News 17:00

BULLETIN 10 September 5 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Seven Chinese nationals are sentenced to 20-years imprisonment for kidnapping and forced labour
# Murray and Roberts Holdings are placed under provisional liquidation
# And cricket: Aiden Markram says the SA20 helps to prepare inexperienced players for the big stage

# The High Court in Johannesburg has sentenced seven Chinese nationals to 20-years in prison each after convicting them on 158 of 160 charges related to kidnapping and forced labour. The group, arrested in 2019, had illegally detained 91 Malawian nationals, including children, at their business premises. They were convicted in March. Judge David Mhango also ruled all seven unfit to possess firearms:

# Construction giant Murray and Roberts Holdings has been placed under provisional liquidation following a court order. The Gauteng High Court granted the order at the behest of one of the company’s creditors. The process comes amid a parallel process which saw Murray and Roberts Limited, a downstream subsidiary of the holding company, undergo voluntary business rescue. Business rescue practitioner Josh Cunliffe says this provisional liquidation has no bearing on the business rescue process:

# Tourism minister Patricia de Lille has launched South Africa’s first Tourism Investment Summit in Cape Town, aiming to diversify the sector. De Lille says the summit, showcasing projects worth over one-billion-rand, highlights tourism’s role in economic transformation and job creation. She told SABC News initiatives such as digital transformation and youth-driven innovation will position South Africa as a world-class tourism destination:

# Cricket: South Africa’s T20 captain, Aiden Markram, says the SA20 has given a wide range of players the opportunity to showcase their skills and thus widened the pool for the national team. The allrounder, who was sold for a whopping 14-million-rand to Durban’s Super Giants during yesterday’s player auction, was speaking before today’s first T20 against England in Cardiff, Wales. Markram says the competition helps to expose inexperienced players to the big stage and prepare them for international action. Tonight’s action starts at 7.30.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-52-cents and the euro at 20-rand-52-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-73-cents and Bitcoin trades at 113-thousand-584-dollars. Gold sells at three-thousand-646-dollars-16-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 66-dollars-87-cents a barrel.

# And finally: Hong Kong lawmakers rejected a bill that would have granted limited rights to same-sex couples. Hong Kong’s government proposed legislation to recognise some rights for same-sex partners, but only for those whose unions are registered abroad. Despite LGBTQ activists decrying its limitations, the proposal drew near-universal criticism from the pro-Beijing politicians that dominate Hong Kong’s legislature. The bill would have granted registered same-sex couples more rights in medical-related matters and after-death arrangements, for example, visiting a partner in hospital or claiming their body after death.

Stay tuned for more news………….