Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Live At Daybreak

World Economic Forum Sees Little Violence

Aired February 04, 2002 - 06:32   ET

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

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: The World Economic Forum wraps today in New York City. The forum has attracted its share of protesters, but violence that has marred the event in previous years has been absent this time around.

CNN's Maggie Lake joins us live from New York with the latest from there. Hey Maggie.

MAGGIE LAKE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning Carol. We are inside the Waldorf for the final day of the World Economic Forum and security has certainly been tight throughout the five-day conference. Now we did see the protesters turn out in force over the weekend. About 5,000 people gathered on Saturday to march down towards the Waldorf. Anti-globalization, also raising issues about war, the environment, but they were, for the most part, very peaceful.

The biggest confrontation actually turned out to be on Sunday. The numbers were much smaller, but about 150 people were arrested on the Upper East side, actually away from the cameras. There were some windows broken, but again, as you said, it was really absent of the violence that has marred these events in the past.

Now in terms of what was going on inside the forum, the talk was dominated by a lot of the concerns, the global concerns, talk about terrorism, about poverty, about the outlook for the global economy, also a lot of talk about Enron. Kenneth Lay may have decided not to testify and talk about it today, but it hasn't stopped the chat in the hallway. A lot of the corporate leaders trying to figure out a way to prevent that type of thing from happening again.

As for the official sessions that we're looking at this morning, it's going to cover topics such as Argentina developing an AIDS vaccine. We're going to have the CEO of Cisco, John Chambers talking, so a lot going on. And I should mention it is wrapping up today. We're not expecting any sort of official statement or declaration. It really doesn't come out of this meeting. However, keep your eyes peeled. This forum has become famous for being that hatching place and sowing the seeds of some of the biggest corporate deals ever. So we'll have to keep our eyes on the months to come -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Absolutely. Hey, the protesters out there, do they feel that their protests have been successful?

LAKE: You know I think they feel that they are being heard, especially because of the violence we've seen in the past. In addition to the security, the organizers of the event really try to incorporate some of the issues into the sessions. In fact, some of the members of the protest groups were invited to participate. They invited a lot of religious leaders in. A lot of sessions on poverty, on aid, so I think there is a feeling that some progress and maybe a better relationship is being established. But critics would still say it's just lip service. They want to see action -- Carol.

COSTELLO: OK. Maggie Lake reporting for us live from New York City this morning. Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com