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Hala Gorani Tonight
House Prepares For Full Vote On Impeachment; USMCA Includes Labor Provisions; Forty-Two Anti-Semitic Hate Crimes Across France; Climate Summit Ends Without New Commitments; Budapest's Architecture A Feast For The Eyes; China Reacts To Star Player's Uyghurs Tweet; Top Beauty Pageants Crown Black Winners At Same Time; F1 Heiress Tamara Ecclestone's Home Burglarized, Robbed Of Jewelry. Aired 2-3p ET
Aired December 16, 2019 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[14:00:32]
HALA GORANI, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: Hello, everyone. Live from CNN London, I'm Hala Gorani.
Tonight, the Judiciary Committee has just released its report into Donald Trump's alleged abuse of power as Washington gets ready for a historic vote
that could make Mr. Trump the third American president ever to be impeached.
Then, touting trade talks as the markets soar: the Trump administration says its negotiation strategy is working but there's a snag. And, later,
all the anger of an activist generation could not motivate politicians to act. I'll ask one climate activist what it will take to get leaders to
listen.
It is the start of an historic week in the U.S. -- yet another one -- as the Trump administration plans its battle strategy for a likely impeachment
trial in January. We expect, by the way, to see President Trump any moment in the 2:00 p.m. Eastern hour at a roundtable event at the White House.
What we are going to do is we will monitor what he says, and let you know if he makes any kind of statement on the impeachment proceedings.
First, though, I want to bring you up to speed on the process itself as it enters a very critical phase. Now, today, there was a report from the
House Judiciary Committee, released just hours ago, saying the president, quote, "betrayed the nation," unquote, and should not be permitted to be
above the law.
On Wednesday, the full House is expected to vote on those two articles of impeachment: abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. The rule is that
if just one of those articles pass, the Senate will hold a trial, which is expected to begin, as I mentioned, in January.
Now, lawmakers there are already gearing up -- Chuck Schumer is the Senate's top Democrat, he is laying out his request for the trial. He
wants four witnesses who refused to appear before the House impeachment committees to testify, so that's an uphill battle for the Democrats in the
Senate. But many Republicans have already said very publicly that they don't need a trial, that their minds are in fact already made up in favor
of the president.
Boris Sanchez is at the White House with more. Are we expecting the president to take up this impeachment -- latest impeachment news today at
this roundtable discussion?
BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Potentially, yes. The roundtable actually just got moved back by a few minutes. This is
essentially a meeting between governors and the president to discuss innovation.
But as often happens at these meetings at the White House, the president is going to be asked questions by reporters, and he may take it any number of
different directions, Hala. Rest assured, he likely will comment on this news that Chuck Schumer is demanding that Mitch McConnell call a number of
witnesses in the upcoming Senate trial, likely to come up in the month of January.
The president himself has demanded that certain witnesses appear, the roster very different from that demanding -- from that demand from Chuck
Schumer. Schumer wants to hear from a number of White House officials including the acting chief of staff, Mick Mulvaney, the former national
security advisor, John Bolton. Whereas President Trump wants to hear from Adam Schiff and Nancy Pelosi, the Bidens, even that whistleblower whose
complaint launched this entire impeachment process -- Hala.
GORANI: Right. All right. We'll see what the president says and we'll get back to you, Boris, if he says anything about the news of the day.
Now, this week, Donald Trump could become only the third American president in history to be impeached. Julian Zelizer is an historian and professor
at Princeton University, and he joins me now from New York.
So Wednesday is the expectation for the full House vote. It's a near certainty, based on what representatives from the Democratic Party have
said, that Donald Trump will be impeached -- Julian.
JULIAN ZELIZER, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Yes, it is. And it looks like it will get most of the support of the Democratic Party, and it will get none
of the support of the Republican Party. So it's an impeachment, it's a milestone. And the final vote will probably fall along party lines, with a
few Democratic defections.
GORANI: Now, negotiations have already pretty much started about the format of the Senate trial. Boris was just saying Chuck Schumer, the top
Democrat, wants to call witnesses like Mick Mulvaney and John Bolton, and that Donald Trump would want to hear from top Democrats. What is your
expectation as to how this will shake out? What kind of trial will we see?
ZELIZER: Well, the Republicans made it clear over the weekend that they basically are on the side of the president and people like Senator Graham
have said they have no real interest in listening to the House managers. Democrats have pushed back, saying this is supposed to be a trial, the
senators are supposed to take an oath that they will actually listen to the evidence.
[14:05:13]
So Schumer's trying to put some pressure on McConnell. McConnell will need 51 votes for any kind of change to the procedures of the impeachment, so
that means he needs every Republican on his side. So I think Schumer's trying to ramp up some pressure to gain some control over how this will go.
GORANI: Yes, but the Senate Republicans and the White House don't seem to want the same thing. Republicans on Capitol Hill want this to be quick.
The president is suggesting that he doesn't mind if this takes a long time, that he wants to be able to defend himself and expose the Democrats for
this sham, which is what he's been calling these impeachment proceedings.
ZELIZER: Yes, there's an intraparty tension that's going on. McConnell would like this to be all over with within a few days. He wants to
essentially dismiss all the accusations, put this aside and get back to other kinds of politics. Whereas the reality show president wants to put
on a show, and he wants to use this as a platform not only to defend himself, but to go after the Democrats.
McConnell has all the power. McConnell really has the cards right now, and my suspicion is if that's the way McConnell wants to go, the president's
going to lose.
GORANI: Let's talk about the latest "Fox News" poll, 50 percent of Americans polled are in favor of impeaching and removing the president; 54
percent in favor of impeachment without necessarily removal, but that's more than half. What do you make of that?
ZELIZER: It -- the numbers are stunning. These are much higher than even Richard Nixon faced in the final weeks of his saga, which led to his
resignation.
What it shows is, Republicans are still solidly behind the president but a large majority or a majority-plus believes he should be impeached and
removed. That suggests the House impeachment proceedings have had an effect. And the people --
GORANI: But --
ZELIZER: -- a lot of Americans don't see this president favorably.
GORANI: -- but Donald Trump's approval rating ticked up to 45 percent according to this poll. Now, the president is tweeting today about debates
with the Democrats, about the stock market. He seems to be focusing on 2020. Do you think that the Democrats' focus on impeachment instead will
hurt them? Could this be, when all is said and done, a mistake?
TEXT: Donald J. Trump: I look very much forward to debating whoever the lucky person is who stumbles across the finish line in the little-watched
Do Nothing Democrat Debates. My record is so good on the Economy and all else, including debating, that perhaps I would consider more than 3
debates....
ZELIZER: Well, it's hard to calculate. I'm not convinced that's the case. I think those impeachment poll numbers are not good for the president. The
Republicans have already suffered in the midterm elections.
And if the Democrats are able to make this about what kind of president do you want, what kind of governing do you want in the Oval Office, they have
a chance to connect the issues of the impeachment to the election and use that as part of their mobilization. So we don't know, but I don't think
it's necessarily a mistake politically.
GORANI: Julian Zelizer, as always, thanks so much to joining us on -- for joining us on CNN.
ZELIZER: Thanks.
GORANI: We were talking about the trade agreement with -- between the U.S. and Mexico. And now U.S. and Mexican officials are meeting today to try to
save that huge North American trade agreement. At issue is a U.S. demand that it be allowed to send monitors to Mexico to assure certain labor laws
are being enforced. CNN's Matt Rivers tells us Mexico is furious about that.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MATT RIVERS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): With the strokes of three pens, a new USMCA trade deal was signed last week in
Mexico City. More than just a trade deal, though, for the U.S. it was a moment of rare bipartisanship. Though it still needs to pass Congress,
Chief Negotiator Robert Lighthizer called it a model for future trade deals, President Trump called it historic, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi
agreed.
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: It's a victory for America's workers. It's one that we take great pride in advancing.
RIVERS (voice-over): U.S., Mexican and Canadian negotiators first agreed on a new deal last year. But House Democrats had several concerns,
including about Mexican labor. Through a year of negotiations with the White House, they demanded that any deal included changes in Mexican labor
law, with Americans on the ground in-country making sure the new laws were followed.
The bill now being considered by the House says that labor attaches will be based in Mexico, quote, "to monitor and enforce the labor obligations of
Mexico." The problem here? The Mexican government now says nobody told them that.
JESUS SEADE KURI, MEXICO'S CHIEF NEGOTIATOR FOR NORTH AMERICA: (SPEAKING IN SPANISH)
RIVERS (voice-over): This provision was not consulted with Mexico, said Mexico's chief negotiator Saturday. And of course, we don't agree.
As a part of this deal, Mexico did change its laws to make it easier for workers to unionize effectively. But when pressured during negotiations to
accept outside inspectors at its work sites, Mexico long balked, saying they only agreed to participate in dispute resolution panels.
[14:10:14]
Under Secretary Jesus Seade tweeted Sunday in part, quote, "Mexico will never accept... inspectors for a simple reason: Mexican law prohibits it."
Seade says he will meet with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer in Washington today. So does this mean the entire agreement is in jeopardy?
Experts tell CNN probably not. For one, Mexico's Senate overwhelmingly approved the deal last Thursday, and the strong response from Mexican
President Lopez Obrador's administration over the weekend could simply be about domestic politics.
ANA LEROY, TRADE CONSULTANT, MEXICAN COUNCIL ON FOREIGN RELATIONS: He wants to have that image that Mexico stood firm during the negotiation.
RIVERS (voice-over): Plus, Mexico's economy isn't doing very well and USMCA might help with that.
RIVERS: Can Mexico afford to scuttle this deal?
LEROY: No.
RIVERS (voice-over): The U.S. House will likely vote on and pass the pact this week. But this is a three-country deal. If Mexico were to talk away,
the entire thing could collapse.
And even if that's not likely, what we do know is that the agreement that looked ready to sail through Congress, that President Trump tweeted, quote,
"will be the best and most important trade deal ever made by the USA," just got a lot more complicated. Matt Rivers, CNN, Mexico City.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: The trade deal with Mexico and Canada is one of several trade disputes that Donald Trump is trying to turn into a success as he pushes
toward 2020. His chief trade advisor says the long negotiations are going to end up providing a big boost to the U.S. economy. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PETER NAVARRO, WHITE HOUSE TRADE ADVISOR: Last week was a historic, historic day in America. We had not just the China deal, but the U.S.-
Mexico-Canada agreement. We've also done Japan and South Korea in terms of trade deals. That's over half of our total trade that President Trump has
gotten trade agreements for, and that's -- I mean, that's amazing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: All right. Still no trade deal, of course, with China. And a snag with this particular North American trade deal. Let's get to Alison
Kosik. What are markets saying and how are they reacting to this? Because is there a sense that this is just a little roadblock, a little speed bump
but that things should get ironed out?
ALISON KOSIK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I think it is being viewed that way, Hala. You know, we're watching stocks hitting record highs today as some
of this ambiguity on not just one but both trade deals is kind of being removed.
You know, you have to see how the year has been for this market. I mean, it has been a strong year for stocks, no doubt about it, but it has been a
market that's kind of hung on every, you know, different headline based on where the trade negotiations were going, so we did see a lot of volatility
because of the trade deals.
But the reality is, phase one of the trade deal between the U.S. and China is moving forward. And as you know, this agreement delays this new round
of tariffs that would have gone to a -- gone into effect yesterday, being applied to about $155 billions' worth of Chinese goods.
But if you just take a step back from what's happened here with the phase one, some analysts see this first deal as only a small positive for the
outlook of the economy, to the extent that it removes the threat of further tariffs but it also does not address some of the more sweeping structural
changes, including more concrete ways to protect foreign intellectual property, those more sweeping changes that President Trump has promised he
would deliver on.
So the way the market sees this at this point is that we're not seeing the U.S.-China trade war ratchet up. That is why you're seeing some relief in
the market today.
As far as the USMCA trade deal goes, it looks like, you know, depending on who you're listening to, Larry Kudlow saying that this deal is going to
move forward and then a Mexican official also saying the fact that Mexico was, you know, was blindsided by this provision in the deal, that's not
going to keep the deal from moving forward either.
So all of those are positives for the market. Once again, it takes away that ambiguity, that uncertainty that has been dragging down the market --
Hala.
GORANI: So Pete Navarro, the trade advisor, is saying this is great for the economy, Donald Trump has managed to renegotiate or refresh half of
total trade. But you still have major -- I mean, the -- what -- the biggest trade relationship with China is still being negotiated and ironed
out. Is this hurting the U.S. economy?
KOSIK: You know, it is hurting the U.S. economy in some ways just based on confidence. But what's interesting is that if you take the tariffs out of
the picture, the ones that were going to be imposed yesterday, you really don't see any impact. I mean, all you really have to do is look at the
consumer who, so far, is going strong. It's really -- the consumer has been the engine of the U.S. economy. GDP is still hanging around two
percent.
[14:15:04]
Now, with that being said, we are seeing, you know, some slowdown in the fourth quarter. We're looking at spending in the early part of November, a
little soft. So we are waiting on figures, those retail figures, for the holiday season. And of course, manufacturing is in a recession but many
analysts do see -- do see things picking up for the economy in the new year, of course helped by lower rates promised by the Fed -- Hala.
GORANI: OK. Alison Kosik, thanks very much.
Still to come tonight, investigators are blaming locals but dozens of anti- Semitic incidents in France could have been inspired instead by global websites. We'll bring you that story from the German-France -- Germany
France border after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GORANI: In France, no arrests have been made so far in a spree of anti- Semitic attacks along the German border. There have been dozens of incidents over the past year and a half, including -- and you see the
images there -- from eastern France, including the desecration of this Jewish cemetery earlier this month.
Investigators say they believe it was locals who are responsible. But as Melissa Bell reports, some global websites may have also played a role.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Tombstones marked by hate, but also cultural centers, town halls, schools. In all, 42 anti-Semitic
attacks in the Bas-Rhin region of Alsace in just 18 months.
This cemetery in the village of Westhoffen is just the latest to be desecrated. One hundred and seven of its tombs were found market with
swastikas earlier this month. And although the cleanup operation is now under way, for a region as troubled as this one by anti-Semitic attacks,
the stain will be harder to remove.
YOAV ROSSANO, HEAD OF HERITAGE, ISRAELITE CONSISTORY, BAS-RHIN REGION: This kind of symbol touches more than you think. It is awakening the history.
Part of the family line died in Auschwitz and in the Holocaust. So to see it here, where I live, there is a disease in the society. And everybody
would like to stop it.
BELL: Not least the French government. France's interior minister visited Westhoffen, announcing the creation of a national task force. When the
graveyard at Quatzenheim was attacked, it was the French president who came, another case that remains unsolved.
A source close to the investigation says that locals are believed to be responsible, locals who may have been incited by global websites. While
the hunt for the culprits continues, we wanted to find out where they're finding encouragement.
Two French language sites, registered in Panama and the Bahamas and enabled to stay online by an American company, White (ph) Europe, and Participatory
Democracy, both shared pictures of the attacks in Alsace.
[14:20:07]
White Europe, celebrating these exemplary actions by the proud of people of Alsace that show us the way. Reached for comment, White Europe told us
they stand behind their posts.
Participatory Democracy told CNN that while they don't condone the attacks, they do believe that it's all a Jewish conspiracy.
Both sides, celebrating the number 14, a reference to a slogan coined by the late American white supremacist David Lane, and which was also found
graffitied on one of the Westhoffen tombs.
Both of these sites use the American internet infrastructure company Cloudflare, which provides protection from cyber-attacks. Both sites
openly celebrate anti-Semitism and that, here in France, is a crime.
Now, in the past, Cloudflare has discontinued its services to 8Chan in the wake of the El Paso mass shooting and the American neo-Nazi blog Daily
Stormer. So why the different treatment when it comes to hate speech that is in French? Cloudflare have not responded to CNN's questions.
BELL (voice-over): CNN also found that Facebook, which does not allow Daily Stormer posts to be shared, did allow posts from both the French
sites until CNN reached out for comment, after which it blocked them.
Twitter allows sharing from all three sites, but told CNN that it's taking action to prevent linking to such content.
We asked France's interior minister in an exclusive interview if the United States was doing enough to help tackle the problem.
CHRISTOPHER CASTANER, FRENCH INTERIOR MINISTER (through translator): No, and my answer is clear because there is a clear difference of culture. it
is not about opposing French or European culture to American culture, but clearly, on these subjects, there is a belief in the freedom to say
anything and everything. I believe that there is no freedom when it is us and our fundamental values that are being attacked.
BELL (voice-over): One victim of the latest attack says that global action is required in the face of a global problem.
GUILLAUME DEBRE, GRAVES OF HIS FAMILY WERE DESECRATED: If we don't have that, you're going to have other, you know, Westhoffen or Quatzenheim or
others, and not just in France. So you see it in New Zealand, you see it in America, you see it in France.
BELL (voice-over): The tomb of Guillaume Debre's family was amongst those desecrated in Westhoffen. He has yet to show a picture of it to his young
daughters.
DEBRE: It's a few markings on sacred stone, it's a few markings that spell out hate. And in this country, not me but my family and generations have
understood what hate mean and what it can lead to.
BELL (voice-over): In a heavily guarded synagogue in Strasbourg, the city where much of the region's Jewish population now lives, the chief rabbi
says that he's not surprised but that he fears for more than just his community.
HAROLD WEILL, STRASBOURG RABBI: Hate that begins with Jews, never ends with Jews.
BELL (voice-over): Last year, Rabbi Weill buried the last Jew in Westhoffen. Roger (ph) Cohn (ph) hid during the Nazi occupation, escaping
the camps and dying peacefully in his sleep at 88. But with websites celebrating attacks on tombs like his, the question is whether it is in
peace that he will now be allowed to rest. Melissa Bell, CNN, Alsace.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: Unbelievable.
Still to come tonight, protests and clashes erupt across India over a controversial new law that treats Muslims very differently to the rest of
the country. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GORANI: India's prime minister is appealing for peace after protestors marched against a controversial citizenship law for a fifth straight day.
[14:25:00]
Now, the law is angering Muslims because it would fast-track citizenship for immigrants from neighboring countries who are not Muslim. In fact, a
lot of them are blaming their prime minister for that. Demonstrations turned violent over the weekend.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI (voice-over): This was a scene Friday. At least five people were killed in clashes between protestors and police. This got, really, very
tense.
The prime minister says the law will not affect anyone who's already a citizen of India. But as I mentioned, it does promise to fast-track
citizenship for various religious minorities from neighboring Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan if they arrived in India before 2015. The list
excludes Muslims.
The prime minister says Muslims are not minorities in those countries, and that is the reason for the law. But Muslims in India are not seeing it
that way.
Now, staying in India, there is also public outcry surrounding a high- profile rape case. A former lawmaker from the country's ruling party has been found guilty of kidnapping and raping a 17-year-old.
This comes seven years after another crime that shocked India and the world -- you might remember it -- it was the attack and gang rape of a woman on a
bus in New Delhi. The case sparked, at the time, widespread anger about the sexual abuse of women.
Anna Coren reports that changes in India's laws since then have in fact done little to curb the tolerance of crimes against women. CNN has
requested interviews with government officials, but none were available. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANNA COREN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A garland of marigolds draped the body of one of the latest victims of rape in India.
The 23-year-old was set on fire by a gang of men, including two of her alleged rapists, on her way to court to testify against them. Suffering
burns to 90 percent of her body, she pleaded with doctors to save her so her attackers would face justice. She died a day later.
Sexual violence against women and girls is so prevalent in India, it's been described as a disease, a disease many thought the government and judicial
system would have eradicated.
Following the horrific case in 2012 involving a woman who would become known as Nirbhaya, that shocked and outraged the nation and the world.
I cannot express how painful it is, these seven years, how much we have struggled on a mental level, the amount of torture that I have dealt with.
Asha Devi is the mother of Nirbhaya, which means "fearless." The 23-year- old university student, brutally gang-raped on a bus in New Delhi. Her attackers used a metal rod, causing such severe internal injuries she was
flown to Singapore for specialist surgery but died in hospital. Under Indian law, we cannot name or show a rape victim.
Most of her perpetrators were sentenced to death but remain on death row as an arduous appeals process goes through the courts.
It is that pain that does not let me sit at home, does not let me sleep. So my daughter's struggle is my strength. These men must hang, they must
be punished for their crimes.
The recent string of brutal rape attacks on girls and women in India have once against sparked protests across the country, where according to the
National Crime Records Bureau, around 100 rapes occur on average every day.
Citizens are demanding the system protect India's daughters. They want more action by police, who often lack resources and are accused of failing
to enforce the law. To the courts that are overloaded, where justice can take many years to arrive, if at all.
KARUNA NUNDY, SUPREME COURT LAWYER: The delay in the justice system and the fact that there isn't swift certain punishment, means that if you rape,
it's highly likely that you will get away with it.
COREN (voice-over): But for activist Swati Maliwal, her main grievance with India's rape culture lies with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who she
says has been resoundingly silent on this crisis.
SWATI MALIWAL, DELHI COMMISSION FOR WOMEN: It's the sick mindset of the government, which refuses to respond to the pain and the cries and the
shrieks of the women of this country. The onus of the rape is put on the girl. The victim becomes the most shamed and it's really a fact that the
entire system starts raping her.
COREN (voice-over): Some legal experts say India's patriarchal and misogynistic society breeds a sense of entitlement and impunity among
Indian men. And unless this is addressed, India's rape crisis will continue.
NUNDY: Governance at the moment happens for a tiny sliver of men: for able-bodied, upper caste, Hindu, rich, straight men.
COREN (voice-over): For Asha Devi, whose tragedy has brought her an audience with the country's most powerful man, she refuses to be silenced
or ignored, dedicating her life to the girls and women whose country failed them.
[14:30:05]
My only purpose is to work against these crimes, raise my voice against these crimes. And above all, that Nirbhaya gets justice.
Anna Coren, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: Still to come tonight --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HILDA NAKABUYE, CLIMATE ACTIVIST, UGANDA: I am the voice of the dying children, displaced women, and people suffering at the hands of climate
crisis created by rich countries.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: The world heard many stories like that at the COP25 climate summit that just wrapped up, but did the world listen? Some activists were left
very frustrated. I speak to one of them after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GORANI: Well, the climate conference in Madrid was supposed to be an opportunity to actually tackle the climate crisis, but it fell short.
Instead, it highlighted the huge disconnect between the world's biggest polluting nations and a global community that is demanding change. After
hours of discussions, negotiators were able to put out a rule book for cutting greenhouse gas emissions before 2020, but there's still major
disagreements over how carbon credits should be counted and most of the urgent issues were postponed to next year's climate summit, kicking the can
down the road.
The former U.S. secretary of state, John Kerry, was at the summit and told CNN's Christiane Amanpour that the lack of success in Madrid is only adding
urgency to this crisis. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN KERRY, FORMER U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: If you do everything that we set out to do in Paris, you're still going to see a warming of up to 3.7
degrees. So we're in trouble. And the absence of success in Madrid is infuriating and everybody ought to be really motivated and angry. And now,
we have to go to Glasgow next year, raise the ambition and get the job done.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: CNN's Arwa Damon spoke with young activists from some of the worlds less powerful countries. This is what they told her.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NAKABUYE: You've been negotiating for the last 25 years, even before I was born.
ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Hilda's generation does not deserve a crisis they did not create.
[14:35:05]
NAKABUYE: I am the voice of the dying children, displaced women, and people suffering at the hands of climate crisis created by rich countries.
DAMON: She's at the forefront of the climate protest in her native Uganda, cleaning plastic filth out of Lake Victoria.
When Hilda was just 10-years-old, the changing climate dried her family's crops. There was no water for the livestock.
NAKABUYE: We didn't have enough food. And then we started to sell off our property to survive. I missed three months without school, when other
people were at school, so I had to stay home because my parents could not afford, and it's too much.
And when you talk to people who are closing this and then they are not listening, and then it feels like you're wasting time.
DAMON: Words the big polluters don't want to hear or are turning away from. Despite all the signage declaring otherwise, these climate crisis
negotiations, feel less like they're about saving the planet, and more like a battle between the haves and have not.
DAMON (on-camera): Part of this really driven by the youth, by those populations whose communities are already feeling the effects of climate
change. The security is trying to keep control of this situation, trying to break this up.
DAMON (voice-over): But they won't give up.
DAMON (on camera): How old are you here?
NKOSINATHI NYATHI, CLIMATE ACTIVIST, ZIMBABWE: Here, I was 12. So this was my proof by then when we showed the (INAUDIBLE)
DAMON: So people were listening to you when you were 12, like these clips and videos, you did, they made a difference?
NYATHI: Yes, they did.
DAMON (voice-over): Nkosi got a UNICEF grant to get a biogas plant for his school to convert waste into energy. His trip to the conference was his
first time on a plane to address halls a power.
NYATHI: I also know that the magnitude of the danger which is coming.
DAMON: They heard his words but he feels like they didn't listen.
NYATHI: It hurts. It hurts. It actually hurts. I'm not actually seeing like real action on the ground. It's like a down, that's what I feel
crying over it. There's nothing which has been done.
DAMON: Leaders are even getting a dressing down from those too small to reach the podium.
LICYPRIYA KANGUJAM, CLIMATE ACTIVIST, INDIA: This is not fair. Our leaders are just busy blaming each other instead of finding a long-term
solution.
DAMON: 13-year-old Mounir dreams of the stars. He wants to be a NASA scientist.
MOUNIR MBOGO, CLIMATE ACTIVIST, CHAD: If they really love us, they should act right now, because the climate change problem should be taken
seriously. It's not a joke. It's about future generations and our living -- on our living on Earth.
DAMON: It's the children who are the ones having grown-up conversations.
NAKABUYE: I do this with all my heart and with love for the coming generation.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you.
DAMON: Arwa Damon, CNN, Madrid.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: Joining me now is May Boeve, the executive director of 350.org, an international climate change campaign. May is a long-time activist. In
fact, May, I want to tell our viewers, you were arrested outside of the White House, I understand, in protest of the Keystone Pipeline.
May, you also played a crucial role in the historic people's Climate March.
So after this COP25 summit in Madrid, you said that climate conference looked more and more like a hostage situation inside a burning building.
What did you not see that you would have wanted to see come out of this meeting in Spain?
MAY BOEVE, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, 350.ORG: Well, it's a very important moment because we've never seen a wider gap between what movements are calling
for, what the science is saying is necessary, and what politicians are ready to deliver.
And one has to ask the question, how does a gap like that get so big? And it's a pretty simple explanation. The rich countries are listening to
coal, oil, and gas companies, they're doing their bidding, they're not listening to the voices of these young activists. And the only thing that
is going to close that gap is more pressure and these activists are going to deliver it.
GORANI: So what -- exactly. That was going to be my follow-up. How do you change this reality where obviously elected leaders have short
mandates, they need to deliver short-term gains for the economy, they're not looking very, very long-term, we're in a generational way.
So it's perhaps not an incentive enough for them to act on a long-term project like climate change.
BOEVE: Well, perhaps, but we have seen leaders rise to this challenge. I think what we're not seeing right now is leadership at the national level.
But plenty of mayors, some business leaders, certainly a lot of community leaders, have risen to this challenge and can see this is a long-term
driver for economic solutions, for actually creating a green economy that works for more people.
[14:40:14]
So seen another way, this is actually a great opportunity for leadership. And we are seeing them stopping, you know --
GORANI: Sorry to interrupt there. I didn't mean to interrupt. But the U.S. is, of course, with Donald Trump walking away from the Paris Accord.
But then you have developing nations who might say, and you can see their point of view, well, we're happy to work on limiting the damage of climate
change but, you know, we also need to develop. These richer countries spent 100 years polluting the planet to get to where they are. How do we
make this fair for us?
BOEVE: Well, you can't tackle climate change without tackling inequality. So much of how climate change manifests in the world is about the inequal
systems we already have right now. And so they're right to raise these questions.
And the fact is, we have the resources we need to solve this problem, we have the solutions that are needed. They've been known for generations.
What we're lacking is political spine from leaders who know exactly what they have to do, and I think that the voice of this younger generation is
going to shame them into the action that they have to take.
GORANI: I mean, look at Greta Thunberg, and I know you participated in conferences where she was present, she was named "Time" Person of the Year.
You could not ask for a more visible, more, you know, charismatic standard bearer of the climate crisis of those who are concerned with the climate
crisis.
And, yet, despite all of that, all that this conference achieved was to kick the can down the road to Scotland next year. So I mean, what more can
you do at this stage?
BOEVE: Well, the good news here is that social movements have demonstrated throughout history that you cannot give up on problems as big as climate
change, and Greta and Hilda, who you also had on your segment, they are not going anywhere. They are actually growing in numbers.
Look, the climate strikes last September, 7.5 million people participated. That was the largest protest on any issue in world history, and they're
just getting started. So we take heart from what they are doing.
GORANI: So on your social media, you posted selfies with Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. As I mentioned, you were at some of these events with Greta
Thunberg and others.
What are you hearing from politicians? In what ways are you encouraged right now rather than despondent and pessimistic?
BOEVE: What encourages me is that the demands that are being made by movements are crystal clear. We need to phase out coal, oil, and gas. We
need to stop the financing of more of these projects around the world. We need to change the way the economy is incentivized towards fossil fuels and
everyone knows that that is required. We're seeing banks like the European investment bank stop lending to fossil fuels. We're seeing the first bank
in Africa stop its lending.
So the solutions are clear and activists are calling for the same things. That is how we win and that is how this movement will keep building
strength.
GORANI: May Boeve, thanks very much for joining us. We really appreciate your time on the program.
BOEVE: Thank you.
GORANI: Well, experts are, in fact, blaming climate change for dangerous bush fires burning in Australia. Australia's biggest city, Sydney, is
facing a public health emergency from all of the smoke generated from these blazes.
You can take a look at the images for yourself. Firefighters are trying to contain what they're calling a mega blaze burning north of Sydney to one of
hundreds of bush fires burning across Australia right now.
And doctors are reporting a spike in hospital patients. Forecasters predict record heat for this week and that will make firefighters' jobs
even tougher.
Still to come tonight, police looking for three men suspected of stealing millions of dollars' worth of jewelry from Formula one heiress, Tamara
Ecclestone. That heist story is still ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:45:31]
GORANI: Now to our series, "Iconic Budapest." Today, we show you something that's one-of-a-kind, the city's stunning architecture.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VIVIEN ANNA TOTH, TOUR DIRECTOR: Hi, my name is Vivien. I'm a local tour guide here in Budapest and I have the honor to introduce you to the Art
Nouveau
Art Nouveau (INAUDIBLE) architectural time dating back to the turn of 19th, 20th century is the new art, it's a decoration, it's a lifestyle, it's
basically everything here in Budapest. Many of our sides, they were decorated. It is designed floral elements, animals, and geometric parts of
the building. It's a spectacular design.
Lechner, Odon Lechner, that's the correct pronunciation of his name in Hungarian. He was one of the most successful Art Nouveau architects of our
country.
He used ceramic tiles, he dreamed about the inside and the outside of the buildings. He became very successful and still up to nowadays, we have so
many buildings connected to his name to Lechner and the (INAUDIBLE) to his buildings.
The building behind me is also the design of Lechner Odon. This was designed to be the geographical museum and institute of Budapest. It's not
only the rooftop decorated with ceramic tiles but the front facade has all these tiny details basically resembling the main purpose of the building.
Behind me, you can see the beautiful Gresham Palace, the four season hotel of Budapest built in an Art Nouveau style in 1907. It was built for the
British Gresham company, and it became the headquarter. But unfortunately, during communism, it was confiscated and that was the time when they pretty
much destroyed the stain glass window decoration inside.
But finally in 2004, four season hotel chain purchased the building, redecorated, redesigned it in the original Art Nouveau style and opened up
the hotel inside.
If you like Art Nouveau, Budapest is definitely the place to come to. You can just accidentally bump into these beauties and it is a lot of fun.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: Moving now to a story about human rights in China that is playing out on the football field. It all started with a tweet sent out by a star
English league player. David Culver has that story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID CULVER, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: China on the defense in yet another sports tweet controversy. The foreign ministry now responding to a
star soccer player's tweet that slams China for its alleged human rights abuses.
Arsenal midfielder, Mesut Ozil posted social media messages Friday in support of China's predominantly Muslim Uyghur community. Ozil who is
Muslim, harshly criticized China for the mass attention taking place in the far western Xinjiang region.
The U.S. State Department estimates some two million Uyghurs have been detained in what some described as internment camps. China has been
adamant in defending what it calls counterterrorism and de-radicalization efforts referring to the detention facilities as vocational training
centers.
[14:50:04]
As a response to Ozil's comments, Chinese state media pulled Sunday's coverage of Arsenal's English Premier League game against Manchester City.
This is not the first time that sport and geopolitics have clashed here in China.
In October, the NBA's relationship with China was tested following a now deleted tweet by Houston Rockets' general manager, Daryl Morey. Morey
tweeted in support for anti-government protests in Hong Kong. That led to a near severing of relations between the National Basketball Association
and China.
Meantime, Arsenal is distancing itself from Ozil saying that the comments do not reflect the club's views but rather are his personal views.
A spokesperson for China's ministry suggested Ozil has been, blinded by some fake news adding, quote, he doesn't know that the Chinese government
protects Chinese citizens including the Uyghur ethnic people's freedom of religious belief in accordance with the law. He doesn't know that Xinjiang
has not experienced a violent terrorist incidents for three consecutive years, end quote.
They invited Ozil to see the region for himself.
David Culver, CNN, Beijing.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: A lot more to come this evening. The world's top beauty pageants have all crowned black women as their winners at the same time. We'll hear
from a few of the winners, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GORANI: Now, for the first time the world's top beauty pageants have crowned black women all at the same time.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: -- 2019 is -- Jamaica.
(CROWD CHEERING)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: By the way, Miss Jamaica is not the young woman wearing green. That was Miss Nigeria, who was very happy for Miss Jamaica. That was the
moment Miss Jamaica was named Miss World 2019.
She now joins Miss Universe, Miss USA, Miss Teen USA and Miss America on top of the beauty pageant world.
Now, this marks a long way since the early days of beauty pageants when women of color were barred from participating altogether. Miss America,
miss universe, and Miss USA all sat down and spoke with CNN about what this representation means in today's world.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NIA FRANKLIN, MISS AMERICA: I think black women need this. It's a symbol and it shows that no matter where you're from, what country you're from,
where you live in America, you can be successful and you can be a part of something great. It was just back in 1940 that black women were allowed to
even compete in the Miss America organization and it took 30 years in 1970 when Cheryl Browne became the first black woman to step foot on the Miss
America stage. And so it's huge and so I'm glad that people are recognizing this moment.
CHESLIE KRYST, MISS USA: You don't have to fit a certain mold in order to be successful in pageantry or in other arenas. And so it's exciting for me
to just be a part of this. It's exciting for me to know that I can be an example for other people.
ZOZIBINI TUNZI, MISS UNIVERSE: Young girls can look at us and feel like, you know, they, too, are important. Also, it's just a matter of you know,
sometimes you walk into a casting or you walk into a job interview. And if you see one other person of color or one other black woman, you know it's
either you or her. It can never be both of you. Because it's only one seat at the table. But now, this proves that there can actually be four
seats at the table, you know, it can be all of us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[14:55:03]
GORANI: All right. And that was a fascinating discussion there. Three of the five women, black women, who are now at the top of their respective
pageants which has never happened before.
And right now, a manhunt is underway for three men who stole millions of dollars' worth of jewelry from Formula One heiress, Tamara Ecclestone.
Allegedly, her entire jewelry collection was stolen from her home after she left the country for the Christmas holidays.
Scott McLean is very close to where this all happened and has the details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: If you were a thief looking for an easy target, this is probably not the neighborhood that comes to
mind. Police here in London confirm that just after 11:00 on Friday, they were called here for a report of a burglary.
The house in question which is just down the road here, belongs to Tamara Ecclestone. She is the daughter of Formula One CEO, Bernie Ecclestone.
Her spokesperson called this a home invasion and said that her and her husband were left angry and shaken.
According to the British tabloid, The Sun, the couple had just left the country hours earlier for a vacation and that the thieves took millions of
dollars' worth of jewelry, including a single bracelet worth more than $100,000 U.S.
The obvious question is, how would thieves get inside a highly secured complex like this one and stay undetected long enough to steal that much
jewelry? This post code is one of the most exclusive in all of London, probably in all of the world.
You're not even allowed to take pictures on the sidewalk. There's this gate post here 24/7, and the house is literally across the street from
Kensington Palace.
Plus, to get from where I'm standing to the home, just a couple hundred yards down the street, you have to walk past two heavily armed police
officers who are on guard outside of the Israeli embassy just a couple of doors down.
What makes this even more puzzling is that the latest police statement says that the call came from an internal security guard who reported three male
suspects inside.
Police here in London say they are reviewing security footage and there is probably a lot of it, but so far, no arrests have been made.
Scott McLean, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: I'd be very interested in how this all went down.
Finally, archeologists are celebrating one of the largest ancient shipwrecks ever discovered. The 2,000-year-old wreck was located, thanks
to the huge mass of terracotta pots that it was carrying.
The ship was 35 meters long, about twice as big as most other ships of the era, and it was carrying 6,000 pots of olive oil and wine. Shame it all
was lost.
Scientists say the wreck is remarkably well preserved and may tell them a lot about ancient ship design and trading routes.
I'm Hala Gorani. Thanks for watching tonight. "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS" is next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
