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Prism

Aid Is Still In Short Supply, Looting On the Rise In Port-Au- Prince, But One Orphanage Gets Some Surprise Aid, And Fends Off Looters With Kindness

Aired January 19, 2010 - 12:00   ET

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

STAN GRANT, CNN INT'L. ANCHOR, PRISM (voice over): Makeshift tent cities now home to hundreds of thousands of people in earthquake ravaged Haiti.

There is sporadic outbreaks of violence on the streets of Port-au- Prince amid scenes of desperation as many wait for aid, still in short supply.

And Osama bin Laden, Al Qaeda, and their public support. In our "Prism Segment" tonight, just how popular is the group?

From CNN Abu Dhabi in United Arab Emirates, this is PRISM, where we take a story and look at it from multiple perspectives. I'm Stan Grant.

We're closing in on a week now since Haiti was shaken by that devastating earthquake. As desperation grows among the homeless and the hungry, work is underway to reopen the badly damaged port. That should help alleviate crowding at the airport and help speed the flow of aid and fuel. In the meantime, the U.N. Security Council has just voted to boost its peacekeeping force and its chief says progress is being made in aid distribution.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BAN KI-MOON, SECRETARY-GENERAL, UNITED NATIONS: In the initial period there has been some difficulties and bottlenecks in delivering our relief items. We have set up 15 food distribution centers and as I told you the number of people who will get assistance will increase to 1 million within this week, and within two additional weeks we will increase our assistance to at least 2 million people. So that is our target.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRANT: Well, even as we hear reports that food is beginning to flow to the suffering, some of the more desperate victims have resorted to looting.

And big questions still loom over who is in charge and what comes next. Some of the displaced are taking matters into their own hands by venturing outside Port-au-Prince to find food supplies and shelter they so badly need. But that most often requires money and fuel, both of which are in extremely short supply.

Well, once a symbol of Haiti's presidency, the crumbling national palace now serves as a reminder of the quakes power. U.S. troops landed in a helicopter at the compound today but tent cities springing up in the shadow of the gleaming palace show how desperate survivors have become.

So with emotions running high and food and water very short, some Haitians are getting desperate. Looters are breaking into warehouses to steal food, candles, and other supplies. As our Karl Penhaul reports gangs have reemerged on the streets of Port-au-Prince, business owners are struggling to secure their inventory. Few police are on hand to maintain law and order. The influx of U.N. peacekeeping troops may turn the tide.

Well, the U.S. is easing requirements for Haitian orphans to enter the U.S. temporarily. Hundreds of American families are waiting to adopt Haitian children. But bureaucratic hurdles are hold up the process. CNN's Soledad O'Brien reports the delays could mean life or death for some of Haiti's most vulnerable survivors.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): A truck parked inside the orphanage gates, with 25 babies, crying, sleeping; 15 baby girls and 10 baby boys moved from the orphanage in the aftermath of the quake.

This is the Masoin Del Faunte de Dur (ph), an orphanage called the House of God's Children. But the house is empty, 135 children eat, sleep, wash and play outside.

(On camera): You silly goose. Did you take my pen?

(Voice over): Pierre Alexis is the director and he is worried.

PIERRE ALEXIS, ORPHANAGE DIRECTOR: You see, I have not formula.

O'BRIEN (On camera): Are you worried that some of these children are going to die?

ALEXIS: Sometimes, yes.

O'BRIEN: They're not going to make it?

ALEXIS: Sometimes, especially the babies.

O'BRIEN (voice over): Pierre tells us he's running out of everything. In addition to formula they need water, food, diesel fuel and medicine.

(On camera): How many more days could you last with a little bit of corn meal?

ALEXIS: I can last for four days.

O'BRIEN (voice over): Pierre shows us the nearly empty store room. They have so little that armed robbers who came over the wall didn't bother taking it.

(On camera): They came with guns?

ALEXIS: Yes, they came with guns.

O'BRIEN: And what did they do?

ALEXIS: We had one of the guys that tried to talk nicely to them. Like, this is children, we have nothing here. What do you want? We are all on the ground.

O'BRIEN: And what did he say?

ALEXIS: And they say, OK, OK. We'll see. And they go away.

O'BRIEN: They didn't take anything.

ALEXIS: They didn't take anything. They just walked away.

O'BRIEN: Both times?

ALEXIS: Yes, both times.

O'BRIEN: They came with weapons?

ALEXIS: Oh, sure.

O'BRIEN: All but two of the 135 children here have been promised to American and Canadian families. Their adoptions are now in limbo. Suddenly, out of the blue, a delivery. Kevin Bronson, a Canadian working in Haiti on an irrigation project pulls up and unloads bags of charcoal, rice, bottles of water.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I got an e-mail from a friend in Canada.

O'BRIEN: Katie Hensley (ph) is one of the adoptive mothers. Her little girl is named Nefthalie Jean Pierre (ph).

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They have a little bit of food and water, but it is running out. O'BRIEN: Kevin takes Nefthalie's (ph) photo, then is brought to tears.

(On camera): You asked to see the little girl?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There are so many sad stories. I wanted to see somebody that was alive.

O'BRIEN: UNICEF says that there are 380,000 orphans in this country. Those who survived the earthquake are at risk of dying from something else.

At another orphanage, Restma (ph), a doctor, nurse and paramedic work to insert an IV into this 14-month old girl's arm. She is dehydrated. The doctor says possibly just a few hours from dying. He skin is cold and paper thin. They can't find a vein, so they try again, and again, and again, in her arm, in her leg, in her hand.

(CHILD SCREAMING)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's OK. It's OK.

O'BRIEN: While she cries I pin her down to hold her still.

(On camera): Oh, you did it. You did it. Good girl.

(voice over): Eventually, it goes in. She has survived, for now.

Soledad O'Brien, CNN, Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GRANT: Well, I'm joined now, on the phone, by Pete Buth, emergency coordinator for Medicine Sans Frontieres. He is in Leogane, about an hour west of the capital.

And, Peter, we have been looking at the situation on the ground in Port-au-Prince. Give us an indication of exactly the task facing you, where you are.

PETE BUTH, EMERGENCY COORDINATOR, MEDICINE SANS FRONTIERS: We are in a city called Leogane, which is about an hour outside Port-au-Prince. And the level of destruction and human suffering that the earthquake has caused here is very hard to describe. It is beyond belief. There is more houses destroyed than standing. People are living on the streets, setting up their makeshift camps on sidewalks and on little squares, in the stadium, whatever space they can find. Some are sitting on their rubble.

And there are long queues in front of the very few water points. There are long queues in front of the gas stations and there is an even longer queue in front of our clinic. So the situation here in Leogane is still very, very desperate.

GRANT: Pete, talk about what is confronting at the clinic. How much relief are you able to provide and how do you prioritize in a situation like this?

BUTH: At the moment we only have the capacity to look after the most critically wounded, those basically in eminent threat of death. So, we can only treat the serious injuries that the earthquake has caused. We are seeing open fractures. We are seeing serious head injuries, facial injuries, many infected wounds.

It is now -excuse me, I don't even know what day it is. I think it is day seven after the quake. So, a lot of wounds are infected and a lot of amputations need to be done. So, I was our team (ph) can certainly not care for all, but only for the most critically injured.

GRANT: Pete, we know there were difficulties with MSF actually getting on the ground and getting all of its people on the ground in Haiti. I want you talk about the coordination efforts and how the aid relief is getting to people. And what you are seeing and what you are experiencing on the ground, trying to bring some relief.

BUTH: Yes, in Leogane, when we arrived, three days ago, I think we were the first agency to provide relief emergency medical aid or surgical care for the critically wounded. Since then, some more agencies have arrived, so slowly the aid effort is improving. But that, by no means, meets the vast needs that we see here.

GRANT: What about the security situation. Because there is concern about a breakdown in security, about frustration, obviously, boiling over, people turning to looting and so on. Are you seeing any evidence of that at this point?

BUTH: No. Myself, we have not any. I have not seen any violence, any mob, so far the situation here in Leogane seems to be very safe.

GRANT: What is going to be needed in the coming days, right where you are, if you are able to make a significant change? If there was something you were able to tell us about the situation in Leogane and what is needed. What would be the number one priority there?

BUTH: Well, medical care, I think, for the critically wounded is on top of the list. But water and food, and then shelter are also some priorities must not be ignored. So the list of priorities is awfully long. People, within a matter of seconds, thousands and thousands and thousands of people have lost everything they have. So, you can imagine that (AUDIO GAP) the amount of needs (AUDIO GAP)

GRANT: Pete, are you still with us? We are having a little bit of difficulty with you on the line, but if you are still there, I wanted to ask about the psychological impact and how the people are actually coping with the situation at hand there, the Haitians themselves. Are you getting any sort of indication of that?

No, we seem to have lost him there.

(CROSS TALK)

BUTH: I'm amazed - hello? Can you still hear me?

GRANT: Yes, Pete is -Yes, Pete, yes, I can, please go ahead.

BUTH: OK. From what I have seen I am amazed by resilience and remarkable (AUDI GAP). When we arrived here in the clinic, which is an old nursing school. (AUDIO GAP) Set up a clinic (AUDIO GAP).

GRANT: Yes, we are obviously having a lot of difficulty there, with the line, from Peter Buth for Medicines San Frontieres.

But he gave us an indication there of just how difficult the task is in Leogane. That is about an hour west of the capital Port-au-Prince. He says they are only able to meet the most dire needs at this point. And a great need for more aid, more medical supplies, food and shelter for those people so desperately needing it.

Well, their popularity may be on the wane. Just how much support to Al Qaeda and other extremist groups have in the Middle East? We'll take a closer look in our "Prism Segment", next.

And powered by the sun, our Cal Perry checks out the amazing inventions at the World Future Energy Summit, here in Abu Dhabi.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRANT: Welcome back.

More governments in the Middle East are focusing on Al Qaeda. In the past few days Turkish police arrested 31 people and confiscated weapons and other material in raids on suspected Al Qaeda operations in two cities.

In Yemen, the government issue a fresh warning that it will continue its attacks on Al Qaeda militants and leaders to eliminate the threat from the group.

Well, in our "Prism Segment" this evening, we look at Al Qaeda's popularity in the Middle East. Osama bin Laden remains the public face of Al Qaeda, the Pew Global Attitudes Project asked Muslims in nine countries and territories about bin Laden.

The results of the survey: It shows that support for Al Qaeda's leader has declined considerably in recent years. It is down 34 percentage points in Indonesia and 28 points in Pakistan and Jordan. Only one in four Muslims in those countries express confidence in the Al Qaeda leader. Bin Laden also has the support of Muslims in the Palestinian Territories, at 52 percent. But even that number has declined since 2003. Support among Muslims in Israel is down 17 points. Only in Nigeria is Osama bin Laden more popular among Muslims than he was earlier in the decade, where support is up 10 percentage points.

In a 2007 audio message from bin Laden, he called on Pakistanis to revolt against then-President Pervez Musharraf, calling him an infidel. The Pew survey bears out what the Pakistani army said back then.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAJ. GEN. WAHEED ARSHAD, SPOKESMAN, PAKITSTANI ARMY: Osama bin Laden, you know, has spoken with the people and urge them to rise, to the people who are really following him, would have done so much earlier. The mere fact that the majority of the country is moderate and it is only a small minority which is indulging in extremists and militant activity. It speaks for itself that he doesn't have much following here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRANT: In another message to Pakistanis released in the summer of 2009, Al Qaeda's number two, Ayman Al Zawahiri also asked for money. "It is the individual duty of every Muslim in Pakistan at the very least to support the jihad in Pakistan and Afghanistan, with money, advice, expertise, information, communication, shelter, and anything else he can offer."

The Washington Institute says asking for money is not new, but Al Qaeda has expenses too. In a recent analysis the institute knows that the financial crisis has affected Al Qaeda's ability to operate at will.

Though the image Al Qaeda portrays has been carefully managed over the years, as we noted Osama bin Laden and Ayman Al-Zawahiri often issue messages or calls to action as part of their recruitment efforts. From Cairo, Senior International Correspondent Ben Wedeman has another perspective on the level of support for Al Qaeda in the Middle East.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SR. INT'L. CORRESPONDENT (voice over): On web sites, in videos, and online diatribes, they come across as fierce fanatical and ferocious. But who is watching? And who is listening?

Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the young Nigerian accused in the failed Christmas Day bombing, grabbed headlines in the United States. In the Arab world the story was met with indifference. Beyond the intelligence community, the violent ambitions and grandiose pronouncement of Al Qaeda and other extremists fall on mostly deaf ears here, says analyst Issandr Amrani.

ISSANDR AMRANI, ANALYST: It is preposterous because it is never going to happen. Osama bin Laden is never going to become the leader of the Umar (ph), or the leader of any Arab country, neither are any of his acolytes. Their line of thinking is never going to, to become dominant in any of these countries.

WEDEMAN: Dia Rashwan is one of Egypt's top authorities on extremist groups, he rejects the notion Al Qaeda ever had more than a fringe following.

DIA RASHWAN, AHRAM CENTER FOR STRATEGIC STUDIES: I never thought, I never believe that they were loved by Muslims. Muslims suffered more than anybody around the world from Al Qaeda and these extremists.

WEDEMAN: Rashwan argues that perceived, and in his view, often exaggerated threats from groups like Al Qaeda has spawned a vast industry of security and terror experts eager to keep nerves on edge.

RASHWAN: What happens today is that through the media, and the business of terrorism, they replace Al Qaeda as a kind of phantom or ghost, as it were. You have to be afraid from (sic). Despite that you don't know anything about it. And this is, I think, a kind of created more pressure, more lobbying for (UNINTELLIGIBLE).

WEDEMAN: The advice here for Americans is simple: Don't panic.

AMRANI: The idea that these attacks are a threat to the entire United States or the Western way of life, does seem a bit outlandish, you know there is a need for better police intelligence gathering, policing. Terrorism is a serious issue, but sometimes the reaction is a bit too much.

WEDEMAN (On camera): And it is that overreaction that the extremists depend upon to maintain their relevance in an area where most people have far more pressing concerns than global jihad. Ben Wedeman, CNN, Cairo.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GRANT: More religious leaders and groups question Al Qaeda's theological justifications for holy war, or jihad, one such group is the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group. Now disbanded, it posed a serious challenge to Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi. Former group leader Noman Benotman was once close to Osama bin Laden.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NOMAN BENOTMAN, FORMER LIBYAN ISLAMIC FIGHTER: I challenge bin Laden and the people around him, and Al Qaeda, if they can prove they have a real religious Islamic cause, based on Sharia law, and the Sunni mahdab (ph). I challenge him and all the people around him. And the people defending him, and taking his side, if they can prove to us, there is a real religious cause, acceptable from a Sunni point of view.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRANT: At the urging of Moammar Gaddafi's son, Saif Al Islam, and with the promise of being freed from jail militants in a Tripoli jail wrote a new jihadi code that forbids many of the actions allowed by Al Qaeda.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BENTOMAN: There were a lot of obstacles and problems. And, oh, my God, you wouldn't believe it. Even through - it is , took us like almost two years, you know, to come to the conclusion about their - it is not easy, you know, it is very complicated issue.

HAZEM AL AGDAL, FORMER LIBYAN ISLAMIC FIGHTER: This is a change in our way of thinking which we reached through much study and reflection and an examination of our conscience. We also discussed this with well-known Islamic scholars. So, change has come, but of course we are human and we want to be with our families.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRANT: Well, some different perspectives there on the popularity of Al Qaeda in the Middle East, for you.

Heads of state, royalty and industry leaders all gathered right here in Abu Dhabi. I'm talking about the World Future Energy Summit. Up next we'll take a look at some of the gadgets that are being shown us. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRANT: The World Future Energy Summit is underway here in Abu Dhabi. And Switzerland is stealing the limelight. Our Cal Perry checks out the wave of the future.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CAL PERRY, CNN INT'L. CORRESPONDENT (on camera): One of the things that this year's energy summit in Abu Dhabi that almost everybody is talking about is the unveiling of a solar airplane by the company Solar Impulse, based in Switzerland. We are going to give you a look, here, at a model of the solar airplane. And we are lucky enough to be joined by an explorer, a man of discovery, Bertrand Piccard.

Thank you very much for taking the time to talk to us. First, just walk us through the solar airplane, how it is designed.

BERTRAND PICCARD, SOLAR IMPULSE: So you have to image an airplane that is 64 meter wingspan, like an Airbus 340 or a Jumbo Jet, with the weight of a middle size car, 1.5 tons, only. And solar cells on the wing load the batteries and run the four electrical engines during the day, so you can run during the night on the batteries to reach the next sunrise. And then you make the next day, and the next night, and the next day, all this with absolutely no fuel.

PERRY: Now, this airplane has been tested and has been flown by a test pilot already? Is that correct?

PICCARD: Absolutely. We made the first test flight last December. And the goal is this spring and this summer, to make high-altitude flights and to make the first cycles, day and night, day. And when this works, then we plan to cross the Atlantic, and we plan to fly around the world in two or three year's time.

PERRY: And you will be flying this spring I understand?

PICCARD: Yes, I will be one of the pilots. Andre Borschberg, my partner, will be the other pilot, and we will take turns on different missions. This airplane has to fly several missions to demonstrate, really, the potential of renewable energies, and demonstrate what we can do today, already, in terms of energy savings and energy efficiency.

PERRY: One thing I want to talk about, I mentioned you're an explorer, a man of discovery, a man of innovation. And your family name, Piccard, for those people who have watched "Star Trek" , they may not realize Captain Piccard, from "Star Trek" was named after your family.

(BEGIN MOVIE CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Let's see what's out there.

(END MOVIE CLIP)

PICCARD: Absolutely. Absolutely. It is true. My grandfather was the first man in the stratosphere, inventor of the pressurized cabin; and also the inventor of the bathyscaphe, the deep-sea submarine. And exactly 50 years ago my father, made together with the American, Lieutenant Don Walsh, the deepest dive, ever, to the bottom of the Mariana Trench, seven miles down in the ocean.

PERRY: And the anniversary is coming right up, I understand.

PICCARD: Exactly, on the 23 of January.

PERRY: Well, listen, thank you very much for your time. And I greatly appreciate you walking us through this.

PICCARD: It's a pleasure.

PERRY: Thank you, sir.

PICCARD: Thank you for your interest.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GRANT: Cal Perry, there, showing us one of the planes of the future.

Meanwhile, Toyota is being rewarded for its Prius car. Now the world's first mass produced hybrid vehicle. The government of Abu Dhabi has recognized the company for its fuel efficiency system, with the desired, Future Energy Prize. The Prius was selected from more than 300 entries, and Toyota takes home a $1.5 million prize.

We'll be live there tomorrow, with the World Future Energy Summit, looking at the role of renewable energy, its viability, its cost. And also the question of nuclear power, into the future, as well.

And that's it for me, Stan Grant, right now in Abu Dhabi. Hope you can join us tomorrow night at that energy summit. "BUSINESS TRAVELLER" is up next, after we update the headlines.

END