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LYING AND THIEVING
The fraudulent scholarship of
Ronald Suresh Roberts in 'Fit to Govern: The Native Intelligence of
Thabo Mbeki' with reference to chapters 8 and 9 on AIDS:
'A clash of fundamentalisms 1: medical politics' and
'A clash of fundamentalisms 2: racial politics'
ANTHONY BRINK
This critical analysis of chapters 8 and 9 of 'Fit to Govern: The Native Intelligence of Thabo Mbeki' (Johannesburg: STE, 2007) demonstrates Ronald Suresh Roberts to be an extensive plagiarist, a fabricator and falsifier of history, and the author of a colossal literary fraud, and accordingly so grossly unprofessional and discreditable a writer that he’s unfit to be relied upon for any purpose, not even for directions to the post office.
And after reading 'Lying and Thieving', both the publisher and editor of 'Fit to Govern' agreed: STE Publishers cancelled the second impression of the best-selling book then about to go to press, and Dr James Sanders judged it the 'most serious case of plagiarism and literary fraud in South African literary history'.
Talking about his biography 'Thabo Mbeki: The Dream Deferred' at the Marais Road Synagogue Centre in Cape Town on 20 May 2008, Mark Gevisser reported that after it was published Mbeki wrote to him specifically to confirm that he'd been right in describing him as an AIDS dissident in his book - adding that if he'd just look at the evidence he'd be one too. So much for Roberts's brazen lie in 'Fit to Govern' that 'Thabo Mbeki is not now, nor has he ever been, an AIDS dissident.'
On 16 July 2008 the Press Ombudsman's Panel dismissed Roberts's complaint against the Weekender for calling him the plagiarist he is in its front-page headline report on 17 November 2007 and on its street posters, a conclusion editor Peter Bruce stood by at the hearing: 'The poster was true – he is a plagiarist.' The appeal panel found 'The Weekender's belief that Roberts was a plagiarist reasonable' on the strength of the case made out in 'Brink's persuasive book', and that Moneyweb editor James Myburgh's subsequent independent audit of Brink's plagiarism charges 'did confirm [Bruce's] belief that Roberts is a plagiarist'. Particularly since 'Roberts does not confront the issues of cutting where Brink cut, using identical ellipses and making the same transcription errors.' Having been caught pants down on this. See 'Articles and Reviews' below for all the news reports.
Brink's letter (PDF, 161 kB) to Harvard Law School's Professor Alan Dershowitz, which Noam Chomsky thought a 'Fine letter, and very appropriate.' And which Norman Finkelstein liked too, remarking, 'A thumbs up from Chomsky is the best way to start the day.' Sure is. (Neither are dissidents on AIDS.)
Brink's letters to the editors of Empire (PDF, 164 kB) and BBC Focus on Africa (PDF, 165 kB) in March, unpicking Roberts's interminable fibbing in recent articles of his.
Brink's 500-word letter (PDF, 494 kB) in the June issue of Empire, page 10.
BBC Focus on Africa requested a 200-word letter (PDF, 102 kB) for the July-September issue, but the deadline for submission passed through a miscommunication - so perhaps in October.
Click here to download the book for printing or reading free (PDF, 1.55 MB). You'll need Adobe Reader, which you can download free.
The expanded January 2008 edition of 'Lying and Thieving' includes five new chapters, with a new introduction (PDF, 114kB):
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Mbeki's 'Castro Hlongwane' bombshell (PDF, 132kB)
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More evidence of Roberts's plagiarism turned up – and the editor of 'Fit to Govern' Dr James Sanders agrees (PDF,149kB)
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The mind of a rogue at work: Roberts's developing denigration of Brink in 'Fit to Govern' from draft to draft (PDF, 144kB)
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Roberts's responses to the charges in 'Lying and Thieving' (PDF, 154kB)
To access the documents serially hyperlinked to the text of the book, go here (Word, 146kB).
Read the flyer for 'Lying and Thieving' (PDF, 285kB), including reviews of Brink's first book 'Debating AZT' and forthcoming one 'The trouble with nevirapine'.
'Lying and Thieving' is available at Clarke's Books, 211 Long Street, Cape Town (ph. 021 423 5739) and at other stores.
To buy a paperback copy of 'Lying and Thieving' (443 pages) by credit card, use the secure portal below; alternatively mail a cheque or postal order to Open books, Postnet Suite 273, Private Bag X1, Vlaeberg 8018, Cape Town, or make a direct deposit (email for bank details).
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THE AUTHOR
About Anthony Brink (PDF, 23 kB); an interview (spiked by the editor).
Email / telephone +27(0)21 426 4513 or +27(0)83 775 4174.
THE VERY IMPORTANT YOUNG MAN FROM TRINIDAD ON TELEVISION
Watch the accused performing on SABC TV in a video clip shot on 6 August 2007 - and read his claims blown to pieces at page 367 of 'Lying and Thieving'.
ARTICLES AND REVIEWS
How Mbeki pulled the plug on his Aids apologist
(Scroll down to the second part of the article)
Politicsweb.co.za, 7 November 2007
Mbeki admits he is still Aids dissident six years on
The Guardian, 6 November 2007
SA's president 'failed on Aids'
BBC News, 7 November 2007
ANC NEC discussion paper, March 2002, co-authored by
Mbeki (principal author) and since expanded and updated by him
Mbeki-boek 'n 'bedrogspul' (Mbeki book a fraud)
Die Burger, 10 November 2007
A comment on Roberts's responses and non-responses
Politicsweb, 12 November 2007
Aids Denialist Brink Calls Roberts a Liar
Health-e, 13 November 2007
The author of this carefully researched, insightful article is
the winner of the Judith Miller Award for AIDS Journalism, 2005
Mr Roberts being unlikable again?
The Citizen, 13 November 2007
Misquotation corrections, and comments on Roberts's responses
Roberts's 'thought leader' blog,13 November 2007
Mail&Guardian editor Ferial Haffajee calls Roberts a liar
(just like we said, and the Cape High Court found too) in
her 'thought leader' blog, 15 November 2007
War of words over Mbeki's Aids view (PDF, 44 kB)
The Mercury, 16 November 2007
Die president is nie, en was nooit, 'n "vigsontkenner" ...
(PDF, 529 kB) (The president is not, nor has he ever been, an
AIDS denialist)
Roberts responds to Brink's charge that he fabricated and
falsified the history of Mbeki's engagement with AIDS -
discussed in Chapter 4 of the addendum in the expanded
edition of 'Lying and Thieving'
Beeld, 17 November 2007
Roberts se book oor Mbeki eers nie herdruk (Roberts's book about
Mbeki will not be reprinted for now) (PDF, 1.16 MB)
Die Burger, 17 November 2007
Suresh Roberts stole my work, says AIDS dissident
Text version online; front-page headline (PDF, 612 kB);
story on page 2 with plagiarism examples (PDF, 788 kB)
The Weekender, 17 November 2007
Author of Mbeki’s book accused of plagiarism
African Press Agency, 17 November 2007
Unlikeable Mr Roberts loses pal
PDF version (500 kB)
A comment and a proof (PDF, 500 kB)
Editor's choice, page 2 (PDF, 500 kB)
Chris Barron interviews Mark Gevisser on Mbeki and AIDS
(PDFs, 506 and 500 kB); online version
Some funnies:
The Fred Khumalo Page Laugh of the Week (PDF, 500 kB and 1 MB)
What to do when good dissident turn bad (PDF, 496 kB)
Sunday Times, 18 November 2007
Fred Khumalo at The Times blog,20 November 2007
Cape Times and Star, 20 November 2007
To which Roberts dishonestly responds (PDF, 479 kB)
Cape Times, 22 November 2007
Gevisser on AIDS: A complicity of opposites
Roberts's 'thought leader' blog, 22 November 2007
My purpose is to expose fabrication on Mbeki (PDF, 315 kB)
Brink interviewed in the Argus, 23 November 2007
A plagiarist defrocked?: How Ronald Suresh Roberts plundered
Anthony Brink's research
(17 selected instances of Roberts's plagiarism discussed, with
new background information and fresh evidence turned up)
Politicsweb, 23 November 2007
'Another lie every time Roberts opens his mouth'
Brink's reply to Roberts, as quoted in 'Unlikeable Mr Roberts
loses pal' article, PDF version (491 kB); see here for
original correct quotation marks
The upshot of Roberts's complaint to the Press Ombudsman about
the article is that the Sunday Times apologizes (PDF, 500 kB)
only for mistaking him for an AIDS dissident
Hogarth comments on Roberts's 'Bitter heart' (PDF, 502kB)
(In which connection, see Mail&Guardian editor Ferial
Haffajee's 'thought leader' blog, 'Of ivory towers and
diseased black men', 19 November 2007)
Sunday Times, 25 November 2007
Aids, poverty and racism: A further complicity of opposites
Roberts's 'thought leader' blog, 26 November 2007
AIDS denialist Brink's loony letter to Mbeki
Roberts's 'thought leader' blog, 28 November 2007
(Roberts's theft of this letter is discussed in
'Lying and Thieving', excerpted here (PDF, 158 kB))
'Most-misquoted' man misquotes me
(Roberts responds to Brink's letter)
Sunday Times, 2 December 2007
Answer my plagiarism charges, Mr Roberts
(Brink's reply)
Sunday Times, 9 December 2007
Redakteur beaam aantygings oor plagiaat
([Fit to Govern's] Editor [Dr James Sanders] confirms
plagiarism charges
Die Burger, 21 December 2007
(PDF version with cartoon, 495 kB)
Mail&Guardian, 18 January 2008
Pahad 'vra snitte in Mbeki boek'
(Pahad asks for cuts to Mbeki book)
(PDF version, 495 kB)
Die Burger, 18 January 2008
Pahad 'censored Mbeki book' (PDF, 499 kB)
Weekend Witness, 19 January 2008
You hoaxer! Mbeki book 'custom designed to Pahad's whims' (PDF, 79 kb)
Sunday World, 20 January 2008
Pahad cut attacks on Oppenheimers (PDF, 495 kB)
Sunday Times, 20 January 2008
I would not have tolerated censorship from Pahad (Roberts's letter)
Sunday Times, 27 January 2008
Roberts did tolerate censorship (Brink's letter)
Sunday Times, 2 February 2008
Men of many words (search on 'Roberts')
Sowetan, 4 February 2008
The smear
of denialism (article by Roberts)(PDF, 2MB)
Empire, December 2007
Mondli in my bedroom (article by Roberts)(PDF, 2.76 MB)
Empire, February 2008
Brink's letter to the editor, Empire
31 March 2008 (PDF, 164 kB)
Has Thabo Mbeki damaged the ANC? No (article by Roberts)(PDF, 487 kB)
BBC Focus on Africa, January to March 2008
Brink's letter to the editor-in-chief, BBC Focus on Africa
31 March 2008 (PDF, 165 kB)
Brink's 500-word letter (PDF, 147 kB) published in Empire, June 2008
The Press Ombudsman Panel dismisses Roberts's complaint against the Weekender for identifying him as a plagiarist.
The Mail& Guardian, the Times and the Citizen posted SAPA's wired report of the decision (with an error: Roberts 'plagiarised work' not 'from Anthony Brink’s "Lying and Thieving"' but from '"Just say yes Mr President"': Mbeki and AIDS' and 'Debating AZT') The Mercury (PDF, 313 kB) also ran the report. The Sunday Times published an article about it in the weekend too.
16 July 2008
Would someone care to update Roberts's Wikipedia entry with the news - mentioning perhaps that, like Weinkove J did in dismissing his defamation action against the Sunday Times, the Press Ombudsman's Panel found Roberts an 'unconvincing' witness, which is to say a dishonest one nobody should trust, after rejecting his slimy ploy at the hearing to weasel out of the plagiarism charges made in 'Brink's persuasive book', which, the Press Ombudsman's panel found, were 'confirm[ed]' by Dr James Myburgh's close textual analysis?
Your feedback would be welcome.
'Lying and Thieving' ISBN: 978-0-620-39980-7 was originally published on
10 November 2007, and the expanded edition on 15 January 2008, by Open books, Postnet Suite 273, Private Bag X1, Vlaeberg 8018, Cape Town.
Click on the cover to download 'Lying and Thieving' free (PDF, 1.55 MB).
Here's how to bind your own paperback.
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Debating
AZT: |
Poisoning
our |
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The trouble with nevirapine
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'Just say
yes, Mr President': Mbeki and AIDS |
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RUDE LETTERS |
Introducing AZT: 'A world of antiretroviral experience'
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Draft Bill of Indictment against Zackie Achmat in the International Criminal Court at The Hague
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For a description of these books, click on any of the covers. Some are online.
Also posted on the 'Other titles' page, read Brink's affidavit in the Cape High Court to find out whether, as Roberts claims, he's an AIDS denialist or not.
Be sure to visit the
