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OPCW Awarded Nobel Peace Prize; U.S. Government Shutdown Drags On; Massive Storm Threatens India; Indonesia Hoping To Attract Tourists Outside Bali; A Look At the World's Biggest Ship; Drunk-Dialing Congress
Aired October 11, 2013 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KRISTIE LU STOUT, HOST: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong. And welcome to News Stream where news and technology meet.
Now a choice that took much of the world by surprise, an international chemical weapons watchdog wins the Nobel Peace prize.
And we'll also hear from one of the year's contenders for the prize, Malala speaks to CNN.
And we climb on board the world's biggest ship.
Now it's an organization many people have probably never heard of, but it's mission is to ensure global security and to achieve a world free from chemical weapons. And if you didn't know what OPCW stood for before, you will now. And here's why.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
THORBJORN JAGLAND, CHAIRMAN, NORWEGIAN NOBEL COMMITTEE: Nobel committee has decided that the Nobel Peace Prize for 2013 is to be awarded to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, OPCW, for its extensive work for eliminating chemical weapons.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: Now OPCW inspectors are currently in Syria on a mission that UN chief Ban Ki-moon has described as unprecedented and dangerous. But the Nobel Prize committee says its decision is based on the organizations long-standing work.
Now Fred Pleitgen joins us now live from Berlin. And Fred, your thoughts on how winning the peace prize will affect the overall mission of the OPCW.
FRED PLEITGEN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's certainly going to bolster the mission, Kristie. And you're absolutely right. The Nobel Peace Prize committee said that they won this prize not for the fact that they're in Syria right now, not for the fact that they had that very important investigation at the end of August when of course you had that chemical weapons use on the outskirts of Damascus, but for their whole body of work. And that's something that's very important.
I've seen this organization work firsthand. And they have done a lot of very important things. And as you say, they're really one that was not very well known internationally.
But if you look at what's been going on in the realm of chemical weapons in the past couple of decades: the United States and Russia both giving up about 90 percent of their stockpiles of chemical weapons, those are destroyed. They're going to destroy the rest of them as well. That's all highly potent VX nerve agent, which is one of the most difficult gases to destroy at all.
You had Libya that signed on to the chemical weapons convention in 2005. And a lot of their stockpiles have been rendered unusable as well.
And then of course you have the Syria mission, which is going on right now. And the Syria mission was one that was of course very important at the time to determine whether or not chemical weapons were used there, which of course the OPCW found out that yes, indeed, they were.
But also, if you look at what's happened since then, the whole diplomatic process around the Syria conflict is one that is far different now than it was back then. It was the first time that Russia and the United States came together in the global arena and actually agreed on something. And you really see a whole lot more momentum going forward.
Nevertheless, of course, it is a very difficult mission. That's something that the director general of the OPCW said in his remarks today, and one where the mission can use all the bolstering it can get. And certainly the Nobel Peace Prize is something that is going to do just that.
Yet one final though, Kristie, the OPCW inspectors are already back out in the field after receiving that -- or after getting the news that their organization had gotten that peace prize. They're already back out in Syria doing their work.
LU STOUT: All right. And Fred, just a moment ago you mentioned how you've witnessed their work. You've been inside the OPCW live that tested evidence of Syria's chemical weapon use. Can you describe more how -- I mean, this is not a team of diplomats, this is a team of scientists. Can you tell us more about them and the kind of work you witnessed?
PLEITGEN; Yeah, it's very important that you say that, that these are not diplomats, these are scientists. But of course they're working in an arena where there typically is a lot of controversy.
If you look back, for instance, at what happened in Syria in late August. It took about five days for the weapons inspectors to get on the ground and to be able to take samples there. And you heard from governments from across the world saying it was way too much time, that Assad was bombing those areas, they were never going to find anything. This investigation can't be credible.
Those are all things that the weapons inspectors have to block out. And they certain did.
They went there. They go there on the ground. They take their samples. They talk to people. And then they report their findings. And it all is always completely scientifically credible. And that's something that's very important to them.
If you look at the procedures that they have -- for instance, when they take samples off the ground in places like Syria, also other places where chemical weapons might have been used, the chain of custody that they need to keep to have those samples actually be valid is one that's very elaborate, very difficult. And every single point in time they can determine where a sample was at any given time or in any given place. And so their work is absolutely transparent. And that's something that, of course, gives it that very important credibility.
When they were dealing in the realm of international politics where you have so much controversy -- and it is, of course, something that throughout the years have made them so successful. It's an organization that both the Russians and the U.S. trusted to oversee getting rid of their chemical weapons and its an organization that's found its place in the Syria conflict. And is able to at least try and come to terms with some of the issues there in that country.
Of course, chemical weapons is by far not the most important issue in the Syrian conflict. You have a big civil war going on there, but at least it's something where you see that there's progress. And that's important, of course, politically as well. And those scientists certainly have contributed to it.
LU STOUT: Yeah, their work is transparent. Their work is credible. But to what degree -- and I'm only asking this question, because of the prize that was announced today, does their work lead to peace? I mean, we know that the process is underway to get rid of those chemical weapons stockpiles in Syria, but will the war just rage on?
PLEITGEN: Well, most certainly the war will rage on probably for the next couple of years, if you listen to most experts. But at least some sort of momentum has been going on.
And I just want to get into some of the reasoning that the Nobel committee gave for giving the prize to the OPCW. They said of course they realize that all this was going to be controversial. But they also said that Alfred Nobel, who of course instituted the prize, said that one of the most important factors to him is the factor of disarmament. And that's certainly a field where the OPCW is very prominent and where their work has been very important. And the work of getting rid of a lot of the chemical weapons in this world is something that's actually moving forward.
So while all of this might not lead to peace, at least it takes an important deadly weapon out of the equation.
And if you talk to the experts of the OPCW, they will tell you that one of the reasons why chemical weapons are also being shunned by countries like the United States and Russia is that they're basically obsolete on the battlefield. What they do, however, is they do terrorize civilian populations.
And that's apparently exactly what happened in Syria. If you talk to eyewitnesses who were on the ground there, they said the chemical weapons killed mostly civilians. And certainly taking that weapon out of the equation while it would not lead to peace, at least is something that would possibly do a lot for humanity, at least by the definition of the Nobel committee, Kristie.
LU STOUT: Indeed. Fred Pleitgen, always appreciate your insight there. Thank you.
Now earlier the Chairman of the Norwegian Nobel committee spoke to CNN. Thorbjorn Jagland told us more about why the OPCW selected as this year's Nobel Peace Prize recipient.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAGLAND: What is happening now show how the important global conventions and global institutions are in facilitating a platform for finding solutions to crises. For instance, now this convention and this organization placed an important jolt for finding a solution to the crisis in Syria, which may open also for solving also other problems in the whole region.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: Now, the OPCW isn't the first organization to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. And for more, let's go to Jonathan Mann at CNN Center.
And Jonathan, I was wondering if you could just elaborate more onto what Mr. Jagland was saying why the Nobel Peace Prize committee decided to give the award to the OPCW.
JONATHAN MANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Thorbjorn Jagland had exactly the point to make and so did Fred Pleitgen. The truth is all this begins with a will, Alfred Nobel's will. And it doesn't really go into great detail, but it speaks explicitly about giving the prize to individuals who organizations that reduce or eliminate standing armies. He wanted to eliminate armies, weapons. He wanted to reduce the risk of war.
And so this speaks very plainly to Alfred Nobel's will, his intention, the mandate of the Nobel Prize much more than in previous years. Some feminists who have won the award, human rights activists who won the war. This is exactly what Alfred Nobel really had in mind .
So to that extent they are staying really within the vision of what the prize is supposed to be about, supporting an international effort to limit or end one of the most atrocious forms of warfare that mankind has every created.
LU STOUT: And Jon, how is the OPCW reacting to the prize and what impact will it have on their work?
MANN: Once again, Fred had it exactly right, they are not an organization that's accustomed to being in the public eye. And in fact when the Nobel committee tried to award the prize to them, when it announced it was awarding the prize to them, it couldn't actually reach anyone from the organization on the phone. It had to send out a Twitter message, a tweet saying please answer the phone, the Nobel committee is trying to reach you. That's how unaccustomed they are to the spotlight.
When we saw the director speaking live from The Hague a short time ago, it was the first time I'd ever seen the man. Most people around the world had never heard his name before. And he was grateful. He said the work is difficult. It is daunting, but the Nobel Prize will help. And that's really the truth.
The Nobel Peace Prize has a bigger effect some years than it does others, but for at least a short time it shines a spotlight, it begins a conversations, it raises a profile. And for the important work of eliminating chemical weapons from the world, work that is really, really just getting underway in Syria, a little bit of a helping hand, it can only be of valuable assistance.
LU STOUT: Yeah, with the OPCW winning the Nobel Peace Prize, it did indeed start a conversation in water coolers, social media sites all over the world that are a lot of mixed opinions about the group winning the peace prize. Do you think it was a risky award to give this award to the OPCW, especially just as it begins its dangerous work inside Syria?
MANN: I think you have a real point there. I mean, the name of the organization itself, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. It's not an organization that's really prohibited the use of chemical weapons. Syria used them, which is why we're even having this conversation, probably. But the organization has limits. It has limits set down in the convention that created it, limits that will seem probably sad, tragic, maybe even laughable to the victims of chemical weapons in Syria.
The organization for the prohibition of chemical weapons didn't prohibit, it didn't stand in the way of those terrible crimes against innocent men, women and children.
So it will be controversial, but like many international organizations, like the International Atomic Energy Agency, which won a few years back, it is the creation of international community. It has embodied it an all of the limitations and flaws of any product of international cooperation. So there will be criticism.
The work is terribly important, the success is being measured every day by the number of weapons that are destroyed.
But again, chemical weapons were used in Syria this year. They may well be used again before the war there is over. And we can't forget that even on a day like today when their good work deserves and gets a lot of recognition.
LU STOUT: Valuable analysis there. Jonathan Mann, thank you.
Now the OPCW was announced as the winner of the prize just over three hours ago, but as you heard just then, they apparently get official notification right away. Some 45 minutes after the announcement the Nobel committee sent this tweet to the OPCW saying we are trying to get through to your office.
And the OPCW later tweeted that they were too busy to take calls from the media. Probably not a surpass given the days' events.
Now you are watching News Stream. And still to come this hour, we will have the latest from Washington on the U.S. government shutdown. And the debt ceiling deadline. After more talks, is a compromise on the horizon?
And the mother of American Kenneth Bae arrives in North Korea. We'll tell you what she is saying about the condition of her imprisoned son.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LU STOUT: Now on day 11 of the partial U.S. government shutdown, political leaders are talking and perhaps inching toward compromise. Now some Republicans are considering a temporary plan to raise the debt ceiling. But there's still no concrete deal. And the clock is ticking.
In less than a week, the U.S. risks defaulting on its debts. And there is no agreement on President Barack Obama's demand to reopen the government.
Now let's go to Brianna Keilar. She joins us live from Washington -- Brianna.
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Kristie. Good morning to you.
It does appear that on the most pressing issue, which is making sure the U.S. doesn't default, there is some progress there on the debt ceiling, the short-term extension. But when will the U.S. government reopen? The answer to that question is still murky as conversations continue today on the staff level.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KEILAR (voice-over): An encouraging sign after House Republicans met with President Obama at the White House.
REP. JEB HENSARLING (R), TEXAS: I would characterize this as probably the most constructive.
KEILAR: And pledge to keep the talks going.
REP. ERIC CANTOR (R), VIRGINIA: We will have more discussion. We will come back to have more discussion.
KEILAR: On the table, a compromise that would increase the debt ceiling for six weeks. The White House said the president looks forward to making continued progress with members on both sides of the aisle.
But the government shutdown is still up in the air. President Obama and congressional Democrats insist the government reopen as part of a deal. Republicans want concessions from the president to make that happen.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Republicans were pretty clear earlier today they want to negotiate before you reopen the government. Is that ...
SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV), MAJORITY LEADER: Not going to happen.
KEILAR: Even as they were meeting, more signs the Republican strategy is hurting them in the public's eye. In a new NBC/"Wall Street Journal" poll, 53 percent of Americans now blame Republicans for the shutdown, 31 percent blaming the president.
Only 24 percent have a favorable opinion of Republicans, 21 percent have a favorable view of the Tea Party -- both numbers at an all-time low.
And governors in states where national park closures are hurting tourism are starting to get fed up.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Come on down to southern Utah. The parks are open.
KEILAR: Utah brokered a deal with the Department of the Interior to fully fund park service personnel and reopen its parks. Colorado, Arizona, and South Dakota may follow suit.
On Wall Street -- the Dow soared to its biggest one-day gain for the year, hungry for good news. Be just one week before the U.S. is set to hit the debt ceiling.
A six-week debt ceiling deal would take us to November 22nd just as holiday shopping season gets under way.
JAY CARNEY, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: The president said the other day that if they were to send them a clean debt ceiling extension, no partisan strings attached, he would sign it.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KEILAR: Now, a keen moment in this private meeting between the president and House Republicans, multiple sources in the room say it was an exchange between Paul Ryan, the former Republican Vice Presidential nominee and the president, that after going back and forth for about an hour on the issue of the shutdown where they don't have agreement, Kristie, that Ryan said to the president, imploring him to deal with Republicans to find a way to work together. He said Republicans are not going away.
And it was at that point where things sort of pivoted. President Obama said, OK, let's take a break. You guys go back to the drawing board, basically, and find out what you can do to reopen the government, what concessions you need to make that happen.
So even though there is a disagreement, I think there is this sense that the two sides are talking and there's some openness at least to ideas here, Kristie.
LU STOUT: Yeah, there is a sense that there is at least some sort of progress being made.
Let's talk more about the debt ceiling debate. We have both sides talking about a short-term debt limit fix, but what about the Tea Party? What do they want?
KEILAR: Well, the Tea Party still has its desires, which are Obamacare to be changed. Of course, the White House is not going to agree to that. That is President Obama's baby. That is his signature health care reform program, a long, hard fought battle that went all the way to the Supreme Court. He's not going to give on that.
They certainly would like to deal with some budgetary issues. Generally speaking, they don't like the size of government. They'd like to see some spending cuts.
But this is sort of an indication here in recent days that at least Republican leadership is moving away from some of their demands, talking about the budgetary issues. But we're hearing from some Republicans that the Obamacare issue is entirely off the table at this point.
LU STOUT: Yeah, interesting to see the shift away from Obamacare there.
Brianna Keilar joining us live from Washington, thank you.
Now the mother of jailed American Kenneth Bae has been granted rare access to her son in North Korea. Now Myunghee Bae told reporters that he is doing OK. And David McKenzie has more from Beijing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: He's the longest serving U.S. prisoner in North Korea. And only now is Kenneth Bae getting a visit from a close family member. His mother is in Pyongyang. She managed to meet him in hospital. And had this to say about his condition.
HYUNGHEE BAE, KENNETH BAE'S MOTHER (through translator): It seems his condition is OK. It's not like he's well, but I was told he got much better.
MCKENZIE: The family has been worried for months about Bae's health state. They say he's had multiple health problems since being arrested in November for allegedly plotting to overthrow the North Korean dictatorship. He was sentenced to 15 years of hard labor. And then moved to a hospital because of those health issues.
The family and U.S. officials have asked repeatedly for Bae to be released on humanitarian grounds.
Earlier, the U.S. special envoy to North Korea was turned away while trying to get Bae. Then, Dennis Rodman, the former basketball bad boy couldn't get him out and said it wasn't his job.
There's been a marked easing of tension between North Korea and the U.S. in recent months. And the family I'm sure will hope that this visit will be the first step towards Kenneth Bae's release.
David McKenzie, CNN, Beijing.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LU STOUT: Uncertainty over the U.S. economy has left emerging market economies particularly vulnerable. And we look at how local businesses in Indonesia are being affected.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LU STOUT: It's Friday night here in Hong Kong. You're back watching News Stream.
Now concerns that the U.S. Federal Reserve might soon start to taper monetary stimulus has been unsettling global markets. Now currencies in emerging markets like Indonesia's Rupiah have been hit hard.
Now Pauline Chiou has more on how Indonesian businesses are dealing with a weakened currency.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAULINE CHIOU, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This small business south of Jakarta makes fermented soy beans cakes, or tempeh, a staple in Indonesian cooking. The owner, Rohmat, buys imported soy beans. His costs are spiking, because the Indonesian Rupiah has weakened dramatically. It has lost more than 19 percent against the dollar so far this year.
The Rupiah was hit harder in the summer when the fed indicated it might taper stimulus.
ROHMAT, FERMENTED SOYBEAN PRODUCER (through translator): I don't really understand the issue with the U.S. dollar. What kind of money is it? I've never held a dollar in my hand. I don't know much about the dollar exchange rate, but it seems a dollar is money that some people play with.
CHIOU: While central banks may be accused of unleashing too much cheap money, tightening is on the horizon. And foreign investors are pulling their money out of emerging markets. This has left countries like Indonesia exposed with a huge current account deficit and suddenly less foreign reserves to fund it.
Adding to the deficit are the fuel and electricity subsidies that eat up 20 percent of the country's budget. Inflation is also high at 8.4 percent.
The central bank has raised rates three times in three months to tamp down inflation and prop up the Rupiah. But the measures haven't been effective. The Rupiah recently hit a 4.5 year low.
Shoe retailer Everbest imports most of its high end shoes and has decided not to raise prices even though the weak Rupiah makes the shoe imports more expensive.
GEORGE VALENZUELA, EVERBEST SHOES: Those strategies that we're trying to do. One is to source locally, the other is to source to other countries which has the same issues as Indonesia.
Let's say, for example, India. We're trying to actually try to find some factories in India, because as we found out, the rupee and the Rupiah more or less has the same issues against the U.S. dollar.
CHIOU: Ever since the fed decided not to taper in September, the Rupiah has gained slightly against the U.S. dollar. The government says the economy is not at a crisis level. And it is continuing to fine tune its policies to fight both inflation and Asia's most volatile currency.
Pauline Chiou, CNN, Hong Kong.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LU STOUT: Now, despite the expectations of quite a few people, Malala Yousafzai did not win the Nobel Peace Prize, but her mission, of course, continues. Coming up next on News Stream, we will have more on the Pakistani teen who is inspiring so many people around the world.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LU STOUT: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong. You're watching News Stream. And these are your world headlines.
Now Nobel prize committee says it wanted to send a message to the world that chemical weapons will not be tolerated. Now citing the long- standing work of the OPCW, the Nobel committee awarded the peace prize to the weapons watch dog earlier today. Now inspectors for the group are currently in war torn Syria. They are overseeing the destruction of chemical weapons there.
Now Libya's prime minister is calling for calm after he was kidnapped at gunpoint and then released a few hours later. Now a militia calling itself the Operations Room of Libya's Revolutionaries snatched Ali Zeidan from a hotel in Tripoli early on Thursday. Now it's said that he had been arrested to face corruption charges, but the government says there aren't any charges.
Now activist group Human Rights Watch says rebel groups in Syria have committed what may be crimes against humanity. In a report released a few hours ago it says rebels killed at least 190 civilians after an offensive in August. Human Rights Watch says that scores of the victims appeared to be executed.
Now many people were hoping that the Nobel Peace Prize would go to this young woman, Malala Yousafzai.
Now the Pakistani activist did not win, but she did pick up another international honor earlier this week. On Thursday, she was awarded the European Union's top human rights prize. Now Malala is an outspoken advocate for education in her home country and gained global attention after a brutal attack by the Taliban last year.
Now Saima Mohsin takes a look at how Pakistan is responding to this homegrown heroine.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SAIMA MOHSIN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Malala is known as the girl shot by the Taliban, but it's not necessarily the shooting that the teenager's emotive words and courageous stance that has wooed the world.
MALALA YOUSAFZAI, EDUCATION ACTIVIST: They thought that the bullet would silence us, but they failed. And out of that silence came thousands of voices.
MOHSIN: In October 2012, Malala was on her way to school when two gunmen stopped a school bus and asked for her by name then shot her. Her school friends were also injured in the shooting.
Malala was rushed to hospital and eventually flown to Britain where she was treated, made a miraculous recovery and now goes to school there.
This young girl from a remote town in Northwest Pakistan has taken the world by storm, speaking at the UN.
YOUSAFZAI: Now it's time to speak up. So today, we call upon the world leaders to change their strategic policies (inaudible) peace and prosperity.
MOHSIN: Revered and respected by world leaders...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Malala's story is also my story.
MOHSIN: And even appearing on the popular Daily Show with Jon Stewart in the United States.
JON STEWART, DAILY SHOW: Please welcome to the program, Malala Yousafzai.
MOHSIN: While Malala's message rings loud and clear around the globe.
YOUSAFZAI: One child, one teacher, one book, and one pen can change the world. Education is the only solution.
MOHSIN: The irony is that that message isn't translating into action in her own homeland.
MOSHARRAF ZAIDI-ALIF AILAAN, EDUCATION CAMPAIGN: Since the very inception of Pakistan, education has not been a political priority for any government, military or civilian. And so today, in a country of roughly 200 million people, 25 million children are out of school. And of those 25 million children, more than 15 million are girls.
MOHSIN: 62 percent of girls aged between seven and 15 in Pakistan have never spent time in a classroom. And only half of those that do actually make it to the end of primary school.
AILAAN: Just a couple of weeks ago at the UN general assembly, the prime minister -- he was the only prime minister of any country to chair a special session on education in Pakistan. Malala Yousafzai was in that meeting. I happened to be in that meeting as well. And the mood and the spirit in that room was really infectious. It was very positive. And it seems like there really is a strong commitment across government to address these issues.
But so far these are promises.
MOHSIN: Malala says she wants to be a politician. And despite repeated threats by the Taliban to attack her again, she's adamant she will return home. Perhaps her greatest challenge is to ensure her message is acted on in Pakistan.
Saima Mohsin, CNN, Islamabad.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LU STOUT: Extraordinary young woman.
And as we said, Malala was considered a frontrunner for the Nobel Peace Prize. But even she is not so sure that she deserves it just yet.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
YOUSAFZAI: When I think of myself, I have a lot to do. So I think that it's really an early age. And I'll feel cowed when I would work for education, when I would have done something, when I would be feeling confident to people, yes, I have built that school, I have done that teacher's training. I have sent that much children to school. When I will be feeling proud, then if I get the Nobel Peace Prize I will be saying, yeah, I deserve it somehow.
Serious. I need to work a lot. I need to work a lot. And I must work...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: She's so eloquent. And she is so humble.
That's Malala Yousafzai speaking to you.
Our chief international correspondent Christiane Amanpour earlier.
And Christiane joins us now live from CNN New York. And Christiane, you interviewed her in front of a live studio audience. What was that experience like? And what did she share with you?
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think what she said was amazing. And of course she didn't bring up the Nobel, I did. And this was hours before it was announced.
But I have to say you just heard that report from Pakistan by our Saima Mohsin. And you heard the gentleman speak about the critical issue, and that is that 25 million Pakistani children are not in school, 15 million of those are girls. And those are the people who Malala is fighting for, boys' and girls' right to get education.
And, yes, she didn't get the prize right now, but that message is one that's critical. And many people have tried to push that message. And until there is education, Malala knows, as everybody who works in this field knows, that there won't be prosperity, there won't be peace, and there certainly won't be a healthy society.
So it is a universal message. And Pakistan was meant to be, you know, complying with the millennium goals that every child will be in school by 2015. It doesn't look like they're going to meet that. And on and on go these cycles of violence.
So here she is put herself out and on the line literally, has sacrificed her life just about.
She talked to us about how miraculous it was that she had survived. She spoke to me about, you know, how the Pakistani surgeons had saved, how then a British doctor had further made sure that aftercare was correct and they flew her to Birmingham.
And now she says it's a miracle what's happened to her and that she survived. And even though the Taliban has threatened again to kill her, she says that she won't be silenced and that, you know, it is better to be able to speak up than not to.
And you know what she said when I asked her father why have you made her so public? And they said to me, you know, we hope that our government, our military, our society would have stepped in to do something about this and they didn't and we faced being shut down. We faced children not being able to go to school, girls being discriminated against and so that's why Malala spoke out and she'll continue to do so at great risk to her life.
LU STOUT: Yeah, her bravery is so amazing. And of course that support that she has been receiving from her father as well.
Now, Christiane, Malala also told you that she would like to become Pakistan's prime minister. Why is that?
AMANPOUR: Well, that's right. I don't know whether you have a little bit of the interview where she said that. If you do, we can play it. But here's what she said.
You know before what happened to her, she had thought maybe she would want to be a doctor. Many girls I've interviewed in that region say they would like to be a teacher or a doctor. They feel that that's the highest possible position they can acquire if they're lucky enough to even get that far. She never thought that anything else was open to her.
But again she says that you know because I know see that it takes individuals to do this, it's not just the government, I want to help to be able to do this. And if I was in government, if I did lead a government, then I would make sure that, you know, budget was allocated for education. And she was just sort of pursuing what her dream is. And that's why she wants to be prime minister.
And her hero was the late Benazir Bhutto, Pakistan's only female prime minister.
LU STOUT: Now her super stretch goal is to become prime minister. Unfortunately we don't have a clip of that, but we'll remind all our viewers to watch her interview when it airs so they can hear that.
But in the near-term, what is next for Malala? I mean, she's a survivor. She is an author. She is a campaigner known the world over. She started her own foundation. Near-term, what's next?
AMANPOUR: Well, near-term is the promotion of this book "I Am Malala." And the book's title is an explanation of who she is, because the prophetic and sinister words she heard just before she was shot was, "who is Malala," when this Taliban gunman came to the bus.
And, you know, she describes how her fellow classmates were just stricken, and you know people looked over to her and then the gunman shot her.
So who is Malala? She answers in this book, I am Malala. And there are many, many countries that she's going to be traveling to, to promote it, as you can imagine with a new book.
So that's what she's going to be doing. But through her foundation she's going to be continuing her campaign and speaking out.
But also she's 16. She's going to school. She needs to get back into school. And she's doing that for the moment in Birmingham, England.
LU STOUT: Really, really looking forward to watching your interview with her.
Christiane Amanpour joining us live, thank you.
And you can hear from Malala in her own words when she speaks with Christiane Amanpour about her story, her future, her dreams. It's a CNN special. It's called the bravest girl in the world. And you can see it on Monday, 6:00 p.m. in Hong Kong.
Now a representative from the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons will likely accept the Nobel Peace Prize in person when the awards ceremony takes place. But a past winner wasn't able to do that, resulting in this empty chair.
Now the Chinese activist Liu Xiaobo won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2010, but he was serving an 11 year prison sentence after he repeatedly called for human rights and democracy in China.
At the time, China said the Norwegian Nobel committees decision to award the prize to Liu was blasphemy against the peace prize that could harm relations between China and Norway. And Liu Xiaobo is still serving his prison sentence.
Now you're watching News Stream. And straight ahead, Anna Coren takes us on vacation at some of Indonesia's newest holiday hotspots, destinations that are hoping to rival the popularity of Bali.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LU STOUT: Now far from the discussion and debate of this week's APEC gathering, all this week CNN's On the Road series is bringing you greater insight into the customs and culture of Indonesia from homegrown architecture to high flying photography, we explore the places, the people and the passions unique to this diverse southeast Asian nation. And today, Anna Coren goes off the beaten path to show us Indonesia's lesser known tourist destinations.
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ANNA COREN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: As the sun drops towards the horizon across the Indonesian archipelago, golden light shimmers across the bay in the sleepy seaside town of Laboan Bajo (ph). Enjoying the post card view, a group of travelers taking in the sights and sounds at one of only a handful of bars.
Tourism is relatively new to this part of Indonesia. It's mostly divers and backpackers that make the journey to these remote islands.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think this is a special place here, because it's not so much tourism like you see -- when you stay on Bali.
COREN: But that could very well change. Due to the overcrowding and congestion of Bali, the government is looking to promote other destinations. And this piece of paradise happens to be firmly in its sites.
MARI PANGESTU, INDONESIAN TOURISM MINISTER: But we need to diversify, because after all Indonesia has 17,000 islands. And Bali is only one of them. So we want to diversify. And Laboan Bajo (ph) is one of them.
COREN: The aquamarine water, white sandy beaches and abundance of marine life are an enormous draw card. But it's the prehistoric creatures living in this national park a boat ride away that are the biggest attractions.
The komodo dragon, the largest lizard in the world, can only be found in the wild on four islands here in Indonesia.
He is enormous.
They can grow up to three meters long, weigh in excess of 90 kilograms. And while they may look slow and docile, these carnivores have been known to attack humans.
RINUS DIRGO, RANGER: Already, four people have got bitten this year. Yeah, three rangers and one local people in the village.
COREN: There are approximately 5,000 of these reptiles right at home in this harsh rugged environment that's now a world heritage site.
While the Indonesian government's new Bali clearly isn't a tropical paradise, it's arid beauty is just as breathtaking. Apart from the komodo dragons and diverse marine life, what makes this place so special is that it's relatively untouched. And there aren't hoards of tourists.
Visitor numbers are roughly at 40,000 a year, a drop in the ocean compared to the 3 million tourists that travel to Bali annually. And while the local community wants the industry to grow, providing jobs and a better standard of living, everyone is adamant it can't be of expense of this pristine environment.
LEKSI PELUNG, TOUR GUIDE: So when we change to be have a lot of buildings, this is no good for tourism.
COREN: Italian brothers Fabio and Martin Nizzardo set up a restaurant three years ago in the main street. Since then, the roads have been paved and other foreign owned businesses have moved in.
They welcome growth, but are concerned it won't be done sustainable.
FABIO NIZZARDO, RESTAURANT OWNER: I want it to be (inaudible) for sure I hope it will become more bigger, because the place is really nice. I hope more people arrive, more people enjoy also this place, because it's really good.
By the way, I hope they use the mind for develop, this I hope. I hope the government does not make the same mistake they made in Bali.
COREN: The preservation of paradise, everyone here hopes the government is listening.
Anna Coren, CNN, Laboan Bajo (ph), Indonesia.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LU STOUT: Oh, beautiful corner of the world.
Now you're watching News Stream, and coming up next 20 stories high and built to carry 18,000 shipping containers, we get an inside look at this monster on the high seas. It is the world's biggest ship.
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LU STOUT: Welcome back.
Now from clothes, national parks, to furloughed workers, it's safe to say many U.S. citizens are pretty annoyed over the U.S. government shutdown. And some probably wish that they could give politicians a piece of their mind.
Well, as Jeanne Moos found out there's now a rather unusual way to do that with the assistance of a new website.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): If you're mad at Congress, you could hold a sign, maybe one saying, "Congress, beware, when we're screwed we multiply."
Or you could try this -- (On camera): Hello?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hi. Is this government shutdown making you want to drink?
MOOS (voice-over): It's a free service at the Web site drunkdialcongress.org.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Now, let me tell you, when I drink, I like to tell people what's on my mind.
MOOS: You enter your number at the Web site. In a couple of seconds, the recorded drunk dialer calls you back.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're going to forward you to a member of the House of Representatives.
MOOS: Your call is then forwarded to a randomly chosen member of the House, and you can give them a piece of your mind.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Good morning. Representative Sutherland's office.
MOOS (on camera): Hi. I'm wondering, I'm calling from CNN. Have you guys been getting a bunch of weird calls?
(Voice-over): The Florida Republican's office had no comment on drunkdialcongress. It was set up, they say, for fun by a digital tech company founded by a former Obama campaign staffer.
(On camera): And you're not going to make money off this, are you?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, we're actually going to lose money off of it.
MOOS (voice-over): On Thursday afternoon the Web site apparently needed a drink. For a while it stopped working, overwhelmed, just like Obamacare.
If House Speaker John Boehner was overwhelmed, he wasn't showing it. Listen to how he answered a hypothetical question containing an if.
REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R), HOUSE SPEAKER: If ands and buts were candy and nuts, every day would be Christmas.
MOOS (on camera): It turns out this is one of the speaker's favorite "deflect the question" rhymes.
(Voice-over): Here he is using it twice in different years.
BOEHNER: If ands and buts were candy and nuts -- if that were the case every day would be Christmas.
MOOS: The joys of watching Anthony Weiner argue the shutdown on FOX.
SEAN HANNITY, FOX NEWS' "SEAN HANNITY": I'm the host, you're the guest.
ANTHONY WEINER, FORMER NEW YORK CONGRESSMAN: I get a new question. What am I? A potted plant? Why do you always have patsies on? FOX apparently has much lower standards. I must have a job on FOX.
HANNITY: Ouch. Want me to talk about low standards? You really want to go there?
WEINER: I'll go wherever you want.
MOOS: And look how low Florida Democrat Alan Grayson went, citing an actual Public Policy Polling survey.
REP. ALAN GRAYSON (D), FLORIDA: What do you have a higher opinion of, Americans? Congress or toenail fungus? Congress, 41 percent, toenail fungus, 44 percent.
MOOS: Well, the two do have something in common.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It is difficult to treat.
MOOS: Jeanne Moos, CNN.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sure makes me want to drink.
MOOS: New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LU STOUT: Bad visual there.
Now as the U.S. deals with the shutdown, we know that India -- how is this for a segue. India is preparing for a massive storm.
Now Mari Ramos joins us now from the world weather center with more for that -- Mari.
MARI RAMOS, CNN WEATHER CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Kristie, just trying to get that visual out of my head. But OK.
Let's go ahead and talk about this storm right over here, because there's actually not -- there's three different storms right now in Asia that are potential hazards. Phailin is the one that -- Phailin actually the one you just mentioned right here off the coast of India. We'll talk about that in just a moment. We have of course Nari right here, Typhoon Nari making landfall in the Philippines soon. And Tropical Storm Wipha.
I want to go ahead and just mention Wipha very quickly, because many of you have been asking about this. It is a tropical storm, but I want to show you that track. The track is expected to take it north and then west and then eventually west-northwest and move away from land. So we're not expecting a direct impact to any major landmass right now farther to the west, so we can almost forget about this storm, at least for now.
Typhoon Nari near the Philippines, this is another big one. 185 kilometer per hour winds. The center of the storm is just offshore still, but it is expected to of course continue to track to the west, directly to the west, and make landfall in the Philippines overnight tonight. Very strong winds expected. And I think for Manila it's going to be touch and go.
So we're going to be far enough to the south that you will not get the typhoon storm force winds, but any wobble to the south from this storm you could potentially get some of those outer fringes, especially in some of those northern suburbs, very densely populated areas here across the southern part of Luzon.
The storm will weaken somewhat as it interacts with land. Coming back out into the South China Sea with winds close to 150 kilometers per hour. But that's really not going make a difference too much for you here in the Philippines.
Very heavy rain is expected with this storm. Additional heavy rainfall easily over 100 millimeters of rain or more just for Manila proper.
Other areas, especially in the mountains could see twice as much. So that's very significant indeed.
Phailin, this one is a huge storm, 250 kilometer per hour winds. Once it hits 260, it will tie the strongest storm -- as the strongest storm ever recorded in this part of the world.
Now it should weaken somewhat, a little bit anyway, by the time it makes landfall near the border of Odesha (ph) and Uttar Pradesh here in India. Cities like Bhubaneswar, Brahmapur, all of these very densely populated areas will be under the impact of this storm.
Kristie, as many as 12 million people just in that small area that will experience tropical storm force winds, 12 million people, that's as many people as Beijing, for example, just the city of Beijing proper.
Climatology wise, this is an area that does not get that many storms. And when you think about how deadly the storms are in this part of the world -- 26 of the 35 deadliest storms ever in the world have been in the Bay of Bengal. This area extremely vulnerable to flooding to mudslides densely populated. So let's just hope for the best. The storm moving closer and closer expected to make landfall by Saturday afternoon.
But the weather will start deteriorating even as we speak. Back to you.
LU STOUT: Yeah, that storm so, so massive. Very worry stuff indeed. Mari Ramos there, thank you.
Now this is almost half a kilometer long. It is the world's biggest ship and it's very impressive. This gigantic container ship, it is sailing the seas on its maiden voyage. And Andrew Stevens stepped on board from Hong Kong.
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ANDREW STEVENS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: From the world's biggest shipping container company comes the world's biggest ship. This is the maiden voyage of the Maersk Mc-Kinney Moller. It's a monster.
From where I'm standing here next to the bow to the propellers on the far end, it's 400 meters. And when this ship is fully laden, it's 20 stories high.
And Maersk is taking a big bet that big is indeed beautiful.
She's so big, she can't get through the Panama Canal and so deep that she can't get into most ports in the Americas.
But that's not her job. This vessel was built to carry 18,000 containers exclusively on the Europe-Asia route. And to do it much more cheaply than its rivals.
Apart from the overall size of this vessel, Maersk says this is the real gamechanger. This is one of two 43,000 horsepower engines which drive twin propellers. But they drive those propellers at a much slower rate, which means it cuts the fuel bill by about a third, and it also means that these engines pump out about half the level of emissions that normal engines do.
It means that she's slightly slower than her smaller rivals, but the payoff is worth it says Maersk.
Cheaper fuel costs, of course means cheaper freight. And Maersk says to actually ship one of these containers from Asia to Europe or Europe to Asia is about half as much as average.
Maersk has 20 on order, a near $2 billion bet on its future.
Right now, though, it's struggling to fill this mammoth as the sluggish global economy slows world trade. Without a pickup in trade, big profits may be elusive.
Not everything on this ship is big, though. If I want to steer the world's biggest vessel I've got a joystick to do that. And here it is.
Andrew Stevens, CNN, aboard the Maersk Mc-Kinney Moller, Hong Kong.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LU STOUT: That tiny little thing right there?
Now for an idea of just how large the ship is, I want to take you to Hong Kong's skyline. Now the tallest building in Hong Kong, it stands just under 500 meters tall. The second tallest building is IFC 2, which is about 416 meters tall. But if you stood the Maersk ship on its side at 400 meters tall it would be the third tallest structure in Hong Kong.
Now from a very big ship to a very small version of it, because Lego actually sells a model of the Maersk Triple E. Now 1,500 pieces, it's one of the biggest Lego models out there, but at just 65 centimeters long, this one might actually fit inside your home.
And that is News Stream, but the news continues at CNN. World Business Today is next.
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