Ambasada republiki południowej afryki “Nothing but the Truth”

 

AMBASADA REPUBLIKI POŁUDNIOWEJ AFRYKI

“Nothing but the Truth”

When I led the fifteen Business persons on the Trade and Investment Summit to Sandton, Johannesburg, from the 11-13 November, we were offered free tickets to the Johannesburg Market Theatre. We saw a three-persons play starring John Kani, Nthati Moshesh and Pamela Nomvete. “Nothing but the Truth” turned out to be a satirical stage-performance based on the controversy surrounding the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. It was as funny as it was truthful in it’s depiction of various sectors of the Black Community’s expectations and or disappointments with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, in direct contrast to the praise it has been given by the international media.

Whereas that focus was revealing for my Business delegation, I too was taken aback by the presence a few seats from ours, of the widow of Chris Hani, Mrs Limpho Hani. Her late husband’s name and that of Polish-born Janusz Walus featured rather frequently in the play, bringing up what must have been painful memories to this brave woman, who sat through it all laughing and crying as I did. On our way out of the theatre, I greeted her and then introduced the four Poles, Dutchman, and Dane who had come to see the play. She shook their hands and displayed a warm but gentle smile as she uttered softly: “Welcome to South Africa”. Outside the theatre Marek Zaliwski said to me that Mrs Hani could not have been happy to see them because like Janusz Walus, they too are Polish. I disagreed and explained that Mrs Hani would not be so vain as to think that every Pole is implicated in her husband’s murder. After all, Janusz is serving a life sentence for his crime and was recently refused an appeal by President Thabo Mbeki. This part of the encounter I must confess, I hardly expected. Watching the play with Mrs Hani in the audience meant that “Nothing but the Truth” hit us directly in the face.
Such is life. C’est la vie.

Ambassador: Ms Sikose N. Mji

 


PRODUCTS THAT POLISH BUSINESS CAN IMPORT FROM SOUTH AFRICA

 

The main technologies that have been developed in SA are related to mining inputs, agriculture, power generation and synthetic fuel production. Examples are factory control systems or lifts designed for deep-level mining, and even mine process control.

1. Machinery, Mechanical Appliances

An annual growth of 35% in 2001 was recorded in imports of this category. This position includes mainly machine-tools, mining and agricultural machinery and other mechanical appliances from SA to Poland.

2. Stone, Articles of Stone

Despite the fall in the importation of this category to Poland, quarried and rough stone, especially granite slabs, are still popular imports compared to previous years. The fall is probably due to the strengthening of the Rand, thus increasing prices, as well as the saturation of the market.

3. Chemicals, Chemical Products

Products of the South African chemical sector are very popular amongst Polish companies. The import growth rate in this category was 175% in 2001. These include for example: artificial fertilizers plus herbicides, basic chemical compounds, petrochemical products.

4. Minerals, Ores

Coal is still a leading mineral to import to Poland. However, due probably to some shipment problems, import from South Africa is decreasing compared to 2001. All other minerals are traditionally interesting for importers especially with the current exchange rates PLN/ZAR in favour of the PLN.

5. Fruits, vegetable products

Fruits and vegetables are still good South African products to import to Poland. The annual import growth for those products was almost 33% in 2001. This position is likely to be maintained or even surpassed thanks to the fact that South African fruit grows in the sun throughout the year. It therefore tastes sweeter!

6. Base Metal, Metal Articles

This area has traditionally been in a strong position in imports from South Africa despite significantly dropping trade statistics (-31% in 2001). Nowadays the trend is rather in favour of transformed metal products rather than raw materials.

With the fall of Communism and Apartheid in Poland and in South Africa respectively, business is good between our two countries.





EXPERTS WILL TAKE YOU ON A GUIDED TOUR BACK IN TIME

 

Nicola Jenvey

 

Durban – In a first for SA, a private venture has teamed up with a university research institute to offer scientist-accompanied dinosaur-hunting tours in the country that gave the world the first dinosaurs.

Time World, which pioneered the concept of teaming a commercial operation with pure science, and SA’s largest travel and tour operator, Rennies Travel, launched Time World Tours in association with the University of Witwatersrand, Bernard Prince Institute for Palaeontological Research during Tourism Indaba 2001.

Domestic and international tourists can now partake of exclusive trips around the country to fossil sites that rival the finest in the world, and work with professional scientists on the excavation of dinosaur remains dating back 220-million years.

SA has the finest fossil heritage in the world, encompassing the history of the earth from 3.8-billion years ago to the past million years. The country boasts not only the first dinosaurs, but also the first multi-celled life, the first fish with backbones, the first plants that colonised the land and the first creatures to branch off the reptile line.

Time World Tours said that until now this magnificent science had been silenced by politics. Only since “the grip of fundamentalist faith on the country’s government was broken with the death of apartheid” had it become possible to reveal the rich fossil heritage in SA and bring this heritage to the people.

One example is the Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site, declared by UNESCO in December 1999 that centers on the complex limestone caves at Sterkfontein, near Krugersdorp.

CONSULAR SERVICES

 

The Embassy wishes to inform all those concerned including travellers wishing to visit the Republic of South Africa and travel agencies dealing with such visas that the waiting period for the issuance of visas to South Africa is 5 working days unless there are other issues to be dealt with. These could, for example, include requesting additional information and/or documents not available at the time of submitting the application to the Embassy. This implies that from the date the application for the visa is submitted to the Embassy it takes at the most 5 working days to be processed and ready for collection.

Notwithstanding the Embassy’s commitment to 5 working days, there has been a perception from the members of the public that the Embassy does not comply with its own commitment. As a consequence, the Embassy has investigated the problem and located it with the third parties or intermediaries who incidentally have their own work procedures that deserve respect and understanding. As an example of such internal work procedures third parties are submitting visa applications weekly, once or twice a month, pending the number of visa applications they have received. Such an arrangement is bound to cause a delay in the submission of visa applications to the Embassy and the same goes for the collection of visas from the Embassy. The travel agencies may not be able to collect approved visas every day – it could be once or twice a week. Such arrangements and others not mentioned here give rise to these delays.
Last but not least, the Embassy wishes to appeal to all those concerned and affected by such delays to exercise some patience and understanding with procedures that other institutions have to bear with. The same goes for Travel agencies, Tourist operators and other groups like companies whose procedures invariably take longer than the Embassy’s 5 working days due to their internal work arrangements/procedures. If all those concerned and directly involved could work with same understanding, then the Embassy and its clients would be happy and satisfied.
The Embassy would like to thank everyone involved in this daunting task for their close cooperation with the Embassy and the sterling service they render to promote South Africa as the best tourist destination that offers value for money