News 08:00

BULLETIN 28 May 8 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# A total of 295 Ghanaians are successfully repatriated
# Minister Groenewald says prison overcrowding is linked to pressures within the criminal justice system
# And tennis: Djokovic is through to the French Open third round

# The Border Management Authority says of the 300 Ghanaians who took up their government’s offer of repatriation, 295 were found eligible to depart South Africa on a chartered flight from OR Tambo International Airport yesterday. This follows a wave of protests against illegal immigration, sparking fear of a resurgence of xenophobic violence. BMA’s Mmemme Mogotsi says five Ghanaians were refused departure for various reasons, including not having a valid travel document and a valid asylum seeker permit:

# Minister of Correctional Services, Pieter Groenewald, says overcrowding in prisons is driven by pressures in the criminal justice system, including delays in processing remand detainee cases and court referrals. Currently, the department has some 107-thousand beds available for inmates, with sentenced inmates already occupying at least 106-thousand-280 beds. Groenewald says the main pressure stems from remand detainees, totalling over 62-thousand, pushing overcrowding levels to 58-percent. The minister adds that they are in contact with the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development to explore alternatives to imprisonment where appropriate.

# AfriForum says the Johannesburg Society of Advocates must be transparent about its pupillage admissions process following allegations of racial discrimination. The organisation has requested detailed information dating back to 2016, including applicant numbers, admission rates, and the race and gender breakdown of candidates. It’s also seeking clarity on whether race-based criteria, quotas, or targets were used in selection. AfriForum’s Ernst van Zyl says transparency is needed to maintain trust in the legal profession:

# The US military carried out new strikes in Iran on Wednesday, targeting a site around the Strait of Hormuz. Officials believe the site posed a threat to US forces and commercial maritime traffic in the Strait, which normally transports a fifth of the world’s oil. Multiple Iranian drones were also reportedly shot down and intercepted. These renewed strikes, the second in under a week, come as both Washington and Tehran continue negotiations on ending the three-month conflict in the Middle East.

# Tennis: Twenty-four major champion, Novak Djokovic, is through to the third round of the French Open, after seeing off Frenchman Valentin Royer, 6-3, 6-2, 6-7, 6-3. The Serbian will next face Brazil’s Joao Fonseca, who defeated Croatian Dino Prizmic, 3-6, 4-6, 6-3, 6-1, 6-2. Germany’s Alexander Zverev eased past Czech Tomas Machac, 6-4, 6-2, 6-2. In the women’s draw, Ukraine’s Yuliia Starodubtseva knocked out world number two Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan, 3-6, 6-1, 7-6. Poland’s Iga Swiatek reached the third round with a 6-2, ​6-3 victory over Czech Sara Bejlek.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-42-cents and the euro at 19-rand-10-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-3-cents, and Bitcoin trades at 73-thousand-641-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-383-dollars-53-cents a fine ounce, and Brent crude oil is quoted at 95-dollars-25-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….