South Africa Clarifies Policy Not Just for Starlink
JOHANNESBURG: South Africa's Communications Minister Solly Malatsi said on Tuesday that his proposed draft policy that recognises alternatives to Black ownership requirements was not only meant for Elon Musk's Starlink.
Last Friday, Malatsi's department proposed the recognition of so-called 'equity equivalent' investment programmes in the information and communication technology sector, which could encourage SpaceX's Starlink and other communications companies to operate in the country.
'I am pretty clear that transformation is sacrosanct in our country, that it's a non-negotiable in order for the country to achieve its aspirations,' the minister told a parliamentary briefing.
'We are not attempting to open a special dispensation for Starlink or any other company or an individual.'
South Africa's Electronic Communications Act requires foreign-owned communications companies to sell 30% of equity in their local subsidiaries to historically-disadvantaged groups to obtain an operating licence, a provision criticised by Starlink and other companies.
The draft policy has drawn criticism from the opposition and the Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Communications and Digital Technologies, Khusela Diko, who have said that it was going too far to appease foreign businesses like Starlink.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Malay Mail
5 hours ago
- Malay Mail
Elon's revenge? Musk torpedoes Trump's ‘big, beautiful bill'
WASHINGTON, June 5 — Donald Trump's sweeping domestic policy bill has careened into an Elon Musk-shaped brick wall, complicating its passage into law and risking a schism between the most powerful man in the world and the wealthiest. The US president's 'big, beautiful bill' – the centerpiece of his domestic agenda – could define his second term and make or break Republican prospects in the 2026 midterm elections. But the package is getting a rough ride in Congress over proposals to fund an extension of his 2017 tax cuts by piling on debt and cutting social welfare for the poorest Americans. Enter tech billionaire Musk, who dropped a nuclear bomb on the 1,100-page blueprint at a crucial stage in negotiations Tuesday, calling it a 'disgusting abomination.' And on Wednesday he called for Republicans to 'kill the bill,' and for an alternative plan that 'doesn't massively grow the deficit.' In its latest estimate released Wednesday, the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office said the bill would add US$2.4 trillion to US debt by 2034. Musk, who last week ended his brief advisory tenure as Trump's cost-cutter-in-chief, tore into the bill in a prolonged denouncement. The South African-born tycoon has voiced concerns before, but his language was much more combative, coming across as a declaration of war on the Republican Party, if not Trump himself. The White House brushed off the criticism, saying Trump 'already knows where Elon Musk stood,' but the remarks will likely have gotten under the president's skin. 'Lennon and McCartney' The stakes could hardly be higher for Trump, who has made clear, with signature hyperbole, that he sees his bill as 'arguably the most significant piece of legislation that will ever be signed.' He has yet to respond personally to Musk's social media rant – sustained over six hours and 13 posts on Tuesday and still going well into Wednesday. But Washington watchers aren't necessarily expecting a public falling-out. Behind the scenes, a careful circling of the wagons is underway, with pro-Trump pundits under orders to refrain from trashing Musk and to instead frame his broadside as what Politico called 'principled self-interest.' Still, for analysts contacted by AFP, there may be choppier waters ahead. 'It's the Lennon and McCartney of modern politics. Two egos, one spotlight, and a fragile alliance built on mutual benefits,' said Evan Nierman, the founder and CEO of global crisis PR firm Red Banyan. 'The moment either one sees more upside in conflict than cooperation, the breakup goes public.' But political consultant and former Senate aide Andrew Koneschusky, a key player in negotiations over Trump's 2017 tax cuts, believes the Republican leader has nothing to gain by biting back. 'Musk has more money. Musk's megaphone, X, is bigger than Trump's. And Musk was deeply embedded in the administration for months,' he told AFP. 'There's no telling what Musk heard or saw that could be embarrassing or problematic for the administration if the two were to go to war.' 'Bromance' Musk – who has cash to spare for his political adventures, including US$280 million lavished on Trump's election campaign – slammed the Republicans who cleared the bill for Senate consideration and threatened to have their jobs in the midterms. And the de facto leader of America's 'tech bro' community demonstrated his political firepower with a single tweet in December that blew up a government funding bill that had enjoyed bipartisan support. His take on the deficit implications of Trump's proposals is evidenced by copious independent research and he was immediately backed by some fiscal hawks in the Senate. Continued interventions by Musk could be an ongoing headache for Trump, as he bids to shepherd his policy priorities through razor-thin Republican majorities in Congress. But cheerleaders of the package – and independent analysts contacted by AFP – believe the Tesla magnate may discover that his celebrity in Trumpworld relies on the say-so of its mercurial chieftain. 'Musk may have had influence in December when his bromance with Trump was in full bloom,' said Donald Nieman, a political analyst and professor at Binghamton University in New York state. 'But his break with Trump and his massive unpopularity with voters makes it easy for lawmakers to ignore him. If anything, it helps Trump by distancing him from a man who has become a pariah.' — AFP
Malaysia Sun
6 hours ago
- Malaysia Sun
World Environment Day Spotlights Communities Fighting Climate Crisis
World Environment Day 2025 arrives amid a barrage of sobering news. Key developments around the world, however, offer a reminder that the global fight for environmental human rights is waged in frontline communities as well as in legislative halls. And where local communities are leading, there's reason for hope. In February the government in Sarawak, Malaysia's largest state, announced it would stop issuing provisional leases for oil palm plantations in a bid to stem deforestation. Provisional leases are often used in Sarawak to dispossess Indigenous peoples of their ancestral forests, among the most ancient and biodiverse in the world. They do this by allowing companies to start operations on their land before the state had surveyed it. Ending these leases has been a top priority for Indigenous communities and their allies, including Human Rights Watch. A United States appeals court in April revived a community-led effort by residents of St. James Parish in the state of Louisiana to stop the construction of new petrochemical plants in parts of an area known as "Cancer Alley." The petitioners allege that decades of discriminatory policies forced Black and low-income residents to "live in some of the most polluted, toxic--and lethal--census tracts in the country." A lower court had dismissed the lawsuit on a procedural question; the appeals court ruling opens the door for the merits of the communities' arguments to be heard in court. In Panama, Indigenous communities confronting rising seas and coastal erosion have pushed the government closer to establishing a national policy for planned relocation. Panama's Ministry of Environment announced a draft executive decree in February that laid the legal foundation for a National Planned Relocation Protocol sought by communities and that Human Rights Watch recommended. A national approach would ensure that when communities like on Gardi Sugdub, a tiny island home to the Guna Indigenous people, seek to relocate, this support is provided in a way that preserves their culture and protects their rights. Across continents, local communities are working with resolve and resourcefulness to protect their environment, health, and ways of life, deploying strategies that can be reproduced elsewhere. Such efforts are an antidote to mounting despair. The challenges posed by the climate crisis are myriad, but so are the solutions; in many places, they are already bearing fruit. Source: Human Rights Watch
Malay Mail
10 hours ago
- Malay Mail
DOGE in disarray: Leadership vacuum looms large after Musk exit
WASHINGTON, June 5 — The Department of Government Efficiency, the brainchild of Elon Musk that upended Washington with its rapid-fire drive to slash thousands of federal jobs and cut costs, is effectively leaderless now that the billionaire and his deputy have stepped down, US lawmakers heard on Wednesday. US President Donald Trump's budget chief, Russ Vought, told a congressional committee that efforts are under way to establish new leadership at DOGE, but its staff currently answer to Trump's cabinet secretaries. 'The Cabinet agencies that are in charge of DOGE, the consultants that work for them are fundamentally in control of DOGE,' Vought said. 'We're in the midst of establishing the leadership on an ongoing basis.' Vought's comments will only add to the uncertainty around the future of DOGE and its cost-cutting effort following Musk's announcement last week that he was ceasing work as a special government employee. A key lieutenant, Steve Davis, who was in charge of day-to-day running of DOGE, has also left. The White House has said that DOGE's mission will continue in the absence of Musk, who has since publicly broken with Trump over his sweeping tax cut and spending bill, calling it a 'disgusting abomination.' The rapidly receding power and influence of DOGE was almost unthinkable as recently as a few weeks ago when it dominated the political landscape in Washington with its aggressive push to fire a swath of government workers. Trump established DOGE to streamline what he says is a bloated and inefficient government. DOGE struggled to cut costs but was more successful in pushing thousands of workers to quit or take early retirement after threatening dismissal without benefits. It is unclear if DOGE and its cadre of young computer technicians will survive in Washington without Musk, especially as some members of Trump's cabinet have soured on DOGE's tactics. — Reuters
