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Geopolitics

Twist In Pistorius Case - Lead Detective Faces Attempted Murder Charges

EYEWITNESS NEWS, JACARANDA NEWS, NEWS24 (South Africa), TWITTER

Worldcrunch

PRETORIA- It has emerged that the lead investigating officer in the Oscar Pistorius case is facing seven counts of attempted murder himself, according to Eyewitness News.

Pistorius, the legendary paralympian accused of shooting his girlfriend to death, is back in court Thursday as a bail hearing continued. But the focus dramatically shifted to Hilton Botha, the top detective at the shooting scene in the South African capital in the early hours one week ago.

According to News24, police detective Botha faces a court hearing in May on seven counts of attempted murder linked to a 2009 incident. Along with two other officers, Botha is accused of going on a drunken rampage, and firing shots at a minibus taxi carrying seven people.

The police spokesman for the Gauteng province, Colonel Neville Malila said Thursday that: “It was only yesterday Wednesday that we were informed ... that (Botha) is being charged.”

This is #HiltonBotha, investigating officer who is facing 7 charges of attempted murder in the #OscarPistorius case twitter.com/Jacanews/statu…

— Jacaranda Newsteam (@Jacanews) February 21, 2013

According to Jacaranda News, Malila said that the decision to drop Botha from the Pistorius case has not been made although other reports are already claiming that he has been dropped already.

When the details emerged, Botha told Eyewitness News that “my blood was never tested for alcohol in the aftermath of the shooting. I wasn’t drunk.” He claimed that shots were fired at the taxi after it “tried to push us off the road”. He was first charged in 2009 and then the charges were provisionally withdrawn. The matter was referred to the prosecutor's office, and he is due to appear in court with the other officers in May, says Eyewitness News.

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Pistorius at the London Olympics - Jim Thurston

This will no doubt complicate the Pistorius case, as prosecutor Gerrie Nel claims he did not know about these charges when he called Botha to the stand on Wednesday morning. On Thursday morning, Botha wished not to appear in the court room but Justice Nair called him in, saying his presence was necessary to his plans for the day's proceedings. This is the third day of the hearing determining whether medal-winning Pistorius will be granted bail.

#OscarPistorius Gerrie Nel, true to form, cracks a dry joke, saying "there goes my case".

— Mandy Wiener (@MandyWiener) February 21, 2013

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Geopolitics

How Turkey's Jumbled Opposition Bloc Can Take Erdogan Down

Turkey heads to the polls in May, with a newly formed opposition bloc hoping to dislodge President Tayyip Recep Erdogan. Despite some party infighting, many remain hopeful they can bring an end to Erdogan's 20 years in power. But first, clarity from within a complicated coalition is needed.

Photo of Recep Tayyip Erdoğan

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Turkey

Bekir Ağırdır

-Analysis-

ISTANBUL — Turkey was hit by a political earthquake recently, at the same time that we were mourning the victims of the actual earthquakes. It was a crisis triggered among the main opposition coalition, the so-called “ the table of six,” by the inner dynamics of the nationalist Good Party (IYI) that resulted in a renewed understanding among the rearranged table.

The six-party coalition has been set up to challenge President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s “one-man rule” and is looking to dislodge him after 20 years in power in the country’s upcoming national elections scheduled on May 14.

I am not a fan of analyses based on a who-said-or-did-what perspective, nor those focusing on the actors themselves either. I won’t attempt to analyze the political actors unless the daily agenda forces me to. They are not my priority: the condition of our society and our political system are what matters to me.

We were all told to follow the tabloid version of the story, articles based on hot gossip and anonymous statements full of conspiracy theories about the disagreements of the table of six, and the question of who would run against Erdoğan.

The truth is that there were three crises in one. The first is what we call the political crisis, which is actually shortcomings in collaboration and taking control of the process. The second is the structural problems of the political parties. And the third is the gap between politics and the vital needs of the society.

From day one, there were shortcomings in the general functioning of the table of the six — in their ability to act together in critical situations and, more importantly, in their ability to take control of the process. There were clues for these in recent times, such as the different stances the opposition parties took for the issue of providing constitutional protection for the headscarf.

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