Ethics

A shocking child sex exploitation study has revealed how Cape Town children are being increasingly drawn into a web of prostitution and drug abuse - often because they are sole breadwinners.

A new initiative by the Consumer Goods Council of South Africa (CGCSA) will improve food safety standards of the whole food supply chain, to the benefit not only of the food industry, but also of South African consumers according to the CGCSA's Michael Broughton.

One out of every three children is having sex at the age of 10, and 17 out of 100 will deliberately spread the virus if they know they are HIV-positive.

Understanding and preventing violence against children

Every year, thousands of Africans fleeing war and economic hardship make a perilous journey towards the tip of the continent -- their sights set on a better life in the regional powerhouse, South Africa.

Police reported this week that they were achieving success in combating most crimes, but not rape.

The prevalence of sexual violence, particularly among children, has led an NGO in South Africa's KwaZulu-Natal province to focus on informing children about their rights and what to do in case of abuse.

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The Freedom of Expression Institute has come out in full support of advertisements made by Marie Stopes South Africa in regards to its abortion services. This results from a complaint lodged by the African Christian Action Group (ACAG) with the country's advertising watch-dog the Advertising Standards Authority of South Africa (ASASA) that by using the words safe and pain free, Marie Stopes was deliberately misleading the public and therefore contravening the Code of Advertising Practice.

Draft legislation to further streamline abortion laws has been tabled in Parliament. According to a memorandum attached to the Choice on Termination of Pregnancy Amendment Bill, the measure seeks, among other things, to allow registered nurses who have undergone the prescribed training to perform abortions. It also proposes to empower provincial health MECs to approve facilities where abortions may take place, instead of the national health minister. Further, all public and private health facilities with a 24-hour maternity service will be able to end pregnancies of up to 12 weeks without permission of the MEC. The bill requires MECs to report to the minister every year on the number of facilities approved. It also makes it an offence for any person to end a pregnancy unlawfully, or allow it to be done at a facility that is not approved. (Source: SAPA, 18 November 2003) Link\//\ Draft Termination of Pregnancy Bill http://www.polity.org.za/pdf/DraftChoiOnTermOfPre.pdf