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NEWS STREAM
Anti-Putin Protests Held Across Russia This Weekend; Results Due In Parliamentary Election; The French President's Triumphs And Challenges; Pyongyang Warns U.S. Not To Provoke Before Talks; Guiliani: Trump Doesn't Have To Comply With Mueller Subpoena; Dozens Of Homes Destroyed As Residents Flees Lava; Rape In India; Sale of Phnom Penh Post Sparks Fears Over Press Freedom; CNN's New Series Called "Icons"; Box Office Movie. Aired 8-9a ET
Aired May 07, 2018 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[08:00:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong, and welcome to News Stream.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: Another six years, Russian President Vladimir Putin is inaugurated again. And he is promising to dedicate his life to the Russian
state.
Awaiting official results, Lebanon holds its first parliamentary election in nine years, and it could shift the balance of the government.
And rape, murder, and retaliation, what will it take to stop the abuse of girls and young women in India? We'll hear from a rights activist about
getting real justice.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: A lack of competition, a lack of interest, and a push back against nationalism. Now, we begin with three very different views of
democracy. In Russia, President Vladimir Putin has just been sworn in for an unprecedented fourth term.
And Lebanon seize its fourth parliamentary election in nearly a decade, but less than half of the country's voters showed up to the polls. Plus, the
youngest French leader since Napoleon celebrates its first year in office.
We'll look back at the ups and downs of President Emmanuel Macron's past 12 months. Now, the only leader, young Russians have ever known has just
begun his fourth term in office. Vladimir Putin was sworn in this afternoon in Moscow where he vowed to dedicate his life to Russia and its
people.
The Kremlin leader has dominated Russian politics for the past 18 years as both president and prime minister. And with his next presidential term
lasting six years, Mr. Putin is in position to rule for 24 years, not everyone is happy about that.
In fact this weekend, thousands of protesters turned out for anti- government demonstrations in Moscow. Among them, Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny who was briefly detained, but later released.
CNN's Matthew Chance joins me now live from Moscow. And, Matthew, a fourth term for Vladimir Putin. Describe the swearing in ceremony that took place
earlier today as well as those protests.
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, first of all on the ceremony. I think it was a really interesting bit of political theater. I mean,
television, you know, had an incredible video. First of all, Vladimir Putin sitting at his desk with his jacket off, waiting for the ceremony to
take place, he then got up, put his jacket on.
He's always working is the message that they want to convey with that kind of image, then he walked down these extraordinary long corridors in the
Kremlin until he got outside where he stepped into his brand new presidential limousine, which has been made under a Russian -- by Russians.
It's a Russian-made car.
It's a big sort of Cortege project as it's called, which is this new sort of bullet proof Kremlin limousine that was seen here for the first time
before it drove him to St. Andrew Hall in the grand Kremlin Palace, where that extraordinary ceremony was held in front of 3,000 people, VIPs,
members of the Russian parliament, ministers in the outgoing Russian government.
And a number of foreign individuals as well, including Gerhard Schroeder, the former Chancellor of German, now heads up an important pipeline
organization which is owned by Russia. And Steven Seagal, who is a Hollywood movie star, and who is also a close personal friend of the
Russian President.
And so, you know, extraordinary scenes we've seen being broadcast on state media, but nowhere has there been any mention of the protests that took
place over the weekend, just a few days before this ceremony took place.
All over the country, thousands of people turning out to voice their opposition to this, the forth term of Vladimir Putin as Russian President.
LU STOUT: And, Matthew, one wonders what's next for Vladimir Putin, because in China, we know that Xi Jinping is now a limitless president. He
can rule for as long as he wants. Can Putin the do the same in Russia?
CHANCE: Well, I think it has become pretty clear over the past 18 years or so, since Vladimir Putin has wielded unbridled power basically in Russia,
that Putin can do whatever he chooses to do.
We have been confronted with this problem in the past. Constitutionally, the Russian President can only serve two consecutive terms. Russia, or the
Russian President, and the Kremlin has said it's very reluctant to change that constitution.
[08:05:04] Back in 2008 when they last confronted this problem, they came up with an anti (ph) solution which was -- that the prime minister should
be going in.
The President should be -- the President should be taken over by the Prime Minister, basically he swapped roles, Putin did, with the Prime Minister of
the country, still continued to wield, you know, enormous power, and was still the main power in the country.
But he stepped away from the presidency only to return, you know, four years later. He's now got six years left to decide what to do in this
presidential term. But the expectation is that, you know, he's not really going anywhere at the moment.
There are no plans on the horizon to see him changed out with another leader. There was no obvious successor, and it seems like Putin is here
for the seeable future.
LU STOUT: Yes, Putin on power likely to go on and on. Matthew Chance, live in Moscow for us, thank you. We are waiting on the official results
of the first parliamentary election in Lebanon in nine years.
Polls closed on Sunday, the Interior Minister says turnout was low at just under 50 percent. Well, factions led by Prime Minister Saad Hariri in
Hezbollah are vying for control of parliament.
Now for more, CNN's Ben Wedeman joins me from the Lebanese capital of Beirut. And, Ben, turnout may be lower than the last round of
parliamentary elections in 2009, but this is still a very significant vote. Tell us why.
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's significant because for the first time, Kristie, Lebanon was going by a proportional representation system as
a proposed to winner takes all. You had 800,000 new voters who hadn't been able to vote because in fact there hadn't been an election since 2009.
So that's what's changed, what we've also seen is that the Shia bloc composed of two main parties, Hezbollah and the Amal Movement seem to have
maintain their position. We saw that Saad Al-Hariri's future's bloc did seem to lose about a third of their seats in the parliament.
But the overall power sharing system that has been in place in Lebanon since it achieved independence in 1943 will remain the same, a Maronite
Christian president, a Sunni Muslim prime minister, and a Shiite speaker of parliament.
There may be some reshuffling, but by and large it's not expected that this election will result in any radical changes when it comes to the way
Lebanese politics function or misfunction, depending how you look at them.
LU STOUT: And depending on the results due to come out later today. Ben Wedeman live in Beirut, thank you. Today marks one year since Emmanuel
Macron became the youngest President in French history.
He entered office as a centrist, having formed his own political party in 2016, and a year on, Mr. Macron faces opposition from the left, as well as
angry labor unions. Melissa Bell has more from Paris.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It was to Beethoven's Ode to Joy that Emmanuel Macron completed his march to power. In less than a year he'd
founded a new party and seen off the old ones. Now, he had won the presidency, and could take his vision to the world stage.
He began with Vladimir Putin receiving him grandly at Versailles, but speaking plainly alongside the Russian President of human rights abuses,
and allegations of meddling in foreign elections, including his own.
EMMANUEL MACRON, PRESIDENT OF FRANCE (through a translator): Politicians have the responsibility to make decisions, to say things, and when press
organs spread infamous counter-truths, they are no longer journalists. They're organs of influence.
BELL: With Donald Trump, the exchanges would be warmer, but the strategy the same, the building, whether in Paris or in Washington, of a solid
relationship combined with tough talk, and plain speaking.
MACRON: I do not share the fast nation for new strong powers, the abandonment of freedom, and the illusion of nationalism.
BELL: Emmanuel Macron has been determined to represent and forcefully the world view based on common values, and multilateralism that used to be
fashionable in London, and in Washington. And domestically, he has been equally determined to liberalize France.
Last autumn, he saw protests to reform France's labor code, among other things, giving companies more flexibility to hire and fire. Now he's in
the middle of a battle with rail unions, and despite strikes, protests, and popular discontent, he says he won't back down.
There are those in France who remain skeptical of the spin accusing Macron of being more style than substance, and those on the left who worry about
the liberalizing of the economy.
[08:10:05] And the direction in which Emmanuel Macron's march is taking them. Melissa Bell, CNN, Paris.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LU STOUT: Malaysia is preparing for a general election that could prove pivotal. Well, the current Prime Minister Najib Razak is expecting to will
another term, the country's opposition is gaining steam.
And even if the Prime Minister's ruling coalition does win, he could face a leadership challenge from within his own party. That coalition has led
Malaysia since it gained independence in 1957. Police in Pakistan say that they have arrested a suspect in the shooting of the country's Interior
Minister.
Ahsan Iqbal was wounded in the shoulder after being targeted at a political meeting in Punjab Province. And police believe that the shooting may be
linked to a hard line Islamist movement demanding tough reinforcement of Pakistan's blasphemy laws.
Earlier this year, Ahsan Iqbal spoke to CNN about the broader security issues that Pakistan is facing, and he insisted his country is doing
everything it can to clamp down on terror.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
AHSAN IQBAL, PAKISTAN INTERIOR MINISTER: First of all, let me say that there is no country in the word that has made as much sacrifice, and has
much contribution towards fighting terrorism, and last many years Pakistan has lost about 60,000 people, $135 billion lost to its economy.
So we are committed to fighting terrorism. There is very nominal aid that is coming USAID or the United States to Pakistan. Pakistan is not fighting
this war for U.S. aid. We are fighting this war from our own people.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: Ahsan Iqbal there. Now, we are just weeks away from that planned historic summit between the U.S. and North Korea, but Pyongyang is
snapping at some recent statements from the U.S. about North Korean denuclearization. And we're going to get the latest from Hawaii, where Big
Island residents have fled their homes as that volcano continues to erupt.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LU STOUT: Coming to you live from Hong Kong, welcome back. This is News Stream. And while North Korea seems to be warming up to its southern
neighbor, it's getting a bit frosty with the U.S.
Pyongyang is telling the U.S. to stop claiming credit for its promises to denuclearize, saying the historic Panmunjom Declaration has led to its
peaceful actions, and any talks suggesting that U.S. sanctions were the motivation is misleading public opinion.
This job comes at a delicate time, the countries are planning talks between U.S. President Trump and the North Korean Leader Kim Jong-un. So, will
these historic scenes of goodwill get to play out again in a bit few weeks from now? Alexandra Field has more on that.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We could be just weeks away from an historic summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and the North Korean
Leader Kim Jong-un.
[08:15:04] But before that much anticipated sit down happens, North Korean state news slamming the U.S. A North Korean official quoted as saying that
the U.S. is misleading public opinion by suggesting that North Korea is coming to the negotiating table on the topic of denuclearization as a
result of pressure, economic sanctions, and that international campaign of maximum pressure.
Instead, the Deputy Foreign Minister of North Korea insists that the progress that we are seeing happen on the Peninsula is a result of that
other historic summit between North Korea and South Korea. These are similar lines that have been put out there before by North Korean state
news.
This is an opportunity again for North Korea to flex its muscle before heading into that summit, claiming credit for the cascade of diplomatic
developments, really a change in atmosphere that we've seen that dates back to February when North Korea sent its Olympic team to participate in the
games in South Korea.
A lot was decided at that North Korean-South Korean summit, including to talk further about denuclearization, and also to work toward a lasting
peace treaty that would put to an end a Korean War, some 65 years after the fighting.
But the details of all of this will have to be worked out when President Trump and Kim Jong-un come together. President Trump has said that a date
and a location for the summit has finally been set, but he hasn't revealed any of the details of that.
In the mean time, much of the world is watching, and waiting to see if North Korea will make a good faith effort, put a goodwill gesture out there
before the summit by releasing three American detainees. Just a week ago, there was heavy speculation that the release of those prisoners would be
imminent.
It came about when the President's personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, announced that the three men would be freed last Thursday. Thursday came
and Thursday went, but administration officials insist they're confident that North Korea will release the detainees before the summit.
The President himself has teased that people should stay tuned, that there are developments in the works. In Seoul, Alexandra Field, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LU STOUT: Now, the President's newest lawyer is back in the news circuit, trying to clarify those conflicting comments by the White House regarding
the Stormy Daniels case. Rudy Giuliani is also suggesting Mr. Trump could invoke his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination. Kaitlan
Collins has more from Washington.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RUDY GIULIANI, ATTORNEY FOR DONALD TRUMP: They don't have a case on collusion. They don't have a case on obstruction. I'm going to walk him
into a prosecution for perjury like Martha Stewart did?
KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Rudy Giuliani ratcheting up his defense of President Trump, and his criticism of the Mueller probe,
suggesting that Mr. Trump could defy a potential subpoena to testify before the Special Counsel.
GIULIANI: We don't have to. He's the President of the United States. We can assert the same privilege as other presidents have. President Clinton
negotiated a deal.
COLLINS: Giuliani refusing to rule out the possibility that the President could ultimately invoke his Fifth Amendment rights.
GIULIANI: How can I ever be confident of that? When I'm -- when I'm facing a situation with the President, and all the other lawyers are, in
which every lawyer in America thinks he'd be a fool to testify, I've got a client who wants to testify.
Please, don't -- he said it yesterday. And you know, Jay and I said to ourselves, my goodness, you know, I hope we get the chance to tell him the
risk that he's taking.
COLLINS: This, despite the President's repeated criticism of that legal move.
TRUMP: The mob takes the Fifth. If you're innocent, why are you taking the Fifth Amendment?
COLLINS: The former New York City mayor also doing damage control after admitting that Mr. Trump reimbursed his attorney for the hush money paid to
Stormy Daniels, contradicting what the President has said in the past.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mr. President, did you know about the $130,000 payment to Stormy Daniels?
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: No. No.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you know where he got the money to make that payment?
TRUMP: No, I don't know. No.
COLLINS: The New York Times reports that the President knew about that payment when he made those remarks. Kellyanne Conway attempting to clarify
that remark while insisting that the White House doesn't have a credibility problem.
KELLYANNE CONWAY, COUNSELOR TO DONALD TRUMP: When the President said no on Air Force One, he was talking about he didn't know when the payment
occurred. A very fast-moving exchange between him and Catherine Lucey of the A.P., I believe. And so he's saying he didn't know about it when the
payment occurred. He found out about it after the fact.
COLLINS: Giuliani indicating its possible Cohen may have paid off other women, as well.
GIULIANI: I'd have no knowledge of that. But I would -- I would think if it was necessary, yes. He made payments for the President.
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS, ABC NEWS: Is Michael Cohen still the President's attorney?
GIULIANI: No, of course not. It would be a conflict right now for him to be the President's attorney. I am, in this respect. I don't think it's a
good idea for the two of them to talk right now. Eventually, they can.
COLLINS: The President's lawyer also distancing himself from the Daniels case...
GIULIANI: You know, I'm not really involved in the Daniels thing.
COLLINS: ... after Mr. Trump publicly undermined his longtime friend last week.
TRUMP: Virtually, everything said has been said incorrectly, and it's been said wrong, or it's been covered wrong by the press. He started yesterday.
He'll get his facts straight.
COLLINS: Giuliani telling CNN that he's still getting up to speed, noting, I haven't been able to read the 1.2 million documents.
[08:20:05] I am focused on the law more than the facts right now.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LU STOUT: And that was White House Reporter Kaitlan Collins reporting there. Now, Britain's Foreign Secretary is meeting both the U.S. Vice
President and National Security Adviser today with America's future in the Iran nuclear deal front and center.
Nic Robertson has more on that from London, and he joins me now. And, Nic, how does Boris Johnson trying to convince Trump to stay in the deal?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, he is not meeting with President Trump, and that is perhaps normal. He's a Foreign Minister, he's not the
head of state.
Angela Merkel, President Francois -- President Emmanuel Macron, rather, of France just in the past couple of weeks have met with President Trump, and
talked to him about the issue that is front, and center. But Boris Johnson -- Boris Johnson is going to try and get his views in front of the
President in different ways.
He's expected to talk very shortly on Fox and Friends, something that has a broad understanding that the President -- a program the President watches.
So I think Boris Johnson will be hoping that President Trump hears what he has to say there.
He also wrote an op-ed for the New York Times where he sort of began by talking about British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. Churchill he
quoted him as saying -- said that there was no -- that the worst form of government was democracy except all the other forms of government that
hadn't been tried -- that have been tried, and then went on to0 sort of segue into the Iran deal.
And saying that that deal was much better than having no deal, that the constraints it puts on Iran and Iran's nuclear ambitions were strong, were
necessary, and that it had good results so far.
And said there was no need for President Trump to take, as he called it, the handcuffs off right now. Better to leave Iran constrained. So this is
a message that he is trying to get in front of President Trump in many ways that you said there through Vice President Mike Pence, through John Bolton,
the national -- Trump's National Security Adviser as well.
LU STOUT: All right, Nic Robertson reporting live for us. Thank you very much indeed for that. Take care. Now to Hawaii, now an experts say
there's absolutely no way to predict when the Kilauea Volcano is going to stop erupting.
Authorities are allowing some residents who evacuated days ago to return to their homes to collect their belongings, including their pets, medicine,
and vital documents, but the dangerous conditions are making it hard for people to get through, leaving some frustrated.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
IRA HAAS, LEILANI ESTATES RESIDENT: People who belong in there or who need to patrol in there should be able to be in there, not just we're all
standing on the perimeter wondering, and then hearing conflicting stories. And it just makes people more upset, and more anxious, and you know, we
don't need that level of anxiety to be any higher.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: Geologists say 10 volcanic fissures have opened up in a residential area, pushing out lava, as well as toxic gas. Stephanie Elam
has that.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: For people who live in the areas affected by these fissures of Leilani Estates, many of them were able to
get back in to retrieve anything they weren't able to evacuate with the first go-round, but still, officials do not want them to stay there.
They're saying these fissures continue to open, and they don't know when these fissures are going to stop opening.
They don't know when the Kilauea eruption will finish. So they want people to get out of there, not just because of the lava that is bubbling up out
of the earth, and shooting up into the skies, some 6,200 feet based on what some residents have told us. They don't want people to stay there also
because of the toxic gases.
They are talking about sulfur dioxide that is also very dangerous. So that's why they've widened the perimeter around where these fissures are
opening. I want to show you where I'm standing right now. This is a lava flow from 2014, and as you can see, it came down and cascaded around,
threatening some buildings right here nearby.
There's no way to stop a lava flow when it is coming down, hot molten lava. So you just have to let it go, and that is the danger here for the people
who had built their homes in these communities.
If lava comes in and takes the home like it has done to several homes at this point, they may never be able to go back to their neighborhoods. And
for many of them, that is the most devastating news.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: Stephanie Elam reporting from the Big Island there in Hawaii. Now, Turkey is attempting to clean up after flash floods that happened to
the capital over the weekend.
And you can see it in the footage, a driver clinging to his car as vehicles are just being swept away on the streets of Ankara. A state-run media say
at least six people have injured in these sudden floods.
Now, a story that was are closely monitoring here on CNN, the legendary football manager Alex Ferguson remains in intensive care, following
emergency surgery after a brain hemorrhage.
In his former club, Manchester United, says the procedure went very well, but he needs time to recover, and his family requests privacy. Now former
and current Man U players are united by one simple message, be strong, boss.
[08:25:00] The 76-year-old is the most successful manager in the history of the English premier league, and we'll have much more in World Sport
happening in about 20 minutes from now.
You're watching News Stream. And up next, another horrific case of sexual violence against a girl is sparking outrage in India, and all over the
world.
This is a crime that happens much too often, and we're going to hear from Swati Maliwal of the Delhi Commission for Women about the tough fight to
protect women, and to bring justice -- real justice to victims.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LU STOUT: I'm Kristie Lu stout in Hong Kong. You're watching News Stream, and these are your world headlines.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: Russian President Vladimir Putin has been sworn in for his fourth term after his inauguration in Moscow, and Mr. Putin vowed to
dedicate his life to serving Russia.
He has dominated Russian politics for the past 18 years as both president, and prime minister. We are waiting on the official results of Lebanon's
first parliamentary election in nine years. Interior Minister says voter turnout on Sunday was just under 50 percent.
Factions led by Prime Minister Saad Al-Hariri and Hezbollah are vying for control of parliament. In the U.S. State of Hawaii, at least 26 homes have
been destroyed in the Kilauea volcanic eruption, and volcanic vents are still hissing in several neighborhoods.
Hundreds of homes have been evacuated with residents granted some access to their properties to collect their belongings. The White House is sharply
criticizing China for issuing a warning to U.S. airlines.
China's Civil Aviation Administration is demanding that 36 foreign air carriers, including American ones, remove any information suggesting Taiwan
is not a part of China. China considers self-governed Taiwan a part of its territory. The White House calls the move, quote, Orwellian nonsense.
Chinese tech company ZTE is asking the U.S. to suspend its ban on the company, and the U.S. Commerce Department has a seven year export ban on
ZTE, as U.S. and China tangle over trade.
The U.S. says it put the order in place because ZTE lied to American officials about punishing employees who violated U.S. sanctions on North
Korea and Iran. The company relies on U.S. firms for key smart phone components.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: Police in India have arrested a man accused of orchestrating, and kidnapping, and gang rape of a 16-year-old girl. Her relatives are now
mourning her murder as well.
Police say the suspect's accomplices set the girl on fire after her family's attempt to seek justice.
[08:30:00] Anna Coren has more on the outrage surrounding this attack.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (UNSTRANSLATED).
ANNA COREN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The haunting screams of family members begging for justice following the alleged gang
rape and murder of a 16-year-old girl. The attack which happened last week in Jharkhand, Eastern India is the latest in a series of violent sexual
crimes across the country.
"It was a wedding at my brother's place," said the victim's uncle. "She went to fetch water and that's when the attacker grabbed her and took her
in a car. Then he raped her."
When the family complained to the local village council, the accused men were fined $750 and ordered to do 100 sit-ups. Enraged by the punishment,
police say the men beat up the family and then set the girl on fire. The charred remains are now the subject of an autopsy and police investigation.
Multiple arrests have been made.
DEEPA NARAYAN, AUTHOR AND SOCIAL SCIENTIST: A rape is a rape. And these rapes including gang rapes of young girls is increasing. It's not
decreasing.
COREN (voice over): India has been reeling from a string of highly publicized attacks that have sparked protests. Earlier this year, an 8-
year-old girl in the northern Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir was abducted, drugged and held captive in a temple where she was repeatedly
raped by several men before being strangled to death.
Despite the national outcry over this brutal attack, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was accused of being extremely slow to respond. His days of
silence widely criticized until finally addressing the crowd.
"I want to assure the country that no culprit will be spared," he said. "Complete justice will be done. Those daughters who have become the victim
of such crimes will get justice for sure."
But justice is sadly elusive for the surviving victims and families. Authorities claim more than 100 cases of rape are reported each day. That's
roughly one every 15 minutes. There was a 12 percent rise in the number of reported cases from 2015 to 2016, but there are more than 15,000 rape cases
awaiting trial.
NARAYAN: It's a huge social, cultural problem in India. And the factor is that the conviction rate was three percent.
COREN (voice over): India's deep-rooted problem with rape claimed international attention in 2012, when a 23-year-old physiotherapy student
in New Delhi was brutally gang raped on a minibus. She died a few weeks later. The anger and protests that followed forced the government to change
the laws and increase penalties for sexual violence.
And just last month, the Indian cabinet approved the death penalty for rapists of girls under 12. But critics say those laws are yet to be
enforced and attitude still haven't changed.
NARAYAN: Unless the way women are viewed changes culturally, we're not going to see any stoppage of violence against women.
COREN (voice over): Anna Coren, CNN, Hong Kong.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LU STOUT: Swati Maliwal is the chairwoman of the Delhi Commission for Women. She joins us now from New Delhi. Swati, thank you so much for
joining us here on the program. We have been following these horrendous rape and sexual abuse cases coming out of India.
The latest one involving a 16-year-old girl who was horrifically raped and allegedly burned to death. How does this latest case change the debate
about rape in India and how these cases are handled?
SWATI MALIWAL, CHAIRWOMAN, DELHI COMMISSION FOR WOMEN: What is happening in our country is that there is a complete lack of sense of justice. People
are just not scared. People feel that they can get away with anything. They can get away with rapes. They can get away with any kind of a sexual
assault on a woman and nothing will be done on them.
LU STOUT: Families of the victims and activists like yourself want justice. Families of the 16-year-old victim approached a village council.
Their decisions are not legally binding. So why do these village councils continue to exist in today's 21st century India?
MALIWAL: It's a complete breakdown of law and order. There is a breakdown of systems. And there is a reluctance from the government to actually help.
If you look at the capital, if you look at just the capital, the capital is presently lacking 66,000 additional police force.
The daily police for the past 10 years have been demanding 66,000 police force and they have not been given even a single officer until now. What is
the result? Result is when you go down to any of the police station, each and every police station is functioning at half of its police strength.
LU STOUT: Narendra Modi, his government certainly under a lot of pressure right now to do something. Narendra Modi's line has been, don't politicize
this.
[08:35:01] But do you think, yes, this needs to be politicized because there needs to be action, there needs to be justice?
MALIWAL: I think it's very unfortunate that the prime minister said something like this. If you raise an issue, he links it to politicizing it.
Why doesn't he provide proper police resources to the police across the country? Why doesn't he ensure fast track courts should be made? Why
doesn't he ensure that strongest punishment should be delivered?
Instead of doing that, he is actually -- I think it is he who is politicizing the issue. When the 8-month-old baby was raped two months back
in Delhi, in the capital, she had to undergo a three-hour long operation. I had gone and met that girl. I carried her in my arms and it was so painful.
We wrote half a million letters to the prime minister from across the country and we requested him to do certain things and he refused to do it.
He refused to even acknowledge hundreds of letters from the Delhi Commission for Women which is a statutory body.
And finally, when I set on a hunger strike, that is when he reacts, on the 10th day of my hunger strike. And he gives the country certain systems. I
appreciate that but the speed at which things are going right now, I really don't know how will it happen.
LU STOUT: The government recently acted in the form of an executive order that would make the rape of a baby, of a girl younger than the age of 12
punishable by death. It has yet to be passed by India's parliament, but if passed, how effective could that be?
MALIWAL: It will only be effective if the law is implemented in its letter and spirit. The law says that within six months, the cases will be heard.
But if fast track courts are not added, if police resources are not added within six months, these cases cannot be finished. They cannot be heard.
And if swiftness of punishment cannot be guaranteed, nothing will change.
Apart from that, we also need complete mindset change. I think there is a complete silence around rape in our country. People are molested, women are
molested in buses, and people move on and there is no conversation. There is no hue and cry. I think it is important and that is what our movement is
trying to do.
LU STOUT: It will be long and tough but necessary battle ahead for justice. Thank you so much for joining is.
MALIWAL: Thank you.
LU STOUT: Human rights groups and independent media are raising fears over the state of press freedom in Cambodia. The editor of The Phnom Penh Post
was fired alongside two reporters after they refused to take down an article critical of the publication's recent sale.
The article reported The Phnom Penh Post was sold to Sivakumar Ganapathy, the owner of the Malaysian firm Asia PR. It also allegedly had Cambodian
Prime Minister Hun Sen as a past client. Ganapathy denies this link. Amnesty International's Ming Yu Hah explains how dangerous this is for
independent voices in the country.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MING YU HAH, AUTHOR, AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL: For the last year, we have witnessed the crumbling of Cambodia's media freedom. And The Phnom Penh
Post is renowned as an independent media outlet. And we have seen the Cambodian government systematically collapse and repress numerous media
outlets in the last 12 months.
This is really important in the context of the upcoming general election to be held on the 29th of July, 2018. You know, the time of elections is where
we need an independent media to monitor any -- the context, any possible violations during the election cycle, particularly when the major
opposition party is no longer able to compete.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: Ming Yu Hah of Amnesty International raising the alarm there. You're watching "News Stream." Still ahead, in CNN's new series called
"Icons," fashion legend Claudia Schiffer explores her 30-year career and tells us what it means to be iconic. Stay with us.
[08:40:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LU STOUT: Coming to you live from Hong Kong, welcome back. This is "News Stream." So, what exactly does it mean to be an icon? And what's the
difference between being iconic and being famous? Fashion legend Claudia Schiffer gives us her take in CNN's new series, "Icons."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CLAUDIA SCHIFFER, FASHION LEGEND (voice over): I'm always very careful using the word "iconic" because I think it's not something of today. You
have to be able to look back and realize the impact that that moment had.
Before modelling, I was so shy. I would be rolling myself into the curtain if anyone new came into the room. When I first started and met Karl
Lagerfeld, he is sort of like, trust your instinct and I could do that. When you say the word supermodel, I would say it defined that time in the
90s, because fashion changed then.
For example, one of my fashion shows, we were celebrating (INAUDIBLE), thousands of people would follow us, almost like as if we were on a movie
set. What is going on? Where is the security team? We shouldn't confuse the word iconic with fame because fame is instant and could be short-lived.
Iconic moments, they last, they're timeless.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LU STOUT: And from supermodels to superheroes, could the universe's greatest villain, the Hollywood's greatest asset?
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Fun isn't something one considers when balancing the universe. But this does put a smile on my face.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: Thanos is not the only one with a smile on his face. "Avengers: Infinity War" has taken $1 billion in worldwide box office sales in record
time just 11 days. That beats the record set by another Disney film, "Star Wars: The Force Awakens," in 2015. And get this, the movie hasn't even
released in China yet. "The Avengers" will assemble there on Friday.
And that is "News Stream." I'm Kristie Lu Stout. Don't go anywhere. "World Sport" with Christina Macfarlane is next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[08:45:00] (WORLD SPORT)
END
