Whenever land reform is discussed, the assumption is almost always that it means the transfer of SA's vast tracts of land from white hands to black hands. But in a very important sense, land reform also seems to be the one national endeavour that is expected to redress all the wrongs of the past and deliver a better life for all.

White and black farmers' organisations, corporate agriculture and government presented a united front in committing the country's farming interests to land reform and agricultural development efforts. A litany of commercial failures of farms transferred to new black owners, rising land prices and resistance from white farmers to the redistribution of land have slowed land reform. Central to government's approach to land reform is the development of a black farming middle class and the rural economy.

Refugees should take care not to come across as ungrateful to their host nation. This was the clear message from the department of home affairs and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) at an imbizo held for refugee youth in Gauteng. The imbizo was convened to discuss the rights and responsibilities of young refugees and the daily challenges they face.

NDI seeks a political party and elections expert with international training and program management experience to provide technical assistance to and manage relations with implementing partners in Southern Africa. The position will be based in Johannesburg and will require frequent travel within the region.

The Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa (OSISA), an advocacy and grant making organisation operating in Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe, invites application from suitably qualified individuals for a vacancy in Johannesburg. OSISA is recruiting a Law and Policy Researcher: HIV/AIDS.

The Freedom of Expression Institute has condemned the decision on the part of the state to subpoena ex-Sowetan newspaper journalists Willie Bokala and Saint Molakeng as reprehensible and a blow to media freedom, according to a release from the FXI.

While media coverage of refugees has not always been positive, the current debate on whether South Africa's asylum policies and processes are fair to asylum-seekers is to be welcomed. It is a far cry from the xenophobic public sentiments that used to be expressed whenever the subject of refugees was discussed. The extremely xenophobic attitudes of the South African public add to the plight of many refugees.

Confirmation of raids on SA’s corvette supplier in Germany in search of evidence of bribery and corruption has led to renewed calls for South African authorities to re-open parts of the investigation into the multibillion-rand arms deal.

Access to the internet has been linked to an improvement in children's reading skills, while the use of it has connected them with places around the world, allowing them to have electronic pen pals, and learn about other cultures and traditions. However, Microsoft South Africa, which is hosting its annual National Security Week, has cautioned parents that if your child has full access to the internet, you should be concerned.

South Africa's commission for employment equity -- which monitors transformation in the South African workplace -- has come out with all guns firing against a Solidarity trade union employment-equity plan that proposes a code of good practice for affirmative action, which promotes the commitment of a non-designated group (whites).

While South African law guarantees refugees and asylum seekers the right to work, many employers discriminate against them. In part this is a reflection of the xenophobic attitudes of many South Africans, which Majodina ascribes to a complex mix of historical, social and political factors, combined with our long isolation during apartheid.

AfriForum says it had seemed for a period of five years - from June 1991 to May 1996 - that South Africa was on the way of establishing a truly non-racial democracy. But since then, several laws and actions taken by government were in essence creating a new system of racial classifications.

Fourteen centres for orphaned and vulnerable children received computers, open source software and Internet access on South Africa's Youth Day, June 16, as part of the Tuxlabs initiative. The 26 PCs and two laptops will be used by The Heartbeat Centre for Community Development's 5 000 students countrywide.

President Thabo Mbeki has called on black managers to aspire and proclaim themselves as emperors if they are to rid the country of rampant poverty and gender inequality. Mbeki further advised managers to exude confidence and to believe in themselves, saying this would help them to lead from the "frontline of troops" in bringing about racial and gender changes in the country's business environment.

South Africa says it is ready to send an observer mission of about 120 personnel to the Democratic Republic of Congo's national elections scheduled for next month. "This is a massive task, considering that the DRC would be hosting this election for the first time...with bad infrastructure and many other challenges," said Foreign Affairs Deputy Minister Aziz Pahad.

The conference will focus on the need to develop science communication and establish collaborative networks on the African continent. SAASTA aims to advance public awareness, appreciation, and engagement of science, engineering, and technology in South Africa.

The Institute for the Advancement of Journalism is offering several courses for working journalists: sports reporting, interviewing, basic reporting and writing for print, over the next few weeks. Courses will be held at the IAJ, 9 Jubilee Road, Parktown, Johannesburg. Closing date for application is two weeks before the start of the course.

An SABC radio presenter has gone public on air confirming that the broadcaster banned particular commentators and analysts from its airwaves - and that he was talking from personal experience, writes Angela Quintal in the Cape Argus. This as a SABC spokesman continued to maintain that the broadcaster had no policy blacklisting individuals and that there was merely a discussion document or proposal drafted by news management "which would assist in establishing what kind of analysts were appropriate", reports Journalism.co.za.

ITPC is seeking to hire an International Coordinator, who with supervision and guidance from the ITPC's governing body, the International Steering Group (ISG), will manage day-to-day operations of the coalition. The International Coordinator will also work closely with the members of ITPC, all of whom are volunteers.

A recent South African Human Rights Commission report on the right to basic education maintains that levels of violence in South African schools are "unacceptably high" and that sexual abuse, gangsterism and drugs have become serious problems.