the spotlight on the threats facing seas that lie beyond national jurisdictions.