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Haitian Parents Gave Children To Americans, But Haitian Official Says Splitting Families Is 'Not Acceptable'

Aired February 02, 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): Called kidnappers by Haiti's prime minister, but 10 Americans accused of child trafficking say they were saving children. And today they get a hearing.

More executions? Iran says it will soon but to death nine more people for participating in post-election protests.

And new marching orders for the U.S. military? The future of "don't ask, don't tell" is standing at attention on Capitol Hill. On PRISM tonight, should gays be allowed to serve?

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

Was it a mission of mercy or an illegal act? A Haitian judge is expected to rule on the case of 10 U.S. missionaries being held in Port-au- Prince. The group was detained Friday night when they tried to leave the country with 33 Haitian children.

The Americans say they were taking the children away from the earthquake ravaged country to a better life. But others are questioning why some of the children were being separated from their families.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE WILLEIT, SOS CHILDREN'S VILLAGE: It is clear that some of the children, at least, I guess, 20 out of them, are for sure not orphans. But they have been handed over, from their parents, to these 10 Americans. But for us it is still, this is not a discussion, how this happened. The discussion is what is in the best interest of the child. And SOS has an experience over 60 years and we do know what is the best for the children all over the world. And it can't be the best intent to bring children abroad and separate them from their existing families.

JEAN-MAX BELLERIVE, HAITIAN PRIME MINISTER: For what they know, until now, this is a kidnapping case. If they have some related parents involved in that operation, the children certainly were not fully willing to go, because in some cases we-from what I heard they were asking for their parents. They wanted to return to their parents. So, in any case, religious, or not, it is not acceptable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRANT: The U.S. government is keeping an eye on the case, but so far they have been taking a hands off approach. Karl Penhaul joins us now from outside the Judicial Palace in Port-au-Prince with more on the story-Karl.

KARL PENHAUL, CNN INT'L. CORRESPONDENT: Stan, the judge, a Haitian judge was due to meet with 10 American Baptists this morning and take the next step in the judicial process against them. Now, the Haitian authorities are not saying right now whether the judge is there. We have certainly not seen him arrive.

So, I expect that this meeting has been delayed somewhat. He was due to be here about an hour ago, and hour and a half ago. Sometimes things don't move that fast here. And of course, the Haitian prime minister, himself, said that the judicial process here has almost completely collapsed. And so this could be a very hit and miss affair. For which reason the Haitian prime minister has already said that he would consider the possibility, so to speak, he's opening the door to the possibility that these 10 Americans could be sent back to the U.S. to face trail there.

But, of course, that would also pose difficulties because the evidence is being gathered locally, the investigations are being done locally, so very difficult to see whether all of that information would be effectively transferred to the U.S. And of course, this is-as we already know, a very complex case, Stan.

GRANT: Karl Penhaul, joining us live there from Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

Well, elsewhere in Haiti, the United Nations says an armed group attacked a food convoy in the southwestern part of the country. They were driven off after U.N. Peacekeepers escorting the convoy fired warning shots.

A U.N. spokeswoman says several hundred prisoners remain on the loose after their prison collapsed in the earthquake. The U.N. calls the security situation in Haiti stable, but potentially violent.

Well, if you would like to help the people of Haiti, visit our ImpactYourWorld page at CNN.com. There you can find out how to donate to earthquake survivors, or even volunteer your time. That is CNN.com/impact.

Iran says nine more people will soon be executed for their role in Iran's post-election protests. Two were hanged last week. Reza Sayah is following that story from CNN Islamabad-Reza.

REZA SAYAH, CNN INT'L. CORRESPONDENT: Stan, it is very likely that the statement today out of Tehran has everything to do with the big day coming up, February 11, the big anniversary of the Islamic Revolution, back in 1979. The opposition movement has once again called for widespread protests. This could be a message by Iran's hardline leaders that if you come out and protest again, there could be a steep price to pay.

Let's tell you what we have out of Tehran today. Iranian officials saying they will hang nine more individuals very soon for what they call their "alleged involvement in the post-elections unrest", this according to state run media in Iran.

Of course, last week two people were already hanged in Iran. Thirty- seven year old Mohammad Ali Zamani and 20-year-old Arash Rahmanipour. CNN spoke with Rahmanipour's attorney last week and she told us, look, these two individuals were arrested two months before the elections, but for some reason they were tried along with post-election protestors.

State-run media, today, in Iran, reported this: A senior judiciary official saying," The two people who were executed, last week, as well as the other nine, who will soon be executed, certainly had been part of the recent riots. Each had belonged to an anti-revolutionary group, had aspired to sow dissent and to uproot the regime." Again, the lawyer for Mr. Rahmanipour, who was executed last week, flatly denies these allegations.

Of course, Saturday you had Iran put on trial 16 other individuals, who were allegedly involved in the last set of widespread protests in Tehran, on December 27. Analysts say this is an effort by Iran's hardline leaders to intimidate the opposition movement into submission. But it has been nearly eight months since the disputed election back on June 12 of last year. And the opposition movement is still going, still defiant. Once again, calling for more protests, this time, on February 11, Stan.

GRANT: Reza, it is interesting. How is the opposition movement able to continue? How is it able to be able to get people out on the streets with intimidation, as you said, many are calling this, with this type of intimidation in the country?

SAYAH: Yes, that is what has been extremely remarkable about this opposition movement, without a dynamic and clear leader they have been able to come out, despite repeated, often brutal, sometimes deadly crackdowns by the government. In one way to effectively gauge the momentum of this opposition movement, is to look at their ability to target these major holidays, where there are government sanctioned events and they come out and essentially hi-jack the event and make their voices heard.

February 11 it another one of those days, coming up, in nine days. Today, on his web site, opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi, once again, called for people to come out and protest. And that, again, Stan, sets the stage for what could be another violent faceoff between Iran's regime, its security forces, and the opposition movement, Stan.

GRANT: Reza, thank you very much for that. Reza Sayah, joining us live there, from Islamabad.

Well, a doomed flight, years of pain and confusion. Now the question, who is to blame for the deadly crash of a Concorde jet nearly 10 years ago? In Paris, a trail meant to answer that question, is now underway. Air France Flight 4590 went down shortly after take off from Charles De Gaulle Airport; 113 people were killed. Five people and Continental Airlines are charged with involuntary manslaughter. Jim Bittermann is following the case from CNN Paris-Jim.

JIM BITTERMANN, CNN INT'L. CORRESPONDENT: Stan, in fact that trial just began a short while ago and it has been going on a couple of hours now. It is expected to last four months and most of the things that have been happening there, basically procedural ones, scheduling witnesses and what not, although the lawyer for Continental Airlines has asked that the case be dismissed, because of technical reasons and some violations, he feels, of the procedures of the court. But in any case, it doesn't look like that is going to happen, because the court won't rule on that until all the witnesses have been heard, and that is likely to be several months from now.

So, in any case it is going to proceed forward, and I think we are going to see witnesses called in this case, to go back over the details of the what brought down that Concorde flight, just seconds after it took off 10 years ago. There has been a lot of speculation. There has been, in fact, a great deal of examination of exactly what happened.

The accident investigators here, the BEA, went over in minute detail what happened in the crash. And the reason that Continental Airlines and two of its employees are in Florida, is because they got the blame, when the original accident investigation took place, a bit of one of their planes, a metal strip about 16 inches long, fell off one of their engines, just before the Concorde took off.

As the Concorde took off, a tire of the Concord, hit that metal strip, exploded. Parts of the tire when up through the wing. That is where the fuel is stored in the Concorde. There was a fuel leak and the plane caught fire and crashed. So, Continental has been blamed.

But also, in court today, are going to be the people who are responsible for both the design and also the certification of the Concorde. Because there is feeling that perhaps there was some design flaws from the very beginning. And that stems from the fact that over the course of the life of the Concorde there was some like 60 different instances where tires exploded. And of those, about six in which parts of tires went up through the wing and punctured the fuel tank. So there was reason to believe, perhaps, that there was a problem here that should have been fixed before the crash, Stan.

GRANT: Jim, thank you very much. Jim Bittermann joining us live there from CNN Paris.

Well, a controversial ruling involving gay U.S. servicemen and women is up for a major overhaul. We'll look at proposed changes to the "don't ask, don't tell" policy, and the response so far.

Plus, Hollywood reveals its picks for the best of 2009. The honors and snubs in today's Oscar nominations.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRANT: "Don't ask, don't tell" it is the official U.S. policy for gays in the military. The Senate Armed Services Committee is, right now, hearing testimony on a drive to repeal it. It is a divisive issue that will require congressional action to change. A special panel will take the next year to study how to go about changing the policy. Defense Secretary Robert Gates stresses any change should be done gradually and very carefully.

Well, through the PRISM we are asking, should gays and lesbians be allowed to serve in the military? During last week's State of the Union Address, President Barack Obama made it clear he wants a change.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This year I will work with Congress and our military to finally repeal the law that denies gay Americans the right to serve the country they love because of who they are.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRANT: Here is some background now on "don't ask, don't tell". It was approved by the U.S. Congress in 1993, during the Clinton administration. It allows gay men and women to serve in the U.S. military, as long as do not disclose their sexual orientation. Since then the Department of Defense reports nearly 11,000 U.S. service members have been discharged for being gay.

A 2006 reports estimates that the policy has cost the U.S. government more than $363 million, mostly in wasted training costs.

Well, U.S. public opinion favors a repeal of the "don't ask, don't tell" policy. A "USA Today"/Gallup Poll conducted in May found 69 percent of Americans over the age of 18 support allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military. Even among political conservatives polled, 58 percent agree. The Quinnipiac University poll asked voters if the "don't ask, don't tell" policy should be repealed? 56 percent said, yes; 37 percent said, no.

Within the military it is not clear how troops feel about "don't ask, don't tell". A "Military Times" poll of troops in 2008 found 58 percent did not want gays to serve openly in the military, with some threatening to leave if the ban were lifted.

But one analyst says resistance has been dropping. Duncan Hunter is a conservative Republican and former chairman of the U.S. House Armed Services Committee. The former presidential candidate offered his view during a 2007 CNN presidential debate.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DUNCAN HUNTER, FMR. REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Most Americans, most kids, who leave that breakfast table and go out and serve in the military and make that corporate decision with their family, most of them are conservatives. And they have conservative values. And they have Judeo-Christian values, and to force those people to work in a small tight unit with somebody who is openly homosexual, that goes against what they believe to be their principles-and it is their principles-is I think a disservice to them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRANT: According to a recent study by the Williams Institute at UCLA's school of law, there are an estimated 66,000 lesbian and gay and bisexuals currently serving in the U.S. armed forces. From Los Angeles, correspondent Ted Rowlands has found a first-hand perspective for us on what it is like being gay in the U.S. military under "don't ask, don't tell".

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Three active members of the U.S. military, all gay, all possibly risking their careers talking to us. That is why we are not showing their faces. An Army sergeant with 10 years of service, who has done a tour in Iraq; a female Army MP who has been in for five years, and has also been to Iraq; and a Navy sailor who joined a year and a half ago. They all argue that despite what is going on in the world, including two wars, now is the time to change "don't ask, don't tell". And listen to what they say about living a lie.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I am terrified that somebody in my chain of commend is going to find out. There is always that pressure.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I agree it is a near constant thing. Because you are almost always putting up some sort of a front, that band of brothers that everybody talks about? I'm kind of that brother with a secret and yet it does wear on you.

ROWLANDS: Why do this interview?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Loving an institution doesn't mean you can't tell when it is broken. You are just giving voice to, you know, something is screwed up here.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I truly think it is the best thing for the military, all the services, and the best thing for this country for this law to be repealed.

ROWLANDS: Why now? Why do we need to deal with this now?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It is-it is a problem now. I think that our forward soldiers deserve to have their full rights.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Gays and lesbians, bisexuals, transgenders are in the military now. People know about it. And the people who are against it, who don't want to take a shower with us, that stuff already happens. It not going to change.

ROWLANDS: Do you find that people through the process of elimination figure you are gay?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have been aware of people who knew that I was gay. And never really felt like I was threatened. I never felt like I had to keep watching over my shoulder for, you know, the witch hunters to come after me with their torches and pitchforks.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I would say everybody in my group where I work, uh, they all know that I'm gay. If I can be open with them, I would be able to trust them more and they would know that they could trust me, because I trusted them with something, you know, so important.

ROWLANDS: Would you all come out right away if "don't ask, don't tell" was lifted?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I wouldn't go up to everybody, saying, hey, I'm gay. But you know the people that were important to me, if they are important to me, they will know.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm not going to hang a rainbow flag in my office. But I'm definitely having a coming out party.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROWLANDS: All three say they are pleased and surprised that the president mentioned repealing "don't ask, don't tell," in his State of the Union Address. They are hoping that actually leads to a change so they can stop living a lie. Ted Rowlands, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GRANT: So, where do other countries stand on gays in the military? Take a look. All the member countries in the European Union allow gay troops, with the exception of Greece. Of the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, Britain and France permit gay troops, Russia and China do not. Turkey is one of the few members of NATO that does not allow gays to serve.

Some different views, there, on gays in the military.

Through the PRISM tomorrow: How likely is nuclear war in the Middle East? Send us your thoughts on Twitter@cnnabuddhabi.

The countdown to the 82nd Annual Academy Awards is officially on in Tinsel Town. We'll look at Hollywood's latest short list in just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRANT: Well, it is officially Oscar season. Hollywood was a flutter a short while ago when this year's Oscar nominations were announced and in an Academy first, the best picture nominations expanded from five to 10. Entertainment correspondent Kareen Wynter joins us live now from Los Angeles with more on the nominees.

And, Kareen, who are the actors and actresses in the frame this year?

KAREEN WYNTER, CNN HOLLYWOOD CORRESPONDNET: Hi there, Grant.

Well, the ones to watch, really, let's talk about the lead categories for lead actress. Sandra Bullock, what a year, Grant, it has been for her already. She cleaned up at the Screen Actor's Guild Awards, the Golden Globes. And now the best actress nomination in this category for her work in "The Blindside". It is actually Sandra Bullock's first nomination.

But you have to really consider things here, Grant, because she is going up against the veteran, Meryl Streep for her nomination in "Julie & Julia". Streep made a little bit of history this morning and that is because this is her 16 nomination. It is a record. So, a couple to watch in that category.

On the other end, in the lead actor category, it could be shaping up to be Jeff Bridges-his year as well. He won at the Golden Globe, the Screen Actors Guild. So, it is definitely-he's a favorite going into the Academy Awards. And let's talk about "Crazy Heart" for just a bit. What a remarkable performance in this film, by Mr. Bridges. He wore many hats. Can you believe he not only played the guitar, but he also sang. So, again, a remarkable performance for him.

And you have to wonder, too, Grant, he has to be a clear favorite here, because he really transformed himself for this role. He gained weight. He plays this overweight, washed up, Western singer. And the academy loves to recognize actors who really transform themselves for a roles, Gran.

GRANT: Yes, Kareen, we're looking at 10 movies for up for Best Picture this year, instead of the normal five?

WYNTER: That is right. They have expanded it. They have actually doubled the category to 10. And that is to allow for more ratings. They are hoping to attract more viewers.

And also, what is interesting, too, is that you are seeing films like the Disney Pixar animation "Up" in this category. This is not something that you see all the time. The last time this happened, in fact, was back in 1944, where an animated-or rather, in 1991 with "The Beauty and the Beast", when an animated picture made it into this category. So, they are opening the way for more films. And the two films to watch, "Avatar" as well as "The Hurt Locker" received the most nominations this morning. Nine nominations, you have James Cameron, going up against a woman he was once married to, one of his exes, Kathryn Bigelow. And she is fresh off her Directors Guild Awards. So another interesting category to watch.

GRANT: Kareen, thank you very much for that. Kareen Wynter joining us there from Los Angeles.

So, who actually picks the Oscars? It is the 5,800 members of the Association of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences; working actors, writers, studio executives, and other Hollywood professionals. Each branch of the Academy nominates their fellow members. So, actors nominate other actors, directors other directors, and so on. There are a few categories including documentaries, foreign films and some technical slots that do things differently. But the full membership of the Academy votes for best picture nominees. Once the nominations are announced, all the Academy members get to vote for the winners.

OK, let's see if we can pick a winner now with the weather. Mari Ramos at CNN World Weather Center.

(WEATHER REPORT)

GRANT: Well, my time is almost up. Before we go, though, it might have ended in tragedy, instead a teenager in New Zealand kept her wits and fought off a shark with her body board. Fourteen-year-old Lydia Ward defended herself in water only waist deep.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LYDIA WARD, SHARK ATTACK VICTIM: I wasn't quite sure what it was, but I looked toward my brother face and he was just shocked. So, I looked to my side and just saw this massive grey thing. I wasn't quite sure what it was still. I knew it was like right beside me. But I didn't actually feel it biting me. So, I just hit it, like, with one short, sharp hit of the boogie board.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRANT: Well, the one and a half meter shark struck at a beach on New Zealand's south island. The teenager didn't even need stitches, from wearing that wet suit.

And that's it for me, Stan Grant, in Abu Dhabi. "Luxury Life" is up next, after we update the headlines.

END