Mon séjour en Afrique du Sud (Cape Town)

A Pretoria High Court judge on Friday acquitted a security guard on two charges of murder and one of attempted murder following a shooting incident at a Total garage on the Moloto Road near Cullinan.

Acting judge Kobus van Rooyen found that Joseph Mzamani Nkuna shot dead SANDF military policeman Lucky Skosana and another man, Dumile Mahlangu, in self-defence.

A third man, Robert Mnguni, was wounded during the incident on September 28, 2003, at the Jakkalsdans Shopping Centre.

Van Rooyen said Nkuna killed the men in "threatening circumstances" and that he acted within the bounds of self-defence.

The 45-year-old Nkuna earlier pleaded not guilty to the three charges against him. In giving evidence, he said he was terrible sorry that two people had lost their lives. Nkuna even referred to himself as "a murderer", but he told the court that he was so terrified when he thought his life was threatened by a group of men, that he fired several shots at them.

He told Van Rooyen that there was a robbery at the garage three weeks prior to this incident and he was under the impression that the garage was going to be robbed again when a car with five men drove into the petrol station. The occupants did not have shirts on and he was convinced they were under the influence of alcohol.

Blood samples taken of Skosana and Mahlangu after their deaths revealed that their alcohol levels were 0,75g (Skosana) and 0,40g per 100 ml of blood in the case of Mahlangu.

Nkuna said one of the men urinated against a petrol pump and slapped him (Nkuna) in the face when the accused reprimanded him about the urinating.

He said another man grabbed him around the head which resulted in him defecating and urinating in his trousers "in fear and pain."

Another man called him "Matshingelane" which is a humiliating expression for "just a security guard."

Nkuna claimed he then heard a shot and he was under the impression the men were armed. He testified that he fired several shots at the group until he saw two of the men falling to the ground.

Skosana was shot twice in the chest and Mahlangu suffered three bullet wounds - two in the back and one in the chest.

No firearms belonging to the group were later found on the scene.

But the judge said it is obvious that Nkuna believed they were armed and that he feared for his own life.

He said although Nkuna was flustered in the witness box, he demonstrated honesty and sincerity.

"Here is a man who had taken his job as security officer seriously, he had a licenced firearm and as a school kid he already worked in the afternoons to earn extra money.

"It is true that he is not a sophisticated or intellectual man with a special knowledge of security law. Yet his sincerity and dedication to service and safety was obvious," Van Rooyen said.

The judge said he accepted Nkuna's version of events.

" I accept that he, bona fide, believed his life or bodily integrity was at a serious risk and that he believed a robbery was in progress," the judge said.

Text of statement issued by the South African Government Communication and Information System on the SAPA PR wire service and published by South African news agency SAPA website on 21 September

Cabinet was today briefed on the work being done by the Task Team led by the deputy president with regard to issues of speeding up economic growth and job creation. A broad framework on the approach to this issue has been prepared, and detailed submissions from relevant departments and provinces are being processed with the aim of tabling a report at the next cabinet meeting.

It was also noted that consultations were taking place with various economic role-players so as to ensure that their broad views on this challenge are taken into account when the document is finalized.

The meeting noted queries that have arisen in a number of departments with regard to some recent questions that have been received from parliament.

Cabinet wishes to reiterate the commitment of the executive to uphold the status of parliament, including the obligation of the executive to account to this body as provided for in the constitution, and in pursuit of good governance.

In order to ensure that this principle continues to be realized in actual practice, cabinet has asked the deputy president, as leader of government business to interact with the leadership of parliament and seek advice on how to resolve issues pertaining to questions that may be vexatious and repetitive, require detailed personal information about employees, and demand such detailed research that they could bog down personnel and prevent them from fulfilling their other core functions, particularly to service citizens. Cabinet is confident that this issue will be resolved to the satisfaction of all, within the context of parliament's own rules.

Mercenary activity

The Prohibition of Mercenary Activity and Prohibition and Regulation of Certain Activities in an Area of Armed Conflict Bill, was approved for submission to parliament. The bill elaborates on and clarifies issues relating to foreign military assistance as contained in 1998 legislation.

Cabinet was briefed on a plan to accelerate the implementation of Regional Electricity Distributors (REDS), including the introduction of a Bill on Electricity Distribution Industry Restructuring. In this regard, it was agreed that 6 metro REDS needed to be set up as soon as possible after the local government elections, and that other areas would be covered under separate local REDS or a National RED. Eskom would continue to play a critical role particularly in the National RED.

The following appointments were approved:

Assistant Commissioner Oupa S Khumalo as Provincial Commissioner (DDG) for SAPS in Mpumalanga; and

One DDG each in the Departments of Water Affairs and Forestry, and Public Works -the latter as Programme Manager for the Tshwane [Pretoria] Inner City Project.

Cabinet was briefed on the implementation of the decision to set up the Government Employees Medical Scheme (GEMS). It was noted that training and technical assistance had been provided to the Steering Committee, and that the Registrar of Medical Schemes had confirmed the capacity of this committee to run the business. Work is currently under way to ensure that member enrolment commences in the first quarter of 2006. The scheme will result in the addition of hundreds of thousands of new beneficiaries to medical aid, create new employment opportunities, and reduce patient load on the public health sector while creating new revenue streams for this sector.

Peacekeeping

The meeting approved the employment 70 SANDF [South African National Defence Force] personnel and associated equipment to assist with integration and training of the armed forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo. This mission is informed by a joint Letter of Intent signed last June by DRCongo, SA [South Africa] and the Netherlands detailing conditions and practical modalities in line with the mandate of the UN to assist in bringing peace to DRCongo.

Cabinet was briefed on the cases of typhoid that had broken out in Delmas in Mpumalanga province. Government wishes to express its condolences to the family of one person who has died, and wishes others affected a speedy recovery. A Task Team of the Departments of Health and Water and Forestry, the SANDF, Provincial Government and the municipality has intervened to contain the impact of the outbreak and institute short-and medium-term measures to deal with the causes.

The meeting was briefed on preparations for the celebration of Heritage Day as part of activities during September, Heritage Month. The main event on 24 September will take place in Taung, North West Province, within the theme of acknowledging the place of South Africa and Africa in the origins of humanity.

The meeting noted preparations for Imbizo [public gathering] Focus Week which will take place on 1-9 October, focusing on the implementation of Project Consolidate. In each of the events which will be attended by members of cabinet, deputy ministers as well as provincial and local leaders, attention will be paid to practical work in assisting the 136 municipalities identified, to improve their capacity and urgently implement projects aimed at reducing poverty and improving services to the people.

UN and underdevelopment

Government welcomes the progress that has been made at the United Nations in affirming the UN Millennium Declaration and Goals and identifying practical steps to address problems of poverty and underdevelopment, promote human rights and the rule of law, establish a just and lasting peace across the globe, and deal with the challenge of terrorism.

Though difficulties may have been experienced with regard to achieving consensus on some of the issues critical to developing countries, SA is confident that these matters will continue to receive the attention of humanity, and that agreement on the restructuring the UN will be reached in due course. On its part, SA will continue to implement programmes aimed at meeting the 2015 targets it has not already achieved, and to work with other UN member-states to realize the objective of a better world.

Cabinet passed on its condolences to Ministers Manto Tshabalala-Msimang who has lost a sister and Ngconde Balfour whose brother has passed on.

Defence BATTLE FOR FORCE READINESS When embarrassing details of the SA National Defence Force's (SANDF) operational unreadiness leaked into the press last month, the news was not so much in the facts as in the source and timing of the leak.

The declining operational capabilities of the SANDF have been documented for several years, as successive defence budgets have shown a consistent disproportion in spending on personnel and capital equipment over that of operational goods and services.

The fact that the latest disclosure emanated from the SANDF itself, at a time when it is looking to press its case for a larger slice of state revenue as government prepares to deliberate the 2006 budget, was largely lost in the hubbub from government over the leak of supposedly sensitive information.

Details of the SANDF's problems were contained in its annual combat readiness report which it submitted on a confidential basis to members of parliament's defence committee.

The report paints a worrying picture of a force plagued by staffing problems and a funding shortfall of about R5bn annually, forcing it to divert funds from training and equipment maintenance to operational expenses that are rising with its growing peacekeeping burden.

The relatively low state of readiness of the SANDF conventional capability continues at a level well below that envisaged by the Defence Review, the report states. In addition, it is still below that which is regarded as prudent under the current strategic situational demands placed on the SANDF. This can be ascribed mainly to continued under-funding and the extent of external commitments that are way above that envisaged by the Defence Review. When some details of the report appeared in Beeld the following week, defence minister Mosiuoa Lekota sought to allay public concern, saying: There is no possible threat to this country that we cannot respond to. But, when pressed by DA defence spokesman Rafeek Shah in parliament, Lekota admitted the force was struggling to maintain its core capability. Shah pointed out that vehicle repairs were at their lowest levels yet, military hospitals and defence buildings were in desperate need of renovation and defence infrastructure generally was in a parlous state.

Shah maintains that the annual payments for the multibillion-rand arms deal package about 30% of this year's R22,5bn defence budget are largely responsible for squeezing the operational budget.

He points also to the unexpected R409,5m that the defence department had to redirect from its budget to support government's initial payment of R763m for a share in development of the Airbus A400M transport aircraft. Quoting Lekota's own figures, Shah points out that most of this money was taken from the budgets of landward, air and naval defence, health services, special forces and research & development that was bound to weaken the SANDF's capacity.

Lekota, however, says the treasury department has undertaken to repay the defence department every cent we have spent, and will be taking over the payments by the end of this year.

But defence analyst Helmoed-Romer Heitman says the problem is not spending on capital equipment the SANDF has serious backlogs in this regard too but the steady decline in the operational budget in real terms since the 1990s.

The problem has been aggravated by an expanding regional security role, resulting in operational expenditure that is reimbursed late and often only partially, Heitman wrote in a recent Jane's Defence Weekly report. Lekota's recent announcement of the imminent return of SA peacekeepers from Burundi is unlikely to reduce the cost of peacekeeping. The 340-odd personnel who served as bodyguards to political leaders in the run-up to the Burundi peace agreement comprise just 10% of SA's current peacekeeping commitments in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Sudan and Eritrea. And, given the shortage of skilled personnel, many of those returning from Burundi are likely soon to be redeployed elsewhere.

The shortage of trained, healthy and fit soldiers is critical, says Heitman. Ideally, a national defence force should deploy about one in six troops to peacekeeping serving six months away and 30 months back home. SA is deploying one in three eligible troops, he says, which means that most spend little more than six months home before returning to duty abroad.

The army hasn't a single battalion that could become combat-ready in less than 12 months, Heitman says.

Having a relatively small army about 30000-strong with many personnel over-age and medically unfit for active service, means the SANDF is forced to make up units by drawing from several battalions an unsuitable form of troop management.

The situation is bad, but it is not irreversible, Heitman says; even the best armies are generally no more than 50% deployable.

The extent to which the SANDF can improve, though, will depend on the ability of military and government leaders to allocate sufficient resources, in the right areas, to enable the defence force to meet its national and regional commitments.

The follow-on contract, worth around £15 million, has been awarded by Armscor, the acquisition agency for the South African National Defence Force (SANDF).

Land Systems will be upgrading an additional batch of Olifant MK1B Main Battle Tanks (MBTs) to Mk2 standard.

This is the single largest order awarded by Armscor to Land Systems in over 12 years and follows an initial £11 million order received in September 2003 for the first batch.

"This upgrade contract will ensure that the MBTs continue to provide a high level of operational performance required by the SA Army for mobility, firepower, all-weather day/night capability and protection," said Thami Mbele, director, South African programmes at Land Systems OMC. The new programme will assist in the retention of essential skills and key jobs at OMC"s Benoni facility in South Africa.

Under the terms of the contract the main battle tanks will receive an upgraded engine, increasing power to 1040 horsepower.

New gun control equipment and target detection and engagement system with all-weather day/night fighting capability, allowing the tank to engage a moving target whilst it is on the move, will also be fitted to the Olifant.

A number of other operational modifications required by the SA Army are also included in the programme.

The Department of Water Affairs and Forestry will deploy experts in Delmas in Mpumalanga soon, to assist with water purification there following the outbreak of typhoid.

This follows a visit by Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang and Water Affairs and Forestry Minister Buyelwa Sonjica there yesterday to assess the situation.

The highly infectious disease caused by the bacterium Salmonella typhi has since claimed the life of one person after it broke out last month.

There are currently 51 confirmed cases of typhoid, says Mpho Gabashane spokesperson for the provincial health and social services MEC Pogisho Pasha.

Mr Gabashane said there were also 287 cases displaying symptoms of typhoid and 1 406 cases of diarrhoea.

"The Department of Local Government in the province is assisting with trucks to transport water to the affected area, while the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) and Kumba Mines have made a tanker and a truck available to transport the water [respectively]," said Mr Gabashane.

About 14 water tanks have been made available to the community, and there is continuous assessment taking place to see if more resources are needed.

A tent has been erected on the Bernice Samuel Hospital, commonly known as Delmas Hospital, premises to treat the over-swell of patients in the hospital.

At the moment there are 16 beds in the tent, however it has the capacity to accommodate 30 beds.

Five patients have already been treated in the tent, said Mr Gabashane.

Meanwhile, health promotion officers are also hard at work conducting an awareness campaign among households to educate them on the importance of treating water before consumption.

Infection by typhoid fever may affect many organs in the body. Typical symptoms include fever, headache, abdominal pain, rash and an enlarged spleen.

However, antibiotics are an effective treatment. The disease lasts several weeks and recuperation takes some time.

The disease is transmitted from human to human via food or drinking water, and it is therefore mainly hygiene and sanitary conditions that determine its spread.

The country's security agencies will be boosted with thousands of new recruits over the next year, cabinet's Justice Crime Prevention and Security cluster announced on Thursday.

In a drive to reduce crime in South Africa by between seven percent and 10 percent by 2010, Safety and Security minister Charles Nqakula said 11,000 police cadets would be trained over the 2005/2006 financial year.

He said 4410 reported for basic training on July 11 and the remaining would start on January 6 next year.

The SA Police Service currently has 148,113 members, he said.

As cluster chairman, Nqakula said the ranks of correctional services would also be boosted with 6000 new officials over the next two years.

"Over 2050 new officials have thus far been recruited to beef up service delivery, especially at the Correctional Service Centres of Excellence, with 1024 currently undergoing training in Zonderwater and Kroonstad Training centres of the department," he said.

Correctional Services launched 36 Centres of Excellence around the country in August.

"They mark the beginning of a new paradigm of rehabilitation," Nqakula said.

State of the art systems including closed-circuit TV systems, turn-style gates with biometrics fingerprint readers and metal detectors have been integrated into the new detention facilities.

But with the view of rehabilitating offenders, Nqakula said tight security would be backed with behavioural intervention teams.

"The department is setting up intervention teams at the centres of excellence comprised of psychologists, social workers, teachers and chaplains to implement the new programme of correcting the offending behaviour of detainees..." he said.

The country's defence force will also be receiving fresh blood as it battles with an ageing soldier population.

Nqakula said January next year would see another 4434 recruits added to the 3927 who joined the SA National Defence Force in January this year.

"The largest intake in the SANDF's history occurred in January 2005 with 3927 young recruits who were enrolled on the basis of the Military Skills Development System which was launched in 2003," he said.

He said 2963 joined the army, 189 joined the airforce, 631 joined the navy and 144 reported for duty with the SA Military Health Services.

The African National Congress is expecting more MPs from all political parties, including at least six from the Democratic Alliance, to join it before midnight on September 15.

That is when the 15-day window closes for MPs and MPLs to cross the floor to other parties without losing their seats.

Briefing the media at Parliament on Thursday, ANC Chief Whip Mbulelo Goniwe said there were "many people who have shown interest in joining the ANC".

"We are contemplating some of the approaches that have been made to us. And, if everything else balances, we'll be making critical announcements in the next few days about major shifts across the political spectrum."

Goniwe said MPs from the DA, Independent Democrats, Inkatha Freedom Party, Azanian People's Organisation and the Pan Africanist Congress had indicated interest in crossing to the ANC.

The ANC was considering their requests and the approaches they had made, and announcements would be made in due course.

Asked about the number of opposition MPs intending to join the ANC, Goniwe referred to the legislative requirement that at least 10 percent of a party's MPs had to defect for it to be valid.

"Let me put it this way. Before we can consider any approach, we are aware of what the numbers of that party are. Whichever party, and what 10n percent requirement would be in terms of numbers," he said.

"So, obviously, if you would want people to cross from the ANC to anywhere, you would have to have about 20-something of people.

"But, I think there is a significant number of people who are interested; that are talking to us, and we are evaluating their cases individually.

"And so, when you hear at the end, it will shock you greatly; I can assure you."

Asked whether this meant that more than "five and a half" of the DA's 55 MPs would cross to the ANC, Goniwe said: "It must be more than five. It's obvious."

Goniwe's statements met with an angry response later on Thursday by DA Chief Whip Douglas Gibson, who said Goniwe was "living in dreamland".

"There are not six DA MPs about to join the ANC. The ANC uses floor crossing in order to destroy democracy and create a one-party state," he said.

"In a mad pursuit of ever greater power the ANC is using (Defence) Minister (Mosiuoa) Lekota on a charm offensive. Instead of the minister doing something about the parlous state of the SANDF he is spending his time telephoning and writing to Members right across the opposition spectrum, making promises of promotions and political advantage.

"Unfortunately for Minister Lekota and the ANC, Democratic Alliance MPs are united behind the cause of a bigger opposition and stronger democracy. They are not available to the ANC," Gibson said.

South Africa is to withdraw over 300 troops protecting political leaders in Burundi following peaceful elections last month.

Defence ministry spokesman Sam Mkhwanazi told IRIN on Wednesday the protection unit's mission "had been accomplished".

The deployment of the 376 member VIP protection unit was a bilateral undertaking and not part of a UN peace support mission in Burundi, to which South Africa has also contributed just under 1,000 troops. Those South African National Defence Force (SANDF) soldiers would remain part of the UN mission.

Mkhwanazi said the decision to recall the VIP protection detachment was based on a successful peace process in Burundi, and not because the "SANDF's [capacity] is stretched".

But Jakkie Cilliers, of the Pretoria-based Institute for Security Studies, said the "SANDF clearly has capacity problems and it needs to prioritise".

"South Africa has made a longstanding and a critical contribution to Burundi. But the UN mission in Burundi cannot be dependent upon South Africa alone and I think it's quite appropriate that South Africa does scale-down in Burundi, particularly the VIP protection unit," he said.

The announcement of the withdrawal of the SA Protection and Support Detachment follows a public row over the capacity of the SANDF, with analysts and opposition leaders arguing that the force was under-resourced and overstretched due to its commitments in Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Darfur, Ethiopia, Eritrea and Liberia.

Defence correspondent Helmoed Romer Heitman wrote in a local newspaper that "South Africa's enthusiasm for taking part in African peace support operations was outrunning its capacity".

Defence Minister Lekota has rejected this saying the SANDF had "maintained core capabilities that can be expanded to face possible threats".

Mkhwanazi noted that SANDF deployments abroad were carefully considered before decisions were made.

"The SANDF is being stretched to a certain extent but it's not an issue. There are high demands for us to provide troops [abroad] but with the SADC [Southern African Development Community] brigade being in place ... [troop contributions] will become a shared responsibility for the region and not just one country," he added.

Lekota announced this week that the SADC brigade's structure had been finalised, with member states pledging over 6,000 soldiers to it.

The Southern African region standby peacekeeping force - the SADC Brigade - is ready to deploy troops anywhere in the region where there is crisis, says Defence Minister Mosioua Lekota.

Briefing media today about the state of readiness of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), Mr Lekota said the Southern African Development Community (SADC) states had pledged troops in excess of 6000 soldiers to the Brigade to deploy in crisis-ridden nations.

"I'm delighted to inform you that the SADC Brigade has finalised its structure and member states have pledged forces in excess of 6000 soldiers to it," he said.

This means that the burden of regional peacekeeping will be evenly spread across all southern African nations, said Mr Lekota.

The Brigade is the regional chapter of the African Union Stand-by Peacekeeping force.

The operational centre of the Brigade is in Gaborone, Botswana, the headquarters of the SADC.

In June, 12 of SADC defence forces held a joint military exercise called Exercise Thokgamo in Botswana, to further train and test the readiness of the force.

The military exercise gave participating forces practical experience in peace keeping operations for the region and the rest of the continent, he said.

"The Brigade is important because now we have a force that is not South African but Southern African. When the AU undertakes a mission, we are in a position to ask SADC to deploy the force to the AU mission," said Mr Lekota.

He said the operationalisation of the SADC Brigade consolidated the regional unity and reinforced the SADC mutual defence pact that united forces of the region.

Disadvantaged youngsters benefiting from defence department-funded training should look elsewhere for help if they did not intend working back their dues, Defence Minister Mosiuoa Lekota said on Monday.

"Anybody that wants to buy their service afterwards and go away, no thanks, we don't want you," the minister said.

Beneficiaries should be willing to do something for their country because their country did something for them, Lekota said.

He was briefing reporters on efforts to upgrade the SA National Defence Force's human resource base, including the so-called Youth Foundation Training Programme.

It provides young South Africans subjected to the vestiges of inferior apartheid-era education with an opportunity to upgrade their matric marks in mathematics, science, biology and geography.

They can then pursue sponsored tertiary studies in fields like medicine and engineering, with a view to securing skilled staff for the military.

R11 million was set aside for 225 students registered for the programme in the current financial year.

Beneficiaries needed to commit themselves to plough back two or three years' paid service to the military, Lekota said.

"After that time, if I should so choose to go to civilian life ... I should leave behind two or three years of service so that the SANDF may be able to continue to do the same for those in similar circumstances than myself.

"And if at any future time the SANDF or my country should call upon me to come and join the service for a period, I remain available as part of the reserve forces."

Anyone not prepared to accept this approach "must go look for a bursary somewhere else, must not join this programme", the minister said.

A total of 883 people have completed the programme since 2001, of whom 715 were appointed in the Department of Defence.

Lekota said the military skills development system, aimed at ensuring a continuous intake of young, deserving, healthy South Africans, aimed to increase its annual uptake from the current 6000 to 10,000 within two years.

This programme provided youngsters not only with military skills but also others they could use in civilian life after completing their military service, the minister said.

"It also provides our youth with employment opportunities."

As to the department's Mobility Exit Mechanism, Lekota said it was not a retrenchment tool but a means of boosting the "rightsizing" and rejuvenation of the human resource component over the medium term.

Members who accepted it as an option, could choose to migrate to other government departments or take a retrenchment package.

Lekota said the department had downsized its staffing levels from 101,353 in 1996 to 76,000 currently without retrenchments.

In the current financial year, more than 1000 members have applied to exit the department.

The time has arrived to withdraw South African peacekeeping and protection unit troops from Burundi, Defence Minister Mosiuoa Lekota said on Monday.

"We (will) try to get out of there now. We think we have done what we could," he told reporters in Pretoria.

The first priority was securing the withdrawal of the 369-strong protection unit, which has been guarding the safety of Burundian leaders during peace talks leading to the country's political transition.

He would start negotiations this week to achieve that, the minister said.

As for the 1266 South African peacekeeping troops deployed in Burundi under a United Nations mandate, Lekota differed from the UN's assessment that they should stay a while longer.

"The UN continues to have a sense that they would like to allow for a period of time to see there is stabilisation and that the stability is sustained for a period of time.

"We think actually that the atmosphere is so positive now that we can withdraw.

"Unfortunately, the mission of the UN can only be decided upon by the UN. The protection unit was our deployment and that we can take a decision on."

Lekota said the South African deployment was instrumental in achieving a democratic dispensation for Burundi.

The SANDF, which was the first to deploy troops in that country, has gained valuable peacekeeping experience, he added.

Former rebel chief Pierre Nkurunziza, a Hutu, was sworn in as Burundi's first post-transition president last month following national elections which began in June.

In terms of the country's new constitution, the government comprises of 60 percent Hutus and 40 percent Tutsis.

Burundi's conflict, which has claimed an estimated 300,000 lives, erupted 12 years ago when the country's first democratically elected president, a member of the Hutu majority, was assassinated by the Tutsi-dominated military.

The country's sole remaining rebel group, the National Liberation Forces, has not endorsed a peace deal and has continued attacks on the government.

South Africa's military was ready and able to protect the country against any conceivable threat, Defence Minister Mosiuoa Lekota said on Monday.

"South Africa is safe," he told reporters in Pretoria.

"There is no possible threat to this country that we cannot respond to. There is absolutely nothing that we cannot deal with."

Rejecting media reports of problems in the military, Lekota said the SA National Defence Force was capable of executing its core function --protecting South Africa from attacks.

Its support for law enforcement agencies and peace missions abroad were secondary roles, and not what its state of readiness should be judged on.

He questioned the patriotism of journalists reporting on supposed threats to South Africa due to military incompetence. Such reporting created unnecessary fear among citizens and could harm investor confidence and tourism.

The minister said a past decline in readiness due to ageing equipment has since been "stabilised' through acquisitions.

The SANDF has for the past five years been building and equipping the air force and navy, and was now focusing on boosting its land-based defences.

He stressed the difference between the needs of the current defence force and those of its apartheid-era predecessor -- which required a capability to attack its neighbours, then considered enemies.

"Today we are only getting ourselves ready for the unlikely event that anybody attacks us. We have moved from being an outcast to being a trusted member of the (southern African) region."

By cultivating security in the region and on the African continent through its involvement in peacekeeping initiatives, South Africa was creating for itself an "armour of defence", Lekota said.

"Peace is a more important weapon of security than any number of guns you can have, just ask the Americans," he added.

The minister rejected any notion that conflict-ridden Zimbabwe posed a military threat to South Africa.

"Militarily, Zimbabwe is not a threat to South Africa. It has no intention as far as we are aware and we are quite satisfied about that."

Issues like illegal migration arising from Zimbabwe's troubled state was not for the military to handle, but the responsibility of police and immigration authorities.

"We (the defence force) are there to kill the enemies of South Africa," the minister said.

Asked about the SANDF's state of readiness concerning natural disasters, he underscored the unlikeliness of a typhoon or hurricane hitting South Africa.

"We mustn't overstretch our imaginations."

It was government policy not to budget for unforeseen problems, but to focus on immediate concerns like housing and education.

But there were sufficient resources to handle most eventualities, and a special budget for disaster management in the Department of Provincial and Local Government.

"Surely it cannot be expected of South Africa to put aside billions (of rands) on expectations of a hurricane or a tsunami. These things are not regular here."

The defence force of every country had to built on the basis of whatever threats it was likely to face, the minister stressed.

It would be a waste of money to have to maintain unnecessarily large numbers of equipment.

"South Africa must adjust her defences in keeping with the times in which she lives and in keeping with conceivable threats."

'Silent diplomacy' puzzles envoys to SA Representatives of foreign missions say they find foreign affairs remote and unresponsive International Affairs Editor A FOREIGN diplomat who recently arrived in Pretoria says he was unnerved by the lack of response from the foreign affairs department to his calls on routine matters. He started asking questions on the diplomatic cocktail party circuit about whether SA's relations with his country had suddenly taken a turn for the worse. To his relief, fellow diplomats said they too had experienced similar problems and he was not to worry. Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Sue van der Merwe says she is not aware of this problem, but due to recent large-scale hiring, many officials have yet to undergo full training. Department spokesman Ronnie Mamoepa does not acknowledge there is a problem, but says diplomats should talk to them if they have problems.

He says it is difficult to respond to claims of lack of responsiveness without details of specific instances.

None of the diplomats interviewed wished to be quoted, for fear of incurring the wrath of the department, and jeopardising relationships. But many diplomats have complained without being prompted.

Some diplomats say SA risks losing goodwill due to a lack of in-depth interaction and slow responses from the foreign affairs department. And some warn that, in accordance with the principle of reciprocity, if the department's responsiveness does not improve, South African diplomats in foreign capitals will receive similar treatment.

Many diplomats are excited about being posted to SA because of the country's role in Africa and what they view as interesting domestic changes. They also enjoy the people, the climate and the natural beauty. Some foreign diplomats, such as those from Nigeria, say they are perfectly happy with their dealings and response time from the foreign affairs department. But there are complaints from western and developing countries, large and small that their dealings with the department are fraught with delays and difficulties and an absence of knowledge about key areas.

Queries about trade links, official visits and SA's links with other countries often go unanswered, diplomats complain.

Diplomats are normally loathe to criticise their host governments, even in private. But foreign diplomats based in Pretoria are raising their voices about what they say is the sheer inefficiency of the foreign affairs department. They say that the trade and industry department and the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) are also slow and often unresponsive. Some say the core of the problem is that the department has become overly centralised and junior officials are fearful of responding to diplomats. They therefore often have to wait for a reply on a routine matter until an ambassador deals with the issue at senior level. However, they say some foreign affairs officials try to be helpful but very often know nothing about an issue and cannot respond. Members of the diplomatic corps say they have brought the problem to the attention of the department, but have seen little improvement in responsiveness.

Van der Merwe, appointed last year partly in order to improve relations with foreign embassies, says the problem has not been brought to her attention. She says she sees ambassadors on a daily basis and many say they are grateful for the good relations they have with SA.

We believe we have a good relationship with foreign embassies, she says.

If there is a serious problem, they can come and talk to us. Van der Merwe says she checked with the department's director-general, Ayanda Ntsaluba, and a number of deputy directors-general, and they were also not aware of a problem. However, she says a large intake of new officials since the lifting of a government hiring freeze 18 months ago could mean that some still need to acquire experience and knowledge. Van der Merwe says the department has beefed up its training programme to ensure the new intake can do their jobs properly. The department has also established a longer and more vigorous training curriculum.

She insists no foreign diplomat will be penalised for raising a complaint. We value interaction and would like to deal with any problems. Foreign military attaches who are meant to maintain links between their countries' armed forces and the SANDF are also upset about a lack of service and a low level of interaction.

One attache says his country would never neglect foreign military attaches the way SA does. But the defence force says it holds regular meetings with all foreign military attaches and their adviser corps. At these meetings all problems or complaints and other relevant issues are addressed, an SANDF statement says.

Junior diplomats say they tend to experience the most problems in getting through to officials in the foreign affairs department.

They say their foreign ministries often view their inability to have regular in-depth contacts with a foreign affairs department as career damaging. Many junior diplomats come to SA out of choice, but some leave disappointed because of the problems in establishing contacts. But diplomats say there has been improvement in one area attendance at celebrations of their national days.

The defence force's Olifant MK2 Main Battle Tanks (MBTs) are to be upgraded in terms of a R171-million contract awarded to BAE Systems Land Systems OMC, the company said on Thursday.

It said this was the single largest order awarded by procurement agency Armscor to Land Systems OMC in more than 12 years.

It followed an initial R124-million order received in September 2003.

"Delivery of the upgraded MBTs is scheduled for 2006/2007 and will ensure that the SA Army will be equipped with a credible and highly effective MBT," the company said in a statement.

The scope of work included the upgrading of the MBT's engine, new gun-control equipment, and a new target detection system.

Land Systems OMC would also supply logistic support for the MBT system.

These included technical documentation, support and test equipment, and upgraded accessories for the tank crews.

"This upgrade contract will ensure that the MBTs continue to provide a high level of operational performance required by the SA Army," said Thami Mbele, Land Systems OMC director for South African programmes.