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Your World Today
Record Rainfall in U.K.; Southeastern Europe Bakes in Scorching Temperatures; Tour de France Race Leader Rasmussen Removed From Tour; Iraqi Refugees; Tainted Chinese Products; Product Safety
Aired July 26, 2007 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HALA GORANI, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Dealing with extremes. Europe swelters under a deadly heat wave, while parts of England are submerged under record rainfall.
JIM CLANCY, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: An abrupt end for a Tour de France leader. A cyclist was kicked out of the race over doubts about drug tests.
GORANI: And marking Cuba's revolution. But the main man was missing again. Another parade without Fidel Castro.
CLANCY: And feline friend for your final moments? Researchers study a cat who visits the beds of patients hours before their deaths.
GORANI: It is noon in Havana, Cuba, 6:00 p.m. in Paris.
Hello and welcome to our report broadcast around the globe.
I'm Hala Gorani.
CLANCY: I'm Jim Clancy.
From Tokyo to Tewkesbury, England, Bucharest to Boston, Massachusetts, wherever you're watching, this is YOUR WORLD TODAY.
We're beginning our report in Britain, that is suffering the worst flooding in some 60 years. And more rain is in the forecast. Exactly what the people there do not need.
Meteorologists say the period from May to July now, the wettest since record keeping began. That was back in 1766.
Oxford became the epicenter of the crisis on Wednesday. Residents along the Thames were evacuated when the river burst it banks. And in hard-hit Tewkesbury, where waters are beginning to recede, the bodies of two people were found in the basement of a flooded building.
GORANI: It's a very difficult situation there for parts of England not used to it. Some areas, though, that were under water earlier this week are starting, just starting, to dry out.
Alphonso Van Marsh spoke to members of one family just as they returned to their flood-damaged home.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALPHONSO VAN MARSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): It's cleanup time for Vernon Smith. Raging floodwaters drove this Tewkesbury city counselor, his partner Kate and 12-year-old David out of their bungalow home in the middle of the night.
VERNON SMITH, FLOOD VICTIM: You see on television all the time other people -- and from America. We see in England, tornadoes and say, oh, that's terrible. You know, and poor people. And you see flooding like in New Orleans. But you never think it's going to happen to yourself.
VAN MARSH: But it did happen to the Smiths and hundreds of thousands of other people in southern and western England. Now that Britain's worst flooding in 60 years is starting to recede, the reality is setting in.
(on camera): So tell me, what's it like when you come back here for the first time since the beginning of the flood and you come into this room.
KATE MURRAY, FLOOD VICTIM: I will be completely honest. It was incredibly emotional, because this was my favorite room. I had some nice things in here that I did like. And I have to admit, I did cry. That was a photo of my grandparents' wedding that I was keeping flat under the bed.
VAN MARSH: The Smith family's possessions have been reduced pretty much to this pile of sewage-tainted rubble. They did have insurance. Many of these items will be replaced.
The claim just one of tens of thousands that insurers say will cost upwards of $6 billion.
(voice over): Vernon Smith says he's seen lots of camaraderie. Total strangers helping them clean up their home. But he warns that there's also been looting.
SMITH: Just protecting the things we've got. So I actually stay here at night.
VAN MARSH: Staying here at night, but also, he says, staying here for good.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: That report there by Alphonso Van Marsh.
Authorities say thousands of people in the most flood-ravaged areas are still without drinking water.
Now, the air is scorching and the land is burning in some parts of southeastern Europe as it weathers the second extreme heat wave of the summer. From Italy, to Hungary, to Greece, people are trying to keep their cool. And the weather is sometimes cooperating a bit. Temperatures have dipped today, but it's still plenty hot. The thermometer topped out at 41 degrees Celsius in Greece. That's 106 Fahrenheit. Italy, Croatia and Bulgaria all had relatively cooler highs.
The heat has been blamed for hundreds of deaths, but it isn't the only problem. There are fires burning across the region now, destroying some homes and even taking several lives. The high demand for cool air has pushed some power companies to the breaking point, leaving customers with no electricity or rolling blackouts.
Well, we have several reports on this extreme heat for you.
Jennifer Eccleston is in Istanbul, Turkey. Arwa Damon is in Baghdad, Iraq. No part of Europe, of course, but also dangerously hot at times, and with little electricity to cool things down.
Let's first start out with Jennifer.
Jennifer, you're in a region, there's Turkey, there's Greece. This part of Europe has seen a very, very severe heat wave. And we've also seen deaths and fires as a result, as we mentioned.
JENNIFER ECCLESTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Hala.
Here in Turkey, temperatures are soaring above 40 degrees Celsius. That's over 104 degrees Fahrenheit. That's about 10 degrees above average, making it one of the hottest summers since records began.
And with that, doctors are advising residents to stay indoors when possible. If they must go out, the advice is to limit activity, drink plenty of fluids. Some officials also urged employers to give paid leave to the most vulnerable in society, the elderly, and to pregnant woman.
Here in Istanbul, the high humidity is adding to the misery, but many people are finding relief in (INAUDIBLE) swimming, in dangerous proximity to speedboats and oil tankers that pass through the straits between the Aegean and Black Sea.
In Turkey's laterland, however, it's a very different story. There's not much relief in terms of water. And officials say dozens of forest fires consumed hundreds of acres.
There hasn't been much rain this year. And officials say the drought and the high winds are compounding the problems. So they're urging residents to take caution and not to use water unnecessarily.
And as you mentioned, in neighboring Greece, it's a more tragic story. Record temperatures upwards of 114 degrees Fahrenheit claimed the lives of several people, including firefighters battling still raging forest fires. As a result of those firefighters -- forest fires, a number of homes have been evacuated. Well, outside of the fire zone, as here in Turkey, the advice from health officials in Greece, stay inside, drink lots of water, and keep activities to a minimum -- Hala.
GORANI: All right. Jennifer Eccleston in Istanbul, Turkey.
Thank you very much.
Let's go to Arwa Damon. She's in Baghdad.
There, of course, it is sweltering this time of year. But Iraq is a war zone and there's also very little electricity.
How do people deal with that situation in Iraq, Arwa?
ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Hala, they try to keep as cool as they can, obviously. But that does prove to be increasingly challenging, because as you just mentioned, in the Iraq that exists today, there is a massive lack of electricity. There are some homes that if they're lucky, we hear they receive four hours of power a day.
There you see a video of a woman who has put a wet towel on her head trying to keep cool. Now, she actually works in a government building. But even there, they do not relieve -- they do not receive reliable city power. So they have to tourn to a generator.
The problem is, they can only afford to run the generator so that it provides electricity to each department for only an hour. Now, in that building earlier, you could really feel the suffocating heat, and that is what people are complaining about.
They find it incredibly difficult to believe that this far into the war, they still don't have power. And we are also approaching one of the hottest months here in Iraq, August. Now, the temperatures here today, around 47, 48 degrees Celsius. That's 120 degrees Fahrenheit.
But just to give you an idea, it was up at 55. That is 55 degrees Centigrade, 130 degrees Fahrenheit, and with still the hottest month to come -- Hala.
GORANI: All right. Arwa Damon in Baghdad.
Two very different locations dealing with the same type of heat problem and the effects that that heat can have. A very difficult war zone in Iraq, of course -- Jim.
CLANCY: Every major sporting event has one event that really defines the nature of that sport. For cycling, it's the Tour de France. And the wheels appear to be coming off that one.
It's the crown jewel, but the luster of cycling's famous Tour de France has been tarnished, perhaps permanently, after several high- profile athletes have been forced to drop out of the race.
Don Riddell has the latest on a sporting even that has shaken the world for all the wrong reasons.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DON RIDDELL, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The Tour de France has lost its leader, but the sport of cycling may have lost much more than that. News that the Dutch Rabobank had dismissed its star rider, Michael Rasmussen, on Wednesday, completed a week of doping scandals, and with Sunday's finish line now in site, the question is, how much further can it sink?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Who is the enemy? The enemy is not cycling. It's not the Tour de France.
The enemy is doping. We simply want to kill doping, make war against doping. Get rid of it completely.
JENNIFER HUGHES, "FINANCIAL TIMES": This is the first year when riders have tested positive and the tour has insisted that the team leave with them. We've seen this with the Askana (ph) team and Cofidis. We've never seen whole teams leave like this, not for a very long time. So, clearly, the Tour is taking a tougher line, and I think the sponsors are, too. They can't afford any more bad news like this.
RIDDELL: Every Tour champion since 1996 has been tainted either by doping or allegations of cheating. The reputations of (INAUDIBLE), Jan Ullrich, the late Marco Pantani have been tarnished. Lance Armstrong could never escape negative headlines. And in 2006, Floyd Landis became the first winner in the event's history to fail a drugs test.
On the eve of the race earlier this month, it was clear that cycling was drinking in the last chance saloon.
KEVIN ROBERTS, SPORTBUSINESS GROUP: If broadcasters lose interest in sport, then the sponsors, for sure, will start one by one to pull out. And you get into what might prove to be an irreversible decline.
RIDDELL: The latest scandals have prompted one of the Tour's main broadcasters, (INAUDIBLE), to switch off the cameras, and one of Switzerland's biggest newspapers has stopped covering the event. Now, the vice president of the World Anti-Doping Agency has suggested that cycling be pulled from the Olympics.
With 12 of the teams' sponsorship contracts up for renewal in the next 18 months, there's a real fear that the sport's financial support could dry up fast.
ANTHONY MCCROSSAN, COMMENTATOR, CYCLING.TV: If you look at most teams, the budgets are at least $15 million. And you've got such big organizations now.
You've got 75 staff, including the riders. And (INAUDIBLE) and teams that are looking for sponsors, it's a huge impact on them. Certainly if you're there trying to find someone to write a $15 million check right now. It's going to be -- it's a difficult negotiation.
RIDDELL (on camera): The tour began in London earlier this month, with local organizers here playing $13.5 million to host the launch and the opening two stages. One wonders just how keen future investors will be to back a sport that seems unable of producing positive headlines, instead only positive tests.
Don Riddell, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: Well, one French newspaper is letting its readers know just how it feels about the scandal in no uncertain terms.
CLANCY: Take a look at this. It's an obituary for the Tour de France.
GORANI: It's the newspaper "France Soir". It printed this on its front page today. It features a stark death notice next to the masthead. And then it continues about how the newspaper is sad to inform you about the details of the death of the Tour de France.
No mistaking how they feel about alleged cheating at the race.
A U.S. football superstar is about to face one of his toughest opponents in court. Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick is due to appear before a federal judge in a few hours. He and three others are accused of staging dogfights on Vick's property in Virginia. The National Football League, the NFL, has barred Vick from training camp until the case is sorted. If convicted, he and the other defendants could face six years in jail.
CLANCY: We're going to take a short break here. but still ahead, the plight of Iraq's refugees.
GORANI: While more than two million have fled the violence, thousands have found shelter in Jordan and Syria. But do they have something to smile about in their new home?
CLANCY: Also ahead, thousands turned out for Revolutionary Day in Cuba. Raul Castro addressed the crowds. Have things been different without Fidel at the helm?
GORANI: And he may be cute and fluffy, but you don't want necessarily Oscar to appear at your bedside. We'll tell you why when we return.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CLANCY: All right. Welcome back to YOUR WORLD TODAY.
You're looking at the Dow Jones Industrial Average plunging this day on credit woes, down 220 points right now. We're going to continue to watch that story. There's heavy trading on Wall Street.
Welcome back, everyone. Well, a Taliban spokesman is saying now that 22 South Koreans held hostage in Afghanistan are safe. For now. That is despite the passing of what the Taliban had called their final deadline.
In the meantime, South Korea sending its chief national security adviser to Afghanistan, trying to step up efforts to win the release of the remaining missionaries. This comes after one captive was shot dead. The Taliban said they skill killed the church group's leader because he was too ill to be moved.
GORANI: Now Jordan is pleading for international help to deal with its refugee crisis. Some two million have fled the violence in Iraq, and most are either in Jordan or Syria, neighboring countries. Jordan is holding a regional conference to discuss the issue.
Dan Rivers visited one Iraqi refugee family in Amman to see how tough their life has become.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAN RIVERS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): It's rare to find something to smile about when you're an Iraqi refugee. But soccer has provided the perfect excuse to sing and dance.
Everyone in this Jordanian cafe is an Iraqi exile. The government estimates there are three quarters of a million in Jordan alone.
Jalal Laeighty is typically passionate about the Iraqi soccer team. Since fleeing with his family last year, he's now able to enjoy simple pleasures that were impossible before, like playing in the street with his young son, Ali.
Long haired like his father, Ali was kidnapped briefly in Baghdad when he was just 2 and a half.
Life in Jordan is safer, but it's still tough. It's a daily struggle to put food on the table. Jalal also has to feed his two nieces and nephew who were orphaned after their parents died in a fire in Amman.
He says there's no work, there's no salaries for the refugees. There's no support. "And I have six kids. How am I supposed to live?"
(on camera): He's been recognized as a refugee.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
RIVERS (voice over): And the U.N. sent him a letter saying he's not allowed to work in Jordan.
His family arrived with just a few clothes and some children's toys. They're staying in a friend's apartment. Jalal had to borrow more than $4,000 to survive. He only has $300 left.
They're not allowed to send their children to Jordanian state schools and can't afford to pay.
SIHAM LAEIGHTY, IRAQI REFUGEE (through translator): That's it. We'll have to teach them at home.
RIVERS: But what's more upsetting is the idea that she may never return to Iraq.
S. LAEIGHTY (through translator): I want to breathe the air of Iraq.
RIVERS: A thought that's overwhelming.
The U.N. says families like Jalal's desperately need help.
IMRAN RIZA, U.N. OFFICIAL: They need assistance in terms of education, in terms of health, in terms of access to health. Some of them, the more vulnerable, the poor, may need food assistance.
RIVERS: It's easy to understand why football is such a welcomed mental escape for Jalal and his family.
(on camera): Relief has been in short supply for most Iraqi refugees. But this little match provides a rare opportunity to have some fun. And just for a moment, to forget about the tragedy of what's happening in the homeland.
(voice over): And on this occasion, Iraq won a place in the Asia Soccer Cup finals. Finally, a reason to celebrate after so much misery.
For Jalal and his children, a day of happiness amid such suffering and trauma.
Dan Rivers, CNN, Amman.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: All right. Well, let's show you the live pictures there of what the Dow Jones Industrial Average is doing right now. And it is quite the sell-off, Jim. More than 200 points down so far this session.
CLANCY: There's credit fears that are out there. Home sales down, what, 6.6 percent. The reports coming out today just not giving this market any help. But the Dow, of course, recently has been on an upward run. As you can see now, paying the price.
GORANI: Right. Taking -- absolutely. Taking a breather.
We'll have a lot more after a break. Stay with YOUR WORLD TODAY.
(NEWSBREAK)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANNOUNCER: What's in a brand? Ideally the guarantee of safety and quality. But what happens when poisonous pet food, toxic toothpaste, and dangerous drugs share a common label? Those are only some of the hazardous products that carried the label "Made in China".
How did Beijing respond? As product safety scandals came to light, one after another, the stakes rose, along with the pressure. First there was silence. Then damage control, the product safety crackdown; and the harshest of punishments for a once high-ranking public official.
And now, China goes on the offensive to protect its brand name. Turning the tables and turning away goods from the U.S. Will the strategy work? And how much risk is there when the label says "Made in China"? This is CNN special presentation, from Beijing, here's John Vause.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR, MADE IN China: Hello, everyone. China's economy has been roaring ahead for the best part of a decade. And it's said to overtake Germany as the world's third biggest economy by the end of this year. But with all of that growing comes with a lot pain.
There's the chasm between urban rich, like these people here in Beijing, and the rural poor. There are strained relations between the United States and the European Union. And there's all that pressure to keep producing, keep churning out cheaper and cheaper products.
Last year, China sold almost a $1 trillion worth of goods to the rest of the world; $2.6 billion every day. But in the last few months, the world has started to ask, are all of those exports safe?
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(Voice over): A massive recall in the U.S. of almost 100 different brands of pet food was just the start. Investigators believe thousands of dogs and cat has died because Chinese manufacturers had mixed their ingredients with an inexpensive chemical called melamine, normally used to make plastics.
CAROLINE SMITH DEWAAL, CTR. FOR SCIENCE & PUBLIC INTEREST: They essentially added melamine to have it pass a protein test and so they could sell it for more money.
VAUSE: Then came toxic Chinese-made toothpaste. The health officials in the U.S., Dominican Republic and Panama seized thousands of tubes because they contained a deadly chemical often used in anti- freeze. A Chinese company is accused of passing off the same chemical as a more expensive sweetener and thickener for a cough syrup made in Panama, killing at least 83 people last year.
Toys, as well, have been recalled, including Thomas, The Tank, because the manufacturer used lead-based paint. If ingested, lead can cause neurological problems in children and affect development. Almost half a million Chinese-made tires sold by a New Jersey company have been recalled because U.S. regulators say many are missing safety features that may cause blowouts. And more recently, the U.S. stopped the import of four types of fish and shrimp from China, because tests found traces of cancer causing chemicals and bad antibiotics.
SALY GREENBURG, CONSUMER UNION: We have no real sense of the regulatory infrastructure in China, which is probably about 100 years behind where we are in the United States.
VAUSE: The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission says so far this year 60 percent of all recalled consumer products in the United States have come from China.
(On camera): So one of the biggest problems is making sure the food that the people here eat, is in fact safe. Look at this, kidneys, tofu, squid, lobster and shrimp. Shrimp, which was recently banned from being imported into the United States.
Here in China there are, in fact, six different agencies in charge of food safety. First, the state Food and Drug Administration; the Health, Agriculture and Commerce ministries, the State Administration of Industry and Commerce, and the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection, and Quarantine.
Now, compare that to the United States. Just the Food and Drug Administration reporting directly to the health department. So you can see how safety and accountability in China might fall through the cracks.
So what is China doing to try and win back consumer confidence? Other countries have done it. Remember when "Made in Japan" meant cheap and unreliable? Clearly, though, the challenge for China is much greater. And the government here is even putting corrupt officials to death, to try and reassure customers, both here and around the world.
(Voice over): More than ever the Chinese are desperate to convince the world that what leaves these ports, especially food, is safe. Because after months of bad news, "Made in China" reads like a consumer warning.
KENT EWING, HONG KONG INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL: Stubbornly insisting upon the quality of their own goods didn't work. They tried that for several months.
VAUSE: China is the biggest supplier of apple juice to the United States. And executives at this Beijing juice factory worried that that publicity is costing them business.
MATTHEW GENER MOUW, HULYAN JUICE GROUP: More and more potential new customers are concerned about China, in general.
VAUSE: And so the Chinese government is doing what it rarely does. Opening up, taking reporters on tours of high-tech food safety labs. While on the website, for China's embassy in the U.S., a detailed list of steps recently taken to improve standards. They're also paying Patton, Boggs, one of Washington's biggest lobbyist, $22,000 a month to make their case to Congress. Meantime officials here are continually insisting on the quality of their products.
"Chinese exports are very safe," he says. "As I've mentioned before, more than 99 percent of the exports meet the standards."
But at the same time, insisting on blaming the media, this official was asked why China continues to be is he center of product scandals around the world.
"Why don't you tell me," he said. "If the media didn't hype the story, the situation might not be so bad.
That's not the strategy with Scott Kronick, from public relations giant Ogilvy's, has advised Chinese officials.
SCOTT KRONICK, OGILVY'S BEIJING: I think, actually, that's a mistake. I think to try to put blame elsewhere is a problem.
VAUSE: Earlier this month, the former head of the Food and Drug Administration in China was executed for taking almost $1 million in bribes to approve sub-standard drugs, which killed at least 10 people. The Communist Party said it was a warning to all other officials.
(On camera): China is looking for a high global profile to match its new economic strength. And hosting next year's Olympics is all part of that. But can you imagine the embarrassment if an athlete, or an official, or a group of tourists ate tainted food? If the silkworms or the chicken hearts or the kidneys were off. And someone, or a group of people ended up in hospitals?
Well, Beijing has promised that the food at next year's Olympics will be safe, and importantly for athletes, free of anything that could trigger a positive result to ban performance-enhancing drugs. Just look at how much athletes and officials and journalists are expected to eat. Hundreds of tons of fruit and vegetables, as well as meat and seafood, and a massive amount of milk and cheese.
The united states is one of the many countries participating in next year's games and it's also China's biggest trading partner. Here are the numbers. China sold the U.S. more than $288 billion in goods in 2006, that stands in stark contrast to U.S. exports to China, which only amounted to $55 billion. That means the U.S. ends up with a massive trade deficit to China, a record $232.5 billion last year. And said to be even more this year.
So it's little wonder then that inspecting every Chinese import into the United States, well, is next to impossible. And a top U.S. official says Washington is working with Beijing to try and ensure that quality and safety are built into the manufacturing process from the very beginning.
MIKE LEAVITT, SECRETARY, U.S. HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES: I think it's clear in China that the "Made in China" brand is very much something they need to protect. And in my conversations with the ministers of the various parts of their government, they're taking this very seriously, and they should.
VAUSE: In the U.S., Chinese-made products are everywhere, from the grocery store to the pharmacy. Our Richard Roth went shopping in New York, and he found plenty of labels that read "Made in China." (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How many of these can I get?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How much are they?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They're 99.
RICHARD ROTH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): When somebody wants a toy at a good price, the last thing shoppers think about it where it's from.
(On camera): Do you know that 80 percent of the world's toys come from China? And parents are beginning to get concerned.
(Voice over): Recently, the popular Thomas the Tank Engine toy was recalled because a Chinese factory used lead paint on the toys.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, wow, that's crazy. I think that's crazy. There shouldn't be any lead, especially on toys.
ROTH: And there have been several recalls of Chinese-made magnetic building sets after children swallowed magnets.
(on camera): It's from China, the Twister Scram, does that worry you at all?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, it does worry me a little bit. It does.
ROTH: Because?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Because it's from China.
ROTH (voice over): Toy industry expert Richard Gottlieb points to a lack of controls in China.
RICHARD GOTTLEIB, TOY INDUSTRY EXPERT: They really need to get together and crack down on these folks that are doing these things. It damages them as an industry. It's truly a case of a few bad apples really spoiling the whole batch.
ROTH (on camera): So how has this affected your business?
DONNA SCHOENFELD, TOY STORY OWNER: It actually hasn't affected. People want what they want, and they need what they need. And I don't have a lot of customers who look to see where something is made from.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's made in China.
ROTH: See?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's pretty sad actually. I'm upset that it was probably made in a sort of sweat shop area but --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Everything is. ROTH: But you're going to still wear it to this bachelorette party?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, because the other ones are much more expensive.
ROTH: What really happens at bachelorette parties made in China?
Look, super soaker, super soaker, made in China --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm not eating it.
ROTH (voice over): Richard Roth, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: If you talk to many of these people here, they will tell you that China is being unfairly targeted by the United States. And some critics agree, they say the current crisis has a lot more to do with politics than protecting the American consumer.
HENRY GAO, INTL. TRADE LAW SPECIALIST: I think it's probably more for political reasons rather than a real care for consumer safety or consumer welfare. Because if you look at the total number of exports, from all countries to the United States, actually, China is not the only country that's been identified with unsafe products.
VAUSE: From China to Panama, families share a common bond of tragedy and loss. Loved ones killed instead of healed by tainted medicine. When we return, we'll show you what happened in both countries.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm actually involved in importing goods from China, so as long as you have a very careful monitoring system in place, then it's fine.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Stuff comes from China, I eat it. The price is good I'll check it. Make sure I don't get sick.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'll look at the labels, see where it's made from. And usually if say, have two bottles of water, and made from China. One's made in, I don't know, France or USA, or somewhere, I'd would prefer to use it other than China's.
ANNOUNCER: Tainted seafood, toothpaste and juice. Killer pet food contaminated with the chemical melamine. Defective tires with threads that could separate and blow out. Children's toys painted with lead. All potentially dangerous products exported from China. And in China itself, hazardous products meant for the most vulnerable of consumers, the young and the sick. Infant formula that killed instead of nourished. Antibiotics that harmed instead of healed.
Once again, here's John Vause in Beijing.
VAUSE: Away from the gleaming skyscrapers of Beijing, and this say typical neighborhood. And the people who live here are often the ones who are most affected by tainted food and bad medicine.
And sometimes, the best way to understand what's at stake here is through one single story, because the numbers are so staggering, they can often hide the human face. In this case, faces which are filled with suffering.
I went to the city of Harbin, and there I met two grief-stricken parents mourning the loss of their young daughter.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE (voice over): They thought they were doing the right thing. They thought the Chinese-made antibiotic prescribed by their doctor would help their little girl's tonsil infection, but the Lius were wrong, dead wrong.
GAO PING, LUI SICHEN'S MOTHER (through translator): Twenty minutes after using the antibiotic, she started to shiver and her temperature went up. I felt my daughter shivering very fiercely. Her lips turned purple and her face changed color and she told me a lot of times she felt cold.
VAUSE: A their six-year-old Lui Sichen, their only child, fell into a coma her parents rushed her to this hospital. Three days later she was dead and the last words she ever said --
GAO PING (through translator): "Mama, it really hurts."
VAUSE: That was a year ago this month, and every day since her parents have lived with the guilt that the medicine they gave her, killed her.
GAO PING (through translator): If I hadn't tried to cure my daughter, hadn't given her that medicine, she would have got better by herself. She wouldn't have died.
VAUSE: But it wasn't her fault. Government investigators found the state-controlled manufacturer, Shanghai World Best Pharmaceutical, had cut corners, reducing the time and lowering the temperature at which the drug was sterilized, allowing it to become contaminated. The Luis cling to the bottle, still half filled with the drug that killed her daughter.
GAO PING (through translator): Every time I look at that medicine I'm filled with hate.
VAUSE (on camera): The government investigation found the Lui Sichen was among 11 people who died after taking the tainted medication. Even so, the drug maker is still in business today, no longer allowed to produce antibiotics, and it was fined, but no criminal charges have ever been laid. (Voice over): According to the company's website, it still makes vitamin C and the company says those ingredients are also exported to, quote, "foreign countries including the United States."
This is the pile of legal documents the Lius have filed during a year-long search for justice. Earlier this year the drug maker gave them about $2,700 U.S. compensation, much less, they say, than their expenses so far, and twice the courts have turned down their appeals.
GAO PING (through translator): There is no happiness no, no hope, no future for this family. We have no meaning in our lives.
VAUSE: When the pain gets too much, the Lius go to the river their daughter loved, and they throw petals on the water. They believe that will help Sichen find her way to heaven. Their little girl is gone, and all that's left now is agony, despair, and memories.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE (on camera): An ocean away from Harbin, and another family is grieving another devastating loss and also asking why. Last year, mislabeled chemical exports from China found their way into cough syrup in Panama. Investigators there say those chemicals killed dozens of people. CNN's Harris Whitbeck has their story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS WHITBECK, CNN CORRESPONDENT, It's gotten easier now, but for months, Migdalia Gonzalez could barely bring herself to enter the small bedroom her 91-year-old father occupied not so long ago.
Jose Mercedes (ph) left that bedroom for the last time in October of last year, complaining of pain in his kidneys and difficulty urinating. Migdalia took him to a nearby hospital where he died a week later. His doctor was puzzled.
MIGDALIA GONZALEZ, VICTIM'S DAUGHTER: The doctor told me that he doesn't know what was happening in Panama. He says, I have no idea, how many patients like my father he has attended. He has to do some kind of investigation because he couldn't understand what was happening.
WHITBECK: What was happening was a rash of deaths due to sudden kidney failure. More than 400 of them in only a weeks. Of the dead, at least 119 had taken a sugarless cough syrup manufactured by Panama's Social Security Administration.
Migdalia had given her father the cough syrup after he complained of a cold.
GONZELEZ: When I gave him the medicine, he told me like something was burning him.
WHITBECK: The cough syrup was supposed to be sweetened with glycerin imported from China. But Panamanian prosecutors later discovered the glycerin was in fact a highly toxic compound called diethiline glycol.
DIMAS GUEVARA, SPECIAL PROSECUTOR (through translator): Panama, through its Social Security Administration ordered and paid for raw material for medicine, and Panama received a product that is not meant to be in any medicine at all.
WHITBECK: The prosecutor said two Chinese companies shipped the toxin. He says it's still not clear if they, a Spanish distributor, or a Panamanian importer mislabeled the barrels containing the toxin.
But the Chinese authorities have closed factory that made the diethiline glycol responsible for the deaths.
(On camera): Officials in Panama now say in the future, they will have to be more careful with goods shipped from China, or from any other country they feels requires extra scrutiny.
CAMILO ALLEYNE, PANAMANIAN MINISTER OF HEALTH: Basically, if we encounter more problems, we look more strictly where we can, discriminating between countries.
WHITBECK: Too late for Migdalia Gonzelez's father and for hundreds of more Panamanians who thought cough syrup would cure their colds. Harris Whitbeck, CNN, Panama City, Panama.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It would scare me, yeah. I'd prefer to buy from somewhere else.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Be aware as much as you can. But you can't know where all the ingredients from all the food comes from.
ANNOUNCER: China, manufacturer to the world. Producing goods consumed in huge quantities in Europe and the United States. But in the U.S. alone, the number of Chinese-made products taken off the shelves has doubled over the past five years. So what responsibility do importing countries have in protecting their citizens? Here's John Vause.
VAUSE: Welcome back. This is the port of Tiangin (ph). It is just south of Beijing. Have a look at this. There's seven lanes of trucks, all loaded up with goods, waiting for clearance to get onto the wharf just over here. This is the fourth biggest port in China.
Apparently slow day today, we're told. Only three container ships being loaded up. And we've talked about the problems with Chinese-made goods. But to state the obvious, all of these exports here end up being an import somewhere else. And quite often, that's the United States and Europe.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAEL DOYLE, UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA: China has a system for growing and processing foods that's much different than what we have here in the U.S. Most of its farmers are very small farmers. They have one acre or less of land. They intensively use pesticides, antibiotics, and use practices such as using chicken manure to feed shrimp and seafood that are totally different than what we're accustomed to in the U.S.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Given these different standards, then monitoring in the U.S. Must be very strict, right? Well, not as strict as might think. Here's Jill Dougherty.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): In March of this year, thousands of panicked pet owners in the U.S. began seeing their animals sickened and some died after eating pet food contaminated with the toxic industrial chemical melamine, imported from China. The U.S. government agency responsible for food safety, the Food and Drug Administration, had never inspected for melamine.
When the crisis erupted, they started. This video of those inspections was shot by the FDA. The agency would not allow CNN to shoot its own video. According to U.S. congressional investigators, the FDA inspects an average of less than 1 percent of all imported foods. Yet, food imports from China, including agricultural and seafood products have increased almost 350 percent in the past 10 years, according to the Congressional Research Service.
CAROLINE SMITH DEWAAL, CNTR. FOR SCIENCE IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST: It's almost like the wild, wild West. The food exporters in China can get away with almost anything, and still get products into the U.S. because they're so rarely inspected.
DOUGHERTY: A key problem, according to critics like DeWaal, the number of food inspectors. The FDA says there are 1300 of them; 625 specializing in food. But they must keep up with a blizzard of food imports. In fiscal year 2006, the FDA received more than 10 million imported food shipments; 625 food inspectors for 10 million shipments.
Yet, inspectors are not onsite at all of them. What's more, foreign exporters are allowed to decide which port of entry to use. Some go port shopping, looking for ports where there are no inspectors, no laboratories.
Another problem, the FDA is not mandated to have inspectors onsite in the country where the food originates. The FDA says it wants that right.
ROBERT BRACKETT, U.S. FOOD & DRUG ADMIN.: When we go to the importing or exporting country to actually communicate to them what our expectations are on building safety into the product and providing assurances that those have been done in that way. That is the direction we're heading now.
DOUGHERTY: With scandals over pet food, tainted fish and other products, the U.S. Congress, last week, held import safety hearings. And President Bush created a Cabinet-level panel that has 60 days to recommend how to guarantee the safety of imported food and other products.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This is a serious issue. Food safety and consumer safety is a serious issue.
DOUGHERTY (on camera): Critics and the FDA say U.S. food safety laws are out of date, not designed to deal with modern challenges like imports and bioterrorism. Food safety, they say, is now an issue of national security. Jill Dougherty, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: So how are Chinese-made goods facing up to scrutiny on the other side of the pond? Diana Magnay has the European perspective from Berlin.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DIANA MAGNAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): This is the sort of visit that many retailers dread, a routine, but unannounced inspection of their premises. Mattias Bilz is here to make sure that toys in this shop meet European safety standards.
And this one doesn't. The cord is too long. A real concern for authorities here after two babies strangled themselves with key chains this year in the Brandenburg area.
MATTIAS BILZ, HEALTH AND SAFETY OFFICER (through translator): Once we've establish the results of the test, we'll inform the responsible authority where the producer is based, then they'll take the necessary steps against the producer.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Looks very nice, looks very sweet.
MAGNAY: These toys mostly from China, were all selling well in Germany before they were picked up in a control inspection and pulled from the market.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And it won't be able to come up again because all of the weight of the baby, or the little child is under the water.
MAGNAY: Most carry the "CE" sign, but authorities say it's easily faked and provides no guarantee for consumers.
ROBERT RATH, HEALTH & SAFETY OFFICIAL: To me it just means quantity. It's a sign of declaration of confirmation of technical standards. The producer declares something, no one ever -- no third party ever has checked it.
MAGNAY: Food imports operate under a similar system. Across the European Union, responsibility lies with importers to declare that what they're bringing in is safe. The laboratories at border points and in each EU member state also carry out random tests on sample food items. Foods which don't make the grade are put on an EU-wide rapid alert system and are pulled from the market. Critics say a lot of products slip through the net. PATRICK VON BRAUNMEUL, FED. OF GERMAN CONSUMER ORG.: Initial authorities who are responsible to control the borders, and I think they have a very difficult task. And they will probably only find a fraction of the dangerous goods being imported.
MAGNAY: Container ships stream into European ports each day, carrying the fruits of China's booming economy. Border controls and market checks can only do so much to filter out what's safe from what's not.
(On camera): It's at discount stores and street markets, like this one, where you're most likely to find potentially dangerous goods. The advice from consumer watchdogs is not to think with your wallet. Cheapness can come with a price. Diana Magnay, CNN, Berlin.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: It's not easy being an economic superpower, and after all of those product safety scandals, China is now facing some enormous challenges.
And they'll have to meet those challenges in the glare of the world's spotlight, especially with the Olympics here next year. And consumers are facing their own challenges as well, to educate and protect themselves while Beijing tries to restore the world's confidence in that label "Made in China."
I'm John Vause, thanks for watching.
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