What’s Greta up to? Who is she really working for?
Some of you may or may not have been following the violent protests erupting in India following legislative reforms introduced by their national government in an effort to reform and liberate their agricultural sector which, from what I can tell, is largely peasant-driven micro operations. These protests have resulted in incredibly violent clashes between farmers and state forces, leaving many dead or injured.
I recommend you watch today’s installment of The Morning Shot. Roman does a great job of summarizing the situation, and it doesn’t warrant repeating here.
As with most populist movements, philosophical giants in Hollywood such as Rihanna were quick to chime in, denouncing the violence on the part of the state forces with such gut puches as #istandwithfarmers (sure wish that would catch on in South Africa…). Also leading the charge is Greta Thunberg, always at the forefront of any climate related outrage.
Ok, so far so good. Just your typical virtue signaling from people who otherwise wouldn’t be able to point at India on a map, right? Well…this happened.
It’s long been rumored that Greta is just being used by people behind the scenes to drive their own agendas. A puppet on a string, if you will. This seems to offer a somewhat convincing argument to support those rumours…
But why? And who? Well, I stumbled upon this interesting piece on The Lotuseaters and I suggest you give it a read. The following extract struck me as particularly telling and may be the first clue as to at least what ideology is behind all this malarkey :
“According to CNN, the All India Kisan Sangharsh Committee is the top organizer of the protests in New Delhi. This Committee is an umbrella organization unifying some 250 ‘farmers’ organizations’. Its major constituents include: multiple regional branches of All India Kisan Sabha - a peasant front of the Communist Party of India; the APVVU - part of the socialist National Alliance of People’s Movements; or the All India Khet Majdoor Sangathan - a peasant and agrarian labour movement, politically aligned with the Socialist Unity Centre of India (Communist).”
As that large-brained mouse used to say - Are you thinking what I’m thinking?
News
The Western Cape Government has announced that it plans to start administering its first Covid-19 vaccines on 15 February 2021. Looks like the race is on.
Tito Mboweni has vowed to “bail out” provinces should the civil service unions’ Constitutional Court bid to enforce a wage increase succeed. With what money Tito?
Recent alcohol bans have resulted in wine cellars collectively sitting on 300 million liters of product that have no underlying market contracted for offset, with the 2021 harvest incoming. Maybe all those hand sanitizer tenderpreneurs can come to their rescue…
A case of fraud, theft and contravening the Public Finance Management Act has been opened against President Cyril Ramaphosa with the Hawks, following the witness testimony of Brian Molefe at the Zondo Commission on State Capture. Mr Zuma, is that you?
Interesting case law
Not all of you may be lawyers - be thankful for that - but the law affects us all. So I’ll try and post an interesting case here every day that you may find instructive.
Again, Roman has in today’s Morning Shot given his analysis and opinion on the case, and I encourage you to give it a watch. So herewith then just the short of it:
On 4 February 2021 the Constitutional Court handed down judgment, confirming the declaration by the High Court of South Africa, Gauteng Division, Pretoria (High Court) that the Regulation of Interception of Communications and Provision of Communication-Related Information Act 70 of 2002 (RICA) is unconstitutional, to the extent that it fails to provide adequate safeguards to protect the right to privacy, as buttressed by the rights of access to courts, freedom of expression and the media, and legal privilege.
The amaBhungane Centre for Investigative Journalism and its managing partner Sam Sole had filed an application at the apex court for confirmation of the five orders made by the Gauteng High Court in September declaring Rica unconstitutional. In a majority judgment by Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga, the court found that Rica is unconstitutional to the extent that it fails to provide for adequate safeguards for independent judicial authorisation. Madlanga ruled Rica was unconstitutional to the extent that when the intended subject of surveillance was a practising lawyer or a journalist, it failed to provide for additional safeguards calculated to minimise the risk of infringement of the confidentiality of the practising lawyer and client communications and journalists’ sources. The court also found that bulk surveillance interceptions carried out by the National Communications Centre were unlawful as there was no law that authorised the practice.
Justice Madlanga, writing for the majority, stated the following:
‘The interception and surveillance of an individual’s communications under Rica is performed clandestinely. By nature, human beings are wont – in their private communications – to share their innermost hearts’ desires or personal confidences, to speak or write when under different circumstances they would never dare do so, to bare themselves on what they truly think or believe,’ the judgment said. ‘Imagine how an individual… would feel if she or he were to know that throughout those intimate communications someone was listening in or reading them. If there ever was a highly and disturbingly invasive violation of privacy, this is it.’
The declaration takes effect from date of the judgment and is suspended for 36 months to allow Parliament to cure the defects in the Act. The Court did however read in various qualifications to the contravening provisions to alleviate the harm caused by these provisions during the period of suspension.
Human Rights 1 - State Overreach 0.
Quote of the day
“We forget everything. What we remember is not what actually happened, not history, but merely that hackneyed dotted line they have chosen to drive into our memories by incessant hammering.”
― Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, The Gulag Archipelago 1918–1956
Thanks for reading and have a great weekend!
Subscribed! Well written Nico and looking forward to more
Excellent stuff Nico - hope to see many more posts 👍