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Foreign Diplomats In North Korea Evacuated To Russia; North Korea Launches Several Projectiles; Refugees Forced Back From Greece, Left In Limbo; Global Markets Plunge Over Coronavirus and Oil; Cruise Ship Allowed to Dock off Oakland; Italy in Lockdown; Inconsistent Messaging Around the Virus Outbreak in the U.S.; Biden and Sanders for the Democratic Presidential Race in Michigan. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired March 09, 2020 - 02:00   ET

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

[02:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN HOST: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us here in the United States and all around the world. You are watching "CNN Newsroom" and I'm Rosemary Church.

Just ahead, as coronavirus cases rise, the global economy hangs in the balance. Stocks worldwide are tumbling as oil prices crash. While the U.S. takes heat for how it is responding to the virus, Italy is locking down an entire region and canceling all public events to contain it.

Protests and celebrations around the world mark International Women's Day. In Mexico on Monday, women are striking for their lives amid a rise in violence against them.

Good to have you with us. We start with the novel coronavirus. It's infected more than 108,000 people worldwide and killed at least 3,800 and the number of deaths in the U.S. has now risen to 22. The outbreak is also triggering a new crash in global markets. Here is a look down where things stand.

U.S. Futures are down as the number of infected here tops 560. The markets have also been hurt by U.S. oil prices, hitting a 4-year low, and we will have details in just a minute.

Meanwhile, Italy is taking extreme measures as it confirms more than 7,300 cases of coronavirus. It is putting around a quarter of its population on lockdown to contain the outbreak, and we'll have more on Italy in just a moment.

But first, we go straight to the toll the virus is taking on global markets. Journalist Kaori Enjoji is in Tokyo with more on market reaction to the development. She joins us now. Kaori, good to see you. A lot of nervousness with some pretty frightening numbers actually. What are you seeing and what might this mean when U.S. markets open in just a few hours? KAORI ENOJOJI, JOURNALIST: Well Rosemary, I think a perfect storm is

brewing right now ahead of the open for U.S. equities later on today. The Tokyo equity market has just closed for the day below the 20,000 mark. This is a loss of more than 5 percent.

Initially in the early minutes of trading, it was down even further to that and this is the lowest level that the index has closed out since the start of 2019 so more than a year ago.

It was off to a very weak start already, because within seconds of trading, we had oil prices crumble at the open. One of the biggest one day drops in history for the price of oil as those OPEC negotiations failed and Saudi Arabia effectively launched a price war with Russia.

That was soon followed by a decline in the dollar-yen rate. Dollar-Yen is a very, very liquid pair and extremely critical for sentiment. We saw whip saw trade in that pair trading above 104 at one point and then quickly resuming in the down trend to 101, currently trading at 102.64.

This is the lowest level for the dollar-yen in over 3 years, at least the move has been. And then the Tokyo equity market loss has spilled over into the rest of Asia. We are seeing big losses in the Australian market as well.

Aussie market worst performance since 2008. The Aussie dollar also getting hammered in Asian trading today. A lot of people are talking about a flash crash in the currency and are reminded of the -- it has very strong parallels to what we saw back in 2015, 2016, what the market likes to call, the China crash.

Back then it was triggered by something in China. It was an equity bubble that burst, but quickly moved into the oil markets with oil prices having at the time. And when you look back in that period, the equity market in Tokyo lost 30 percent. And that's the kind of comparison that people are looking at today as the equity markets crumble, Rosemary.

CHURCH: Yes, very unnerving. Enjoji joining us there live from Tokyo. Many thanks. Well, a cruise ship that had been prevented from docking in San Francisco will now head for port in Oakland, California. At least 21 people on board the Grand Princess have coronavirus. Lucy Kafanov reports a plan is in place to begin getting passengers off the ship on Monday.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

[02:05:04]

LUCY KAFANOV, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the details of the plan are still being worked out by the authorities involved but I can tell you sort of the rough sequence as we understand it from the governor of California.

We know that medical staff boarded the ship on Sunday to begin the process of interviewing the passengers, getting their medical history, getting everything ready for that disembarkation process on Monday.

We know that the boat will come into the port of Oakland, this location chosen in part due to its proximity to the Travis Air Force Base where some of the people will be quarantined, at least the California residents. It's also close to the Oakland International Airport.

That might be an opportunity to get some of those international passengers out of the country, but on chartered flights. The governor of California saying they are making every step possible to prevent the population of the ship for mixing with the local population, with the local community here to keep that disease from spreading.

We know that the thousand or so California residents will be split between either Travis Air Force Base up north or the March Airbase near San Diego. The rest of the U.S. citizens will be flown to either Texas or Georgia, quarantined at the two military bases there.

The big question, what to do with the hundreds of foreign citizens on board, the passengers, the cruise attendees. We know that the State Department is working out those details as we speak. They are trying to get the foreigners evacuated on private chartered flights.

Again, they will not be mixing with the general population at the airport. And then the crew members, about 1,100 of them, they will remain on the ship. They will spend 14 days in quarantine on the Grand Princess. That ship will then pull away from the port of Oakland, go back out to sea, and that is where those staff members will ride out the end of the quarantine. Lucy Kafanov, CNN, Oakland.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Nearly 16 million people are facing lockdown in Italy as the virus spreads. That includes all of Lombardi and 14 provinces in the northern part of the country. The restrictions cover travel and many public gatherings, but it's unclear how much they are being enforced. CNN's Ben Wedeman has more now from Bologna.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: So, early on Sunday, the Italian government announced a new decree with draconian new measures to try and contain the spread of the coronavirus. The red zones which, until Sunday, included just 11 towns and about 50,000 people have been dramatically expanded to the region of Lombardi where Milan is, and 14 provinces with the total population of 16 million.

Now, the variety of measures that are being taken with that are extreme. Nobody can leave or enter the area, although we drove out of it and saw no sign of any controls on the population. Schools, universities, museums, any sort of public place where people gather, they're all closed.

Bars and restaurants, only allowed to be open from 6 a.m. until 6 p.m. and those inside need to keep a distance of a meter between one another. The reason why this decree was passed is that the number of new coronavirus cases continues to increase and inexorably.

The latest numbers were announced on Sunday evening put the total number of recorded cases of coronavirus in all of Italy at 7,375. That is an increase of 1,492, the biggest increase yet. In addition, the number of new deaths is 133, bringing the total to 366.

These are numbers that this country is increasingly alarmed over, which explains why they have taken these measures. The question is, are these measures going to work? I am Ben Wedeman, CNN, reporting from Bologna.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: And in the U.S., there are more than 550 cases of the coronavirus, but the U.S. surgeon general believes the outbreak is being contained in certain parts of the country and the government's response is shifting into a mitigation phase.

Meanwhile, the Trump administration is coming under increased scrutiny for the response to the outbreak. U.S. officials are now offering different answers on the number of test kits available.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIPS)

JEROME ADAMS. U.S SURGEON GENERAL: We have 75,000 tests available right now for folks. By early next week tomorrow, we should have over two million tests available. By the end of the week through partnerships with private industry, over four million test available.

[02:10:00]

ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY & INFECTIOUS DISEASE: Right now I believe 1.1 million tests have already been sent out. By Monday there will be an additional 400,000 and by the end of next week, probably around 4 million.

BEN CARSON, MEMBER, WHITE HOUSE CORONAVIRUS TASK FORCE: Over 1 million tests were shipped out already this past week. Tomorrow, another 640,000 will be available.

(END VIDEO CLIPS)

CHURCH: Joining me now, Ivan Hung, clinical professor and chief of the infectious diseases division at the University of Hong Kong. Good to have you with us.

IVAN HUNG, CLINICAL PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG: Hi. Thank you.

CHURCH: So, as we just heard there, we keep getting these mixed messages, different numbers from U.S. leaders on the coronavirus. How many test kits we can expect to be made available impacting the real number of people actually infected by this virus.

So, why do you think U.S. authorities are having so many problems staying on message and giving citizens the truth about the situation? HUNG: Well, I think they are just moving into the mitigation phase

which is very early. In Hong Kong, we are still doing very much, you know, quarantine and isolating patients as early as possible. So, once they move into mitigation phase, then in other words, that patients who remain asymptomatic or contact cases will not have to be screened by this kit.

So, I think they are now trying -- the U.S. government is just preparing and trying to get the numbers of the kits that are available for testing in order to make an offer to the public in case that there are major outbreaks in various parts of the states.

CHURCH: All right. And I want to move to the Grand Princess Cruise ship. It is expected to dock in just a few hours from now in Oakland, California with at least 21 people on board infected with the coronavirus.

Now, they will be taken off first, then all U.S. passengers will be quarantined for 14 days, and the remaining international passengers we understand will eventually be flown home. Now, are U.S. authorities doing all of the right things when you hear this with the cruise ships, certainly, compared to Japan's botched effort with the Diamond Princess?

HUNG: Yes, I think the U.S. government is making a correct decision to letting the passengers to go disembark and get quarantined on the ground because in Japan, passengers had been quarantined on the ship and I think a lot of passengers actually got cross-infected while they were on board.

And if they are allowing the people to get disembark, they will be able to keep the infection coefficient (ph) down to probably about 1.3, 1.4, which will be much better than keeping people on board and basically in a contaminated environment.

CHURCH: Right. So let's hope that will run smoothly. I want to turn to Italy now where authorities are putting nearly 16 million people under lockdown across the north in an effort to contain this virus after the number of dead jumped to at least 366 with more than 7,300 infected. How effective do you think this lockdown will be in containing the virus and why has Italy had so many more problems than other nations do you think?

HUNG: Well, I think it's a correct decision, even though it might be slightly late. But looking at the experience that we have with Wuhan and Hubei, that once the city is locked down, they are able to stop the infection from spreading to other parts of Italy and Europe. So, it is extremely important to isolate the people there right now.

And I think the problem with Italy is that they probably are not very aware, at the beginning, that this virus is very contagious. And I think at the beginning, people had not been, you know, isolating themselves on seeking medical help earlier on. And also, many people are actually carrying the virus while they remain asymptomatic.

So that is why the virus was spreading very quickly in northern part of Italy before they actually noticed that they had so many patients there already, which is maybe already too late before they actually now are putting in disinfection control measures.

CHURCH: Right. Let's hope this lockdown works for Italy. Ivan Hung, thank you so much for talking with us.

HUNG: Thank you.

[02:14:59]

CHURCH: Appreciate it. And we'll take a short break here. Still to come, American voters in six states head to the polls Tuesday. We will ask about the potentially make-or-break state the Democratic contenders feel they must win. Back with, that in just a moment.

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(WORLD SPORTS)

CHURCH: This week in the United States, Super Tuesday round two, and a lot as on the line in the Democratic presidential race. There are 352 delegates at stake. The big prize is Michigan, which was critical in 2016.

Senator Bernie Sanders narrowly won the state in that year's primary when Hillary Clinton was widely expected to win. But in the general election, Donald Trump ultimately flipped the state to his side. How Michigan lands Tuesday could seal Sanders faith in his quest for the nomination.

We will check in with CNN's Abby Philip in Michigan, but we start with Jessica Dean who is with the Biden camp in Mississippi.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

JESSICA DEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Former Vice President Joe Biden turning his attention to the next round of Super Tuesday voting. He spent the day in Mississippi where he is hoping to shore up support here, especially among African-American voters who have continued to show up very strongly for the former vice president.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[02:20:04]

JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: If I am the comeback kid, which I ain't there yet, but if I'm the comeback kid, there's only one reason I've come back -- the African-American community all around the country.

Folks, I think we are in a position for a new awakening here. I think we are such at a tipping point. This election, you can make a choice to take the country back, you can heal what's wrong with this country.

(END VIDEO CLIP) DEAN: We saw him do very well in southern states last Tuesday. He is certainly hoping to repeat it this coming Tuesday. From here, he is going to head to Michigan. It's the biggest prize of this next round of voting. Bernie Sanders won it narrowly back in 2016.

Biden hoping to put Michigan in his win column this go around. And he is going to have a little help from a former rival, Senator Kamala Harris, announcing her endorsement of Biden on Sunday. We learn from a source that she did not want to do anything until Elizabeth Warren exited the race.

She did not want to go against Warren or Senator Amy Klobuchar, but she came to that decision late Saturday night to endorse Biden. We're told she will be getting out the vote with him, rallying with him in Detroit, Michigan on Monday. In Jackson, Mississippi, Jessica Dean, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPTE)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ABBY PHILLIP, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: It is make-or-break for Bernie Sanders' campaign here in Michigan. On Tuesday, when Michigan voters go to the polls, they really hold the future of the Sanders campaign in their hands.

Now, Sanders is trying to regain momentum that he lost after a disappointing Super Tuesday finish. He has got to prove that he can bring out his voters that he can appeal to working class voters in the middle of the country in the industrial Midwest. And that he can appeal to Africa-American voters.

And to that end, he rolled out a major endorsement from Jesse Jackson, the civil rights icon who put his support behind Sanders at a rally in Grand Rapids on Sunday. And here is how Jackson framed why he was supporting Sanders.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JESSE JACKSON, CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVISM: A lot of talk about Democratic socialism, what does all that mean. The operative word is democracy, all for and by the people. Bernie can win. We'll win. Must win. When Bernie wins, health care wins.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIP: Now, that endorsement comes at a time that Sanders is sharpening his attacks against Joe Biden, trying to make the case to voters in the industrial Midwest that Biden was wrong on issues like trade, even arguing that Biden voted the wrong way on issues of abortion rights in this country.

But one of the big challenges for Bernie Sanders is going to be, can he improve his standing with African-American voters? They are a big chunk of the Democratic electorate here in Michigan. In Flint over the weekend, Sanders did a roundtable with African-American leaders, and that is a message that they are hoping that the Jackson endorsement can help them with.

The question is, is there enough time between now and Tuesday for Sanders to make that change while he has been making the argument to his supporters that what he needs them to do is get out to the polls and do not count him out yet. He says that this election is not over yet. They are still in it to win it. Abby Phillip, CNN, Ann Arbor, Michigan.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: And with me now to talk more U.S. politics is Peter Matthews from Los Angeles. Peter is a professor of political science at Cypress College in California. Thank you so much.

PETER MATTHEWS, POLITICAL ANALYST: Good to be here, Rosemary.

CHURCH: All right. So just hours away from the next Super Tuesday contest, and after surprising everyone last week with his sweeping wins, the new front runner, Joe Biden, got himself another big endorsement, this time from Kamala Harris.

Biden does appear to be on a roll here, doesn't he? How is he likely to go Tuesday up against his rival Bernie Sanders, particularly in Michigan?

MATTHEWS: The total delegate count is, I think there is about 70 delegates more than Biden has than Sanders has. So, you know, there are still about 20 points (ph) of delegates had to be allocated and so it's so early. A little bit -- today is a big day. Tuesday is a very big day.

It's a mini Super Tuesday and Michigan as a key industrial state. It's a swing state and Sanders has to win this. Right now, we don't know how exactly how it's going to go, but it looks like Biden might be having the favor in terms of the polling, but Michigan is very difficult to poll as well. We'll have to wait and see what happens on Tuesday.

CHURCH: Right. And meantime, California still counting votes, right, from last Tuesday's primary. And while Sanders is expected to win, Biden continues to narrow Sanders once sizable lead. What does that signal to you?

MATTHEWS: Well, that shows that it's a very close race all around. And, you know, with the only two people running now, that really narrows it down much better than it did earlier when there were so many people running. And I do believe it is still a long ways to go and something could happen.

But, you know, Sanders is in a tough position. He's got to really work hard and get the people out to vote. Young people for example and the Muslim-Americans and the suburban voters he needs to collar from Joe Biden.

[02:25:00] Those are key constituents in Michigan and also in Missouri, which is a big state and Washington State looks like it might go for Sanders anyway. So, there is a lot that has to be done in the Sanders camp, but Biden also is not secure yet. He could -- you know, Joe Biden is very unpredictable especially in debates. And a big debate is coming up in about a week so we'll have to see what happens there too.

CHURCH: Yes. We will talk about that of course. But how did Joe Biden's fortunes suddenly change from being almost down and out to now being the Democratic front runner? What changed for him do you think? What was the main factor?

MATTHEWS: The main factor was getting the endorsement of Congressman Clyburn in South Carolina, which actually gave him a boost and it had a resounding victory in South Carolina based on the African-American vote, which is 60 percent of voters, and that really put him into a momentum that he carried into Super Tuesday.

I think that was a very key moment in South Carolina and I think that was what happened. So we got to see that continues. There are a lot of variables involved because other states coming up are different to South Carolina.

They are much more diverse, not just African-American base, and that could make a difference to also Bernie because Bernie can bring out -- he can bring out young people. That's been a key problem for Bernie, is those Super Tuesday states, about 5 percent less young people voted this time than last time, and that was not good for Bernie's support because he relied so much on the young people to vote. If they come out again, he will be on track once again.

CHURCH: And of course, Joe Biden calls himself the gaffe machine. We'll see whether he can control that a lot of unknowns going forward, but we'll all be watching very closely. Peter Matthews, thank you so much for joining us. Appreciate it.

MATTHEWS: My pleasure. Thank you.

CHURCH: Well, North Korea launches projectiles for a second time in a week. We go live to Seoul, South Korea for the latest on what officials are saying, back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:30:00]

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Welcome back, everyone. We want to recap our top story. The spread of the novel coronavirus. It's now killed at least 22 people here in the United States and infected more than 560. In California, the Grand Princess cruise ship is waiting to dock in Oakland. It's been quarantined at sea with at least 21 infections on board.

There are more than 108,000 cases worldwide and 3,800 deaths in total. China is still the worst-hit country but Italy is facing more than 7,300 cases. It's putting around a quarter of its population on lockdown to stop the virus.

Washington State has the most coronavirus cases in the U.S. with 137. 19 people have died there. Many were residents of a nursing home in Kirkland. CNN's Omar Jimenez looks at how officials in the state are handling the situation.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This Life Care Center nursing facility in the Seattle Washington area has been a focal point in this story, but for all the wrong reasons. You take the first 17 deaths we saw in this county as a result of the novel coronavirus. 16 of them stemming from this single facility, including two new ones that were reported over the course of Sunday.

Now, to give you an idea of how much this facility, in particular, has been impacted. It was just less than a month ago, they had 120 residents that were here and now between hospitalizations and sadly deaths, that number is down to 55. And part of what officials have been scrambling for is trying to make sure there are enough testing kits to go around for these residents.

They now have enough but part of that is because their numbers are so depleted. And it's not just residents either, there are employees that are having to show up every single day to take care of these residents. And as we understand, there are at least 70 that are now showing symptoms themselves, multiple of which who are hospitalized and at least one that has tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

And outside this facility, this is something that is affected the wider Seattle area living under the shadow of this novel coronavirus. Leading to precautions we have seen taken in nearly every aspect of life including, namely education, from elementary school all the way up to University. The University of Washington, for example, electing to move to online learning for the rest of their quarter, which is at least two weeks at this point just to keep kids from gathering in those large lecture halls together.

And while we have seen school closures scattered temporarily throughout the state, one school district that includes more than 20,000 students is also moving to online learning for up to 14 days, again, as a precaution. All part of what is becoming an increasing reality in cities all across the United States as they try to grapple with the spread of the novel coronavirus. Omar Jimenez, CNN, Kirkland, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Well, foreign diplomats who were quarantined inside North Korea had been evacuated to Russia. They had been kept in isolation since early February of a few years of a coronavirus outbreak in the country. Our Will Ripley is in Tokyo with more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILL RIPLEY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It was before dawn in Pyongyang, North Korea when a convoy of diplomats finally left that country after weeks of total isolation. We have photos of their departure provided by the U.K. ambassador to North Korea, Colin Crooks. You can see the cars carrying those diplomats from a number of countries we're told. Germany, Switzerland, France, they are all shutting down diplomatic operations completely in North Korea for the time being.

Other countries are dramatically scaling back their operations countries like Russia, Pakistan, Cambodia, Egypt, Nigeria, and Mongolia. A source onboard the evacuation flight tells me that there were 103 people on board. This was a flight provided by the North Korean government by their state airline Air Koryo. And normally Air Koryo flies regularly to Beijing, but all flights have been suspended since basically the onset of this Coronavirus outbreak. North Korea sealing off its borders and quarantining all foreigners for more than a month trying to prevent the spread of the virus inside that country.

But because really nobody's flying to Beijing right now because of flight restrictions, instead, this flight took more than 100 diplomats from Pyongyang to another city that North Korea flies to on a semi- regular basis, Vladivostok, Russia, and this came after a series of negotiations with the Russians. There were delays as to when the flight was going to leave. It was scheduled for last week. Then people were told that the flight was canceled. The talks were still ongoing. The Russian Foreign Ministry confirming that they were sorting out the logistics and they agreed on Monday as the day the diplomats would finally be evacuated.

[02:35:04]

Now the reason for the evacuation is unclear. We don't know if this has anything to do with the coronavirus situation that had those diplomats quarantine inside the country. And even though more than 100 left, there are still 200 or so remaining according to the estimates of how many foreign diplomats are operating inside North Korea.

So essentially this, country saw its for diplomatic corps reduced by one third. And yet for those who do remain, the situation remains tricky because they're running out of things like cash and supplies. You know, in North Korea, you don't have a banking system where you can wire transfer money over. Everything has to be carried in by hand.

And it's not clear if this flight to Vladivostok if it was possible for countries to you know, send supplies and money back as it -- as it flew back into North Korea, a country that has its borders sealed off, a country that has not confirmed a single case of coronavirus, a claim question by many outsiders who are concerned about the virus situation inside that country. A country that has a very limited medical system with outdated equipment, a country that is highly susceptible to a very serious coronavirus outbreak if indeed the virus were to get inside that country. Will Ripley, CNN, Tokyo.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Well, North Korea appears to once again be ramping up weapons tests. Both U.S. and South Korean officials confirmed projectiles were fired into the waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan. South Korea says they were launch from the north Sondok area. And CNN's Ivan Watson joins us now from Seoul, South Korea with more on this developing story.

So Ivan, what more are you learning about these projectiles and, of course, the message possibly being sent by Kim Jong-un.

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's the second launch in a week. Last Monday, the North Koreans fired, the U.S. military says, with two short-range ballistic missiles. And around 7:30 local time this morning, the South Korean military says at least three unidentified projectiles were launched into the waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan. That they flew at in distance of about 200 kilometers and an altitude of about 50 kilometers.

Now, the South Korean military says that this goes against the spirit of a military agreement signed between the North and the South last September aimed at reducing military tensions between the two rivals. Japan's Prime Minister has gone a step further calling it a threat to peace and security in the region.

Last week after the previous ballistic missile launch, five European countries lodged a complaint condemning the action in the United Nations Security Council, arguing that this was a violation of United Nations Security Council resolutions. Pyongyang fired back at that saying that these types of military exercise are simply defensive measures. Rosemary?

CHURCH: Ivan Watson, many thanks to you joining us live there from Seoul. We'll take a short break. Coming up next on CNN NEWSROOM, refugees kicked out of Greece with no clothes and no I.D. The migrant crisis on the Turkish-Greek border takes a brutal turn. We'll have more when we come back.

[02:40:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: Welcome back everyone. The Turkish Coast Guard announced this weekend it is actively stopping migrants attempting to cross the Aegean citing the dangers of this journey. Now, this comes as tensions remain high on the country's borders with Greece after Turkey opened the crossings to those trying to get to Europe.

Last week, E.U. officials praised the Greek government and pledged nearly $800 million in aid to help Greece keep the border secure. But Greek forces are once again accused of brutal tactics in pushing back refugees and migrants to Turkey. CNN's Jomana Karadsheh reports now from the Turkish-Greek border.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: They were desperate for Europe, but Europe didn't want them. Sent back to Turkey stripped of their clothes, I.D. documents and their dignity. These men from Pakistan, Morocco, and Syria say they were violently pushed back by Greek security forces. We can't verify the conditions in which this video from Turkish state broadcaster TRT was filmed, but human rights groups have documented dozens of similar testimonies from refugees in recent years.

Thousands have made it across this river to Greece. Many of them have come back with shocking accounts of what they've been through. 20- year-old Abdulaziz has been walking for hours barefoot. We found him and his friends on the road in the Turkish border city of Edirne. They say Greek security forces caught them shortly after they crossed into Greece illegally.

It was the military or the police, he tells us. They were carrying weapons. They took all our clothes. We were left in our underwear. They took our phones, our money and documents. They burnt the IDs and clothes, he tells us. He claims they were beaten up, lined up on the ground, and kicked with combat boots.

Greek authorities have repeatedly denied using these brutal push-back methods or excessive force. The government says Greece has the right to defend its borders from illegal crossings. It's also doing so on behalf of Europe. During our time at the border, we heard many similar stories.

Everybody from Afghanistan?

We met this group of Afghan refugees, exhausted yet determined. Hameed carried his baby boy through the river and fields. After walking for five hours, he says they were caught by Greek security.

HAMEED, AFGHAN REFUGEE: They beat us with some like -- it was a stick. And then the deport us back.

KARADSHEH: Did they beat you up?

HAMEED: Yes. My wife, this person.

KARADSHEH: So they hit you and they hit your wife.

HAMEED: Yes, yes, everything.

KARADSHEH: Hameed says, people don't choose to become refugees.

HAMEED: We want my children become big in the good idea and could have good life.

KARADSHEH: In their pursuit of that good life, thousands have found themselves pawns on a political chessboard between Turkey and the E.U.

HAMZA, PAKISTANI REFUGEE: Turkey army say go Greece. I try one time but the Greek army say go back. Go back to Istanbul. They take all our money, mobile. We come here with only underwear. What is this? We are -- we are all like a ball and both countries are like a bat. They playing game with us.

[02:45:19] KARADSHEH: No one here knows how this game will end, but they say nothing will stop them from trying to make it to Europe. Jomana Karadsheh, CNN on the Turkish-Greek border.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: And we'll be back after this.

[02:50:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: Women and men turned out in cities around the world for International Women's Day. In Pakistan, they marched against patriarchy and chanted my body my choice. But they were met with a backlash from Islam s.

In Iraq, hundreds march to Baghdad's Tahrir Square demanding equal rights and an end to corruption. And in Chile, water cannons were used when clashes broke out between police and demonstrators. More than 100,000 people turned out to denounce sexual violence and the Machista Culture.

Well, there's been a growing outcry in parts of Latin America for governments to do more about femicide, the murder of women based on gender. CNN's Matt Rivers is in Mexico City with one case of femicide that is still unresolved.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATT RIVERS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It's always tough for Lydia Florencio to talk about her daughter. And as we look at old pictures, she breaks down a bit. It's clear that this day is harder than others.

She would have turned 27 years old today, she says. I can't explain how painful it is knowing I'll never see my daughter again. Her daughter Diana Velasquez Florencio was raped and murdered not far from her house in July 2017. Two and a half years later, they're still no suspect.

Who killed her? What did they tell her during the last moments of her life? Why did they do it, she asks. All those questions and the government has done nothing to help. Where is the murderer? Police haven't responded yet to our requests for comment but Diana's murder was classified by police as a femicide, the term used when women are killed because of their gender. 1,006 such murders took place in Mexico last year.

So what that says is basically no forgiving, no forgetting, justice for Diana Velazquez Florencio.

Lydia brought a bigger version of that to Mexico City on Sunday, her daughter's image joining thousands of other signs as protesters filled the streets. This woman says we're here to demand rights for women and for justice for femicide victims. Overall, 10 women per day were murdered in Mexico in 2019.

This woman says, I'm here to unite with other women to stand with that to demand justice.

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador's response has faced heavy criticism as he's blamed the problem on past governments. It's a process of progressive degradation that has to do with the neo-liberal model, he says.

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For Lydia, it all adds up to an inadequate government response. She says, we're here because the authorities are lazy and inept. We're demanding that the federal government takes gender violence seriously.

So she marches, a mother's act of fighting for her daughter and for everyone else's. They chant, not one more. Not one more murder. Matt Rivers, CNN, Mexico City.

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CHURCH: And My Freedom Day is almost here. March 11th is a day when CNN partners with young people worldwide for day of action against modern-day slavery. We're asking them what does freedom means to you? Here's one answer from a school in Equatorial Guinea.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Freedom means the right to do anything I want without anyone stopping me. I am free. I have the right to choose.

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CHURCH: And tell the world what freedom means to you. Share your story using the hashtag My Freedom Day. Thanks so much for joining us. I'm Rosemary Church. I'll be right back with more news in just a moment. You're watching CNN. Do stick around.

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