Death toll in weekend village fire rises to five

THE number of women killed by a Transkei veld fire rose to five yesterday.

Eastern Cape Health spokesperson Sizwe Kupelo said the blaze broke out at Bhukwini village in the Libode area in the early hours of Sunday morning.

People from the village turned out to fight it, but three women died on the scene after being caught by flames . Three other women were taken to hospital in Libode, then referred to Nelson Mandela Academic Hospital in Mthatha, with burns covering over 70 percent of their bodies. One died early yesterday morning, and another at around 11am. The third woman is in intensive care . — Sapa

Half of emerging farms failing

THE government had spent over R6 billion buying land for emerging farmers and more than half the farms purchased had either failed or were “declining”, said Rural Development and Land Reform Minister Gugile Nkwinti.

In a written reply to a parliamentary question, tabled yesterday, he said his department had acquired 2864 farms across all nine provinces for emerging farmers.

“(A total of) 29 percent of the 1250 LRAD (Land Redistribution for Agricultural Development) projects reviewed have failed, and a further 22 percent are declining. Thus, 362 of the 1250 farms are unproductive and a further 275 could possibly become unproductive if no agricultural support is received,” he said . — Sapa

Mothers weep in ‘samurai’ trial

THE mother of school boy Jacques Pretorius, who was killed by fellow pupil Morne Harmse with a samurai sword, broke down and wept at the high court in Johannesburg yesterday.

“We are broken,” she said, when asked during sentencing procedures on how the killing of her 16-year-old son had affected her family.

Dressed in a black shirt and pants, she shook uncontrollably as she wept.

She said forgiveness was not possible. “I can’t ever in my life forgive what he did to us.” Harmse’s mother also burst into tears during the testimony.

Earlier, defence lawyer Dolph Jonker read out a letter Harmse had written to the judge, Phillip Hattingh: “I want to make it clear that it was never in my heart to harm or kill anyone. I will for the rest of my life live with what happened.” Harmse also said he hoped the family of Pretorius would one day forgive him. The case continues today . — Sapa

White ‘refugee’ in Canada

A WHITE South African man has been granted refugee status in Canada after after an immigration board panel ruled he would be persecuted if he returned home to South Africa .

It was the first time a white South African had been granted refugee status in Canada, claiming persecution from black South Africans, the Ottawa Sun newspaper said, according to News24.com. Brandon Huntley, 31, presented “clear and convincing proof of the State’s inability or unwillingness to protect him”, the Canadian immigration and refugee board panel ruled last week on Thursday . — DDC

Vienna objects ‘not bombs’

THREE suspicious objects found outside the South African Embassy in the Austrian capital did not contain explosive substances, police said.

Vienna police spokesperson Mario Hejl said embassy employees found the suspicious objects – two of which resembled pipe bombs – near the building’s main entrance yesterday morning.

He said experts were doing further tests . — Sapa-AP

Hunger strike in fourth week

PRODUCER Michael Lee has entered the fourth week of his hunger protest against the SABC.

Lee is demanding that the SABC revoke its proposal to cut local content by half a billion rand next year, the SA Screen Federation said yesterday . — Sapa