Reality Bites
Surfin' Nuns
MONDAY: Nuns in cloistered convents are to be allowed limited use of mobile phones and the Internet under new Vatican rules. But radio and television will continue to be virtually banned for the sisters.
A Vatican document approved at the weekend said: "In a cloistered religious existence the mass media must be used with sobriety and discretion, not only with regard to the contents, but also the quantity of information and the kind of communication."
The principle appears to be that dialogue with God has no need of news. The document added that radio and television may be used "only in particular circumstances of a religious nature."
But faxes, mobile phones and the Internet may be used for work provided the convent "gives its permission", and these means are used "prudently" and in strict accordance with need.
The decision to allow the Internet did not surprise some religious observers. Carlo Molari, an leading Italian theologian said: "It is different because in this case the nun can choose the websites she wants - although obviously one has to be trained in order not to let oneself be led away by desire."
ANC VICTORY
TUESDAY: The ruling African National Congress has romped to victory in South Africa's second democratic election, taking 266 seats in the 400-seat National Assembly.
The final results of last Wednesday's general election leave the ANC just one seat short of its stated goal of a two-thirds majority - which would have given it the power to change elements of the constitution if it so desired.
Brigalia Bam, head of the Independent Electoral Commission, read out the final results to the heads of the political parties after the count had been plagued by delayed reporting and mistakes in calculations.
As concern grows over the way the count was handled, a number of South African opposition parties have said they are launching an independent review of the election results.
A computer company hired by eight parties has been sifting through the results from 14,650 polling stations. The move followed a typing error by the Electoral Commission that resulted in extra votes being awarded to the ANC and the Inkatha Freedom Party.
The error raised doubts about whether the Inkatha Freedom Party finished in second place, ahead of the mainly-white Democratic Party.
Aitkin Jailed
WEDNESDAY: Former Tory MP Jonathan Aitkin was beginning an 18 month prison term today after sentencing, having been found guilty of perjury and perverting the course of justice.
He admitted both charges earlier in the year, following the collapse of his libel case against The Guardian and World in Action.
The judge told Aitken, 56, that he had spun a "web of deceit", from which he had not been prepared to escape by telling the truth. Aitken was later taken away to begin his sentence at Belmarsh jail near Woolwich, south London.
The sentence could have been far harsher. Perverting the course of justice carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment, while perjury can be punished with a seven-year jail term.
The prison sentence completes the downfall of a man who previously boasted a £3m fortune and could expect a glittering career in politics or business. Debt collectors took his Rolex watch and cufflinks, among other possessions from his house last week in an effort to recoup his outstanding £2m legal costs.
Far from fulfilling his promise to "cut out the cancer of bent and twisted journalism", Aitken's libel action succeeded only in destroying almost every aspect of his life.