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Britain at the polls; A Peek Inside Kaesong Industrial Park. Aired 11:00-12:00. ET

Aired May 07, 2015 - 11:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[08:17:52] KRISTIE LU STOUT, HOST: Live comments just there from the U.S. Secretary of State on Syria. Secretary Kerry saying, quote, we don't

consider Assad a legitimate leader.

And on the crisis in Yemen, the focus for that press conference, Secretary Kerry sad this is a time for effective diplomacy. A live press

conference there from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, comments there from the U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry as well as the Saudi foreign minister Adel al

Jubeir on the crisis in Yemen. Kerry says that the Saudis are calling for a full, five day humanitarian ceasefire and pause in the fighting in Yemen.

We also heard him make those calls for a peaceful way forward in Yemen. Secretary Kerry also called Iran a destabilizing presence in the

region.

Now the U.S. Secretary of State there in Saudi Arabia has also met with Yemen's President Hadi. On Twitter earlier today, he called those

separate talks constructive and we know that Yemen has issued that desperate plea for international ground forces. The government, in fact,

sent an official request to the United Nations on Wednesday.

Now CNN senior international correspondent Nick Paton Walsh is monitoring the Yemen crisis from Beirut. And he joins us now. And Nick,

we heard just then from the Saudis, from Secretary Kerry this call from Saudi Arabia for a full five day humanitarian ceasefire. Will it happen?

Can it happen?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, this is the key question. What we didn't really get an answer to there was the level of

communication either Saudi Arabia or the U.S. has had with the Houthis, the other party to this conflict here.

Now obviously the U.S. doesn't have an embassy in Sanaa any more. And of course their relation to the Houthis significantly damaged after the

damage done to that diplomatic compound there after they departed.

But we're seeing clear choreography here, almost an open invitation, frankly, for the Houthis to accept this five day ceasefire, which John

Kerry repeatedly said could be, quote, renewable. They don't know quite when it will start. It could be several days he pointed out until this --

between this moment and the time when the guns fall silent of course dependent entirely upon if that very chaotic battlefield is able to be

coherent enough in fact stopping the violence.

Remember, we're not just talking about two sides here. We have militants loyal to a former president fighting as well, President Saleh.

It's a very mixed picture. Street battles as well.

So a lot could potentially unseat -- and when you're dealing, too, with the major goal of this ceasefire, which is a full five day pause in

fighting into which humanitarian aid can flood into the country, well a little bit of violence is enough, frankly, to stop that all in its tracks.

So, a very complex task ahead. And then of course the ultimate goal ten days from now it seems are the Saudi-led conference on the 17th of May

to which all parties are invited.

And so we are not really clear at this stage what the Houthi response to this move is. It is very clear that the U.S. wants to be seen to be

very close in presenting this diplomatic initiative next to Saudis here and that it's pretty much laying potentially the blame at the feet of the

Houthis if they choose not to accept it. A lot potentially riding on this.

And then of course there's the broader imagery, Kristie, here. We've seen, you know, John Kerry much more often alongside his Iranian

counterpart during a nuclear negotiations in Switerzland. But now standing very firmly alongside the Saudi longer-term ally in the region here, a new

foreign minister. He has a long relationship with as he was ambassador to Washington, perhaps a bid here to shore up that relationship ahead of any

nuclear deal, remind the Saudis of their longer-term commitment here and then finally at the end, as you mentioned there, a slight toughening I

think maybe of the previous comments we've heard from John Kerry going back to the original position that the only way to stop the violence in Syria is

a transition, which does not involve Bashar al-Assad in the future.

A lot there really I think that will please the Saudis in terms of his positioning. And also now a complex timetable ahead. Tomorrow they go to

Paris. We still haven't heard from the Houthis. They will accept this initiative and then we have a five day window renewable, as John Kerry

potentially said, and then ten days from now a conference in Saudi Arabia. There's an awful lot I think potentially of acceptance on the Houthis part.

They'd have to go to Saudi to engage in these talks.

And we have of course yet to see President Hadi on that stage as well. This was a Saudi-American initiative. And still no word from the Houthis -

- Kristie.

[08:22:08] LU STOUT: That's right. John Kerry positioning the United States very closely indeed to the Saudis making that joint call for a five

day ceasefire in Yemen. We'll have to wait and see how the Houthi rebels respond.

Nick Paton Walsh reporting live for us. Thank you, Nick.

You're watching News Stream. And when we come, it is election day in the UK. We have live coverage from London. Keep it here.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: In the United Kingdom, millions of voters are casting their ballots in a general election that will decide the next government.

Now there are more than 40,000 polling stations in place across the UK.

Now let's get straight to our senior international correspondent Nic Robertson. He is outside of a polling station in London. He joins us now.

And Nic, describe the turnout and what you've seen there today.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kristie, the polls opened here about six hours ago. That was 7:00 in the morning here

and just as people were beginning to go to work.

There was a small handful of people waiting outside the polling station for it to open. And since then, we've seen a fairly steady stream

of people going in. It perhaps slowed off around 11:00 a.m. towards noon here. That's quite normal.

We understand the voting path and around here, people getting up in the morning voting on their way to work. We've seen people out for a

morning job, stopping in to vote, people on their bicycles, people in their business suits all coming in -- coming in here to vote. People dropping

their kids off at the local school, stopping off to vote on the way back from there.

So it's been fairly steady.

I think the general perception is that -- particularly with the good weather as well that we appear to be having today, so far at least, is that

the turnout has been relatively high compared to the previous few years, but that sort of -- I say that's a general perception at the moment,

Kristie.

[08:25:06] LU STOUT: All right. Good turnouts as it is being perceived for the general election this day. Nic Robertson there, thank

you.

Now CNN is the place for extensive coverage of the British election. We'll have special coverage all day from the voting to when a new

government takes shape right here on CNN.

Now Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has less than a week to present a new cabinet to the Knesset. He has just formed the narrowest of

coalition governments claiming support from 61 of the Israeli parliaments 120 seats.

Let's get the latest now on this story. Oren Libermann joins me now live from Jerusalem.

And Oren, it really came down to the wire, but Mr. Netanyahu, he has agreed to a new coalition government. What does it look like?

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think everyone expected him to have a fairly strong coalition, a right-wing coalition of 67 seats.

Everything got complicated in the last few days. One of the right wing parties backed out, dropping his coalition from 67 seats, which is fairly

strong, to 61, which is a bare minimum, as weak as it gets in terms of a coalition.

It is a right-wing coalition, with the exception of the one party that backed out. He has all the right-wing parties and one centrist right

party. It's a coalition designed to focus on domestic issues. But Kristie, that could be very difficult. 61 seats, again that bare minimum

could be tough to push through any reforms here in the Knesset.

LU STOUT: Yeah. And to get this coalition deal done, Mr. Netanyahu had to make some pretty major concessions. What kind of demands did he

give in to? And does it weaken him politically?

LIEBERMANN: Well, everyone expected here after his decisive election in that victory 30 seats in the Knesset that he would have no problem

making whatever demands he wanted, that is to say Netanyahu wanted on his coalition partners. It turned out to be just the opposite at the end.

When that final right wing party backed out, another right wing party that had yet to sign a coalition agreement upped their demands. They

wanted the justice ministry and a few other positions, a few other critical positions.

Netanyahu wanted to hand on to those, but he only had two choices there. It was either give in to the demands, essentially see who blinked

first up until that last second there, or risk the chance that he's not going to be prime minister again.

As it came down to the wire, he had to give in to some of those concessions to hang on to the premiership.

Interesting time for Israeli politics. Oren Liebermann reporting live for us, thank you.

Now it is a place of goodwill between the two Koreas and CNN gets a rare visit to the Kaesong Industrial Complex. We'll have a live report

from Pyongyang.

And CNN gets a celebrity visitor. We meet with Asia's very own grumpy cat. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:30:05] LU STOUT: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong. You're watching News Stream. And these are your world headlines.

Human Rights Watch is calling on rebels and other forces in Yemen to protect civilians not to terrorize them. A short time ago, the U.S.

Secretary of State John Kerry Announced Saudi Arabia is pursuing a five day ceasefire in Yemen during which Saudi-led airstrikes would stop so that aid

can be delivered to civilians.

Now Kerry urged the Houthi rebels to agree to that ceasefire.

Now the polls are open and voting is underway in the UK. And millions of people are expected to turn out at more than 40,000 polling stations.

Poll are open until 10:00 p.m. local time.

Several countries are marking the anniversary of the end of World War II in Europe. Pro-Russia separatists in eastern Ukraine rehearsed for a

military parade in Donetsk. Israel and Poland are also holding events to mark V-E day.

And the NFL says its more probable than not that one of its biggest players knew that balls were illegally deflated during the AFC championship

game. The report says Super Bowl winner Tom Brady was generally aware that two employees were letting too much air out of footballs. Now Brady's

team, the reigning champion New England Patriots say they will accept any penalty from the NFL.

Now to another exclusive report from CNN's team on the ground in Pyongyang. It's a relationship defined by decades of antagonism, but there

is one rare example of collaboration between North and South Korean, an industrial park that sits between the two countries.

Now located just north of the demilitarized zone, the Kaesong Industrial Complex has citizens from both sides of the border working

together.

Now Will Ripley has been granted exclusive access to that site. And he joins now from the North Korean capital.

And Will, what kind of activity did you see there at Kaesong?

WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's been many years, Kristie, since CNN has visited Kaesong. It's about three hours south of Pyongyang. And

the work continues at the factories that are owned by South Korean companies, but staffed mainly by North Korean workers. But as we

discovered, this symbol of cooperation between the two countries, the two enemy countries, well, things are quite complicated.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RIPLEY: Sneakers rolling off assembly lines in a South Korean factory with North Korean workers.

"When we started doing business here we had 300 employees. Now we have 3,000," says manager Kang Mi-won.

She'd like to hire 2,000 more, but she can't. This factory, and more than 100 others in the Kaesong Industrial Complex caught in the middle of a

showdown between the North and the South just miles from their heavily armed border.

There was so much hope at this historic summit in 2000, a landmark deal between Pyongyang and Seoul establishing two cooperative projects,

South Korean businesses on North Korean soil. One of them, the Mount Kun Gang (ph) tourist region closed after a North Korean security guard shot

and killed a wandering tourist in 2008.

Today, the industrial complex remains open, but planned expansion has been frozen for five years.

In 2010, South Korean accused the North of torpedoing their navy ship, the Cheonan, killing 46 sailors. In response, South Korean stopped all new

investment in Kaesong, leaving the industrial complex half empty and businesses like this shoe factory with no way to expand.

"Because of the restrictions, we can't fill huge orders and meet high demand," she says.

Every morning and every evening, 270 buses help transport 52,000 North Koreans back and forth to work.

These buses stopped for several months in 2013, escalating tensions led North Korea to pull all the workers out, the crisis triggered by North

Korean anger over joint military exercises between South Korean and the United States.

Now, a new dispute over worker pay is threatening business again. Wages are paid directly to Pyongyang. North Korean complex managers,

including Pak Cheul-suu (ph) are demanding a wage increase of $4 a month.

"We believe the attitude of the South Korean government is hurting the lives of workers here," he says.

South Korea objects to a wage hike, saying the North is going around the rules by unilaterally declaring a new minimum wage without consulting

with the south.

Assembly lines keep rolling as the crisis deepens. At risk, the last remaining symbol of inter-Korean cooperation and the livelihoods of tens of

thousands of workers and their families.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

RIPLEY: Political disagreements between the North and the South are not supposed to influence activities as the Kaesong Industrial Complex, but

Kristie as we clearly saw on the ground there that's just not the case.

[08:35:11] LU STOUT: Yeah. And I'm curious about what it represents in terms of the North and South relationship. We know that Kaesong is a

symbol of North Korean economic development, but it's also a symbol of ties between the two countries. It's been open for two years now, but as you

report there is this wage dispute underway. So what does that say about he relationship between North and South Korea?

RIPLEY: Well, both countries say that their goal is for reunification. But again North Korea has a communist system, South Korea

has a capitalist system and an alliance with the United States.

The North Koreans ideally would like to see a down the road some sort of a central government where North Korea and South Korea can operate

together, but also have their own autonomy. But you see in Kaesong the real complications that come as a result of that, to have -- for one thing,

the fact that the wages are not paid directly to workers, which goes against, you know, capitalism, the wages go directly to the Pyongyang

government. The workers only get a small portion of the more than $90 million a year that are paid out.

And then companies are of course reluctant to invest too much in an area when North Korea could, you know, just all o a sudden decide to pull

out all of their workers that they control.

So it really is complicated. It's quite difficult. And if this doesn't work -- of course it's a major setback, because this is the one

remaining symbol of cooperation on the peninsula, a peninsula that continues to be deeply divided.

LU STOUT: Yeah, another revealing report about North Korea today. Will Ripley reporting live from inside Pyongyang . Thank you, will.

Now Iran says it has released a container ship it had seized in the Strait of Hormuz. And Reuters reports that the company has indeed

confirmed that.

Now the ship was intercepted by Iranian patrol boats last week. Iran's foreign minister says it was because of a long running legal dispute

with the Danish shipping company Mersk.

Now some time ago, an Iranian court had ordered damages be paid to a private firm.

More than a dozen people are injured after an outbreak of severe storms in the central U.S. Dozens of tornadoes were reported in Oklahoma,

Kansas and Nebraska. The storm's downed power lines and dumped golf ball sized hail and heavy rain.

Now a flash flood emergency was declared in Oklahoma City causing the main airport there to close and a mobile home park in the city was hit,

leaving some 13 people injured.

An unmanned Russian spacecraft designed to take three tons of supplies to the international space station is set to plummet back to Earth within

the next 24 hours. It has suffered a malfunction in Orbit that prevented it from docking.

Now the spacecraft is designed to burn up when it reenters the atmosphere, but Space.com says up to 3,000 kilos could survive.

But as most of the planet's surface is water, odds are you aren't going to get it.

You've heard of Grumpy Cat, but have you met Brother Cream, Hong Kong's very own celebrity kitty.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

All right, coming to you live from Hong Kong you're back watching News Stream.

Social media have launched some unlikely characters to fame. You've probably heard of Grumpy Cat, loved by the Internet. She found fame for

simply being a sour-faced feline.

And now she's got book deals and movie deals.

And here in Hong Kong is Asia's own Grumpy Cat. His name is Brother Cream. And he has hundreds of thousands of social media followers around

the world. Just like Grumpy Cat, he makes hundreds of thousands of dollars as a spokes animal.

Now I recently spoke to Brother Cream's owner about his pets South Rise to fame.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: He's Hong Kong's most famous cat. People flock to visit Brother Cream every day. But today, he's making the trip to CNN with his

owner Ko Chee-Shing. The feline found fame through social media.

KO CHEE SHING, OTNER, BROTHER CREAM (through translator): Why is Brother Cream so famous? It's because in July 2012 he went missing. After

26 days we found him through the internet. Many people came to help find him and visit him. So he became popular.

Now the British short-hair has more than 170,000 Facebook fans. And he's been paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to appear in advertisements

for major brands. Brother Creams' image has been plastered on city buses and subway stations, handbags and stickers.

There was even a three meter high statue of him outside a major shopping mall.

The celebrity seems unimpressed with CNN.

He spends most of his time at a 24 hour convenience store, occasionally granting photos to his adoring fans.

But Brother Cream also gives back.

SHING (through translator): I established the Brother Cream Foundation. every time he did a job I put all the portion that I received

into the foundation. We donate cat food or dog food to those independent volunteers every month.

LU STOUT: He may attract adoring fans wherever he goes, but at the end of the day Brother Cream is like any other cat.

SHING (through translator): When he sits down, he always falls asleep.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: Brother Cream left a lot of cat hair on my desk, but I still love him.

Now loyal fans of Brother Cream can buy all kinds of merchandise with his image, not just folders and stickers. And major brands were quick to

respond to the Internet's fondness for these furry celebrities. Nikon hosted pictures of Brother Cream on their Facebook page to promote their

cameras.

And Brother Cream also featured in Hwawei's Ascendmaet 7 Christmas add.

And that is News Stream.

END