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Hala Gorani Tonight
Belarus Warns Poland Over Migrants At Border; French President Macron Addresses Rising COVID Cases; CNN Team Denied Entry Into Nicaragua; U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson Under Fire As Standards Row Engulfs Conservative Party; Astroworld Festival Tragedy; Chinese President's Crackdown On Capitalism Could Prove Costly; COP26 Focuses On Gender Inequality; How Regenerative Farming Could Help Save The Planet. Aired 2-3p ET
Aired November 09, 2021 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[14:00:00]
HALA GORANI, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: Live from CNN in London, I'm HALA GORANI TONIGHT. Belarus warns Poland not to move against unarmed migrants
on the border after Poland accuses Belarus of using them as pawns in a political spat. The latest in that escalating situation. Also, Europe
facing rising COVID cases and calls for renewed restrictions. We expect to hear from the French President Macron this hour. Also this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MATT RIVERS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: So they just took our passports and our Mexican residency card, and asked if anyone on the team
worked for CNN?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: A CNN team turned away, denied entry into Nicaragua, a country in chaos after an election that the world is calling a sham. They are
freezing, hungry and desperate. They are migrants by the thousands pushing up against Belarus' border with Poland, caught in an escalating standoff.
NATO and the EU are accusing Belarus of deliberately luring the migrants, then pushing them to the border, in some cases bussing them there. Some
14,000 Polish soldiers and guards are blocking the migrants with razor wire and vowing not to let them into the EU.
The crisis escalated sharply Monday when thousands of new migrants arrived, some have taken wire cutters and shovels, in some cases -- and you can see
a small child there being led by an adult through that chaotic scene. In some cases bare hands to try to breach the blockade. Belarus is denying
that it's causing the crisis, and it is warning Poland against provocation.
But Poland's prime minister says Belarus is staging what amounts to a hybrid war, and trapped in the middle the migrants stuck in a no-man's land
in dire conditions. CNN's Fred Pleitgen is tracking the volatile situation. He filed this report from the Germany-Poland border.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Camped out under harsh conditions in the freezing cold. Poland says around
4,000 migrants are now at its border with Belarus trying to enter the EU. Warsaw vows it will not let them pass.
ANDRZEJ DUDA, PRESIDENT, POLAND (through translator): It is a matter of fulfilling our duties as members of the European Union as well as ensuring
the safety of Polish citizens and the Polish republic.
PLEITGEN: Poland says it has deployed around 12,000 forces to the border as a large group of migrants repeatedly tried to push through into EU
territory on Monday. The European Union accuses Belarusian strongman and President Alexander Lukashenko of luring people, mostly from Iraq and
Syria, to Belarus and using Belarusian security forces to bring them to the border. While Minsk denies the allegations, European leaders called this
state-sponsored human trafficking. Poland's prime minister even using the term "hybrid war" as he visited the border region.
MATEUSZ MORAWIECKI, PRIME MINISTER, POLAND (through translator): Lukashenko's regime uses civilians as weapons of a hybrid war. What we can
see today are new methods and you are a key bastion against them.
PLEITGEN: The majority of those who do make it into the EU want to go to Germany, German authorities say, we were on hand as a group of new arrivals
were being processed in Frankfurt under order at the German-Polish border. German authorities are now beefing up their presence here.
(on camera): The German police have drastically stepped up checks here at the border with Poland, and they say they are increasingly coming across
people looking to claim asylum in this country, and that the vast majority of those people came into the European Union via Belarus.
(voice-over): Germany says it's redeploying forces from across the country to help out.
JENS SCHOBRANKSI, GERMAN FEDERAL POLICE (through translator): The federal police has sent several hundred officers to the entire German-Polish
border, the spokesman says. We did that to increase patrols but also to help processing the migrants as well.
PLEITGEN: Both Germany and Poland believe the situation won't ease any time soon with thousands pinned up against the border at severe risk as Winter
draws closer.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: And Fred joins us now, he is in Berlin. At this stage, what options do these migrants have?
PLEITGEN: I think this is -- for the ones that are trapped there right now, it's extremely difficult at this point in time, Hala. One of the things
that, you know, we've been tracking, obviously, the temperatures are getting extremely cold in that border area between Poland and Belarus, of
course, especially in the night, there's also, of course, a lot of rain that happens there quite frequently as well.
[14:05:00]
The big problem that the people who are trapped there right now have is that essentially many of them can't really get back into Belarus because
the Belarusian border guards won't let them do that, and, of course, they can't get over to the other side as well. And as far as the situation of
these people are concerned, there are people who told us in the past weeks that we've been reporting on this story that many of them were trapped in
that border area for days, some of them as long as ten days or even longer, sometimes even up to two weeks.
And of course, now things have become even more difficult as Poland beefs up its security forces and says the borders are medically sealed. Now, on
the other side, the Belarusian border guards keep trying to push these people through and aren't letting them back into Belarus, Hala.
GORANI: So, they're blocked from entering Poland, they're blocked from returning to Belarus, they're in this horrific muddy no-man's land. We saw
at least one very small child there in that footage that we just aired. Are they getting food? Are they getting water? Are they getting medical care?
PLEITGEN: It's very -- it's extremely limited. I mean, I can tell you from what I've heard over the past couple of weeks, also reporting on the story
in the past couple of days as well is that there are a lot of people who are trapped in that area for a very long time.
Some of them said that they had paid off Belarusian border guards to buy them food, they claim that those border guards did that, however, pocketed
some of the money for themselves. But there are also some people who told us that quite frankly, after a couple of days, they ran out of any sort of
supplies, be it food and, of course, also water as well.
There was one woman who last time told us that she had to drink from a puddle to actually be able to survive. So there's no doubt that the
conditions there are extremely dire, and you do have these people who are right now caught, literally trapped in the middle of the standoff, Hala.
GORANI: And we have to go, but just very briefly, there are no reporters in that no-man's land. I understand from reports that the Polish authorities
are not allowing them to film or report from that zone. Why not?
PLEITGEN: Yes, well, yes -- well, first of all, the Belarusian authorities aren't letting anyone in there, and so far have not issued visas for crews
to generally report in Belarus or at least have become very restrictive on that. The Polish side has a state of emergency in that area, and they had
excluded reporters from a zone two kilometers away from the border, not just reporters, also most of the NGOs who are trying to help as well.
And for a long time, they'd also even excluded European officials, but now some of them have been able to get access, but it is -- you're absolutely
right, very difficult for reporters to report on that story and impossible to get to where those things that we just saw on our screens there is going
on.
That's why the video that we're seeing there is all from either the Belarusian authorities or from Polish authorities, Hala.
GORANI: Right, it's a shame that we can't independently go there. Thanks very much --
PLEITGEN: Yes --
GORANI: Fred Pleitgen. The United Nations says at least 16 of its staff are being detained by the Ethiopian government. The U.N. is demanding their
immediate release and is also asking for access to the Tigray region to offer aid for the millions of people in desperate need of food, fuel and
medicine. Meanwhile, the conflict is inching closer to Addis Ababa.
Recent footage is showing fighters from the Tigray People's Liberation Front and the Oromo Liberation Army carrying guns and flags. These pictures
were taken in Kemise, a town 325 kilometers from the capital, so not right on the door-step there.
But here is a map that gives you a sense geographically of the area we're talking about. The fighters are threatening to march on the city where
human rights experts say the government is arresting hundreds of ethnic Tigrayans under the state of emergency rules. African Union and U.S.
diplomats believe the window to negotiating peace in Ethiopia is very small, and that it is quickly closing. But the warring parties seem very
far apart. The prime minister's press secretary spoke to CNN and fought back on claims that the state of emergency is infringing on human rights.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILLENE SEYOUM, PRESS SECRETARY, ETHIOPIAN PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE: The enactment of the state of emergency is not to target any particular person
based on the identity that they're aligned to. The state of emergency is put in place to protect the Ethiopian people, to protect the residents of
Addis Ababa who have been told with very fierce rhetoric coming from the TPLF that we are going to seize(ph) or we're going to come into Addis
Ababa.
So it's important for the state of emergency to put in place a mechanism that anybody that is trying to threaten the stability or the peace that is
within the capital city is thoroughly addressed as well.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: So, that is the version of events from the government. And a spokesperson for the Tigray People's Liberation Front tells us why they are
not backing down.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GETACHEW REDA, SPOKESPERSON, TIGRAY PEOPLE'S LIBERATION FRONT: Look, yes, Abiy has been ratcheting up genocide and violence against the people of
Tigray, and anyone who he thinks is standing in the way of his genocidal company. I mean, from the get-go, has never been interested in peace, has
never been interested in democracy, has never been interested in reforms.
[14:10:00]
He was mostly interested in making sure that the entirety of the population cowed into submission, were cowed into submission. So, you know, Tigrayans
unfortunately for him stood in the way of his imperial ambitions. He wanted to be the king of kings of Ethiopia, but unfortunately, the Tigrayans stood
in that way.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: The French President Emmanuel Macron -- these are live images coming to us from French television. He is speaking about the country's
health crisis. Coronavirus in France is up again with new infections and crucially hospitalizations rising in the past few weeks. We're seeing this
happen, in fact, across Europe. As Winter approaches, many countries are thinking about rolling out restrictions again.
England is planning to require a national healthcare service workers to be vaccinated, starting in April. Those who refuse would lose their jobs,
though that's quite a bit -- quite far off. Nina dos Santos shows us what other countries are considering.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NINA DOS SANTOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Record new infections reported in Germany, Greece and Slovakia. Hospital beds filling up fast,
and the death toll on the rise. In Austria, those not fully vaccinated or recovered from COVID were barred from bars, hotels and other indoor public
spaces under a new rule that took effect this week. In Iceland where the health ministry recently loosened COVID restrictions, masks were made
compulsory once more.
This is what today's epicenter of the pandemic looks like. The reason the World Health Organization says is stuttering uptake of the vaccine.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): This is my way to work, and this vaccination point had been deserted for a long time. Now, you can see how
in recent days, and especially over the weekend, it's very popular and I welcome that.
DOS SANTOS: From Spain, recovered stands at 80 percent to Slovakia at around 42 percent, coupled with the recent loosening of social distancing
requirements over the Summer and Fall. The result, a massive campaign for boosters across Europe.
In the U.K., 10 million have already had a third COVID shot. But those without American citizenship but fully-vaccinated, a trip to the United
States is finally possible as the country reopened its borders to travelers from much of Europe for the first time in 20 months. Relief for airlines
and travelers alike just ahead of Thanksgiving.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): It's even better today to know that we are flying with a full plane, and that we can finally bring these
continents and cultures together again.
DOS SANTOS: Across Russia, it was back to work, despite transmission rates so high, authorities imposed a week-long holiday last week. With Winter on
its way, health experts are warning there's no time to lose in the race to once again contain COVID-19. Nina dos Santos, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: Well, President Macron in France has been speaking for about 13 minutes now. He is making some new announcements regarding that COVID
health pass that people have to present in restaurants and bars and cafes. Cyril Vanier joins me now live in Paris. What has he been saying? What are
the new rules going forward?
CYRIL VANIER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Hala, it's going to become imperative for 65-year-olds and up to have a booster dose or a third dose
of the COVID vaccine starting mid-December, otherwise, their vaccine pass will no longer be valid. Now, that's no trivial matter because the vaccine
pass is how you get to go to pretty much any public space here in France. You want to go to the bar, the restaurant, museum, cafe, theater, you name
it, you need to show your vaccine pass, proof of vaccination.
Well, as of mid-December, over 65s will only have proof of vaccination if they've had a third dose. That's the first announcement by the French
president this evening. The second announcement made just in the last few minutes, Hala, the third dose -- third doses of vaccine -- of vaccines will
now be available to over 50s. Until now, it was reserved for over 65, so the French president extending the pool of people who can have that booster
jab. This as Emmanuel Macron says the fifth wave of COVID is upon us here in Europe, Hala.
GORANI: Well, so, we're a little more than 30 days away from this December 15th deadline, which means that they're going to have to really speed up
this booster vaccination program. Will they be able to do it? Because I guess my question is, will every over 65-year-old person who wants it be
able to get that booster by December 15th?
[14:15:00]
VANIER: Well, I'll tell you, the recent history tells us that once the president announces this and says that people are going to be punished if
they don't have -- if they're not fully vaccinated -- he did this four months ago, Hala, of course, at the time we weren't talking about a third
dose, we were talking about a complete vaccination program.
So the first and second doses, and he had threatened that people wouldn't have the vaccine pass if they weren't fully vaccinated. And people signed
up for vaccination not just in their thousands or tens or hundreds of thousands, but in their millions, Hala.
So, I suspect you're going to see a surge of people who want to get that third dose, especially as those age groups are groups that are -- that tend
to be vaccine accepting. So they want that --
GORANI: Yes --
VANIER: Third dose. Will they be able to get it? The number of vaccines the government says are there, the government says they're available, so it
looks like demand should be able to match the supply, or rather supply should be able to match the demand between now and mid-December. But of
course, you know, of course, we've had many surprises in this rollout, Hala.
GORANI: Yes, absolutely, and December 15th, obviously the start of the Christmas season, people want to go out, they want to enjoy restaurants and
cafes, et cetera, with family, so hopefully, the rollout will go smoothly, thanks very much, Cyril Vanier live in Paris. Speaking of vaccinations,
those who are, quote, "unvaccinated by choice" will no longer be able to get free COVID-19 treatment in Singapore. The city-state currently covers
the medical costs for all of its infected citizens, permanent residents and long-term visa holders.
The change will kick in next month, 86 percent of eligible residents are vaccinated so far, those unvaccinated by choice who get sick, they'll have
to foot their own bill going forward. Still to come tonight, there's been international condemnation of Nicaragua's election after a brutal crackdown
on any form of opposition. So, is the country now in the throes of a dictatorship? We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GORANI: The Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega is ridiculing political opponents, but that's after an election victory that the world is calling a
farce. Nicaragua is in chaos after this election, political rivals have been jailed or exiled, there's been a crackdown on the media and a ban on
protest.
[14:20:00]
CNN's Matt Rivers tried to gain access to the country to tell the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RIVERS (voice-over): He calls himself an elected president, but for many, Daniel Ortega is a dictator whose regime is getting stronger and more
dangerous. Under his rule, a campaign of political terror has gripped the country. Dissent can lead to house arrest, jail time, some even allege
they've been tortured. It is a dangerous time in Nicaragua, something we tried to go see firsthand.
For that, we took a bus in northwestern Costa Rica to the Nicaraguan border, entering via land to try and avoid the attention of the
authorities, but after ten minutes with an immigration official, it was clear we were not getting in.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
RIVERS (on camera): So they just took our passports and our Mexican residency card, and asked if anyone on the team worked for CNN even though
we did not offer that information. It's clear that they know who we are.
(voice-over): And soon after, immigration officials denied our entry.
(on camera): So, we've been formally escorted out of the country after waiting three hours, they told us that we need to send a formal request to
the government in order to be allowed in, without giving us any reason as to why we weren't allowed in. They won't answer our questions, and so now
officially we're back on the Costa Rican side. Clearly, they don't want people like us inside the country.
(voice-over): Our experience just a small example of the staggering level of government control faced by Nicaraguans. Since June, dozens of perceived
enemies of the regime have been thrown into jail, while countless others have been harassed and followed. And roughly, a dozen interviews CNN
conducted with people inside the country each said most neighbors won't even talk politics anymore, fearful they could be denounced as traitors.
One current government official would only speak to us over the phone as he stood in an empty field, fearful of being heard.
He says only Ortega's followers are the ones who can walk freely. The vast majority of us live like hostages. Every time I leave my home, I'm
terrified. We granted him anonymity because he said government forces surveilled his house constantly. if they knew he was speaking to foreign
journalists, he says, he'd be imprisoned. "i was afraid to speak with you, but at the same time, the conviction and hope that our voice will reach
others around the world makes us take the risk."
It has certainly reached other Nicaraguans around the world, tens of thousands of whom have fled the country since government crackdowns ramped
up in 2018, but for many, the terror of the Ortega regime doesn't stop at the border. Jorge(ph) spoke to us from an undisclosed location in Mexico.
He says he was tortured by Nicaraguan police after participating in anti- government protests in 2018, even alleging they used a razor blade to carve the word "Plomo" into his leg, a threat of future violence.
Someone even spray-painted his home writing, quote, "if you -- around, you die." He says, people I had grown up with and known have become my enemies.
He fled to Guatemala and felt safe for a bit until he received this photo.
Someone he says who worked for the Nicaraguan government snapped this picture of him at the bus stop he used every day, writing, quote, "you
thought the Guatemalans would take care of you? You and your family are going to pay in blood." My family and I do not feel safe because we know
what they can do.
We wouldn't be the first or the last Nicaraguan to be murdered outside the country. He's still receiving threats in Mexico, and though CNN has no way
to know for certain that Nicaraguan state agents were threatening him, that is the consistent fear of so many here in San Jose, Costa Rica where
thousands of Nicaraguans have fled since 2018. There, we met with this group of Nicaraguan exiles, each of whom say they've received threats from
the Ortega regime since fleeing in the last few years.
One story from Raysa(ph) Hope stood out. A Nicaraguan activist, she fled back in 2019 after threats to her life. She now runs a flower shop in San
Jose where her friend Bernice Zeladon(ph), a fellow Nicaraguan activist, visits her often. About a month ago, a man entered the shop, closed the
door and pointed a gun.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): He told us stop -- around, mother -- we said, don't hurt us, but he started strangling me.
RIVERS: Raysa(ph) was pistol-whipped and knocked out, Bernice(ph) kicked to the floor, she suffered knee fractures as a result. Crying, she says, the
first thing I thought about, my son. This man is going to kill us.
[14:25:00]
Eventually, the man left without stealing anything, both women filed a police report and suspect the same thing, they were targeted by Nicaraguan
agents. Nicaraguan human rights groups say they've recorded dozens of such suspected attacks in Costa Rica in recent years, though proving the
Nicaraguan government is behind them is near impossible. Officially, Costa Rica's government says they found no such cases of Nicaraguan spies
attacking exiles.
"We are always talking to Nicaragua", he says, "and maintaining a conversation to respect each other's sovereignty", but not everyone in the
government agrees.
(on camera): A senior government official with deep knowledge of the situation tells CNN there are, in fact, Nicaraguan Intelligence operatives
working right now here in Costa Rica, including those that target Nicaraguan exiles, adding the number of operatives working here has
increased since Nicaraguans began arriving en masse back in 2018. The government, a source says, is hesitant to speak out publicly on the issue,
fearing it could damage diplomatic relations at a tenuous time.
(voice-over): On Sunday, protests were held in San Jose, people chanting and waving the Nicaraguan flag, but in Nicaragua, things were much quieter,
no protests are allowed these days, but it doesn't mean that they're not happening. CNN spoke to several people who said they would not vote, a form
of quiet protest, they said, refusing to participate in the coronation of a dictator.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: Matt Rivers reporting there. Well, it's been just over a month since the Pandora Papers were released, outlining the financial affairs of
some of the world's richest people, and now it seems to have its first major political, quote, unquote, "scalp". The Chilean lower house has voted
in favor of impeaching President Sebastian Pinera over claims he was involved in the sale of a mining company in a tax haven. He's condemned the
decision as political maneuvering but will now face a trial in the nation's Senate.
Still to come tonight, a botched attempt to rewrite the rules on lawmakers raking in the cash and tax havens, those are just two of the multiple
messes causing headaches for the British Prime Minister. And also coming up, investigators are trying to understand why it took Travis Scott so long
to stop performing at what turned out to be a deadly concert in Texas. We'll have the latest on the investigation.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:30:00]
(MUSIC PLAYING)
GORANI: Now to an unfolding political drama in the United Kingdom and one that has the British prime minister coming under fire from all sides.
It began last week, when Boris Johnson instructed his MPs to protect one of their own by changing the rules designed to prevent corruption in
Parliament after he had been found to have acted inappropriately.
That prompted massive backlash, which forced the government to U-turn and triggered the MP in question, Owen Paterson, to resign. But it wasn't just
that case.
Today, a new revelation is causing problems for Mr. Johnson. It has been revealed that former cabinet minister, Geoffrey Cox, took advantage of
lockdown rules, which enabled him to vote remotely in Parliament while simultaneously earning more than $1 million for legal work he was doing
from the Caribbean.
A spokesperson for the prime minister said it was important that MPs were visible to their constituents. This is all causing a headache. It is being
called a sleaze scandal in this country.
Here to discuss all of this is David Gauke. He's the U.K.'s former justice secretary and he joins me live from Chorleywood, England.
Thank you very much for being with us.
How bad is this for Boris Johnson because it is MPs from his own party who are and who said they were very uncomfortable when Boris Johnson pushed
them to vote to throw out these rules, that are really designed to protect Parliament from MPs who abuse their position?
How bad is it for him?
DAVID GAUKE, FORMER U.K. JUSTICE SECRETARY: It is pretty bad. The problem is that what he asked MPs to do last Wednesday was, as you described it,
you know, step in and essentially suspend the rules and review them and, you know, clearly with the hope they will come to a different conclusion in
a specific case.
Now you can't change the system in the middle of a case like that. And, you know, in truth, that case was pretty clear-cut. Owen Paterson had engaged
in paid advocacy. He had -- you know, whether he recognizes this or not, he had received substantial income from companies and, on behalf of those
companies, had contacted ministers in order to further the interests of those companies.
GORANI: Right.
Now that has been against the rules in our Parliament since 1695. And it was a clear-cut case but the government interviewed. And it was hugely
difficult for members of Parliament.
Conservative MPs who supported the government found they were getting a huge amount of criticism and then, the very next day, the government
reverses its position, leaving all these MPs high and dry. You know, they're stranded, having supported something which is indefensible.
(CROSSTALK)
GORANI: So it is not just --
GAUKE: And certainly --
GORANI: -- oh, sorry to jump in. But I wanted to get your take also. I mean, it is Owen Patterson, it is Geoffrey Cox; whether or not it is a
clear-cut breaking of the rules, the perception here is that an MP was voting from the British Virgin Islands while taking hundreds of thousands
of pounds from the government of the Virgin Islands, a known tax haven, while also not even bothering to show up in Parliament, taking advantage of
COVID lockdown rules, to vote remotely.
I mean, this is all looking very messy and, from the perspective of some voters, corrupt.
GAUKE: Well, it is certainly very difficult and embarrassing for the government. There's no denying that.
Now Geoffrey Cox has not broken any of the rules. We have had this very curious state of affairs because of COVID-19, that MPs have been able to
vote by proxy in a way that has not traditionally happened.
But I suppose one point I would make is that U.K. members of Parliament are allowed to have outside interests. Geoffrey Cox, throughout his time in
Parliament -- we entered Parliament at the same time in 2005 -- has always carried on a significant legal practice. He is one of the country's leading
barristers.
But what he has not been able to do in the past, has not been relevant to the past, is voting by proxy. So essentially being abroad and that hasn't
been possible before.
(CROSSTALK)
GORANI: But should that be --
[14:35:00]
GAUKE: -- not easy to explain to the electorate.
GORANI: Is it a system that just needs to be rethought here?
Because he's not breaking any rules but the idea somehow, that a sitting MP, who is in charge of voting on legislation, is represented by the people
of his constituency to do that, can take $1 million in fees for consultancy work from governments around the world, is that a rule that needs to
change?
GAUKE: Well, I think, first of all, you have got to enforce the paid advocacy rule, which the government attempted not to do.
Then there is a wider question, as you say, about whether MPs should be allowed outside interests at all.
I have to say my view is that, to prohibit it all together would be a mistake, that members of Parliament should be able to bring expertise in
other areas to what they do. But this particular case with Geoffrey Cox is a very difficult one.
And there will be very considerable pressure on the government to come up with a way of addressing it. I think it is important --
(CROSSTALK)
GORANI: The thing -- yes.
GAUKE: -- the two cases. But clearly it is hard to justify someone being away for months at a time, whether that was the peculiarities of COVID or
whether there is a more general application. The government has to think about that.
GORANI: There are so many things, the reports that Tory donors, who become treasurers, who gave more than 3 million pounds -- this was in "The Times"
-- were automatically offered peerages, things like that.
This is just -- when Boris Johnson is having to, time and again, kind of have to answer questions about some of these stories, that are just making
it seem as though the Conservative Party is bending the rules, is offering advantages and titles to donors who contribute millions to the party, is he
going to survive this?
Because his own party seems to be getting very uncomfortable with him.
GAUKE: Well, I think the problem that the prime minister faces is that he has handled this very badly. This does go back to what happened last
Wednesday, in what was really a very dangerous and absurd attempt to override the processes that were already in place.
That has opened up this whole issue, made him much more vulnerable to that. Conservative MPs, who were already angry about the fact that, you know,
they were made to proceed with policy that was indefensible, as of now seeing all questions about their own probity being raised.
You know, quite a lot of members of Parliament have outside interests of some description, not paid advocacy and not usually anything like the scale
that Geoffrey Cox does.
But you know, they -- so Conservative MPs, his colleagues, are going to say, you know, Prime Minister, you have got us into a mess here and that's
going to have a direct impact on us as well. So there's unpopularity and there's also -- with the public, but there's also this issue that might
cause some unpopularity with his colleagues.
GORANI: David Gauke, thank you very much, the former British justice secretary, for joining us on CNN.
Now to this. At least 18 lawsuits have been filed following the tragedy at the Astroworld Festival in Houston. Some were filed on behalf of those
injured during Travis Scott's performance on Friday night and the rapper is named in most of them.
Eight people died; dozens were hurt when the crowd surged toward the stage, an outcome the local fire chief says could have been avoided, had the
performance ended sooner. And two fans tried to ask organizers to suspend the performance. This is what happened. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(MUSIC PLAYING)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE).
GORANI (voice-over): So those two trying to sound the alarm, completely ignored. Investigators tell "The Wall Street Journal" they are now looking
at whether a bad batch of illegal drugs played a role as well.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: Rosa Flores is live in Houston.
And we are learning, Rosa, some victims are still hospitalized.
What can you tell us about a 9-year old who is in critical condition?
ROSA FLORES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, Hala, this is just such a terrible story. This 9-year old went to this concert with his dad. It was
supposed to be a really fun day of dad-and-son time.
And what ended up happening was that the dad was caught in one of those crowds that we've been describing. I have talked to so many concertgoers
that describe it.
[14:40:00]
FLORES: In areas where the concertgoers couldn't breathe and they were swayed by the crowd. They really didn't have control of their bodies.
Well, the grandfather of this little boy says that the little boy was on his dad's shoulders. And at some point, the dad couldn't breathe; he passed
out. The little boy fell on the crowd and he became very, very ill.
It is unclear exactly what happened to this little boy. But now he's in a medically induced coma, in the hospital, fighting for his life, his
grandfather telling CNN that he has damage to many of his organs -- his heart, his liver, his lungs.
So, Hala, these are the stories we're starting to learn, as we hear that there are still three people in the hospital, two of them in critical
condition. This 9-year-old boy, of course, one of them -- Hala.
GORANI: That's just absolutely awful to hear.
When might we find out more on the cause of death for the victims, those who perished?
FLORES: According to the medical examiner's office, it is going to take weeks for the toxicology reports to be completed. It is unclear exactly
when manner and cause of death will be released.
According to the medical examiner, they're working through all of that right now but they say it is going to take a while and, of course, that
also delays the investigation because the investigators need to look at all of those documents, figure out exactly what killed these eight people to
figure out that piece of the puzzle.
There are so many layers to this investigation, Hala, because you look at what happened. And it all started with the compression of the crowd toward
the stage.
Well, then the Narcotics Divisions were added to this investigation and the Homicide Division, of course, because of the account from a security
officer, that he felt a prick in his neck. He was revived with Narcan. So it is a very complex investigation.
The results from that medical examiner that you were asking me about is going to be key. That's going to be one of the big leads about what
happened here, what was the cause and manner of death of those eight individuals. At this point it is still a mystery -- Hala.
GORANI: Rosa Flores, thank you so much, live in Houston.
Still to come this evening, what China's president is doing to spread the wealth in the country. We'll be right back.
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[14:45:00]
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GORANI: A Shanghai shipyard is producing China's third aircraft carrier. And looking at the satellite images, analysts say it will be a close match
for U.S. technology. They say the high-tech carrier could bring new strength and prestige to China's naval force, already the largest in the
word.
And as China's military appears to be strengthening, so does the Communist Party's grip on capitalism. President Xi Jinping is taking steps to
redefine wealth in his country. Selina Wang has that.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SELINA WANG, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Plenty of top celebrities disappear from China's internet. Chinese tech companies reel
from regulation.
And now Evergrande, China's biggest property developer, with $300 billion in unpaid bills, teeters on the brink of collapse. For Chinese leader Xi
Jinping, it's all part of the plan. Xi is rewriting the rules in the world's second largest economy.
WANG: Getting rich is no longer glorious. Neither is growth at all costs. The days of unrestrained borrowing, that turned Evergrande and so many
companies into powerhouses, are over.
LELAN MILLER, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, CHINA BEIGE BOOK INTERNATIONAL: There's been a decision at the very top that this buildup of reckless
credit expansion is becoming a danger to China and presumably a threat to the party rule.
WANG (voice-over): Evergrande rode the boom of homebuyers rushing to urban cities as hundreds of millions across China were lifted out of poverty,
building more than 1,000 developments in hundreds of cities. Property supercharged the economy, ballooning to account for as much as 30 percent
of China's GDP.
By 2017, Evergrande's founder Xu Jiayin became Asia's richest person. Evergrande expanded into bottled water, electric cars, even pig farming.
The strategy worked until China's economy cooled and Beijing started to crack down on excessive borrowing from property developers. Beijing's
stated goal: to lessen economic inequality as housing prices skyrocketed and to create more sustainable growth.
The stakes are too high for Beijing to let Evergrande fail. Nearly three- quarters of household wealth in China are estimated to be tied up in property.
In September, footage circulated of employees, contractors and home buyers protesting Evergrande across China. CNN spoke to multiple buyers of
Evergrande properties. One provided CNN with these videos of people demanding their money back.
A buyer told CNN that more than 900 people have paid $340 million for this unfinished housing project that's been stalled since January. Angry
citizens have flooded online government feedback forums.
This homebuyer in Sichuan province asked where all of their hard earned money had went begging, "Please uphold justice for your people."
RANA MITTER, PROFESSOR OF POLITICS OF MODERN CHINA, UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD: If you talk to people about what might cause mass protests in China, the
answer you'll almost always get is not democracy; more and more, it's finance and its property.
WANG (voice-over): Beijing says the situation is controllable. But fears grow of a crisis in China's real estate sector that ripples into the
broader economy. In recent weeks, a slew of other developers have disclosed their own struggles.
MILLER: When you're decelerating or popping the property bubble, you're destroying wealth. You're going to be putting people out of business,
companies out of business. It's a big deal. It's why it's never happened before.
WANG: It marks the end of China's economic model as we know it.
MILLER: We are going from an area of high to medium growth to an area of low growth in China.
WANG: But Beijing is betting its top-down model will make its 1.4 billion people prosperous. The catch: ever more control in the hands of the party -
- Selina Wang, CNN, Tokyo.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: And we'll be right back.
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[14:50:00]
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GORANI: The uneven impacts of climate change on women and girls has been the focus today at the COP26 summit in Scotland.
A giant puppet named Little Amal arrived to highlight the plight of refugee children and generate discussion about how global warming is endangering
the most vulnerable. And experts pointed to how climate change can worsen girls' access to education. It creates economic instability and leads to
increased violence against women in some cases.
Others today were focused on the summit's goals and pledges, with some doubting if the world is truly committed to significantly reducing
greenhouse gases.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TOM GOLDTOOTH, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, NORTH AMERICAN INDIGENOUS ENVIRONMENTAL NETWORK: I want to leave this COP26 and tell our people back home that
there's been progress. And I can't do that right now.
I want to go back home and tell our people that this has not been a corporate takeover of a U.N. climate meeting. I'm very concerned, along
with our indigenous delegation that's here from the north and the south, that we need real solutions. We need real reductions. We don't need this
false concept of net zero. We need real zero.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: Well, they have reasons to be concerned. A new study out today indicates that the world is on track for a 2.4-degree Celsius temperature
increase by the end of the century, despite all of those pledges that we've heard over the last few days.
Calls for plant-based diets to save the planet -- or help save the planet - - are growing but there's another, quieter revolution reshaping agriculture. It is called regenerative farming. CNN's David McKenzie
explains.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DANIE SLABBERT, FARMER: You're just going to --
DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Danie Slabbert likes to say, he's just a simple farmer, likes to say what he does is simple to
understand.
SLABBERT: So this is so simple. This is what we want. Look at this soil.
MCKENZIE (on camera): This soil is alive but this soil also is doing the job for you. You don't have to add all this.
SLABBERT: This soil is a natural system. It does the job for me.
MCKENZIE (voice-over): Healthy soil doesn't need additives like toxic and costly fertilizers. Simple as that may sound, if you care about climate
change, his is a story worth listening to.
Livestock accounts for just over 14 percent of global emissions. But Slabbert says we are missing the point when it comes to food. Want to save
the planet, focused on how we farm, not what we eat.
MCKENZIE (on camera): People these days that meat and cattle is bad for nature or bad for the planet.
Is that true?
Do you see it that way?
SLABBERT: David, that can't be true. Animals are part of nature. It was in the bigger plan.
MCKENZIE (voice-over): He gives his cattle a chance to act the way nature intended.
SLABBERT: 100 to 200 years back in this specific area of South Africa, there was millions of animals migrating throughout summer in these areas.
MCKENZIE (voice-over): From above, it's easy to see. High-intensity grazing mimics those great migrations. And with 30 percent to 40 percent of the
Earth's surface covered by grassland, it is a method with global potential.
MCKENZIE (on camera): So these cattle are actually replenishing your land?
[14:55:00]
SLABBERT: Exactly. They're cows (ph). The microbial life in the stomach of cattle are the same system that often microbial life in soil. So those two
work together beautifully.
MCKENZIE (voice-over): Research done by Texas A&M shows even moderately effective grazing sequesters more carbon into the soil than the cattle we
met. The healthier the soil, the more carbon is captured.
SLABBERT: And Africa, especially, is feeling the heat. So climate change is a real issue. And we get all this blame as farmers. But we have got the
solutions in the palm of our hands.
MCKENZIE (voice-over): Healthy soil also retains moisture; plowing destroys that ability, which is why his cornfields look like this, not like the
perfect, never-ending rows of industrial agriculture.
And when winter comes, he will graze the cattle here, too, to replenish the soil in time for the next growing season, with four to six tons of fresh,
natural manure for free.
SLABBERT: And you can really get this biology going, then you don't have to buy something out of a bag.
MCKENZIE (voice-over): Letting nature work sounds simple enough. But then, what is simple is often ignored.
MCKENZIE (on camera): Have we forgotten the connection with the land?
SLABBERT: Yes, David. In a sense, I think we have. So this whole chemical revolution has give us so much recipes to just put everything in
synthetically. And it really disconnected us with nature and with the land.
If you maybe can smell this, you will smell the life.
MCKENZIE: You can.
SLABBERT: And that is the beauty.
MCKENZIE (voice-over): David McKenzie, CNN, Bates, South Africa.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: And join us tomorrow for the first-ever Call to Earth Day. CNN is partnering with schools, people and organizations to raise awareness on
environmental issues. Follow us online and on TV and use the #CallToEarth.
Before I leave you tonight, Pakistani Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai has announced that she is now a married woman. She gained international
recognition for her activism on behalf of girls' education.
When she was 15, she was shot in the head by the Taliban and had to receive treatment in England, followed by a Nobel Peace Prize two years later. And
last year she graduated from Oxford University and now this joyous milestone. Mabruk, Malala and Asser.
Thanks for watching tonight. I'm Hala Gorani. Stay with CNN. QUEST MEANS BUSINESS is coming up next.
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