Nothing strikes harder than IRONY. Not even the strikers!

Premier Helen Zille was struck by the IRONY of SAB being a sponsor in the "War on Poverty"! Why is she struck by this? Has the War on Poverty superceded the War on Drugs? Has she all of a sudden realised that alcohol is a drug and that the Western Cape has a chronic drinking problem?

So what happened? How did South Africa double its alcohol consumption in the incredibly short time of 8 years? In the 1998 it was 10 litres of alcohol per person per annum, but by the 2006 National Drug Master Plan it had climbed to 20 litres!(p.8) The cost of alcohol to the country is beteen R10Billion and R20Billion per annum.(p.5/8) SAB's turnover from South Africa in 2008 was $US4,4Billion while employing 9200 people. Accepting lower figure means each SAB employee COST the country just over a million rand each in damages which the country bears rather than SAB. Whatever happened to product liability?

SAB happened. 200 000 shebeens happened. SAB accounts for 90% of beer sold in South Africa. Quite how SAB beer gets into the shebeens is just a mystery. There is apparently a bootlegging industry:

"One group who may feel marginalised by the normalisation of shebeens are the bootleggers - the independent retail distributors (IRDs), who supply the shebeens. Like the shebeen owners, the IRDs are illegal and in a new dispensation would no longer supply many of the resulting taverns. But necessity is the mother of invention and many IRDs will find alternative outlets to ply their trade. In practical terms, SAB could never supply all shebeens/taverns in the townships." (Financial Mail)

Who are these people selling such large quantities of alcohol to obviously illegal operations? There's no bona fides here.

Who is responsible for alcohol? Surprisingly it's the National Liquor Authority, which is part of the Department of Trade and industry.

If the Department of Trade and Industry knows there are 200 000 shebeens in the country what steps has the NLA taken to close these down? What steps has the NLA taken to find how the shebeens get the stock into their SAB sponsored fridges reserved for SAB products only? And are these not practices not uncompetitive in terms of the law?

Perhaps the National Liquor Authority has some answers for the premier. They have a highly informative FAQ, but it's not what you're thinking. No one is asking what about Fetal Alcohol Syndrome? What is the rate now? No one is asking about all the dead pedestrians 60% of whom were blind drunk? (NIMSS 2007) 57% of all violent deaths in South Africa had drunk victims. 50% of all drivers killed were intoxicated. 46% of victims of "other unintentional deaths" were drunk.

The answer might lie in first National Drug Master Plan of 1998 which put alcohol in the care of the Department of Trade and Industry.

The alcohol industry has a public face. Unlike alcohol the website is safe, smiling and non threatening. The website is of course propaganda through and through. For instance the obfuscation regarding whether alcohol causes violence:

"Violence clearly occurs independent of alcohol consumption, even in countries whose populations largely abstain from drinking. For example, both domestic and other violence are prevalent in countries where alcohol consumption is discouraged or forbidden."

I do wonder if the Premier likes her tea "met ys"?

SAB 'irony' strikes Zille

Democratic Alliance leader Helen Zille has been "struck by irony" after discovering the sponsor for a "War on Poverty" event in one of the poorest regions of the Western Cape was South African Breweries.

According to the Premier one of those visited "Was so drunk he could not stand on his feet and kept referring to me as 'baby'."

"When the master of ceremonies moved the vote of thanks for the day's proceedings, I was struck by a final irony.

"The major corporate sponsor of the event was none other than South African Breweries. Go figure." (From News24)

Largest cannabis bust in South Africa for 10 years

East London police seized over four tons of dagga with an estimated value of R5.8 million on Wednesday night in what has been labelled the biggest dagga bust in the area since 2000.

The arrest was made by members of the East London Dog Unit .

“We then took the truck through to East London to the fire brigade and got them to cut open the locks at the back with an angle grinder and found the massive haul of dagga inside,” said Captain Robert Muller

“We suspect it is from deep inside the Transkei and the driver was heading to Cape Town. The N2 is one of the main dagga-smuggling routes in the country.”

Each bale had a unique marking on it, which police said was used by the smugglers to identify who had placed the order.

In total, some 135 bags weighing 4.48tons were removed. The dagga has an estimated value of R5.8 million . “This is easily the biggest consignment of dagga that police have confiscated in the last 10 years,” said police spokesperson Captain Stephen Marais.

Marais said the man would appear in the East London Magistrate’s Court on Monday on a charge of dealing in dagga. (from the Dispatchonline)

Massive cocaine bust in Port Elizabeth

Cocaine with a street value of about R1.4bn, was seized in an "unusual" container at the Ngqura harbour in Port Elizabeth on Wednesday, police said.

"The container was unusual in that it looked like a petrol tank and had a construction with pillars holding it together," police spokesperson Captain Sandra van Rensburg said.

"Inside the container we found 22 000 litres of oil and inside the pillars, the cocaine was hidden."

Police were still trying to establish the amount of drugs in the container. By late on Wednesday afternoon, they weighed out about 100kg, with an estimated street value of about R1.4bn.

Police suspect there was about 250kg of "pure cocaine".

"Right now, we still need to pump oil out of the container to see if there are more pillars inside," said Van Rensburg.

No arrests had been made yet. (from News24)

How was the figure of R1.4billion was reached? If you divide that by the price of cocaine per kilogram (R350000) you get to 4000kgs!!! IF it is pure cocaine it can be cut into three for sale and the total drug amount is 750kg's at R350000/kg which only amounts to R262million. Either way there is some funny SAPS maths going on.

The police are highly premature in announcing their "find" before they have made any arrests. Perhaps they got all "chatty" once they had handled and played with 100 kg's of cocaine and they just couldn't keep it IN any more.

Zille, Motlanthe's boozy welcome

Drunken residents opened the doors of two of the first three houses visited by Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe and Western Cape premier Helen Zille during a door-to-door visit to two Plettenberg Bay townships yesterday.

In one house the householder kept calling Zille "baby".

Motlanthe is on a countrywide anti-poverty campaign driven by the Presidency.

They were welcomed by drunken residents in KwaNokuthula, where houses are supplied by the government.

In one house, a 47-year-old woman told the delegation that she was unemployed and asked if the government could provide her with food parcels. She said until two months ago the family had lived on their 89-year-old mother's pension grant, but she died in June.

The woman, who is also HIV-positive, is getting free anti-retrovirals from the state.

Zille said she was shocked by the levels of alcohol abuse. In the case of this woman, the state had done all it could do. "It has provided a pension, medical care and housing."

In another house, Zille found a couple who complained about unemployment, but they were so drunk that the man kept addressing Zille as "baby".

- Cape Argus

Embedded reporters join war on drugs

On Thursday the Cape Argus accompanied police as they raided two suspected drug houses and a brothel in Woodstock. The first house raided was in Church Street, at 11.15am. (from IOL)

No mention made of search warrants., just more one sided propaganda. It's as if the journalists have all stopped thinking.

Whatever happened to decriminalising cannabis?

For those of you NOT in the know, the 1998 National Drug Master Plan called for the decriminalisation of cannabis to be investigated (page 18). It's 2010 now. So what happened?

In 2006 the new National Drug Master Plan was rolled out and "decriminalisation" and other "harm reduction measures" just dropped right out.


Whatever happened to the call for decriminalisation? The government DID do a study called the "South African Cannabis Position paper". It is NONSENSE and it's available here. The government hasn't released the document mind you. That would be too embarrassing. The paper would have you believe that cannabis smokers can hold their breaths for "minutes"!! The paper is defective primarily because it failed to properly examine the "harm done by cannabis." Just how many deaths are we talking? None I tell you. I wish I could bring you good news, but the sad reguritated propaganda produced by people singing for their supper is what we have to deal with.

So there you have it. Decriminalisation has gone NOWHERE.

Decriminalisation is not the answer though. Decriminalisation is bad for the law. Decriminalisation means that the police just get to "ignore" the law - usually when involving small amounts only. This is bullshit. Imagine a law stating you were not allowed to carry more than 6 beers at a time? If you've got a seventh one the police can arrest you. It doesn't make sense. Decriminalisation is based on a lie. The law is wrong and the law has to change. The prohibition of cannabis has ruined thousands of lives and with the police now getting big pats on the back for each arrest the rate of injustices perpetrated is accelerating.

On a personal note two weeks ago a friend of mine was caught in possession by 5 policemen. When they weren't expecting it he jumped over the handcuffs, grabbed the joint and ate it. The cops didn't take too kindly to this and beat the shit out of him and then maced him while he was lying on the ground. All this for a joint? I ask you.

Leading doctor urges decriminalisation of drugs

One of the UK's leading doctors said today the government should consider decriminalising drugs because the blanket ban has failed to cut crime or improve health.

"I'm not saying we should make heroin available to everyone, but we should be treating it as a health issue rather than criminalising people," said Sir Ian Gilmore, former president of the Royal College of Physicians.

"This could drastically reduce crime and improve health," said Gilmore, who added that drugs should still be regulated. (from the Guardian)

The Union

Tik bust at Cape Town Airport

A 19-year-old Malaysian woman travelling with 1.2kg of tik was arrested at Cape Town International Airport, Western Cape police said on Sunday.

She was arrested while checking in with an airline on Saturday, said Superintendent Andre Traut.

"Her suitcase was equipped with a false compartment, containing 1.2kg tik with a street value to the tune of R360 000."

She was arrested and expected to appear in court on Monday. The woman was one of four people caught for drug possession over the weekend.

On Sunday, police arrested an Ethiopian man at a bus stop in Bellville, Cape Town after searching his belongings. The 24-year-old man was allegedly found with 132 khat plants with a street value of R10 000.

In another case, two South African men, aged 26 and 32, were arrested on Sunday for possession of 129 cartons of Mega cigarettes which had been illegally imported to avoid tobacco taxes.

They would appear in the Bellville Magistrate's Court on Monday. (from News24)

Drug raid at Senator Park goes bad.

Police had to call for back-up to get out of a block of flats in the city centre after a crowd of about 140 residents stopped them from leaving.

During the stand-off on Wednesday at Senator Park, residents allegedly threw stones at police officers, causing what police estimate to be about R30 000 worth of damage to two cars.

The City of Cape Town says that almost weekly drug raids are conducted at Senator Park, and that metro police had gathered statistics of how many and what kind of drugs are seized there.

In the past three months, mayoral committee member for safety and security JP Smith said, 199 tik lollies, 60 units of tik, 101 units of rocks, 16 units of heroin, 92 parcels of dagga and dagga cigarettes, 24 parcels of cocaine, five crack rocks and seven units of unga (heroin mix) had been seized in 10 raids.

Smith said today that these seizures were enough to warrant ongoing raids at Senator Park. (We've found it here before so we're going to find it again! Great logic from Cape Town's number 1 nazi. No need to consider what it's like for the law abiding residents who are having to live through this each time? Do these folks really have no rights? What you're seeing here are the Metro cops acting outside the law. There is no warrant that covers all the apartments in the whole of Senator Park.)

During yesterday's raid, a 19-year-old man fell off a balcony, landed on a first floor window ledge, and was injured. Police claim that this happened when the young man jumped through a kitchen window after scuffling with police, while the man's girlfriend insists he was pushed by officers. (the story according the Voice)

The ambulance took the man to hospital after his fall and he has been charged with possession of drugs as well as escape from lawful custody. He is currently under police guard in hospital
(from IOL)

Metro police on drug rampage

Cape Town Metro Police's Operation Choke swung into action at the weekend, raiding homes on Friday night, arresting 27 people, issuing more than 250 fines, and seizing tik, Mandrax, dagga and heroin. (from IOL)

The goal is to stem the flow of drugs around the Peninsula by repeatedly raiding drug dens.

Drugs are considered the fuel that feeds the violence among gangs on the Cape Flats.

A Weekend Argus team accompanied Metro Police who raided five homes, four flats in Athlone and a house in Hanover Park.

Metro Police chief Robert Young has vowed to continue with Operation Choke, saying only ongoing raids can stem the flow of drugs.

"It's also about keeping drugs out of the areas where they're sold. We're focusing on roadblocks too. You see, he who controls the roads controls the drugs."

The raid ended about midnight. Asked if every night was as eventful, a sergeant said: "This? This is f*** all. We've had it easy."

Cops in on the cannabis trade.

The Minister of Police's answer to the questions of the Reverend K R J Meshoe (ACDP) reveal the police are in on the cannabis game.

The Reverend asked (inter alia)

(1)(a) What quantity of drugs have been stolen from store rooms in police stations in each of the past five years up to the latest specified date for which information is available and (b) how many people were (i) found to be responsible and (ii) arrested in this regard;

(...and (b) how many (i) arrests and (ii) successful convictions were obtained in each case?

and the Minister relied thus:

(1)(a) Drugs stolen from store rooms in police stations
2005: 30 kilograms 040 grams cannabis,
2006: Nil
2007: 1 000 kilograms 280 grams cannabis; 43,5 tablets methaqualone (mandrax)
2008: 496 kilograms 224 grams cannabis; 123 kilograms 267 grams cocaine
2009:(1 January 2009 to 31 August 2009): 1 182 kilograms 123 grams cannabis; 824 grams cocaine; 65 008 tablets methaqualone (mandrax); 137 grams methamphetamine

...(2)(b)(i) 21 arrests

(2)(b)(ii) A total of three (3) successful convictions obtained. The other cases are still under investigation.

Issued by: South African Police Service - 7 October 2009

So a ton of cannabis is stolen by the police from the police storage per annum for sale and consumtion. Only three convictions obtained from 21 arrests for doing this? What is going on here? Sure South Africa produces 3000 tons per annum, but how come the cops have a get out of jail free card?

Four more arrested in war on cannabis

Four people have been arrested in dagga busts worth R25 000 in Delft, Cape Town police said on Thursday.

Captain Joe Wilson said the police searched a person in Kunene Street in Delft on Wednesday morning and found a parcel of dagga on him.

Further investigations led the police to two premises in the same street where dagga was stored and sold.

"On their arrival at one of these houses they found 153 parcels of dagga with a total weight of 20kg, openly displayed on the dining room table," said Wilson.

Later in the day, the police followed up on information from the public and recovered 12kg worth of dagga from a shack at Freedom Farm informal settlement.

The police arrested three men and an 18-year-old woman during the raids.

"The total weight for both busts is 32kg with a street value of R25 000. The suspects, aged 18, 25, 25 and 33, face charges of illegal possession of dagga and will appear in Bellville Magistrate's Court (soon)," said Wilson. (from News24)

READ: 4 more people have their lives ruined by nonsense prohibitionist policy.

DEATH FROM ABOVE: The hidden costs of cannabis prohibition

The cultivation of cannabis is illegal in South Africa. The South African Police in the course of their duties come find large areas of under cultivation in rural areas. The policy is one of cutting down small plantations and large plantations are sprayed with Roundup from the air.

In 2001 South Africa were kind enough to spray 108 hectares in the Royal Kingdom of Swaziland. (SAPS Statement) What good neighbours we are?!

In 2004 the US DEA donated a sixth Squirrel helicopter to the SAP taking the number of helicopters for spraying to 26 (SAPS Journal)


In 2005 "±170,5 hectares of cannabis fields, estimated at ± R119 300 million, were sprayed in the Eastern Cape." (SAPS Report) That would be right.. ±the area, ±the value...

"Police have destroyed dagga plantations worth almost R200-million..... In two weeks time, the dagga - grown in an area the size of 500 rugby fields - would have gone on sale.....Every year, farmers plant hundreds of hectares of cannabis, and every year police helicopters descend on the valleys to spray them with poison. Police are determined to cut the supply of the popular drug, which constitutes about 80% of all local drug-related cases. This is the third operation to take place this year (2006) - and two more are scheduled before the end of the year. In the latest mission, more than 260 hectares of dagga was sprayed and killed, and a further 4 tons of harvested cannabis was seized by ground troops." (SAP)

In the crime year 2007/8 the South African Police reported "1754,5 hectares cannabis fields sprayed in cannabis spray operations." (p.81 SAP Annual Report)

Year by year the numbers went 170 hectares, 260 hectares, 1745 hectares. Where will this stop?

The 2008/2009 SAP Annual Report states that 1275 hectares were sprayed in four operations in the year under review.

Dr Johan Minnaar of Groblerdal produced evidence of serious illnesses and disorders among his patients, where commercial farmers are spraying large amounts of agrochemicals on crops. Horrific cases include breasts on a five year old girl, teenage boys temporarily "growing breasts" during spraying seasons, miscarriages, partial facial paralysis, cancers and ear malfunctions. Milder poisoning symptoms, include asthma, sinusitis, headaches, dizziness and depression. (from Environment)

This led Professor Leslie London of the University of Cape Town to state: "premature puberty and other hormonal abnormalities are symptoms of contamination by pesticides containing endocrine disruptors. I think there is a view that if you choose to live in the country, you should accept this as a way of life."

The spokesperson in charge of these operations confirmed that the Roundup pamphlet informed him "that Roundup is as safe as table salt".