South Africa in the

NeWsBy: Kara Hartmann

Geography

*Area ComparisionAbout twice the size of Texas

* ClimateSemiarid; sunny days, cool nights

* TerrainVast interior plateaus, rugged hills, coastal plains

*Natural ResourcesGold, chromium, coal, iron ore, nickel, platinum, copper,

salt, natural gas

People

*Population43,997,828 people

*Life Expectancy at birth42 years

*Ethnic GroupsBlack African 79%, white 9.6%, colored 8.9%, Indian/Asian 2.5%

*ReligionsZion Christian 11%, other Christian 36 %

Government & Economy*Government Type-Republic

*Economy-middle income market-well-developed financial, legal,

communications, energy, and transport sectors

-stock exchange that ranks among the 10 largest in the world

-Unemployment rate = 26%

Violence Against Woman in South Africa

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• National Women’s Day- August 9th• 3 lesbians were murdered, believed to be because

of sexual orientation• South Africa is the first to bar discrimination in its

constitution• Human Rights and Policy Program was designed

for police

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Child Migrants

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• Child migration has become a big issue in South Africa. Each year, 1500 kids from Zimbabwean cross the border into South Africa in the hope of finding work. One in five Zimbabweans have HIV, putting many children in charge of their families. A

Children’s Resource Center was created to care for these kids. It provides food and water but no overnight stay. Many gangs sit at borders and rape and steal from the illegal immigrants. Most children were between the ages of 7-14.

HIV VACCINE

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• Effective vaccine is still years away• Primary goals of clinical trials are to

establish a safe dosage and trigger the immune system

• 80% of participants have seen people battle with the virus

• Must make 4 year commitment to visit the clinic at regular intervals

• Participants must be HIV negative, have a health screening, and have counseling QuickTime™ and aTIFF (Uncompressed) decompressorare needed to see this picture.

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ARTICLES

• SOUTH AFRICA-ZIMBABWE: South Africa draws child migrants

• ZIMBABEW: Child migrants seek a better life in South Africa

• SOUTH AFRICA: Vaccine trial volunteers contributing to AIDS fight

• SOUTH AFRICA: Microbicide trials - what's in it for participants?

• South Africa: Lesbians Targeted for Murder• South Africa: Tide of violence against

womem drowns out homophobia

Sources

• South Africa Draws Child Migrants." Irin News. 20 Sept. 2007. United Nations. 20 Sept. 2007 <http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportId=74400>.

• "Child Migrants Seek a Better Life in South Africa." Irin News. 03 Sept. 2007. United Nations. 03 Sept. 2007 <http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportId=74083>.

• "Vaccine Trail Volunteers Contributing to AIDS Fight." Irin News. 10 Sept. 2007. United Nations. 15 Sept. 2007 <http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportId=74209>.

• "Microbicide Trials- What's in It for Participants?" Irin News. 5 Sept. 2007. United Nations. 15 Sept. 2007 <http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportId=74136>.

• "Lesbians Targeted for Murder." Irin News. 9 Aug. 2007. United Nations. 15 Sept. 2007 <http://us.oneworld.net/external/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fhrw.org%2Fenglish%2Fdocs%2F2007%2F08%2F08%2Fsafric16617.htm>.

• All pictures are courtesy of the internet