News 17:00

BULLETIN 6 February 5 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Amnesty International SA calls for reduced reliance on the US amid Donald Trump’s criticism
# Solidarity says the ANC-DA compromise on the NHI won’t ease the financial pressure on South Africans
# And rugby: SARU is to appoint independent financial advisors to plot the future

# Amnesty International South Africa’s director, Shenilla Mohamed, has urged South Africa to resist US influence after president Donald Trump’s controversial remarks. She criticised Trump’s actions to remove people from Gaza as human rights violations. Speaking to Newzroom Afrika, she also emphasised that diversity and equity define South Africa’s democracy and called for reducing US reliance, despite potential financial fallout:

# Trade union Solidarity says the National Health Insurance remains financially unsustainable and could hurt private medical aid. According to the union, while the ANC and DA’s compromise allows private funds to continue, members would still need to pay into the NHI, adding to their financial burden. Solidarity’s Theuns du Buisson advocates for their Health Funding Reform Bill, which he believes offers a more sustainable and financially viable solution:  

# Zimbabwean president and chairperson of the Southern African Development Community, Emmerson Mnangagwa, has urged a ceasefire in the Democratic Republic of Congo. This follows reports of Rwandan-backed rebels capturing another town near Bukavu, despite their earlier ceasefire declaration. Heavy fighting continues, with Goma still under M23 rebel control. Mnangagwa’s appeal comes ahead of the Sadec and East African Community summit in Tanzania this weekend:

# Australian lawmakers passed anti-hate legislation that enforces minimum sentences for a string of offences,including a year in jail for a Nazi salute. Last week, police said they were investigating after finding mining explosives in a caravan on the outskirts of Sydney along with written threats against Jewish entities. In recent months, vandals have torched a Sydney childcare centre, firebombed a Melbourne synagogue and splashed anti-Semitic graffiti on Jewish neighbourhoods.

# Rugby: The General Council of the South African Rugby Union decided at a meeting in Johannesburg to appoint a financial institution to review rugby’s financial ecosystem. This new process follows the failure to reach the required 75-percent majority for a private equity investment proposal by the Ackerley Sports Group in December. The first step in the new process will to appoint the institution through an independent selection process to advise members on all aspects of financial sustainability and the role of a potential private equity investment.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-61-cents and the euro at 19-rand-28-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-4-cents and Bitcoin trades at 98-thousand-413-dollars. Gold sells at two-thousand-861-dollars-3-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 74-dollars-82-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….