Number of jobs affected by Donald Trump's tariffs' on South Africa likely higher than recognised

ICJ case against Israel may be invalid

South Africa was once hailed as the “darling of the world” – thanks largely to Madiba magic and the peaceful transition from apartheid.

But today, the country is barely recognisable. With crises piling up on every front, the ANC-led government appears increasingly out of its depth, especially in foreign affairs.

Recent claims have emerged implicating President Cyril Ramaphosa and senior government figures in potentially having had prior knowledge of the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israeli and American citizens attending a music festival.

In a recent podcast hosted by Byron Shepherd, lobbyist Justin Lewis alleged that a R400-million lawsuit may be looming against Ramaphosa for this alleged complicity.

If these allegations prove true, the implications are enormous – not just for South Africa’s credibility, but also legally, especially under executive order 14204 signed by US President Donald Trump.

That order allows for serious consequences for foreign actors found to be aiding those targeting US citizens or leaders. While these are yet unproven claims, they are nonetheless deeply concerning.

Hamas, often misleadingly labelled a “resistance movement,” is not a state and is not party to the International Court of Justice. If the ANC – particularly through former foreign minister Naledi Pandor – had prior knowledge of the attack, as some are suggesting, and used it to build a legal case against Israel at the ICJ, then the legitimacy of that case must be questioned. This raises a disturbing possibility: that South Africa may have politically or financially gained from a tragedy of mass civilian loss.Weaponising international legal institutions for political ends erodes their credibility and damages South Africa’s reputation.

If these allegations are substantiated, they could trigger global backlash and diplomatic isolation – not to mention profound national shame.

Before pointing fingers at other sovereign nations, South Africa must confront its own festering crises: rampant crime, poverty, corruption, and the ongoing horror of farm murders – issues that our government continues to deny or ignore. | L Oosthuizen Durban

Malema’s mixed messages

For its hilarity, hyperbole and hypocrisy, EFF leader Julius Malema’s rant at the weekend claiming US President Donald Trump poses a danger to global stability would have been more appropriate if featured among a list of jokes.

Since his debut on the world stage when Trump screened the little demagogue exhorting the slaughter of whites, Malema’s opinion of himself has challenged the size of his red beret. Fancying himself as a mentor on the world stage, his advocacy that ties with imperialist powers must be cut is laughable given his solid siding with the imperialism of Marxism-Leninism.

Simultaneously it is also contradictory to assert that the EFF is positioned “as an enemy of global imperialism.”

In a word salad of “isms” between imperialism, capitalism and socialism Malema seems confused about when capitalism is the enemy. It appears to bother him that Trump might destroy capitalism “inadvertently” because his approach to it is “illiterate". Grand stuff, indeed, from Limpopo province’s sage in adjudicating America’s highly successful capitalist president

.Just how Malema’s goal of socialism is supposed to bestow its enlightenment on the world is also fuzzy. He says if Trump destroys capitalism that “will kill any and all possibilities of socialist economic order.”

Of course, it is common knowledge, as Joe Slovo once conceded, that for the top order of socialists to live in grand style, it is necessary to exploit the pillars of capitalism. Cuba’s billionaire socialist Fidel Castro exemplified that magnificently.

The ultimate contradiction of Malema’s entire muddled broadside against capitalism is that he is a major beneficiary of it and as such a hypocrite of note. | DR DUNCAN DU BOIS Bluff

Govt failure on tariffs will cost us dearly

As a practicing labour lawyer and an individual who sits on the Portfolio Committee of Parliament with regard to employment and labour, I believe that the estimate of the loss of 100 000 jobs is actually low over the course of the next six months.

Unfortunately, it is incredibly difficult to try and claw back these jobs and it will take years. In this instance I believe that government has failed us completely. | MICHAEL BAGRAIM Cape Town

There’s hope yet for the Holy Land

The mayhem in Gaza with the IDF let loose by Benjamin Netanyahu like a pack of marauding wolves will sadly remain a stain on the Israeli people for years to come … most of whom want peace and don’t trust their government according to the Times of Israel.

The legacy that will be left behind in Palestinian minds following this heinous war….those young Palestinian children who will survive the slaughter and those yet to be born, will define who they are.

The lesson they will take forward including the past 78 years of living on charity and handouts by those who stole their land will be how not to do it. Palestinians will show the world instead that there is a better way based on humanity peace co-operation and respect and that chasing a bee around a room full of people with a machine gun was never the answer and solved nothing.

As the world prepares for the establishment of the State of Palestine alongside the State of Israeli so will these ugly days fade into the mists of time, but will never be forgotten! | Colin Bosman Newlands

Palestinian recognition

With the UK set to follow France and formally recognise a Palestinian state as early as September, unless Israel agrees to a ceasefire in Gaza and a two-state solution, it will be very difficult for Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and other national leaders not to respond in kind. | Eric Palm Gympie, Australia

Financial freedom or funeral?

In today’s patriarchal time, a woman who depends on a man is like a lamb tied outside a butcher’s shop – sooner or later, she’ll be slaughtered.

Why should a woman earn her own money? Why is her own bank account necessary? Why should she beg for a seat she built?

Because if she doesn’t  –  this society will feast on her flesh and gulp it down.

What happens to women who depend on men? Look around. They get raped, thrown out, beaten like animals, used like tissue paper, and dumped like trash. She says one word back, and she’s slapped. She asks for what’s hers, and she’s told to shut it before she gets replaced. She gets divorced, and suddenly, she’s a sinner.

Her honour? Gutted.

Her name? Trash. What did he lose? Nothing. What did she lose? Everything.

The man at fault walks free, laughing, drinking tea, and marrying some naïve girl half her age.

Here’s why earning money is so important: If your husband divorces you, with no money, where will you live? How will you eat? Who will pay for your children’s school? If your husband hits you , can you leave if you have no savings? No. You’ll have to stay and suffer. If your husband marries again or has an extramarital affair, without your own income, you’ll have to quietly accept this tormenting humiliation.

If you become a widow, relatives might take your property. Without money, how will you fight them?

If your family forces you to do something , without money, your ‘NO’ is just a desperate collapse. With money, it’s a thunderous command. Many girls make the mistake of thinking that, “my father/brother/husband will take care of me.” But the world sharpens its blades while you sleep. Men die. (Then you beg.) Men betray. (Then you suffer.) Men vanish. (Then you starve.) And your rescue fantasy? A coffin with pretty flowers.
Still waiting for Prince Charming? Wake up , he doesn’t exist. The only hero in your story is you.

Society doesn’t pity weak women, it preys on them. Earn. Save. Fight. | Yumna Zahid Ali Karachi, Pakistan

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