News

110 learners in one class in Eastern Cape school

Equal Education has organised a two-day "solidarity visit" of schools in the Eastern Cape. Well-known South Africans, including Archbishop Thabo Makgoba and constitutional law blogger Pierre De Vos, are participating. GroundUp journalist Mary-Anne Gontsana is also taking part, reporting what she sees. Here is her first report.

Mary-Anne Gontsana

News | 25 April 2013

MDR-TB

News | 24 April 2013

How do you look after an autistic child when you live in a shack?

“I have to tie his leg to the couch. If I don’t he wanders away and I have to run around the whole of RR section in search of him, giving people a description of him and asking if anyone has seen a boy resembling my son.”

Mary-Jane Matsolo

News | 24 April 2013

Joe Slovo High School toilets still broken

Nearly a year since we told the story of the state of toilets at Joe Slovo High School in Khayelitsha, the toilets remain broken.

Nokubonga Yawa

News | 24 April 2013

How Henrietta Lacks became immortal

In 1951, Henrietta Lacks was diagnosed with cervical cancer. She had an aggressive tumour that quickly took over her body. Less than a year after being diagnosed, she died; leaving behind a devastated husband and 6 children. She was 31 years old. But even in her death, some of her cells lived on; dividing and growing, making trillions more cells than ever existed in her body. The combined weight of these cells is now over 400 times what Henrietta Lacks weighed when she was alive.

Kerry Gordon

News | 24 April 2013

Bayhill tournament is “great” for Cape Town

The Bayhill soccer tournament took place over Easter weekend lasting from 28 March to 1 April 2013. The under 19 tournament was played at Erica Park by teams from different provinces. The overall tournament winners were Ajax Cape Town.

Margo Fortune

News | 24 April 2013

City says violence prevention efforts working, but activists sceptical

In 2006, to tackle crime in Khayelitsha, the City of Cape Town launched the Violence Prevention through Urban Upgrading (VPUU) project.

Fergus Turner and GroundUp Staff

News | 17 April 2013

“I just want to go back to South Africa. I miss it so much.”

Two Mozambican sisters living in a Child and Youth Care Centre (care centre) since 2007 were deported to their home country in January despite nine years of growing up in South Africa.

Amanda Purtell

News | 17 April 2013

We interview Thabo Nthethe

We interviewed Bloemfontein Celtic defender and Captain, Twenty-eight-year-old Thabo Nthethe. He also plays for Bafana Bafana.

Margo Fortune

News | 10 April 2013

Khayelitsha lights mostly on but concerning signs of decline

Following several reports published on GroundUp on the broken street light problem in Khayelitsha, particularly along Lansdowne Road, several social justice organisations protested and the City repaired the lights. In the last two weeks we have checked the street lights. While most remain on, there are signs that the situation is getting worse.

Nokubonga Yawa and GroundUp Staff

News | 10 April 2013

“Cure for death discovered” - Why media reports on science are often misleading

Stories about science in the media are often misleading and over-hyped. In today's science column, Kerry Gordon discusses why.

Kerry Gordon

News | 10 April 2013

HIV patients still waiting for easier-to-take drugs

Patients with HIV in South African public clinics have to take at least three separate pills once and maybe twice daily. But in the private sector, as well as in the United States and Europe patients have for years been able to take their HIV treatment as one pill once a day.

Mary-Jane Matsolo

News | 10 April 2013

Outspoken activist for gay rights arrested in Zambia

Paul Kasonkomona, a Zambian human rights activist with many years’ experience, was arrested in Lusaka on Sunday for publically supporting the rights of Zambia’s sexual minorities. He was arrested shortly after appearing on an independent television channel, Muvi TV, where he spoke in favour of access to health care for sex workers, prisoners, and sexual minorities.

Jacques van Heerden

News | 10 April 2013

Telkom accused of dismissing interns without pay

Telkom is being accused of dismissing 23 learner interns without pay. The matter is going to the CCMA.

Mary-Jane Matsolo

News | 3 April 2013

Siyayinqoba Beat It!

News | 3 April 2013

How gamers solved a puzzle that eluded AIDS researchers

This is the first of an occasional new feature science column from GroundUp. We hope these short articles will make science more popular and encourage learners to study science. Today's article by Kerry Gordon describes how in 2011, game players solved a difficult science problem.

Kerry Gordon

News | 3 April 2013