Brain scan for assaulted ambassador

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http://www.sabcnews.co.za/south_africa/crime1justice/0,2172,161609,00.html

Tanzania's High Commissioner in Pretoria, Emmanuel Mwambulukutu is to undergo a brain scan later today. Mwambulukutu was severaly assaulted by unknown attackers at a farewell function last night.

Spokesperson for the Department of Water Affairs, Themba Khumalo, was among the guests at the function said "We had just finished having dinner and suddenly my daughter screamed that there were people robbing us, We were faced with barrels of guns from three guys who ordered all of us to lie down."

"They tied our feet and our legs and started demanding money, cellphones and jewellery. The high Commissioner said to them God bless you, they were furious and one of them came back and said, look don't tell us about God, we worship Satan and they started stabbing him and he passed out."

The thieves packed the stolen goods into Mwambulukutu's 4x4 Mercedes and fled. Before doing so they pressed another man against a wall and beat him up when they failed to start his Audi.
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Need I say more?
 
Funny - the bbc seems to have better coverage of this:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/7164006.stm


South Africa robbers attack envoy
Tanzanian ambassador to South Africa Emmanuel Mwambulukutu, in an official embassy photograph
The ambassador is the latest high-profile victim of violent crime
The Tanzanian high commissioner to South Africa was beaten unconscious by armed robbers at his own farewell dinner in Pretoria, police say.

The envoy, Emmanuel Mwambulukutu, is said to be in a serious but stable condition in hospital.

Six other people were also taken to hospital after the attack, including the ambassador's wife. One person has been arrested.

South Africa has one of the highest rates of violent crime in the world.

A South African government official at the dinner told the South African Press Association that armed men broke into the diplomatic compound at around 2200 local time.

Rape threat

"They ordered us to lie down, tied our hands, robbed us of our cellphones, money, and household goods," he said.

"Quite a few people were assaulted, hit with bottles. They kept threatening my 15-year-old daughter with rape."

The robbers brandished weapons but no shots were fired. They made off in the Mr Mwambulukutu's own Mercedes car after beating up another guest when they failed to start his Audi, according to the official, who was not named.


We don't care for God. Let's stab these dogs
The robbers, as quoted by a victim

Police located the high commissioner's car using its satellite tracking device and arrested one man. He was shot and wounded in the process, and taken to hospital under police guard.

Police say they are hunting his accomplices.

Calls for a crackdown on violent crime in South Africa have been renewed by a spate of attacks on high-profile targets. These include:

* A Vietnamese embassy official shot and wounded at his home in Pretoria in October
* South Africa's UN ambassador robbed at gunpoint in his son's home in July.

But this latest attack seems to have been the most shocking yet.

The South African government official said the envoy told the robbers at one point: "Gentlemen, God bless you."

They are said to have replied: "We don't care for God. Let's stab these dogs."
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"Any thing you say can be held again you", it's best to be silence during an ordeal such as this to save yourself. People just don't care anymore what they do to their fellowman.
 
A South African handshake

:D
 
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Damn. I wonder how many foreigners have to die before anyone in power here starts caring.
 
All these are low profile officials. You'd need some serious problems, like maybe a president of a major foreign country OR a president of a major foreign company to be
seriously hurt by a mugging for any of this to filter to the people who matter and for SA govt. to be sufficiently embarrased and face threats of reduced gravy (less investment)
for things to change at all.
 
I don't like the way the BBC have covered it. Do they really have to tarnish the image of SA more by adding lines in about how bad SA is. Crime is a global phenomena.... also the last line referring to the robbers "religious beliefs" has been left out. Is it taboo to say something like that over there.
 
The_Librarian said:
For once I say that the gubbermint must reinstate the death penalty.
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Wish people will stop saying that, an international treaty has been signed, we can't reinstate it, breaking the treaty will be too damaging.
I would however still want that they do, but they won't/can't.
 
Envoy beaten unconscious

Envoy beaten unconscious

A farewell party for Tanzanian high commissioner Emmanuel Mwambulukutu almost ended in tragedy when guests were attacked by armed men and the envoy beaten unconscious.

Describing Friday night's attack, host Dr Christopher Mlosy said that as the robbers were leaving, the high commissioner, a diabetic, told them "God will bless you".

"They were angered by that and they started beating him and swearing. One of my guests translated what they were saying. They asked the ambassador why he said that and told him they did not care about God. Then they beat him with their guns and kicked him until he collapsed," he said.

According to Pretoria East Hospital's Sister Sunel Barnard, Mwambulukutu is in a critical but stable condition in ICU.

Mwambulukutu, who was due to leave next week, was attending the party at Mlosy's Garsfontein home on Friday when they were attacked at about 10pm.

On Saturday blood stains on the furniture and floor, missing electrical appliances, ransacked bedrooms and empty jewellery boxes were reminders of the robbery.

"They cut the barbed wire on top of the wall. When I noticed them, two of them were already at the dinner table with guns.

"We were all so surprised and scared, it took us a while to believe what was happening," said Mlosy, a father of four.

Mlosy said the guests were forced into the dinning room.

One of the robbers then asked his daughter where he kept his money. She replied that her father used credit cards.

Mlosy said all the guests were beaten, regardless of their age. He said there was about five couples and 13 children, including five university students.

Mlosy said the robbers told them to lie down and keep quiet.

"They took my wedding ring and every piece of jewellery from the guests. Then they took my family's clothes, cut them up and used the material to tie everyone up, including the children.

"It was horrible."

He said the robbers then asked for car keys, took the high commissioner's Mercedes Benz and loaded their loot into the car.

"They even took food from my fridge, I couldn't believe it," said Mlosy's wife, Hilda.

*Mlosy, who has been living in South Africa for six years, said the robbers kept on saying he did not belong here - they "owned" Garsfontein and wanted to be rich and live in suburbs like he did. They said had it not been for the fact that they were the same colour they would have raped the women and killed the men.

Unaware of what was taking place, the high commissioner's wife, Lucy, was in the bathroom when the robbers struck and was attacked as she tried to rejoin the others.

"I tried to close the door as soon as I realised that I did not recognise the man. He pushed the door and overpowered me. I tried so hard to fight him, but he hit me with his gun on top of my head and I fell," said Mrs Mwambulukutu, showing the stitches to her head.

Zanele Khumalo (15) , the daughter of one of the guests, said: "One of them was touching me, which was very uncomfortable and I was scared.

"He told me that he would like to take me to a shack and rape me the whole week. I did not resist him because I was worried about the safety of the others," she said.

Dr Francis Hyera was also badly beaten. "I was hit over the head with two bottles of wine and a bottle of brandy was broken on my head. I then pretended to be unconscious and they left me alone and put a blanket over me.

"That was a big mistake on their part, because I managed to untie myself without them noticing. When they left I untied everybody," he said.

Mlosy said: "We were lucky. After being untied I had to use a ladder to climb the wall to call for help from the neighbours, because they also stole the gate's remote controls and cellphones. I am very grateful and impressed by the police's quick response."

National police spokesperson Dennis Adriao said one suspect had been arrested.

"We apprehended one of the four suspects and police had to open fire on him to catch him. We recovered the stolen goods from the Garsfontein home," he said.

He said the suspect was in possession of two 9mm pistols and a pump action shot gun.

"We also found other stolen goods, which we believe were stolen in the Garsfontein area," said Adriao, adding that the suspects might be linked to other robberies in the area.

"We are still investigating and we are confident that we will arrest the others that managed to escape," Adriao said.
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Envoy beaten unconscious

*Reminds me of the fact if you put a local footie club sticker on your car, it will not be stolen.

Time for the world to see what is happening here. Imagine if it happened to the US ambassador or Brittish High Commissioner!

In all it comes down to keep your family safe and by all means protect them. I am lucky enough not have had to experience an armed robbery. I don't know how I will react? Hopefully I will never find out, nor my family.
 
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