An Interesting Email!

[SandyB]

Ooh dear I still see no copy and paste from Diana ... Diana  first  drag  through and shade   the letters in  the  the mail  then right click ,  the   little box shoud have copy option ... click copy .. then go to  forum  topic reply ..  then in the reply box you right click again and box should have paste   option then you  paste ... Oook???

[Diana Rudd (Boehme)]

eeeeeeerrrrrrr ummmmmmmm  I deleted it by mistake.

[SandyB]

Now  thats one big Oops !!   

[Rhona]

Maybe it's still in your 'trash' folder......you never know your luck - have a peak and see 

[Patricia Lotte]

What ... there's a trash folder in my computer ...  ... 

[Bertie Horak]

Diana if you're using outlook, you should be able to switch from "Inbox" to "Deleted items" and then open it there or mark it as unread.

[SandyB]

Got  my  reply  from  Mr Allen .. did  not erase  mine .. clickdragshaderightclickcopy opentopicrightclickandclickpaste  .. Diana 

Hi Sandy,
The warmth shown within your email was very welcome and certainly most gratifying to receive. I shall be visiting the website in the near future and I shall look forward to meandering through the various photographs and details therein. It is always very intriguing when one looks deeper into the vast diversity that our different societies and communities have to offer - if only more people would take the time to look at and understand others.
Cape Town/J'burg/Pretoria was as close to Oranjebund as I ever got. I was in S Africa for about three and a half months a couple of years ago and loved it out there, though when I first went for a swim in the sea in Cape Town I got something of a shock - that'll teach me to remember my geography lessons.
Once again thank you for your efforts to reply to my enquiries and for providing me with another viewpoint of a place I never had the fortune to visit.
All the very best,
Terry Allen

[Michael Alexander]

Well, my fellow Oranjemunders, here concludes this debate...... the author of the said article, Sean Thomas Replies....

"Hello

I am the journalist who wrote the article on Namibia in the Sperrgebiet, in the Daily Mail, which -  I see - caused some kerfuffle in your forum.

I wanted to get in touch to firstly, apologise for any mistakes in my article - and any offence caused - and secondly, explain why they happened.

First - I was in Namibia for a month and it IS difficult to get into Oranjemund, whatever some of your more angry members say. I was advised by the administrators of the new Sperrgebiet National Park that it would take several weeks to organise the necessary permits and invitations etc.

For that reason I was forced to rely on secondary sources for my information about the security restrictions, x-rays, etc, in Oranjemund.

I went to places like this blog:

http://www.travbuddy.com/travel-blogs/32603/Inside-Namibias-forbidden-zone-Oranjemund-1

"It is necessary to present a Police Clearance Certificate and apply for permits to stay in Oranjemund and enter the mining areas. When entering the main area, my camera was sealed so that no diamond could be hidden inside it. At the exit everybody was X-rayed.."

I also went by what others told me in Luderitz: that, including the temporary workers, OJM was 90%+ male.

Again given that I was unable to get in, other anecdotes had to be gleaned from other articles, like this one, which was the most recent in-depth look at Oranjemund I could find:

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C06E5D8113FF934A15757C0A96E958260

This again contains all the stuff about xrays etc.

I do accept that this is an imperfect way to write, and risks error, especially if sources are outdated, but I am a humble journalist writing at speed, and not a historian able to take years to research facts.

However, once more, I do apologise if my sources misled me in anyway.

Finally, I should like to say I stand by the thesis of my piece (which wasn't focussed on Oranjemund!) - that there are horrific psychosocial parallels between German atrocities in Namibia and German atrocities in the Second World War.

As evidenced by links like this, on Eugen Fischer, Hitler's favourite race scientist, who did for formative work in Namibia.

http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,3729704,00.html


But this of course is almost ancient history for many people.

As I say in the piece, Namibia today is a wonderful and amazing country, which is why I went there (for my second visit).

Who knows, maybe next time, I will be able to get that permit and see Oranjemund myself. I may even pick up some litter...!


I would be grateful if you would forward this explanation and apology to your forum members.


Very best wishes

Sean Thomas"


Sean, thanks for your honesty, it is greatly appreciated.....

[Bertie Horak]

Apology accepted from my side, BUT...

I still think it is unprofessional to use an internet BLOG as a reliable source for an article in a big publication like the Daily Mail.  Has the author forgotten about the telephone?  It is extremely easy to phone any person in Oranjemund from the telephone directory - any occupant in Oranjemund would have corrected and advised him at no cost, in less than 10 minutes, and in the process would have saved him from the embarrassment of being labeled as a less than accomplished journalist.

[SandyB]

Mmm  a bit  of an oops .. and definitely never trust a blog .. people can write any unsubstantiuated stuff  on them ...well we all human and make mistakes .. and  I'm sure Sean  has learnt from this mistake ...

[georgswa (Georg Ruf) (RIP)]

I checked some of the links

The one has nice pics from Oranjemund, whoever that was, he said he worked in Omund
Also said the camera was sealed by security, i ask, how do you take pictures when the cam is sealed LOL

I took my cams in and out, never had a problem.

[John Haycox]

Yes, I hear what he says, but I am not convinced.

This is indeed irresponsible journalism, he has done incredible damage to the image of the town where I lived as a child and teenager.

[Clive Symes]

Georg,
The camera's are indeed sealed by security.  All that is done is an adhesive numbered seal is place over areas such as the battery housing or other opening areas where diamonds could be hidden.
All the times I have taken a camera in it has never interfered with the cameras operation.

The last resort if the seals are broken for any reason  is for the camera to be x-rayed ( not good for film if one is using film) or to be taken apart when security has the time otherwise one could end up having the camera conferscated. BEST ADVICE IS NOT TO TAMPER WITH THE SEALS.

"Who knows, maybe next time, I will be able to get that permit and see Oranjemund myself. I may even pick up some litter...!" This is what Sean Thomas said, now I trust that should he ever visit, security will remember he said "litter" and not Glitter and treat him accordingly.

[SandyB]

If I recall correctly  , security would  upon  one exiting  checkpoint take the camera , remove the film cartridge  under  darkroom conditions and check it for tampering as well , that would allow them to also examine the camera  for tampering and also  if sufficiently suspicious  x ray it ... nowadays if you got digital camera  its no real problem ...  same as airport security ,, the memory chip unaffected . by low  energy x ray ...

[Michael Alexander]

and then this one I received this morning...

"Dear Mr Alexander

Thank you for your email, which has been passed to the Managing Editors
Office.

I have spoken with Sean Thomas, the journalist who wrote the piece you
mention, and understand that he has sent a response to your forum
explaining his comments on your complaint.

I hope that you find his answers sufficient, and thank you once again for
writing into us

Yours sincerely

Robin Esser
Executive Managing Editor"