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Hala Gorani Tonight
Fires Continue To Burn In Amazon; Rouhani Calls For Sanctions Rollback; Tropical Storm Dorian Approaches Puerto Rico; Bolsonaro's Policies Threaten Tribes Living In Amazon; Palestinian Harvard Student Deported By U.S.; Taylor Swift Singles Out The Trump White House; Japanese Carmaker Is Gearing Up For Growth. Aired 2-3p ET
Aired August 27, 2019 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[14:00:22] HALA GORANI, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: Hello, everyone. Live from CNN London this Tuesday, I'm Hala Gorani.
Tonight, as fire burns through the Amazon rainforest, Brazil's government may or may not refuse a $20 million aid package. How a personal feud could
be fueling the flames.
Plus, Iran's president responds to Donald Trump, saying he'll talk, but with strings attached.
And Puerto Rico under threat once again, a new storm is approaching the island, still recovering from Hurricane Maria.
A personal feud between two world leaders could be hampering efforts to put out those wildfires, raging in the Amazon. Brazil is flirting with
rejecting the G7's offer of $20 million in aid, with President Jair Bolsonaro now saying he'll only take it if French President Emmanuel
Macron, quote, "withdraws insults."
Mr. Bolsonaro is trading praise, though, with U.S. President Donald Trump, and touting what he calls "great success" in fighting the flames. Nick
Paton Walsh joins me now from near the fires in Porto Velho, Brazil.
So what's the latest on this offer of aid from G7 countries? Is Bolsonaro taking it or rejecting it?
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: We don't know. And it appeared from his officials, earlier on today, that they were
blankly rejecting all of it. Now, it's not a lot, frankly, $20 million.
We're at a fire brigade station here, and the 30 firefighters behind us, well, they'd like to be tripled (ph) in number to do the job they have,
covering an area, here in the forest. But you'd only get 70 of these for that $20 million for a year, so barely enough, frankly, to make a dent in
the scale of fires we're seeing in the Amazon.
Will Brazil take that $20 million? Well, Jair Bolsonaro said, as you pointed out, that after this lengthy spat he's been having with Emmanuel
Macron, he might think about it if Macron withdrew the accusation that he was a liar.
Macron called him a liar over his environmental commitments, and then Bolsonaro commented about a very offensive social media post about Macron's
wife. Macron said he hoped, one day, Brazil will get a president who's up to the job. And here we are now, with these two men's spat overshadowing,
frankly, getting international aid in.
Above us, Hala, we hear planes flying, small spotter planes, larger cargo planes, dropping water. But the scale of the challenge is massive.
Brazil's Defense Ministry have said that 2,500 troops have been dispatched already. And that as a result of that and the use of aircraft, less
regions are affected than before, Saturday to Monday.
Hard to know what that really means in terms of the number of fires raging, but they're trying to show they're making progress although it's, what? I
mean, not that many, under kind of about a five percent, I think, of the number of troops they promised, have actually been dispatched so far --
Hala.
GORANI: Yes. And so what -- I mean, are these fires -- is it -- is the situation better? Are they more under control now than, say, a week ago?
What's the latest on the status of the fires in the Amazon?
PATON WALSH: I can't really give you a simple answer to that question, unfortunately. There's no indication that they've got better at all, no.
Apart from the statement from the Brazilian Ministry of Defense, saying that by putting out about three to four percent of the number of troops
they were ordered to by the president, they've got a handle on it and taken it away from some of the territory.
The point is that they often rage out of control, often in areas that are too remote to be reached by firefighters on the road. And they are 85
percent up on where they were last year.
So the idea that these 2,500 troops have suddenly caused a huge reduction in that, is probably a little optimistic, to be the most generous. We
simply don't have an accurate day-by-day count of the number of fires raging.
And also too, frankly, given how politicized all of this has become, it's hard to know where to get the numbers from. NASA, INPE, a Brazilian
agency, they're all out there with their separate numbers or figures. But it's not always something you can get a sort of hourly tally on. But it is
so urgent. They are still raging. And the worst month is September. We're in August -- Hala.
GORANI: All right. Nick Paton Walsh, our senior international correspondent, there in the area there -- in an area close to those raging
wildfires.
Christian Poirier is program director for Amazon Watch. He joins me now from San Francisco, California. Christian, could you explain why the rest
of the world should care about what's happening in the Amazon today?
CHRISTIAN POIRIER, PROGRAM DIRECTOR, AMAZON WATCH: Thanks for having me. What we're witnessing today in the Brazilian Amazon is an international
crisis and catastrophe.
The fires that are burning out of control are releasing massive amounts of carbon dioxide into our atmosphere, and driving further climate chaos while
burning vast tracts of forest that are responsible for sequestering carbon and, indeed, guaranteeing climate stability on our planet.
[14:05:07] So we see, really, a double whammy to our climate taking place today. Not to mention the loss of massive amounts of biodiversity because
the Amazon hosts 10 percent of the planet's biodiversity.
GORANI: And the issue is that even if you replanted some of that forest, it wouldn't matter because the biodiversity in those areas would be lost,
right? And it would take thousands of years to get back to the levels that we're seeing today.
POIRIER: That's correct. Only five percent of the biodiversity in the Amazon has been studied. And what we're seeing are fires in remote regions
where endemic species are living in potentially only very small regions that are being wiped out, as we're speaking right now. So many species
could be lost, going up in smoke as we're speaking.
GORANI: Why is it worse now than in previous years? What's going on?
POIRIER: Well, clearly, what's happening this year is the direct result of the Jair Bolsonaro government's environmental and human rights policies.
The 85 percent spike in forest fires just referred to, can be squarely placed on his doorstep because of how he has aggravated the environmental,
human rights situation in Brazil to such an extent that people can set fires with wanton impunity today, arson can be tolerated.
Environmental crime is explosive, including the increase in environment -- legal deforestation, 67 percent increase since last year. This is all
attributable to the Bolsonaro regime.
GORANI: You've been -- you've seen this problem up-close, right?
POIRIER: Absolutely (ph).
GORANI: How do you solve it? because a lot of the fires are set -- I mean, some of it is arson, as you mentioned. But others are set by
farmers, they need to deforest areas for grazing or for farming. How do you stop this from -- how do you stop the -- or slow, at the very least,
the rate of deforestation?
POIRIER: Indeed, these fires are set by a variety of actors. Some of them are small holders, and these are contained fires. It's actually a
traditional practice.
But the fires that have been set by large-scale cattle operations and land- grabbing operations that would sooner burn the forest to clear it for their land-grabbing and speculation or cattle ranching, than to see any sort of
environmental preservation.
What we need to see now is not just the fires being addressed directly, as they are apparently being addressed by the government, but also the
rollback on these -- I should say, the restoration of environmental and human rights protections that Jair Bolsonaro has attacked from day one in
his regime.
We need (ph) to (ph) see the firing of the so-called environmental minister, Ricardo Salles, who is an anti-environmental minister and is
carrying out the brutal attacks on environmental protections that have led to the crisis we're witnessing today.
GORANI: Right. And by the way, President Bolsonaro of Brazil has defended himself. He's essentially blaming international treaties, he's blaming
other actors as well, for what's going on in the Amazon rainforest, and deflecting the blame. How do you react to what President Bolsonaro has
said, just in the last few days, about these fires?
And also, by the way, I should mention, also, the possibility he might reject that aid, although experts -- and I'm sure you'll agree -- will say
$20 million is a bit of a drop in the bucket, so to speak, here.
POIRIER: Absolutely. The Bolsonaro regime has absolutely no credibility. In fact, he is a pathological liar. And I would say that he has been
absolutely isolated. The only people coming to his defense are members of his own regime.
Now, the $20 million is indeed a drop in the bucket to address what we need to see in terms of international coordination to support the Brazilian
government's efforts to put out these fires.
So the spat between Macron and Bolsonaro is a sideshow, it's unfortunate. But we need to take full attention to what's happening today, and
understand whose responsibility it is. In fact, Bolsonaro will always try to defer responsibility. That's what he does, he's a master of fake news,
much like Donald Trump. And we need to see both of these leaders in the same light.
GORANI: And Donald Trump has praised President Bolsonaro, just in the last few hours. Thanks very much, Christian Poirier, program director for
Amazon Watch. Appreciate it.
POIRIER: Thanks --
(CROSSTALK)
GORANI: The raging fires are not the only thing threatening the world's largest rainforest or the native tribes who call it home. Later in the
show, we take an exclusive look at a tribe that says it will stop at nothing to protect its way of life there.
Another big topic at the G7, beyond what's happening in the Amazon, was Iran. France's president offered to broker talks between Tehran and the
Trump administration. But today, Iran said, sure, they'll talk, but there are some pretty major conditions.
President Hassan Rouhani is insisting he will not come to the table unless the U.S. rolls back its sanctions over Iran's nuclear program. Here's what
Mr. Rouhani told his nation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[14:10:07] HASSAN ROUHANI, PRESIDENT OF IRAN (through translator): Lift the sanctions, all the sanctions against the Iranian nation, which are
illegal, cruel and wrong, should be lifted. If you lift all these sanctions and if you bow your head in respect to the nation of Iran, well,
then the situation would be different.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: Well, are these talks dead in the water? CNN International Diplomatic Editor, Nic Robertson is here. You were in Biarritz for the
duration of the G7 meeting. Was there hope on the ground when you spoke to world leaders, their delegations that this Iran proposal by Macron had any
legs?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes, I think there was. And the reason for that was because Macron's involved, not just
Donald Trump, in some of the behind-the-scenes talks, but Germany, who's another cosignatory for the -- for the international nuclear deal and
Britain as well.
And one of the keys to making this work -- and it was kind of interesting to hear Macron stroke both Donald Trump's ego, if you will, by saying,
"Look, the reason Iran is in this position are the tough economic sanctions you've put on them," as well as, you know, treating Iran with respect in
his comments.
The way to fix the economic problem for Iran is something that they've already done some groundwork on, that the United States would be involved
in it and some of these other countries --
GORANI: How? How would they do (ph) that?
(CROSSTALK)
GORANI: Because Rouhani is saying, "You have to roll back these sanctions or I won't even consider coming to the table."
ROBERTSON: So lines of credit.
(CROSSTALK)
ROBERTSON: You know, I think the difficult thing for President Trump will be to roll back his language. There's -- there was some ambiguity, I
think, if you look at some of the translations of what Rouhani said, that, you know, he is -- he did allow Zarif to go to Biarritz, and he did engage
in this line of conversation and they clearly --
GORANI: He wasn't asked for his --
ROBERTSON: -- clearly understand where (ph) this is going.
GORANI: -- permission, he was told ahead of time, "Zarif, the foreign minister of Iran, will be coming to Biarritz."
ROBERTSON: And there was a message that was taken back a couple of days before, from Paris by Zarif to Rouhani, and coming back with an answer.
I think we have to accept, there are thing that are going on behind the scenes here, and we may not know all of them. There are mechanisms that
are being discussed that will help Iran with its financial issues. And the financial issues are substantial.
But what President Trump finds difficulty with, and what Rouhani can take exception to, is being told that you have to get rid of your nuclear
weapons, as Rouhani said today. "We're not -- it's not up to anyone to tell Iran what to do. We're not making nuclear weapons."
And Trump can be very aggressive in the language that he uses, of what he expects Iran to do.
GORANI: But it just --
ROBERTSON: -- and that's where I think the difficulty can come.
GORANI: I was going to say, both sides are asking of the other, something we know the other will not give. The president is saying, "Stop supporting
terrorism," which means, really, the militant groups and the military offensives throughout the Middle East --
ROBERTSON: And this was very --
(CROSSTALK)
GORANI: -- but then Rouhani is saying, "Roll back the sanctions. And by the way, also bow in respect to Iran."
ROBERTSON: And what really caught my --
GORANI: We know Donald Trump's not going to do that.
ROBERTSON: -- and I think -- what really caught my ear was to listen to the evolution of Donald Trump. And we know Donald Trump plays many roles
and many characters, many times during the day. And they can flip-flop, and that's always a difficulty, dealing with this U.S. president.
But what he said was -- I was struck by this -- "Iran is not the same place that it was two and a half years ago," i.e. when he was on the campaign
trail. "We had 18 points of conflict," he said, 18 places, essentially, where Iran was threatening U.S. forces or U.S. interests.
He didn't say they've stopped threatening those 18, but he implied it. What he was -- seemed to be teeing himself up therefore, was that Iran is
not quite the same Iran that it was, in some respects. So that was -- you know, there was ambiguity in what he said there. But you could see some
language creeping in that is useful in a negotiation.
Remember, it is a negotiation. He's not going to get everything that he wants. Iranians are not going to get what they want. But if they can get
their economy -- if they can get some money, these lines of credit --
GORANI: You are -- yes. Nic, you are way more optimistic than other reporters I've spoken to.
ROBERTSON: And I agree, I am.
GORANI: Yes.
ROBERTSON: But I'm listening to the nuance in the language. And we see the way that President Trump works. This may all fall apart. But
President Macron -- and I think we should say this, we've probably said it a lot already -- you know, did a good job, to keep President Trump there,
keep him on his best behavior.
And actually do something that I think he would (ph) have (ph) been told, in the days, ahead, "By the way, President Trump, you don't fancy going to
the G7 because no one really wants to hear you tout your economic prowess, no one around the table thinks it's particularly successful --
GORANI: Yes.
ROBERTSON: -- "and by the way, we're going to bring in the Iranian foreign minister to sit on the sidelines" --
GORANI: Yes.
ROBERTSON: We would have thought that was crazy. But it happened.
GORANI: Yes, but he did pull it off. And he's been praised by some observers for how he handled this G7. Thanks very much, Nic Robertson.
[14:15:00] Now, in a sign of growing security ties between two nations usually at odds, Turkey's president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, visited Russia
today for talks with Vladimir Putin, and the war in Syria was the main issue on the agenda. Of course, both countries have strategic interests in
that country. They've certainly been very active inside the borders of Syria.
The Turkish president also attended an annual Russian airshow as a guest of Mr. Putin. NATO member Turkey started taking deliveries last month of
Russia's air defense system, despite strong objections from the U.S. The Russian leader was heard telling President Erdogan, by the way, there was
another batch delivered this morning.
Let's get more on this. Fred Pleitgen joins us now from Moscow. Did anything come out of it in terms of Syria, Fred, between the two leaders?
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. IN terms of Syria, I don't think very much came out of it. One of the interesting
things that we heard is that Syria, I think, Hala, is really one of the few issues where Redep Tayyip Erdogan and President Putin are not on the same
page, where there is some tension between these two leaders.
Certainly, of course, the Russians have been supporting the Assad forces in that offensive that they're doing in Idlib. And the Turks certainly are
not happy with that, and they're quite concerned about it.
The Turks have said they think that this is a serious security issue, not just for their forces that they have inside Turkey, in Idlib Province, but
of course, because of the fact that many people are fleeing that conflict and then are trying to get over the border into Turkey itself.
The Russians, for their part, have said that they believe that all this was kicked off by the rebels, and not by Assad's forces and it was Sergey
Lavrov who said, yesterday, that the Russians believe that they're not in breach of the ceasefire agreement.
Both sides, however, have agreed to try and do more to try and get some of the fighting to die down a little bit, and do more for the security
situation there in Idlib Province.
But of course, Hala, we've been on this program so many times and so far, things there just aren't quieting down, no matter what these two leaders
say -- Hala.
GORANI: All right. Fred Pleitgen, thanks very much.
Still to come tonight, the painkillers known as opioids are blamed for hundreds of thousands of deaths in the United States. And now, a drug
company has been ordered to pay up. We'll have more on a landmark ruling, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GORANI: Well, Tropical Storm Dorian is bearing down on Puerto Rico, an island that still hasn't recovered from the devastation of Maria, two years
ago now. Dorian could strengthen to a hurricane before crashing into Puerto Rico later this week.
Joining me now, in a few moments, will be Omar Jimenez, he's in Puerto Rico. Meteorologist Tom Sater is at the CNN Weather Center with a quick
look at where the storm is and how strong it's expected to be once it hits Puerto Rico -- Tom.
TOM SATER, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Hala, this is interesting. It's been a quiet hurricane season. We've had a lot of African Saharan dust come
across the Atlantic, so it's really suppressed activity, tropical depression off the coast.
[14:20:00] But Dorian, here, is the Little Cyclone That Could. It has been defying an environment, surrounded by dry air -- which typically breaks
these down -- and it's been defying, really, the computer models. Here's the watches and warnings. In pink is the hurricane watch, and it does
include Puerto Rico and, of course, the coast of the Dominican Republic.
But as it moved across Barbados and then Martinique, it's really kind of lost a little bit of its strength overnight, hurricane hunters flying into
the system, having a tough time even finding the center. It's a small storm.
And that makes it even more difficult, in a way, because small storms are easily influenced. Warm waters, they can dramatically gain strength. If
it has interaction with some dry air or mountains, they can really fast just dissipate. And it's what we call, just kind of shred out and just
kind of lose their strength.
If it makes its way in between and threads the needle between San Juan, Puerto Rico and Dominican Republic and stay in the warm waters, then it has
a chance of survival. But right now, we're not even sure if it'll make it to hurricane strength. If it does, it'll be brief. But it's not going to
take a lot to cause problems when it gets toward Puerto Rico.
Obviously, we've heard -- even today, I talked to a friend of mine who moved there --
(CROSSTALK)
GORANI: Is Omar ready?
(CROSSTALK)
SATER: -- they have 16 generators right now. Out of those 16 power plants, 11 of those 16 are down, they're not operational. The other five
could easily go down with a stiff wind. And even the -- even those strong winds do occur now and then, their power fluctuates.
The main radar on Puerto Rico is missing one part, and the FAA says they'll get the part to them by later on tonight. But, again, if it slides a
little more to the west and has interaction with the higher terrain, this system is no longer, probably, going to hold together to even influence
anything toward the Bahamas.
A little bit of rain is possible. Yes, we don't want the mudslides or anything like that. I think the tropical storm force winds that extend out
from the center about 150 kilometers, will not even make it to San Juan. So so far, so good. We hope this one (ph) stays on the minimal side.
GORANI: All right -- well, let's keep our fingers crossed. Tom Sater, thanks very much.
Omar Jimenez is on the island of Puerto Rico. What are residents there saying? They must be concerned because after even two years after Maria,
just the idea of another hurricane now must be terrifying.
OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN U.S. CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Hala. It's still very much on people's minds here, in the streets of Ponce, Puerto Rico. We are just
about 120 kilometers southwest, driving from the capital of San Juan.
We spoke to the mayor, and they say they are taking no chances, no matter the forecast, for Dorian. And they, in particular, had a few concerns.
One, in regards to the amount of rainfall that they are planning to see. And that's because there's a mountainous region just on the northern side
of this town. And they fear if there's too much rain, it could come flowing down that mountainside and into the town below.
They do have control measures in place. But again, that fear comes from if they are overwhelmed or not maintained properly over the course of this
weather event. So we'll be keeping an eye on that.
Now, one of the other things that we've been keeping an eye on is the fact that Maria, still very much on the minds of many people. And now, almost
two years after Maria made landfall here, on the island, here's how the mayor of Ponce described the threat that they are now facing, in the face
of Dorian.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR MARIA MELENDEZ, PONCE, PUERTO RICO: The flooding is a danger, it's very dangerous. So we are going to talk with the people, at the same time,
to move to the area (ph), that ones that have blue (ph) (INAUDIBLE). The one that live in the area (ph) that are flooding (ph), they have to move
out to our refuges.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
JIMENEZ: And earlier today, President Trump actually weighed in on the threat facing Puerto Rico, saying that -- he offered a misleading statistic
that he has touted multiple times, that they had given $92 billion towards this relief.
TEXT: Donald J. Trump: Wow! Yet another big storm heading to Puerto Rico. Will it ever end? Congress approved $92 billion for Puerto Rico
last year, an all-time record of its kind for "anywhere."
JIMENEZ: But according to the U.S. Federal Government Disaster Relief website, only about $40 billion of that was actually appropriated, $20
billion was actually committed to by the United States Congress, and only about $12.5 billion has actually been spent in regards to Puerto Rico.
And again, now, two years, just about, since Hurricane Maria made landfall, there are still places and homes with tarps as roofs, and still places that
need to be rebuilt -- Hala.
GORANI: All right. Omar Jimenez, thanks very much.
Driving addiction and abuse, a judge in America said the drug maker Johnson & Johnson deceptively promoted the painkillers known as opioids, and fueled
a crisis that has claimed hundreds of thousands of lives. It is a landmark ruling. CNN's Alexandra Field has that story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
THAD BALKMAN, JUDGE, CLEVELAND COUNTY, OKLAHOMA DISTRICT: I am entering an abatement plan that consists of costs totaling $572,102,028.
ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A landmark decision worth over half a billion dollars, with an Oklahoma judge ruling
Johnson & Johnson bears responsibility for the state's opioid epidemic.
[14:25:03] BALKMAN: Defendants caused an opioid crisis that is evidenced by increased rates of addiction, overdose deaths, and neonatal abstinence
syndrome in Oklahoma.
FIELD (voice-over): After a trial of more than seven weeks and dozens of witnesses taking the stand, Judge Thad Balkman, ruling the drug
manufacturer "... engaged in false and misleading marketing of both their drugs and opioids."
BALKMAN: Those actions compromised the health and safety of thousands of Oklahomans.
FIELD (voice-over): Prosecutors, praising the judge's decision as more than 2,000 similar lawsuits have been rolled into one federal trial, slated
for this fall, seeking similar outcomes against drug manufacturers, with the opioid epidemic devastating communities nationwide.
MICHAEL HUNTER, ATTORNEY GENERAL, OKLAHOMA: We have proven that Johnson & Johnson built its billion-dollar brand out of greed, and on the backs of
pain and suffering of innocent people.
FIELD (voice-over): Johnson & Johnson, writing in a statement, it's "... confident it has strong grounds to appeal this decision." Adding, "The
decision in this case is flawed."
SABRINA STRONG, LAWYER REPRESENTING JOHNSON & JOHNSON: Today's decision reflects a radical departure from more than a century of case law in this
state.
FIELD (voice-over): In 2017, the state sued Johnson & Johnson, along with other drug manufacturers, Purdue Pharma and Teva Pharmaceuticals, saying
they aggressively marketed opioids to doctors and downplayed the addictive nature of their products.
Both Purdue and Teva settled for a total of more than $350 million. Now, giving Oklahoma nearly $1 billion to put towards treatment and prevention
programs.
HUNTER: We're happy with the verdict. Obviously, we would have liked more, but we're very happy with the judge, again, finding that Johnson &
Johnson was culpable for what's happened in Oklahoma.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: And that was CNN's Alexandra Field reporting. As Alexandra told us, there are many more lawsuits out there over opioids.
Let's talk about this with our chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta. So it is a pretty small slap on the wrist financially, for a
company the size of Johnson & Johnson. So is it significant, nonetheless?
SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: It is significant, Hala, I think. First of all, you know, it's the first time that a drug company has
been found culpable with regard to this opioid epidemic, by this decision. So that's significant.
Also, you know, if you do the math here, they obviously -- they were asking for some $17 billion over 30 years. What they got was $572 million, which
essentially is one year's worth of those 30 years. But the judge also said, look, that's what he's allowed to do right now. He might -- that
number could go up if the costs continue to be there in the following years as well, so.
But regardless of the specific financial amount, it's significant because of what it symbolizes here, and the fact that there are some 2,000 other
lawsuits at the city level, at the county level, at the state level, that are all going to be looking to this decision for -- you know, taking their
cues from it.
GORANI: And is it going to be similar, do you think, to the tobacco industry, for instance?
GUPTA: Well, you know, that's a good example, right? That was back in 1998. And it was a $250 billion settlement. So obviously, a large amount
of money. But the criticism was that only about one percent of that money went toward tobacco addiction prevention and actually, to people who had
been --
GORANI: Right.
TEXT: Oklahoma's Plan: Treatment; Overdose prevention and response; Medical education; Neonatal abstinence syndrome; Data surveillance; Law
enforcement
GUPTA: -- most affected by this. Oklahoma's plan is more specific, as Alexandra also mentioned, focusing on treatment, focusing on helping people
who are in the throes of an overdose, collecting a lot of data, focusing on babies, Hala, who are born, addicted to opioids, neonatal abstinence
syndrome.
So there is a specific plan here. Again, it's a lot less than what they hoped for, but it's about a year's worth of funding for those types of
programs.
GORANI: And what about the doctors? Because I've read, in the case of Oxycontin, for instance, reports on how the drug-makers would reward
doctors for prescribing some of this highly addictive medication --
GUPTA: Yes.
GORANI: -- that the companies themselves would hide how, you know, addictive they were. What is the role of doctors in all of this? Are --
GUPTA: Well --
GORANI: -- do they share some of the responsibility?
GUPTA: I think so. I think they do share some of the responsibility, and I wrote an op-ed about this. And, you know, it's a provocative issue, as
you might imagine, within the medical community here in the United States.
But one thing to point out, Hala. When you think about some of these drugs, the Johnson & Johnson drugs, in the United States, we consume about
80 to 90 percent of some of these classes of drugs. We are not even five percent of the world's population.
And the reason that's relevant is, you think about the fact that these drug-makers could be distributing these opioids around the world, but they
needed people who were really, really willing prescribers in the doctors. And that happened, in remarkable ways, here in the United States, 50-some
prescriptions written for every hundred people in the United States.
[14:30:04] So that's --
GORANI: Wow.
GUPTA: -- the prescribing by the doctors is certainly part of the problem here.
GORANI: Yeah. And we all -- anybody who's been to a U.S. doctor with any complaint will realize how quickly painkillers are sometimes prescribed.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta, as always, thanks so much for being with us. Appreciate it.
GUPTA: Thank you, Hala. Thank you.
GORANI: Still to come tonight. Fires are just one of many things endangering the Amazon rainforest. We'll take an exclusive look at a
native tribe on a mission to save their home.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GORANI: More now on our top story this hour, the fight to protect the Amazon rainforest. Brazilian president, Bolsonaro, is sounding off on his
critics, claiming that the extent of damage to the rainforest is, in fact, being exaggerated. This is the Brazilian defense ministry says the number
of regions affected by fires has decreased.
Meanwhile, Mr. Bolsonaro is tying the G7 $20 million aid package to a personal feud with the French president. He's demanding that Emmanuel
Macron withdraw insults before he will accept it. An aid package designed to help his own people, after all. It seems like this feud may be fueling
some of the fires further and needlessly.
The fires are also spotlighting other problems endangering the Amazon. Many of them spurred by President Bolsonaro's policies and opening it up to
miners and ranchers.
Tribes that are living in the rainforest say they are willing to do whatever it takes to protect their home.
CNN Isa Soares reports with exclusive footage shot by filmmaker, Apu Gomes.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TEXT: Butterfly, we are singing for the butterfly. What are you doing butterflies?
ISA SOARES, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For as long as anyone can remember, the Waiapi tribe have been the stewards of these
waters and the land that caresses it.
In return, the Amazon rainforest has given back, with every drop and seed safeguarding their livelihood, tradition and, ultimately, their survival.
KUMARA WAIAPI, MEMBER OF WAIAPI TRIBE (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): We live inside the lung of the Amazon, because the Amazon brings health to us. Health of
the World. This air is of the world. Polluted air means problems to us, health problems, sadness. This is why we care about climate change and is
our concern, we Waiapi indigenous.
(FLUTE PLAYING)
[14:35:16] SOARES: But the isolated Waiapi, 1,500 strong across 92 villages in Amapa State, say they've never felt so under threat as they do
today.
AJAREATY WAIAPI, VILLAGE CHIEF (through translator): Some time ago we lived well. We did not worry about land. We did not know that we would
have many invaders, loggers, and prospectors in the future. Many talk about our land. They said that they will take our land.
SOARES: And it seems not even the demarcation setup Brazil's 1988 constitution can protect them, that is now perilously close with President
Jair Bolsonaro calling for protected and demarcated parts of the Amazon to be opened up to roads, ranching, farming and mining, arguing this
demarcated area is too large for the indigenous and is hindering development.
On the ground, the Waiapi tell us they have already begun to feel the impact of his words and policies.
TEXT: This government is massacring our rights and our indigenous peoples.
SOARES: With garimpeiros, wildcat miners, loggers and ranchers invading and assaulting their land.
VISENI WAIAPI, DIRECTOR OF WAIAPI VILLAGES COUNCIL (through translator): They've already started killing the indigenous people. We do not want to
lose another drop of blood.
SOARES: Audio provided to Brazilian journalists just after their chief was killed on July 22nd shows their urgency for action.
TEXT: He was stabbed multiple times in his body and his genitals. He was killed cruelly.
SOARES: But they say the savagery didn't stop there.
TEXT: They are entering indigenous houses and are assaulting children, assaulting women.
SOARES: They may be shaken but the Waiapi are not running scared. Instead, in silence, they ward off evil spirits and ready for battle.
TEXT: We will never let them touch our land. We will never stop fighting. We will fight forever. I've always been here and I won't go out.
SOARES: Their fight has taken them all the way to the United Nations.
JAWARUWA WAIAPI, LOCAL COUNCILOR AND LEADER (through translator): With the election of Jair Bolsonaro, president of Brazil, it increases the threat to
our rights and our territories. We do not accept mining on our land. He does not respect our culture, our way of life and our forests. We are
worried.
SOARES: The Brazilian government says there was no credible evidence that the chief was murdered, with the minister of the environment adding that
the chief drank too much and fell into the river.
But according to Amazon Watch, there have been at least 14 cases of invasions and assaults into indigenous territories by land grabbers,
loggers and miners, who have left their dark stain on indigenous people and on the world's greatest rain forest, with fire scorching the land at an
unseen rate.
The Waiapi have luckily been safe from the fire but remain threatened by Bolsonaro's environmental policies.
The yellow marks here shows the scale of deforestation which has increased more than 60 percent in June compared to last year. That's over 750 square
miles of lost land. Put it simply, that's 1.5 soccer fields being destroyed every minute of every day.
A. WAIAPI (through translator): Our concern is that if the forest is gone, people will also end.
SOARES: So while the Waiapi wait for the world to act, life goes on here, 59-year-old chief Ajareaty goes to school to learn Portuguese.
A. WAIAPI (through translator): I said I want to learn what non-indigenous life is like. How is their life, I want to know how to speak their
language. I want to know, so I can talk to the white people out there.
(SINGING)
SOARES: Teaching the next generation.
A. WAIAPI (through translator): I want my daughter to be just like me, a chief.
TEXT: She always talks about the fight for the land, of our land. This is very important for me.
[14:40:11] SOARES (voice-over): Traditions that have protected their ancient lands, actions that defend the very air that we breathe.
Isa Soares, CNN.
TEXT: We are singing for the butterfly. What are you doing butterflies? We're protecting the planet. We will tie for the planet not to fall.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
Well, CNN reached out to President Bolsonaro's press office about the government's policies in the region. We're told the presidency would make
no comments on the issue.
CNN also reached out to the Ministry of the Environment and Brazil's National Indigenous Affairs Agency. The Ministry of the Environment did
not reply to our request for comment. The Indigenous Affairs Agency redirected us to the president's and ministry's press office.
Still to come tonight. Going to Harvard University is a dream for students around the world. But actually getting to campus has turned into a
nightmare for one Palestinian student, turned away at the airport.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GORANI: Students are beginning to move in at Harvard University to start the new school year. But one is unsure if he'll make it to campus at all.
Instead, he's negotiating with U.S. immigration officers over his visa.
17-year-old, Ismail Ajjawi is as Palestinian from Lebanon. He was turned back at the airport on Friday night, shortly after he landed in Boston. He
had a visa and he was admitted to Harvard.
CBP, Customs and Border Patrol put out a statement saying, "This individual was deemed inadmissible to the United States based on information
discovered during the CBP inspection."
But when we call the CBP, we were told they didn't discuss individual cases. And so we -- we're not able to gather more information about why,
specifically, this young man, who's 17 years old was turned away.
Shera Avi-Yonah and Delano Franklin have been reporting on this story for the school's newspaper, The Harvard Crimson, and they join me now. They're
in -- on campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Delano, let me -- so what happened at Logan Airport? Because this man, Ismail Ajjawi, 17 years old, had all the paperwork, right?
DELANO FRANKLIN, COLLEGE ADMINISTRATION REPORTER, HARVARD CRIMSON: Mm-hmm. So according to what he told us, he arrived in Boston around 2:20 p.m. went
through normal immigration, had his passport checked and was asked a few questions.
But then he was taken aside, was detained, according to him, for around five hours during which a Customs and Border patrol agent, searched his
phone and laptop. And after that, he told us that that officer cancelled his visa and informed him he would be deported. He was in the airport for
around eight hours between his arrival and departure.
[14:45:09] GORANI: Yes. And, Shera, so he had a visa, he had a scholarship. This was facilitated through an organization called AMIDEAST.
So, I mean, this was a young man fully expecting to start the school year with all of his fellow classmates in just a few days.
SHERA AVI-YONAH, MULTIMEDIA EXECUTIVE, HARVARD CRIMSON: Sure. So classes start next week, but actually, today although freshmen are moving into
Harvard yard. And that's why he flew in on Friday because he's expected to move in today.
GORANI: And who -- Delano, who is this young man? He's a Palestinian who lives in Lebanon, correct?
FRANKLIN: Mm-hmm. He's a 17-year-old Palestinian man, but he was born in Lebanon. His parents were born in Lebanon. But he carries a Lebanese
passport that does say that he's ethically Palestinian and that was something that customs and immigration would have seen.
GORANI: And, Shera, I believe there -- I mean, I assume there must be attempts to re-apply here. Because the visa from when we contacted the
authorities in the United States, we were told it was -- it was cancelled so that he can re-apply immediately. There are efforts now, I understand,
to try to get a -- to come back to the United States as quickly as possible?
AVI-YONAH: Yes. So the State Department told us that they wouldn't comment on individual cases. But we know from both Harvard and also
AMIDEAST that they have lawyers working on this issue. Ismail also said that he's been in contact with Harvard international office.
GORANI: Right. And, Delano, you reported on this case. What was -- what has been the reaction for your school paper? What has been the reaction of
Harvard itself, Harvard officials, to this?
FRANKLIN: Harvard officials are not giving a lot of details on the case. But are saying that they're doing everything they can to get him on campus
as soon as possible and they're trying to get him here within the week.
GORANI: All right. And were you surprised, Shera, this piece that you wrote with Delano? I mean, this went really viral on the internet. Were
you surprised and why do you think it struck a chord?
AVI-YONAH: I think it's that, you know, the kind of expectations that he really was supposed to be starting classes and that he worked for months to
get the scholarship and then all of a sudden at Boston Logan, potentially, those plans may have changed.
GORANI: Thanks to both of you for joining us. Appreciate it. Delano Franklin and Shera Avi-Yonah. Thanks for coming on CNN International and
talking about this story that has really been shared a lot on Twitter and on the internet. We appreciate it.
More to come including Taylor Swift is singling out the Trump administration. But the pop star is not the only one to get political at
this year's MTV Video Music Awards. The big moments that you probably missed, because it was in the middle of the night here.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GORANI: All this week, CNN is exploring the different ways Africa is looking east. The continent is proving itself to be the logical place for
global giants to expand their manufacturing.
Eleni Giokos shows us how one Japanese carmaker is trying to take advantage of that.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
[14:50:01] SHINKICHI IZUMBI, MANAGING DIRECTOR, NISSAN SOUTH AFRICA: Welcome to our (INAUDIBLE) plant. This is exactly where we are going to
invest three billion land of the money and this is where we are going to produce our Navara.
ELENI GIOKOS, CNN BUSINESS AFRICA CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Three billion rent. That's nearly $200 million all being invested to help Nissan
rev up its production in South Africa.
Next year, the Navara, one of Nissan's pickup trucks, will be assembled alongside two of its most popular cars for the African markets.
GIOKOS (on-camera): What' being produced here? I recognize this car. It's everywhere.
IZUMBI: Yes. This is our legendary model and then this is our MP 200, which is half of a pickup. And then this one is -- this one is NP300 hard
body, which is one of pickup.
GIOKOS (voice-over): This also means South Africa will stop meeting to import the Navara and, instead, will export it to regional and global
markets.
Once a Navara is added to the line, official say, production at this plant will jump from around 40,000 vehicles a year to around 70,000, and that
could, one day, hit 120,000.
Even though Nissan has been assembling vehicles here since the 1960s, its engines and some parts are still imported from Japan. The rest are
commissioned locally.
GIOKOS (on-camera): So what percentage of parts are going to be manufactured in South Africa versus imported?
JOAN BUSQUETS, MANUFACTURING DIRECTOR, NISSAN: Yes. Basically, this car will be having a 38 percent of local content.
GIOKOS (voice-over): Right now, Africa's roads are dominated by Toyota as it remains the number one car brand on the continent. How do you plan to
close the gap between Nissan and Toyota?
IZUMI: Well, we have to -- we have to look at two parts. One, we have to improve day by day and then we have, surely, ensure. We are prodding the
light car for our customers.
GIOKOS: But Nissan isn't the only one aiming to close that gap. The Japanese automakers are starting to make their move and then gearing up for
growth on the continent.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: The White House is pushing back against criticism from pop star, Taylor Swift. The singer took home the top prize Monday night at the MTV
Video Music Awards. Her pride theme song, "You Need to Calm Down," won video of the year.
During her acceptance speech, Swift called out the Trump administration for staying silent on a petition in support of equal rights for LGBTQ
Americans. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TAYLOR SWIFT, AMERICAN SINGER: I want to thank everyone who signed that petition because it now has half a million signatures, which is five times
the amount that it would need to warrant a response from the White House.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: Our senior entertainment writer, Lisa Respers France joins me now live from Atlanta.
Now, the White House put out a statement a short time ago. "The Trump administration absolutely opposes discrimination of any kind and supports
the equal treatment of all. However, the House-passed bill and its current form is filled with poison pills that threaten to undermine parental and
conscience rights."
It's kind of unusual to have the White House issues statements when pop stars criticize them. But this is how the political environment, I guess,
the U.S. is in right now.
LISA RESPERS FRANCE, CNN SENIOR ENTERTAINMENT WRITER: Absolutely. And when you have someone as powerful as a Taylor Swift, I mean, think about
the visual. Here she is with, you know, members of the LGBTQ community, some very hot profile celebrities in that community, surrounding her. They
participated in the video and she made the statement that this was an award that she won that was voted on by the viewers.
So clearly, the viewers approved of not only the video, but the message from the video. And she was just letting politicians know voters equals
voters, so you may want to pay attention.
GORANI: Well, I think that her speech will have reached more young people than a White House statement. I'm pretty sure. I'm just going out on a
limb there.
French Montana, the rapper, who came to the United States as a 13-year-old from Morocco, also had some political things to say at the VMAs.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FRENCH MONTANA, RAPPER: I'm so proud to pronounce this award because as an immigrant, I felt like we are the people that make this country and I feel
like I want to be a voice --
ALISON BRIE, AMERICAN ACTRESS: (INAUDIBLE) in this country is unconstitutional. Frankly disgusting.
MONTANA: Can I get half of that?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: So, again, political statement there, Lisa.
FRANCE: Absolutely. He was joined by Alison Brie, who's one of the stars on Netflix series, "Glow." And you heard her there say that what's
happening in this country is unconstitutional and disgusting. They've got a huge round of applause, and it was a message that went over really
strongly and was supported, not just by the crowd there, but also by the viewers if you go by what was said on Twitter.
[14:55:15] GORANI: But how old, typically, are the fan of French Montana, of Taylor Swift? Are they -- because in the end, if we look at it through
a political prism, it's also about, whether or not, some of these young people are voters and might they be -- might they be influenced by what
they're hearing at these events?
FRANCE: Absolutely. I mean, quite as it's kept, Taylor Swift has a lot of adult fans. You know, people to have a tendency to think that her and
French Montana, who's a rap artist, that they just appeal to a much younger audience like the pre-teens, teenyboppers. But we're talking a wide
spectrum of fans from very young people to people who are old enough to vote. So some who are much older than, you know, people who are -- who
would be new voters when it comes to 2020.
So they have a wide fan base and people pay attention to celebrities as much as certain factions would like to say that celebrities should just be
quiet and do their jobs. They consider this activism to be a part of their jobs which is why a lot of times they're so outspoken. They know that they
have a platform and they want to use it.
GORANI: And, by the way, Taylor Swift has 84 million followers on Twitter and follow --
FRANCE: Right. And those aren't all 5 year olds. Trust me.
GORANI: Quick word on Missy Elliott, she was honored.
FRANCE: Yes. She won the Vanguard Award and she's reminding us of what it means to actually perform and have a great production. It was amazing,
like the best thing in the show, as far as I'm concerned.
I mean, Missy Elliott was the future of the music industry back in the '90s. So, you know, to see her on stage doing her thing was so incredible.
Great night for her.
GORANI: Exactly. And I love that that age group is represented for obvious reasons.
Thanks very much, Lisa Respers France, as always. Love having you on.
FRANCE: Thank you.
GORANI: Thanks for watching tonight. I'm Hala Gorani. Stay with CNN. Richard Quest is in the studio, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
