Guaranteed a HUGE black market for phones with local SIMs will appear as soon as this legislation is passed (most of them nicked from local punters, no doubt).. :-(

.. so it won't be a long wait, just a few hours and you'll be done

... I can buy a prepaid with cash at my local Stop-n-Rob. I can get a prepaid European SIM mailed to a PO Box using a prepaid debit card (which I used cash to buy). Texas had a measure in the legislature that would have required ID, SSN and a thumb print, but it died in committee.

Viva Afrika, viva, viva! Not! One more reason to thank God for leaving that country when I did.

Us locals will have to register when buying a sim, not just a phone. Contract or prepaid, doesn't matter - you have to register. Not registering any sims you may have lying around and forgotten about will not only result in them being disconnected, but you could be liable for a jail sentence as well.

All in the hopes of fighting terrorists and criminals, who of course aren't clever enough to think of giving a fake name and address.

Currently you can buy a pre-pay sim for under 5 Rand (about 30p), so all you need to do is hold a gun to a tourist's head and you're in business.

Still, like most legislative action of this kind, it will not hinder the criminals, merely inconvenience the law abiding citizen.

The bulk of South Africans have no way of proving their address and the identity document system here is a shambles with duplicate numbers common and the issuing of such documents routinely taking several years to process.

But, yes, as TFA states, a great way for the telkom companies to make money....