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| East/Subsaharan Africa |
| South African minister in solidarity visit to Iraq |
| 2003-01-19 |
| Tayyebah Nur for Ummahnews South African Health Minister Manto Tshabala-Msimang has expressed commitment to strengthening relations with Iraq. She was speaking during a two-day visit, at the invitation of her Iraqi counterpart, Dr Umaid Mubarak, to the beleaguered Middle-Eastern country. A spokesperson for the ministry said in a statement that the Minister and her delegation visited several health care facilities around Baghdad. According to the report, the two health ministers agreed to strengthen the relationship in the three areas of therapeutic health services, the pharmaceutical field and preventative medicine. Guess we have a pretty good idea which side South Africa's on. It's that Armed Struggle™ thing that forms the bond of brotherhood. |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |
| #8 Nice to see my country getting some publicity in the blogosphere (NOT!) It can really get lonely down here on the southern tip of Africa as a supporter of the War on Terror and the war against Saddam. There's even talk of our public broadcaster replacing CNN with Al Jazeera(!!) Just a reminder that our government does not speak for all of us in carrying out this ridiculous foreign policy. Lets hope it sees some sense before the war begins! |
| Posted by: marcf 2003-01-20 06:37:19 |
| #7 South Africa has a 25% percent HIV infection rate in the adult population. This is really not the time to start antagonizing the West into not caring *AT ALL* about what happens down there. |
| Posted by: Anonymous 2003-01-19 22:32:27 |
| #6 Thx Vicarious! Good response - now if only those same expectations were enforced elsewhere.... thk God Mbeki didn't have a chance to export these toys... |
| Posted by: Frank G 2003-01-19 20:35:30 |
| #5 See? It CAN be done, but only if there is cooperation. |
| Posted by: Ptah 2003-01-19 18:44:20 |
| #4 Frank: I recall coming across info on ZA and nukes on some site that offers a broad analysis of nuclear capability of various nations. I can't find the site, but I did find this which corroborates what I'd read: Link In March 1993 President de Klerk declared that South Africa had previously developed a limited nuclear capability which had been dismantled and destroyed before South Africa acceded to the NPT. The IAEA sent experts to visit the facilities involved in the abandoned program and to review historical data. It found no indication casting doubt on South Africa's statement that all the highly enriched uranium for weapons had been reported in its initial declaration. Also it has found no indication to suggest that there remain any sensitive components of the nuclear weapons programme which have not been either rendered useless or converted to commercial non-nuclear applications or peaceful nuclear usage. The IAEA declared it had completed its inspection in late 1994 and that South Africa's nuclear weapons facilities had been dismantled |
| Posted by: Vicarious 2003-01-19 17:09:03 |
| #3 Well,the Iraqis do have special know-how in acupuncture,deep-body massage and therapeutic acidic baths.That enough for you? |
| Posted by: El Id 2003-01-19 16:53:07 |
| #2 Didn't So. Africa have a couple of nukes as well? Any word on what happened to them? |
| Posted by: Frank G 2003-01-19 13:48:55 |
| #1 If i remember correctly, during the Johanesburg summit, Colin Powell arrival was met with hostility, Robert Mugabe 's with hurras. Theses (not so) reformed african marxists (ANC, SWAPO,...) still have a grudge about being on the wrong side of history. |
| Posted by: Anonymous 2003-01-19 13:01:05 |