Word: johannesburger
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...Zimbabwean Mike Maseko, the journey home is a bitter reminder of his country's decline. It's a trip Maseko makes almost every week, driving the 800 km from Johannesburg to Bulawayo in his blue Toyota minibus. Before setting out, he packs the van with groceries and televisions, furniture and children's toys, carefully concealing envelopes filled with South African rand so the corrupt border guards who inspect his vehicle won't confiscate the money. The cash and consumer goods are gifts from Zimbabwean expatriates in South Africa to their desperate families at home. Maseko, 32, makes roughly $700 from...
...Maseko's story is typical. He moved to Johannesburg in 1993 in search of work. After taking odd jobs, he started his transport business four years ago. But he won't be voting in this week's parliamentary elections. Last year, Mugabe's ruling Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) party barred all expats, except for diplomats, from casting a ballot; a Supreme Court ruling two weeks ago confirmed the ban. That decision rankles with the millions of Zimbabweans, up to half the voting-age population, living in exile. If ZANU-PF wins - or fixes - a two-thirds...
...doctors trained in Zimbabwe in the 1990s, but by 2001, only 360 remained; some 18,000 nurses departed, too. The situation is now even worse. "It's no longer just a brain drain; it's much broader," says human-rights lawyer Daniel Molokele, who left Bulawayo for Johannesburg two years ago. "This is not just a question of leaving for greener pastures. This is a direct result of the lack of confidence in the future of Zimbabwe...
...This frenetic scene took place late last year not in Melbourne or Adelaide but in Potchefstroom, on the high veldt near Johannesburg. Most of the kids were from nearby black townships, bussed in for a couple of hours' practice with players most had never heard of. For the kids, the meet was a chance to try a new sport. For the St. Kilda players, it was a key part of summer training. And for Australian Rules football, it was part of a push into a most unlikely market: Africa. "We think it's the best game in the world," says...
...back in South Africa, Hlomela teaches at a Johannesburg school and coaches Aussie Rules as part of the AFL's development program. "Kids think it's something like rugby at first. Then they ask me, 'Why do you kick the ball so much? Why do you have to bounce the ball?' " says Hlomela, taking a break from the Saints training session. "But there's plenty of talent out there - kids with flair and speed. We just need to get them exposed to the game at an early age. Once they have Aussie Rules players as heroes, we'll have them...