Move will diminish Scorpions and other brief reports

* The lawyer for the 62 suspected mercenaries due to be freed from prison in Zimbabwe does not expect they will be released soon. Alwyn Griebenow said he was going to Zimbabwe to try to establish what was going on. Zimbabwe claims to be establishing their countries of origin before beginning the deportation process. – SABC News * Government’s priority should be scrapping secondary tax on companies, a tax on dividends, rather than reducing the tax rate, business organisations said in Parliament last week. They also called for the removal of all remaining foreign-exchange controls as a show of confidence by government in the domestic economy. – Business Day *A US jury has cleared tobacco maker Philip Morris of liability in the death of a man who smoked for 35 years and alleged the company misled him by failing to acknowledge the habit was addictive and caused cancer. – Finance24 * MTN may finally have to settle an outstanding bill with a software developer in Cameroon after a delay in paying pushed the smaller company to the brink of bankruptcy. A panel of three judges in Douala has ordered MTN Cameroon to pay AppsTech about $2.4m before legal fees. – Business Day *The Department of Agriculture is preparing information on genetically modified organisms brought into or manufactured in SA, in response to a court order. Last week, the Pretoria High Court made an order compelling the government to provide this information after an application in terms of the Promotion of Access to Information Act by the environmental lobby group Biowatch. – IoL * The former boyfriend of a missing Temba police constable – who was released after several court appearances in connection with her disappearance last week – was back in the Pretoria Magistrates’ Court on Friday on fraud charges. William Godibele Nkuna claimed he was tortured by police and the court made an order that he should be examined by a doctor. The case was postponed to March 18, when he is expected to bring a bail application. – IoL * The Wynberg Magistrates’ Court has granted bail of R1 000 bail to a 52-year-old woman who is accused of indecently assaulting her neighbour\'s five-year-old son. The woman was unable to pay her bail and was remanded to April 8 while investigation continues. – Cape Argus * Research by the Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation has revealed that more than 25% of the rapes reported in Johannesburg\'s inner city were gang rapes. – News24