Pakistanis angry over detentions in Times Sq. case Monday, May 24, 2010
ISLAMABAD – Relatives of three men detained by Pakistan for alleged links to the suspect in the attempted Times Square bombing say the men are innocent.
They
AFP - Thursday, August 6TAIPEI (AFP) - - Taiwan's Beijing-friendly government on Wednesday denied boycotting an Australian film festival amid a row over the e
BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a double blow on Thursday as a senior party ally in east German
Minister seeks closure of anti-Berlusconi websites Wednesday, December 16, 2009
ROME (AFP) - – The Italian government moved Tuesday to close down Internet sites encouraging further violence against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who
By ELAINE KURTENBACH,AP Business Writer AP - Wednesday, March 18SHANGHAI - Asia's stock market rally seemed to be running out of steam Wednesday, despite an
My Profile
Top News
Reuters top ten news stories delivered to your inbox each day.
Subscribe
You are here:
Home
>
News
>
International
>
Article
Home
Business & Finance
News
U.S.
Politics
International
Technology
Entertainment
Sports
Lifestyle
Oddly Enough
Health
Science
Special Coverage
Video
Pictures
Your View
The Great Debate
Blogs
Weather
Reader Feedback
Do More With Reuters
RSS
Widgets
Mobile
Podcasts
Newsletters
Your View
Make Reuters My Homepage
Partner Services
CareerBuilder
Affiliate Network
Professional Products
Support (Customer Zone)
Reuters Media
Financial Products
About Thomson Reuters
South Africa's rich, poor gap must be closed: Zuma
Mon Sep 21, 2009 11:23am EDT
Email | Print |
Share
| Reprints | Single Page
[-]
Text
[+]
By Peroshni Govender and Alison Raymond
MIDRAND, South Africa (Reuters) - South Africa must do more to close the gap between rich and poor, President Jacob Zuma said Monday at a congress of union allies who want him to take tougher action against unemployment and poverty.
Union federation COSATU was instrumental in helping Zuma to power in April, but unionists have been unable to get him to shift from policies they condemn as too pro-business and have gone head to head with him over a series of pay strikes.
Zuma assured COSATU, which has 1.9 million members, that creating jobs and improving the lives of the poor were the policy priorities of the ruling African National Congress.
"The ANC must now use its victory and control of state power to improve the quality of life of the poor and marginalized," Zuma said.
He said people's lives could be changed if drastic improvements were made in health, rural development, education, the fight against crime and creating jobs.
His comments did not include new measures to improve the lives of the poor. Instead, Zuma highlighted some measures taken since he came to power, like the creation of new government departments, including a human settlements ministry which has a mandate going beyond the mere provision of housing.
Thousands of union members attended COSATU's four-day annual conference. The group wants economic policies it says will bring jobs and improve the lives of millions of black South Africans still living in poverty 15 years after apartheid ended.
As well as more spending, they seek an end to inflation targeting by the central bank, which they blame for sharp interest rate increases last year. They also demand a seat on the bank board and want it to come under full state control.
COSATU President Sidumo Dlamini said Zuma and the government should not take the labor federation's support for granted when it came to choosing his successor, suggesting the union body may toughen its position if its demands are not heeded.
"When that debate comes we shall not be neutral. We will be on the side with those who would have supported the principles that guided our movement," Dlamini said.
Zuma -- dressed in a bright red Mao-style suit -- said the fact that South Africa was in its first recession in 17 years should not make the ruling party and its union and communist allies shift from their goals.
LAWLESSNESS
But he condemned lawlessness seen during recent strikes and protests over slow delivery of basic services like electricity and water in townships.
"Violent strikes violate other people's right of association and undermine the cause of workers."
In a recorded message, former President Nelson Mandela urged COSATU delegates to be strong in a difficult period. Continued...
View article on single page
Share:
Del.icio.us
Digg
Mixx
Yahoo!
Facebook
LinkedIn
Next Article:
Eight Philippine troops killed after rebel lair taken
Pittsburgh G20 summit
Bankers pay and the need to examine strategies for withdrawing state stimulus for the global economy have dominated debate ahead of a G20 summit in Pittsburgh on September 24-25. Full Coverage
Path forward to Pittsburgh G20 summit
More International News
More troops or Afghan war lost: U.S. commander
Russia general says missile plan not shelved
Israel, Palestinians dig in before Obama summit
Pakistan restricts movement of "Mumbai mastermind"
Israel says still has military option on Iran
More International News...
More News
UPDATE 4-South Africa's rich, poor gap must be closed- Zuma
10:58am EDT
S.Africa's rich, poor gap must be closed -Zuma
6:54am EDT
SAfrica's COSATU to push for pro-poor policies
Sunday, 20 Sep 2009 06:00pm EDT
Featured Broker sponsored link
Editor's Choice
Slideshow
A selection of our best photos from the past 24 hours. Slideshow
Most Popular on Reuters
Articles
Video
Kremlin says Israel promised not to strike Iran
UPDATE 1-New York Governor Paterson says he's still running
Obama wants G20 to rethink global economy
Russia general says missile plan not shelved
Emmy Awards get boost from Neil Patrick Harris
More troops or Afghan war lost: U.S. commander
"Option" mortgages to explode, officials warn
RPT-FEATURE-Greying Britain looks to assisted suicide reform
Mayweather victory leaves sour taste for some
Dell to buy Perot Systems for $3.9 billion
Most Popular Articles RSS Feed
Video
Obama media blitz
Muslims usher in Eid
Couples wed in mass ceremony
Tourists hurt in bear attack
Afghans held over alleged plot.
Rally marks Thai coup anniversary
Clinton: "Iran must now decide"
US agents suspect al Qaeda plot
Thai-Cambodia temple protest.
Athens still without Mosque
Most Popular Videos RSS Feed
Reuters.com:
Help and Contact Us |
Advertise With Us |
Mobile |
Newsletters |
RSS |
Labs |
Journalism Handbook |
Archive |
Site Index |
Video Index
Thomson Reuters Corporate:
Copyright |
Disclaimer |
Privacy |
Professional Products |
Professional Products Support |
About Thomson Reuters |
Careers
International Editions:
Africa |
Arabic |
Argentina |
Brazil |
Canada |
China |
France |
Germany |
India |
Italy |
Japan |
Latin America |
Mexico |
Russia |
Spain |
United Kingdom |
United States
Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. Thomson Reuters journalists are subject to an Editorial Handbook which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests.
NYSE and AMEX quotes delayed by at least 20 minutes. Nasdaq delayed by at least 15 minutes. For a complete list of exchanges and delays, please click here.