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Government Lowers Death Toll From 359 To 253; Sources: North Korea Billed U.S. $2 Million For Warmbier's Case; Beijing's One Belt And One Road Initiative; Joe Biden Announces He's Running For U.S. President; New York Times: Joe Biden Privately Expresses Regret To Anita Hill; French President Promises Economic Changes; French President Addresses Nation after Months of Unrest; Right Wing Party Could See Gains in Spain's General Election; Prince William Visits Mosques Attacked in New Zealand; Gallup Emotions Report; Avengers Assemble for Epic Finale. Aired 1-2a ET

Aired April 26, 2019 - 01:00   ET

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

[01:00:00] JOHN VAUSE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: -- more powerful storm. And after 21 films, several billion dollars in ticket sales, the endgame is here. The final Avengers film hits theaters worldwide already expansioning box office records.

Authorities in Sri Lanka have detained at least almost 17 people suspected of helping the suicide bombers who targeted churches and hotels on Easter Sunday. But police and the prime-minister a warning more attacks could be in the works. A police source says investigators have found bomb-making plans and materials in a safe house south of the capital.

Sri Lanka's government is asking Muslims to not gather publicly for Friday prayers. Authorities said it lower the death toll in Sunday's attack from 359 to 253. CNN's Nikhil Kumar is live this hour in Colombo.

Nikhil, one of the reasons why the death toll numbers is so wrong essentially the nature of the attack and the impact it has on a victim's body which meant that many of the dead had been counted more than once. But at the end of the day, it doesn't do a lot of good for a government struggling to restore its credibility.

NIKHIL KUMAR, CNN NEW DELHI BUREAU CHIEF: That's right, John. You're quite right that that was one of the reasons that's been given as to why it was revised down -- revised down so significantly which really is good news that you know, it's -- it is awful and devastating still the toll but it's lower than what we thought it was earlier.

But as you also points out, there is this problem here that the government is having with credibility again and again as we found out more about what's happened on Easter Sunday, about the warnings that were already there. We know that India warned them tries. Once on the 4th of April, once on Saturday, once just one hour before providing warnings as specific is saying the churches and hotels could be among the targets. So amid all of that, amid the Prime Minister and the president saying

that they didn't know about this, for this to happen, it does affect the credibility. And this has become a massive controversy here as people who are trying to come to terms with this are also angry about it.

Our Ivan Watson spoke to the Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe about the intelligence failure. This is what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RANIL WICKREMESINGHE, PRIME MINISTER, SRI LANKA: What we do now and what we can do now is to pin this whole group which is a small one and ensure that it doesn't start again.

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Does the responsibility lie with you or the president?

WICKREMESINGHE: Well, as a government, the security system failed. That's all that I can say. I don't want to talk about my role in it.

WATSON: What do you say to somebody whose entire family has been destroyed and just --

WICKREMESINGHE: I just don't have the words for that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KUMAR: As you can see, John, it's it doesn't really matter for the people who've been affected for this country that is now living through the aftermath of this tragedy what happened even as these you know, whatever the explanation might be. But it's a major, major issue why was this allowed to happen.

We're in the middle of Colombo today. Today is Friday. There are Friday prayers at mosques. And the Muslim community was warned yesterday by a minister. It was -- an appeal was sent out that they should do their Friday prayers if possible from home, and part of it is the risk of retaliatory attack.

Also we don't know what the militants who might still be out there, the terrorists that are still out there what they are planning because often we've seen previously in other parts of the world that part of the agenda is to divide community. And this is a country of course that lists with almost three decades civil war. The last decade has been a process of reconciliation. And there's a big concern here that this could tear that apart all over again. John?

VAUSE: I guess the -- about these seven suspects who remain on the run right now, the end result of that in a practical sense is that you know, the curfews remain in place, the security forces continue you know, with their raids and you know, across the country and it's just delaying any kind of return to normalcy.

KUMAR: That's right. I mean, you know, the civil war that I mentioned earlier, if you visited this country in the 80s, if you visited this country in the 90s, in the early 2000s, there were times when curfews were an everyday fact of life.

People knew that they were going to be curfews, there were checkpoints often at just a few kilometers one after the other. People were used to being stopped and frisked because there was this very real threat that if you go into a public place, if too many people congregate in one place, they could be targeted by the then the Tamil LTTE, the group that was fighting against the government.

That ended though in 2009. And one of the things about the past week is that people are asking again and again why are we back in this place again where we have to be concerned about going out in public.

We were driving through Colombo earlier. It's early morning. There are people out but not as many as you'd expect. Many shops are still closed. We've seen many businesses that we would expect to be open on a Friday morning but they aren't. So there is this concern among people and really this sadness that they are back here again after a decade in which the emphasis has been on -- moving on from curfews, moving on from checkpoints and being frisked at every gate and every door that you enter. John?

VAUSE: Nikhil, thank you. Nikhil Kumar there live from Sri Lanka with the very latest. I appreciate it. Thank you. Well, northern Mozambique is being hit right now by a powerful storm. This is less than two months after a cyclone Idai cause widespread destruction.

Cyclone Kenneth made landfall on Thursday with winds up to 140 kilometers per hour. It's considered the strongest cyclone to ever hit the East African nation. Talking about the trail of devastation in the neighboring island nation of Comoros, the storm uprooted trees, destroyed homes before it killed at least three people.

CNN's Meteorologist Name has more now on the very latest on the storm surge. Well, it's made landfall and what are we looking at in terms of strength. When is -- when is the worst expected?

IVAN CABRERA, CNN INTERNATIONAL METEOROLOGIST: So it made landfall but it's still a problem as far as the rainfall. It's going to be a prolific over the next a few days and that's what we're concerned about now. So let's talk about where the storm is. It hasn't move that much. Here is -- by the way, just a recap right, of what has been happening here, some precedented season across the Mozambique, no less than their strongest cyclone to ever hit them.

Kenneth, the one we're tracking now, that's a Cat Four equivalent with just incredible winds. The landfall made by a day right back in March a 15, 2019, that horrific storm that took so many lives was a Cat Two. This is like double the strength. Well, this is a good reason for it as far as why the death toll hopefully will remain lower, right, much less populated area.

This is as far north as you can get Mozambique and then you cross over, right. Mozambique get channel and there was a day back into March of 2019, a day of course brought the horrific storms surge along with the incredible amounts of rain. I think this one still has the potential to provide us with heavy rain. And notice what happens here when a storm makes landfall. Sometimes

the worst of the weather tends to be away from the center of circulation. That doesn't make sense right? Well, it does in this particular case look at that blow of a thunderstorm activity further to the south.

So despite the fact that the storm that could strike about 100 kilometers away, you would still be impacted with significant peripheral effects which are going to be felt I think for some time here. Watch the clock in the next two 48 to 72 hours, still looking at plenty of moisture.

This is one of our computer models. I must say I think this is a bit bullish and I'm hoping this doesn't pan out. This is calling for over half a meter of rainfall. I don't think they will quite get that much but the potential as you can see in general is there with these colors for us some significant rain as a result of the very slow movement.

By the way, there's the track from 23 April until that landfall, making landfall at 16:15 local time. We had plenty of warning for it with winds of 220 kilometers per hour. By the way, I'm not tracking anything after this so that is certainly a good thing over the next few days. Things are quieting down and again we're just watching now for the second part of the story which will be the rainfall across the region.

VAUSE: It's been incredibly busy season.

CABRERA: You bet.

VAUSE: All right, Ivan, thank you. Well, sources tell CNN that North Korea handed the U.S. government $2 million medical bill for treatment for Otto Warmbier, the American student who was arrested in January of 2016 while on a university organized visit to Pyongyang. A year later, in a coma and diagnosed with brain damage, he was released and allowed to return home and died six days later. CNN's Paula Hancocks joins us now from Seoul.

This is one of those awful stories where Warmbier was he took on a poster or something from the lobby of the hotel and then he was arrest with all these trumped-up charges of what sort of maliciously acting against the state or something. And then he was sent to this prison by the North Koreans and there he stayed for about a year or so, right?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right, yes. And what we learned in hindsight was that he had -- something had happened to him shortly after he was taken into custody, shortly after we saw that trial, we still don't know exactly what happened. The North Koreans at one point claimed it was botulism. He had

swallowed a sleeping tablet and -- but then 15 months later he was brought back to the United States in a comatose position and then died less than a week later.

So this is really galling to say the least that these sources and I was saying that actually what North Korea did when the U.S. sent that plane over and Joseph Hyun, the point man for the U.S. for North Korea at that point to take him home, they gave them $2 million bill according to those sources.

Now, another source says that the Trump administration has not paid this money and they also said the following year when they were negotiating the release of three more American detainees that they were not going to be giving anything in return for them. But when we asked for an official response, Sarah Sanders, the White House Press Secretary said that we don't talk about hostage negotiations that's why we have been so successful.

VAUSE: It's interesting because you know, the one thing that Trump is always going on about is that they're they do not pay they don't pay ransoms for the release of hostages. They don't do those kind of deals that Barack Obama's administration used to do. But clearly they handed the money over or they greet at least to pay this money and then never followed through it seems.

[01:10:02] HANCOCKS: Well, what we understand from this source is that Joseph Hyun himself did not comment on that specific part of it saying that it was the sensitivity of the nature of this negotiation. But he did tell CNN that he went over there knowing he'd be able to see Otto Warmbier. He didn't know if he'd be able to bring him back but he effectively been told by his boss the then-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and -- who had been told by President Trump that he had to bring him back.

So that had been cleared that he was able to sign that pledge to pay that money but then that was never actually carried out. John?

VAUSE: OK, Paula, thank you. Paula Hancocks live for us in Seoul. Thank you. Well, leaders are gathering in China for the second annual one belt and one road forum for Xi Jinping's foreign policy initiative, looks to rebuild the ancient Silk Road connecting China to Asia and beyond by investing in the infrastructure of other nations .

Critics call it a get trap diplomacy as developing countries become a hold on to Beijing through these loans. CNN's Andrew Stevens live in Beijing. And Andrew, there is a range of risks that come with borrowing money and getting you know, financially in bed with China, everything from you know, the financial sustainability of the project to the erosion of national sovereignty. But yet what, there's more than 100 world leaders I think lining up maybe to take part of this.

ANDREW STEVENS, CNN ASIA PACIFIC EDITOR: Well, certainly dozens of world leaders lining up, John, to be part of this as you say. And you're right, there has been a lot of concerns, a lot of criticism about exactly what China is doing with its One Belt One Road Initiative.

Remember this is a vast network of infrastructure projects that spreads through Central China and through Central Asia, through Southern Asia, through Southeast Nation deep into -- deep into Europe. So it is a massive initially $1 trillion. That was the target budget for it. And it has created a lot of concerns of debt trap you name for instance. I'll give you an example of that. Sri Lanka built using Chinese money

a massive container shipping terminal on its East Coast. It couldn't afford the repayments to China so China took as collateral the ownership of the port for 99 years which was a very strategic part of Sri Lanka as far as trade between Asia and Europe go. So there's those sort of concerns.

There's also been concerns about corruption, about transparency. Malaysia recently pulled the plug on a -- on a major rail project to which was again being funded by China which had been set up by the current Prime Minister's predecessor. And they only decided to re- engage with China after China cut the cost of that by about a third.

So yes there is a lot of -- a lot of issues at stake and Xi Jinping has just finished actually speaking to those world leaders who had gathered here for this summit in Beijing. And he's really trying to put this record straight and say that China wants to play by the rules, that intends to play by the rules. It's going to be fair. It's going to be mutually beneficial.

Local laws will be observed of course, but China making a clear effort to try to get the upper hand if you like, in the image that the Belt and Road Initiative is developing. So the countries are here because a lot of these countries are weaker economies. They need the money and China is seen as the best way of getting the money with frequently with fewer strings attached than other international lenders, John.

VAUSE: Play by the rules. So that means when open transparency during the bidding process not -- has not been happening. You know, using labor from local countries not happening using Chinese labor. But you know, look, make no mistake. This is all about advancing Chinese influence around the world. It's all about putting forward China's geopolitical ambitions, right. This isn't China being kind and good to the region.

STEVENS: No. This is -- this is them saying they're going to do -- they're going to level the playing field. They you have to take China at face value on that. Of course its own interests are at the center of this. And remember, this is the signature foreign policy of Xi Jinping.

It's so important to him that the Belt and Road Initiative has actually been written into the communist parties to the Constitution, John. So it gives you an idea of what is riding on Xi Jinping's future as far as Belt and Road and Develop goes.

They want -- you're right, they want to be -- Xi Jinping wants China really at the center of the world. The U.S. is calling it a predatory policy. And remember too, this started in 2013 when the world was vastly different place, that China was still seen by the Obama administration more of a strategic partner than a strategic rival. That has changed dramatically under Trump.

And remember too, that the Obama administration didn't really kick up a fuss or didn't show any concern about at the Belt And Road because it had its own policy for Asia. That was the TPP, the Trans-Pacific Partnership which was going to encompass this region, the whole Pacific Rim and that didn't include China.

Donald Trump got rid of that, one of his first decisions as president, and now we have the Belt and Road initiative and no real answer to China's position and its power and the development of these economies certainly no real answer coming from the United States at the moment and they are now looking at ways to get back in the game.

[01:15:12] VAUSE: Yes, I remember the pivot Asia and the TPP was the- everyone-but-China trade group. Andrew, good to see you, thank you.

Well, he's up and running, Joe Biden, the former U.S. vice president, hitting the campaign trail, joining an already crowded Democratic field for the 2020 presidential election, but he joins as the front- runner.

Also, Prince Williams brings the message of hope to the victims of last month's deadly shooting at two New Zealand Mosques.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VAUSE: Well, after months of speculation, would he or wouldn't he, former vice president Joe Biden, has made it official. He's running in 2020, his third bid for the White House. Biden is the 20th Democrat to enter this race, but he's a clear leader in the opinion polls, and widely seen as the candidate with the best chance to beat Donald Trump.

A campaign video released Thursday morning, Biden defined the current political wisdom, he did not outline a grand vision for the country nor policies, instead, he made his candidacy all about the urgent need to prevent Donald Trump from winning a second term.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We are in the battle for the soul of this nation. I believe history will look back on four years of this President, and all he embraces as an aberrant moment in time. But if we give Donald Trump eight years in the White House, he will forever and fundamentally alter the character of this nation, who we are, and I cannot stand by and watch that happen.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Washington Bureau Chief for the Christian Science Monitor, Linda Feldmann joins us now for more. OK, well, first of all, good to have you with us.

LINDA FELDMANN, WASHINGTON BUREAU CHIEF, CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR: Thank you.

VAUSE: We've heard, you know, from every other Democrat running in 2020, for months now, that the voters are only interested in kitchen table issues, healthcare, wages, jobs, healthcare, number one issue, among voters in 2018 at the midterms.

But it seems part of Biden's calculation here, is he's bidding on a visceral hatred that so many Democrats have for Trump, as the motivation to get them from the house, to the voting booth, in record numbers.

FELDMANN: I think it's all of the above. I do think the kitchen table issues are absolutely crucial, it's all about the economy, healthcare, education, climate change, the future of our children. But it is also about Donald Trump.

I mean, let's be real, Donald Trump is a lightning rod, people love him or they hurt him. And if you want to get people to vote for you, you have to really go right for the jugular with Donald Trump.

[01:20:03] And I thought his rollout was actually very clever, with him, going for the Charlottesville moment, which was appalling to most Americans, including Donald Trump's reaction. And this was Joe Biden saying, this is not us, we can do better than this.

VAUSE: Yes. And this was a moment, you know, when Donald Trump described that protest in Charlottesville. We had the Neo-Nazis and the tiki torches on one side, and the people protesting them on the other, and Trump said there were, you know, good people on both sides.

FELDMANN: Yes.

VAUSE: It's interesting because 12 years ago, when Biden was Barack Obama's running mate, the message was hope and change. This time, the message is be afraid, be very, very afraid. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: The very fine people on both sides? Those words, the President of the United States assigned a moral equivalence between those spreading hate than those with the courage to stand against it. And in that moment, I knew the threat to this nation was unlike any I've ever seen in my lifetime.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: You know, if you look at the overall picture of Biden, it seems, if you elect me, I mean, if you forget about the last four years there were an aberration, it'll be like that final scene in the ninth season of Dallas, the Charlotte scene, Bobby Ewing, you know, he's alive (INAUDIBLE)

It was all just a dream that never happened, which, in a way, it seems like -- you know, Biden's kind of going to be trying to run as an incumbent, almost, like Hillary Clinton did in 2016.

FELDMANN: So, in a way, that's an interesting thesis. But I think that by the time we get to November of 2020, Donald Trump will be the incumbent. I mean, the Obama era is for a lot of people, kind of, a happy memory, but he's -- he will have been out of office for four years.

And I think what he's trying to say is, I am going to make -- not to make America great again, but I'm going to, sort of, end this nightmare and bring us back to the nation that we know we are. I mean Americans are sick of the polarization and the divisiveness and the -- just the nonstop embarrassment as Democrats see it of having Donald Trump as president.

And so, there is -- there is a bit of a throwback feel, but I think for Joe Biden, it's a question of I am somebody who can go toe to toe with this guy. I will not be intimidated. I know what I'm doing. I have the experience and just trust me.

VAUSE: Yes, he does have some baggage, though, especially with the African-American --

FELDMANN: Yes.

VAUSE: -- community. He (INAUDIBLE) crime bill which Hillary Clinton supported and cost her dealing for her run for the White House, and then there's his role as the chairman of the Senate Committee during the confirmation hearing of the Supreme Court nominee, Clarence Thomas.

Thomas was accused of sexual harassment by Anita Hill. She was viciously attacked during (INAUDIBLE) committee, and Biden was the chairman, he failed to stop those attacks. He apologized for that, actually. He actually called Hill and apologized. In an interview with New York Times on Anita Hill, said the apology alone just was not enough.

FELDMANN: Right.

VAUSE: African-American support will be especially important in the primaries. So, how does Biden, you know, win over that support? How does he compete with, I think, what, at least three other candidates who are black?

FELDMANN: Right. So, this is going to be a huge challenge, Joe Biden has a habit of saying things that aren't quite right or don't quite resonate. He has a habit of committing gaffs, but in terms of reaching to minority voters, for sure, that's a challenge. As you say, there are several people of color, running in the Democratic primary. It's possible that that vote will be split among those different candidates.

But it's also true that voters of color aren't necessarily going to vote for candidates of color. They're going to like all the other Democratic voters, one who wants somebody who's electable. And so, they're going to look at everybody and not just say, well, I'm, you know, African-Americans or Hispanic and just vote for a minority candidate.

VAUSE: Yes. Soon after Biden made it official, our President Trump unleashed his radio-like wit on Twitter, welcome to the race sleepy Joe. I only hope you have the intelligence, long in doubt, to wage a successful primary campaign.

It will be nasty. You will be dealing with people who truly have some very sick and demented ideas. But if you make it, I will see you at the starting gate.

And Biden was asked about that, and we kind of saw why he is considered to be one of the most effective candidates in this field to take on Donald Trump. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Vice President, do you have a message for President Trump? He welcomed you in the race, questioned whether you have the intelligence to be the President of the United States?

BIDEN: Everybody Donald Trump.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: And he smiles with those big white teeth, he brushes it off, everybody knows Donald Trump. I guess, you know, he's been around so long. It's very hard for Trump to define him, you know, like lion Ted Cruz, little Mark --

FELDMANN: Right.

[01:25:02] VAUSE: Sleepy Joe just seemed kind of lame.

FELDMANN: Exactly. No, I'm surprised. I think, you know, Donald Trump puts a lot of thought into his nicknames, and I somehow -- I think he's going to come up with something better than sleepy Joe. It's -- you know, you wonder, is this -- is this Donald Trump making an age reference or -- you know, you don't know what that's about. But I -- yes, I agree with you. I think sleepy Joe is kind of weak.

VAUSE: Yes. He doesn't have a nickname for Nancy Pelosi either, which is interesting.

FELDMANN: That's because -- that's because he respects her.

VAUSE: You think it's true?

FELDMANN: He really -- he really, and fears her, so that's the badge of honor for her.

VAUSE: You know, one of the things that a lot of voters see in Biden is that, you know, he makes no apology for putting his heart out on his -- on his sleeve, you know, he can get angry, often overreacts like, you know, like normal people do. He's a, sort of, an example of that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: A guy who ended up becoming our national leader said, I can grab a woman anywhere and she likes it. And then said, I made a mistake. They asked me if I'd like to debate this gentleman, and I said no. I said, if we were in high school, I'd take him behind the gym and beat the hell out of him.

(END VIDEO CLIP) VAUSE: And you know, we've got to also make note, you know, this is a guy who has parodied by the Onion, as shirtless Joe Biden washing his trans am in the White House driveway.

FELDMANN: Right.

VAUSE: And it's funny because it could almost be true.

FELDMANN: Yes.

VAUSE: He's just an everyday guy.

FELDMANN: It's true. And what would be so amazing about a Donald Trump versus Joe Biden in general election, is that they -- in some ways, they're similar, right? I mean, they both say things maybe that they shouldn't say, they're both kind of characters, they -- you know, they have a certain authenticity about them that's kind of appealing, I mean, to their respective voters and parties.

So, you know, it would be, you know, a battle of two sector septuagenarians which might be a turnoff to younger voters. But, it would be -- it would be epic, actually, to see them go up against each other.

VAUSE: I would like to see them both on the big stage and --

FELDMANN: Yes.

VAUSE: -- they're trading blows, you know, one blow for one blow. It'd be very interesting. Linda, thank you so much. It was good to speak with you.

FELDMANN: Sure, my pleasure.

VAUSE: Next up on CNN NEWSROOM, after months of sometimes a violent protest, France's president is promising tax cuts and economic reforms, but will it be enough to end the unrest and show the Yellow Vest that he finally heals their pain.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VAUSE: Welcome back, everybody, you're watching CNN NEWSROOM, I'm John Vause, with the headlines this hour. And at this hour, Mozambique is being battered by another powerful cyclone, the second, in less than two months.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[01:30:00] JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back, everybody. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM.

I'm John Vause with the headlines this hour.

And at this hour, Mozambique is being battered by another powerful cyclone, the second in less than two months. Cyclone Kenneth has brought hurricane strength winds and torrential rain and it's potentially more destructive than cyclone Idai which left hundreds dead in March.

Kenneth has already caused widespread destruction as it swept across the neighboring Comoros Islands reportedly killing at least three.

Sri Lanka's defense secretary has resigned over the failure by security forces to act on repeated intelligence warnings in the days and weeks ahead of the Easter Sunday suicide bombings. Authorities are warning more attacks could be in the works. AS Muslims head to Friday prayers, officials have asked they avoid gathering in public.

North Korea's Kim Jong-un is leaving eastern Russia after his first ever summit with the Russian President Vladimir Putin. As always the North Korean leader traveling on board his custom-built armored train like the long trip he took across China for a summit with the U.S. president. Vladivostok a little closer to Moscow.

French President Emmanuel Macron has promised a long list of economic and political reforms to try and appease anti-government protesters who've been taking to the streets for almost six months now angry over widespread economic inequality.

Many have demanded the president resign but Macron is betting on these reforms to bring an end to the protests but is it too little, too late.

Here is Melissa Bell.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It was in the end by way of a press conference as the French president spoke to the French people not as he had imagined in the form of a speech that had been due to take place on the night in the fire at Notre Dame.

His plan had been to announce the measures upon which he decided at the end of a month's long grand debate which has followed the government's attempt to try and listen to the demands of the Yellow Vest protesters. As Emmanuel Macron made clear that he was on full listening mode.

EMMANUEL MACRON, FRENCH PRESIDENT (through translator): This time has transformed me, too. I think I've touched much more deeply the depth of it. What many of my fellow citizens living pains, the misunderstandings. We are a country as it is myself (ph) before the election. We are waiting for a huge amount, sometimes too much.

And so we can think it is unfair and so one. And sometimes I was not aware of that expectation and this expectation justifies certain anger.

BELL: Emmanuel Macron did go on to announce significant measures like tax cuts for the middle classes, decentralization of France's governance and things like a thousand euro minimum pension level for everyone inside France.

So radical measures at any other time but will they be radical enough to answer the demands of the Yellow Vests? They have grown over the course of the last two weeks, fewer in numbers on the streets of France Saturday after Saturday and yet more radical in their demands, more revolutionary in their mood, it is unclear whether those announcements made by Emmanuel Macron tonight will make much of a difference to their enthusiasm to gather once again on May 1st.

Melissa Bell, CNN -- Paris.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Spain's third general election in four years is just days away. And when voting begins this Sunday many will be closely watching the right wing party Vox waiting to see if it can make some significant gains at the ballot box.

CNN's Isa Soares takes a look at how Vox is already transforming the political landscape.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ISA SOARES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Crammed between the sea and the Andalusian Mountains and as far as the eye can see is a shimmering white city draped in plastic. This is El Ejido in southern Spain. And here produce is king.

With each plastic greenhouse growing much of Europe's fruit and vegetables, from peppers to (INAUDIBLE), tomatoes to aubergine.

But the most important seed sprouting here isn't produce. But a political party. Vox is Spain's first elected far right party since the death of dictator Francisco Franco in 1975. And its entry is already shaking up the political landscape.

I meet Vox's local candidate. Last year, they won nearly 30 percent of the vote in region elections here in El Ejido with a pledge of national unity, to put a stop to corruption and illegal immigration.

JUAN JOSE BONILLA, VOX CANDIDATE FOR EL EJIDO (through translator): I'm 42 years old, and I grew up in El Ejido. I was born in El Ejido. I've run up and down this town. Today we don't dare let our children do the same. There's no safety. There are robberies and rapes. There's a lot of crime.

SOARES (on camera): Do you blame migrants?

BONILLA: Spanish people commit crimes but migrants commit crimes also.

SOARES (voice over): But a walk through El Ejido shows how much this region is dependent on seasonal labor, mostly carried out by migrants from north Africa.

[01:34:59] (on camera): What Vox has been able to do in southern Spain is exploit voter frustration, in particular the question of immigration. And while a number of migrants coming in from across the Mediterranean have in fact fallen Spain has become one of the main entry points for migrants with roughly 63,000 arriving in Andalusia last year alone.

(voice over): But while they're needed here, the cultural difference make many Spaniards feel uneasy. Despite this I struggle to find anyone who will openly acknowledge they're Vox supporters.

This woman tells me, "If people want change they want to change and to try something new. But unfortunately it is the Vox."

"We are fed up of so many migrants," this lady said. "They come without paperwork. They do what they want. What they feel like. We're very tired of them," she says.

Across Spain Vox has been derided as far right populists, anti-Islam and anti-immigration. In fact, it's leader, Santiago Abascal is borrowing from President Trump's book.

(on camera): Your leader says he wants to build a wall in the border, Spain's border with Morocco. And he wants Morocco to pay for that wall. Do you believe that?

BONILLA: I don't care if the wall's made of bricks, steel or wire. What we want is to close the door so that migrants don't flood Spain. The Spanish people cannot stand that flood of migrants.

SOARES (voice over): While their message may seem unfiltered. It is one that is resonating with many Spaniards who feel abandoned as well as betrayed by Spain's main political party.

Isa Soares, CNN -- El Ejido, Spain.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Britain's Prince William is in New Zealand meeting with survivors of last month's mosque attacks in Christchurch. At the Al Noor Mosque where 43 people were shot and killed, the Prince said the gunman was driven by a warped ideology which he said must be defeated.

CNN's Kristie Lu Stout joins us now live from Hong Kong with one -- I guess one of the more emotional moments to this trip so far has been the meeting he had with that young five-year-old who just came out of a coma, you know, and the exchange between the two was quite touching.

KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Very touching. We saw that at the Kensington Palace Twitter feed that they shared overnight. This little girl, her name is Alen. She was at a pediatric hospital in Auckland where she was receiving care.

And she had just woken out of a coma. She's having this exchange with Prince William and asks him do you have a daughter? And he says yes, her name is Charlotte -- a very, very sweet moment there.

Prince William is in New Zealand on a two-day trip. Today he is in Christchurch. He is there to honor the victims and to remember one of New Zealand's darkest days.

It was six weeks ago today when terror took hold of Christchurch. It targeted two mosques in the center part of the city. It took the lives of 50 Muslim worshippers and wounded 50 others.

Now Prince William is there to offer the Royal Family's support. He has been meeting with survivors of the attacks. He's been meeting with family members as well as emergency first responders. And he met with the New Zealand police commissioner yesterday.

He's also been meeting with Muslim community leaders and earlier today, just a few hours ago, he gave this very heartfelt speech at a hospital in Christchurch where he says that he stands united with the people of New Zealand and that the forces of love will always prevail over the forces of hate. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PRINCE WILLIAM, DUKE OF CAMBRIDGE: To the people of New Zealand and the people of Christchurch, to our Muslim community and all those who have rallied to your side. I stand with you in gratitude for what you've fought (ph) well over these past weeks. I stand with you in optimism about the future of this great city. I stand with you in grief for those we have lost and with support for those who survived.

And I stand with you in firm belief that the forces of love will always prevail over the forces of hate.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STOUT: Now, Prince William is there in New Zealand on behalf of his grandmother, the Queen and at the request of the New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern who asked him to come to offer comfort to the people of New Zealand. And also cited his close connection, not only with New Zealand but with the city of Christchurch in particular.

Back in 2011 in the aftermath of that horrific earthquake which took the lives of 180 people and destroyed, leveled many parts of the city Prince William paid a visit there. And eight years on he has returned to Christchurch and to help refocus the world's attention to what was lost there six weeks ago today, the ongoing debate about gun reform and dealing with white supremacist ideology circulating online and moist importantly perhaps to honor a community in how it chooses to respond to terror. Not with fear, not with hatred but with love and compassion -- John.

VAUSE: Yes. The Royal Family is still very popular in New Zealand as well as in Australia. It's moments like this when you see them come into their own in those dark days

Kristie -- thank you. Kristie Lu Stout, following the Prince's trip live from Hong Kong. Thank you.

[01:40:04] Next up on CNN NEWSROOM, in case you hadn't noticed, the world is getting sadder, it's getting angrier. A new study reveals just how miserable we all are. But what's behind these finding. We'll analyze that when we come back.

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VAUSE: Jazz is great -- that photo there and the song he recorded in 1929 -- Louis Armstrong, "When you smile". And when you smile and the whole world smiles with you. Maybe he is right.

According to Gallup's Annual Global State of Emotions report we are smiling a lot these days. In fact according to the report, seven out of ten people worldwide said they experienced enjoyment, felt well rested, and smiled or laughed a lot the day before the survey.

The 2018 survey tied with 2013, 2014, 2015 for positivity. And that appears to be good news but we'll explain why it probably isn't in a moment.

The report also found we have never been sadder, angrier, more fearful -- all three emotions are at record high levels, up from 2017 which was also a record high.

For more we head to the always positive and happy city of the Angels and clinical psychologist Judy Ho.

Ok. Judy -- good to see you.

JUDY HO, CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST: Good to see you. I'm happy to see you.

VAUSE: Yes. Happy people.

Ok. I wanted to continue first. I always try to question the worth of these surveys, you know. Being stressed out and unhappy in Beverly Hills because you're latest model Tesla did not arrive, you know, it seems a very different style of stress and unhappiness experience to a country like Chad, you know, when it comes to population as well as the poverty. It's gripped by economic crisis and unrest and you know, and the Internet has been shut down for 12 months.

No wonder they were ranked number one for negative feelings. It just seems sort of apples and oranges.

HO: Yes. You know, I think it is funny when we look at these surveys across the world because also emotions mean different things to different people and different cultures.

In America we do put a lot more premium I believe on emotions than some other cultures. And so even the meaning attached to it isn't quite the same. But I think sometimes when people are feeling bad they are trying to convince themselves they shouldn't.

There are countries like Chad that are actually suffering with such bigger things. And often times that actually causes a secondary wave of negative emotion. They start to judge themselves for doing this. How petty am I that I would be upset because I did not get my Prada purse.

[01:45:06[ VAUSE: Because children are starving in African I never understood how that works. There is one thing though that we learned from REM in the early 1990s classic.

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VAUSE: Yes. And here is how Gallup worked out how everyone hurts and everyone cries and where it happens the most. In 2018 Gallup asked adults in 142 (ph) countries if they had five different negative experiences on the day before the survey.

More than one in three people said they experienced a lot of worry or stress. And three in 10 experienced a lot of physical pain.

At least one in five experienced sadness or anger or overall stress levels dropped 2 percentage points from the previous year. Anger increased by 2 points to get a new high. Worry and sadness which were already at record levels increased by one point from the previous year.

So, you know, what we are looking at here is from that survey we get the ten most negative countries all in Africa and the Middle East. Those countries are either dealing with economic crisis or conflict or natural disaster. Not exactly difficult to work out why there's a lot of negative feelings there.

HO: Absolutely. I mean this is kind of what we would expect. And at the same time, negative feelings beget other negative feeling. So when you have one negative feeling you are more likely have another negative fleeting.

Yet also feelings are transient. And so I think it is interesting when you look at some of the study's results in Latin America. Surely some of these individuals are also in poverty. They have a lot of social demographic issues that they're dealing with and yet they report more positive emotions. And they smile more. They report positive events the day before.

And I think that just shows you that that moment to moment change does matter. And so all of these lessons about maybe just counting your blessings every once in a while, smiling at a stranger, it does make a difference in the big picture.

VAUSE: Because -- I want to talk about that because, you know, they are the people who REM would describe like this.

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VAUSE: And the people in the countries who smile and laugh the most are emotionally positive countries. You mentioned this --, almost all of them are in South America except for Indonesia. How that happens though seems kind of weird.

But you know, the U.N. also does this similar thing about happy and contented countries and not only (ph) are they sort of northern European. And it's interesting how these surveys have worked out because this one kind of focuses on the cultural value of smiling and sort of just accepting, you know, I guess counting your blessings is the best way of putting it.

And if they really could focus on -- focusing on the positive parts of your life, I guess, rather than those benefits that you can get from the government or from society.

HO: Yes. I think that that definitely makes a difference. And I think also just from the moment to moment smiling, also the connectedness that you are smiling at a person. That you are actually in communion with someone.

I think that that is part of why we are seeing this increasing trend of negative emotions is that we are increasingly becoming disconnected around the world. We feel connected because we are using the Internet. We're talking to people online.

And yet all our satisfaction, our social skills are going out the door. And we know that community sense is really big for overall mental health and well-being in the big picture and in the long run.

VAUSE: And there's this kind of reaction (ph) you bring when you meet somebody face-to-face as compared to social media. But one of the things I would say -- the happiness factor, this is the rub, the positive emotion equaling the highest it's ever been, you know, since Gallup started doing this survey in 2006. The negative emotion, the unhappiness is at record highs, higher than, you know, that it has been ever.

This seems to suggest that there is that emotional inequality gap. Just like the rich are getting richer, the poor are getting poorer, the happy are getting happier and the sad a are getting sadder.

HO: Right. And obviously that is a place for concern. And I think that part of this is also just understanding that emotions are completely transient. So perhaps when you asked somebody that question in the daytime versus night when something happens that is positive versus negative, that is going to change a lot.

And I think part of the reason why we see this inequity is because there's a lot of people who put a lot of stock when they have a negative emotion. They think that that new something -- they over interpret it and then they get really attached to that emotion and it stays with them.

But a lot of what we talk about in positive psychology in a lot of our therapeutic techniques right now is all about understanding emotions like it's waves in the ocean. They come and go.

So even if you have a negative emotion don't dwell on it because, guess what, pretty soon it's going to go away if you don't attach to it. You're going to have a mutual positive emotion and you are going to have a neutral positive emotion soon. And perhaps that is one small way that we can start closing that inequity.

VAUSE: Can I make an appointment for Friday afternoon?

HO: Yes. I would love to see you in person. Have some real connectedness.

VAUSE: I need to come in.

HO: And more happiness.

VAUSE: Absolutely. Judy -- thank you.

[01:50:02] Ok. Still to come Avengers assemble. The Marvel superheroes are back together for an epic final battle in "Endgame". And they're smashing the box office just like Hulk.

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VAUSE: Now to the franchise which rules over all other movie franchises. After 11 years, 21 films, the epic finale is here. "Avengers: Endgame" already crushing at the box office opening in China with a record of $107 million dollars in just one day.

The movie was released in the U.S. last just a few hours ago, And sure as night follows day, some analysts are predicting a record- breaking weekend. More than $260 million dollars in North America alone, $800 million worldwide. That is a big bucket of cash.

CNN media critic Brian Lowry joins us now live this hour from Los Angeles.

Brian -- ok, we have to say from the outset we do not do spoilers here. We don't say hey, can you believe that Darth Vader is really Luke's father?

So we need to get that out there.

BRIAN LOWRY, CNN MEDIA CRITIC: I know better than that.

VAUSE: I know. I just want to let our audience know so they can watch safely. Let's start with part of an interview that one of the Russo brothers, the directors, did. Here's Joe Russo. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE RUSSO, DIRECTOR: We can't tell you anything. We've been protecting the plot for like three years on this but we will tell you this. This is the grand conclusion. I don't think there's ever been a movie like this before because, you know, there's been 11 franchises in the Marvel Universe and they're all coming to a close on this movie.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: It's all about the ending. That's what seems to stand out there. You know, the beauty is this movie really does have an ending, a good ending. You know, that sort of Dexter jump a shark ending like "Lost". But a true finale.

LOWRY: Well, that's really -- I mean the thing you can say about this film is this really is the culmination of everything that Marvel has built over the last 11 years. You go back to "Iron Man" in 2008.

And they had a very meticulous plan, a really audacious one at the time to build this interlocking Marvel Cinematic Universe. And what you've seen is that entire plan come to fruition over that basically decade and a little bit more and really pay off in this gargantuan ending to that portion, that phase of the franchise.

VAUSE: How much courage -- how much foresight -- you know, how much commitment does it take to do something like that?

LOWRY: Well, it was really -- I mean at the time, if you think about it, there had been big superhero movies. There had been "Superman" and "Batman". But Marvel certainly didn't have that kind of track record in the theatrical arena.

And it was a house of cards. It could have fallen apart at any point. And they started with "Iron Man" and proceeded with "Thor" and "Captain America" and put the building blocks together culminating in the first "Avengers" and then have shown themselves able to actually reach out into other characters, some not particularly well known like "Ant Man" and turned those into major hits.

So right now Marvel has really probably the biggest footprint in the pop culture universe except perhaps for Star Wars and both of them are owned by Disney.

VAUSE: You know, what's interesting though, this is expected to be a big money spinner at the box office and that's an understatement.

But the interesting part is the success of the Marvel franchise in China and it compared to "Star Wars" in particular. "Variety" puts it this way.

[01:54:58] "The Marvel films entered China at a time when there were fewer Hollywood films. This series bombarded its way into people's hearts. The numerous releases a year creating a constant cumulative brand presence over more than a decade.

By contrast the "Star Wars" series has never gotten traction in the Middle Kingdom since the earlier films were never released there and they don't have a chance to build up a following."

Is it just that simple as a matter of distribution or, you know, is there something else more here. Is there something more culturally appealing about, you know, the Marvel Universe compared to the "Star Wars" universe.

LOWRY: Well, it's an interesting question. I mean generally, you know, science fiction and fantasy is one of those genres that travels well. It's not like "Star Wars" doesn't do well it just doesn't have quite the same heft as Marvel. And if you go back and look at "The Force Awakens", it grossed over a billion dollars outside of the United States -- outside of North America. So it was a huge international hit also.

But the opening numbers in China for "Endgame" have been spectacular. I mean the first day, over 100 million dollars which really is going to pad that total and put it potentially in a position to rival "Avatar" as the highest grossing international moneymaker ever.

VAUSE: And the movie clocks in at what -- about three hours? And that's leading to a lot of a discussion online, if you've got to go -- when is the best moment to rush to the bathroom. And here's the best reasonable answer I found.

"One big no-no: Do not leave your seat if you're more than two hours in. Just tough it out or you'll miss something huge. Do you agree with that?

LOWRY: I do agree with that. I would say after about the 1:20 mark I would stay put. And I did actually do a piece about a Web site called RunPee, which is actually -- they provide cues on went to leave a movie and nothing terribly significant happens in the next couple of minutes.

This really is one of those movies where after about 80 minutes in even though you have another hundred minutes or so to go you're probably going to want to try to stay put.

VAUSE: Don't buy the big gulp soda just for one. Plan ahead, people. Plan.

LOWRY: It should be like a moon launch, you know. I don't want to drink too much before you board the ship.

VAUSE: Yes. Brian -- good to see you. Thank you.

LOWRY: Thank you.

VAUSE: And thank you for watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm John Vause.

Please stay with us. A lot more news continues here on CNN right after a break.

[01:57:23] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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