Skip to main content

tv   BBC World News  PBS  September 10, 2010 4:30pm-5:00pm PST

5:30 pm
>> and now, "bbc world news." >> a damning new report from belgium. every church diocese is implicated in child sex abuse claims. this is a nation founded on religious tolerance as a florida pastor decides he will not be burning copies of the koran. pervez musharraf talks to the bbc. a very warm welcome to "bbc world news." coming up, keeping the peace on the blue line. we have a special report from one of the world's most sensitive borders. a cyclist's search for his son. the father who crossed nine countries to find his 6-year-old is set for a reunion.
5:31 pm
>> the word is in the tiny details. at one time it was happening in almost every conversation in every boarding school. there were hundreds of cases. some victims killed themselves. many centering on church workers between the 1950's and 1980's. if it is another scandal for the catholic church to contemplate. >> in catholic boarding schools and churches, a scale of the abuse revealed by the commission is stalking -- is shocking. for some cases it went on for
5:32 pm
decades. >> i think it is safe to say every congregation was involved. that all schools had -- knew of cases of sex abuse and every diocese was affected. >> the commission found the abuse was at its worst during the 1960's. there were hundreds of the victims and the youngest was abused from the age of two. 13 victims have committed suicide. the commission said it found no evidence of a cover-up. >> we found no indication of a cover-up. that there was an agreement to ignore the suffering. >> all that from an inquiry bad never finished its work. they see thousands of files and ended the commission's inquiry. the police have yet to bring any
5:33 pm
charges. the catholic church in belgium will announce its response on monday. >> it insults muslims and bernie koran could also -- burning the koran could harm u.s. troops. the event was planned for saturday on the nine of -- anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. terry jones is getting criticism from the white house and fbi, but around the world there have already been protests. >> the president was forced to spend a rare news conference making an appeal for tolerance, saying muslims were neighbors and friends. the trouble is it looks as
5:34 pm
though he is getting more publicity to a group on the fringe. pastor jones is the leader of a church with a congregation of 50. he believes is what is the work of the devil and the threat and to burn korans. he said if forced muslims to abandon a plan to build a center on ground zero. >> we are still very hopeful that we will meet with the imam. >> it seems the koran burning will not happen. >> we are not at war against islam. we are at war against terrorist organizations. they have distorted islam or falsely used the banner of islam to engage in their destructive acts.
5:35 pm
>> and afghanistan, at the president's word has not been heard. protesters shouted death to obama. he warned the lives of u.s. troops are under risk. >> this may be one individual in florida. my concern is we don't have a bunch of folks think this is the way to get attention. this is a way of in danger in our troops. >> nine years after the attack ground zero is being rebuilt. a memorial park will stand on the site of the mass murder, but it is a plan to build an islamic cultural center that has raised questions about how muslims are seen in america. the imam says moving it would send the wrong signal. >> the headline would be islam is under attack in america. this would help recruitment for
5:36 pm
terrorists. this will put our troops and embassies under attack in the muslim world. we have given and fuelled terrorism. >> with an extreme threat come up one small church has thrust itself into the center of debate about what it means to be american. tomorrow america will mark the anniversary of 9/11. the white house hopes it will stay a solemn affair. police in the danish capital have arrested a man after an explosion at a hotel. he was serious -- seized in a nearby park bleeding from the head. iran has reversed a decision to release an american hiker held for more than a year on spying charges. they announced sarah shourd
5:37 pm
would be released on saturday but said the required paperwork is not complete. the international labor organization warned the colossal floods in pakistan have destroyed the livelihoods of millions. more than 5 million jobs have been lost by the floods, reversing a decade of steady progress. the number of pakistanis living in poverty decreased by half. but now 100,000 mothers to be are at risk of disease or death. many babies will be delivered in squalor. off >> the desperate are taking refuge among the dead, trying to survive between ancient mausoleums. the graveyard is on a hill, the only dry ground for miles
5:38 pm
around. it was here that we found this woman waving the flies from the face of her four-day old son. he was born in the tent. >> he will not take my milk, not even border. he is very weak. -- not even water. >> the family says they have had no help at all. it is those yet to be born who could be the next victims. many of the women are pregnant and face giving birth in squalor. there is a doctor in the graveyard for 10,000 people. mohammed goes from ten to tent, but he is a man and women are reluctant to come to him for help. >> there will be many pregnant
5:39 pm
women. there must be a lady doctor. but there is not any government concerned they should provide them. >> a snake charmer provides a distraction from the misery of camp life, hoping for tips from people who have lost almost everything. but she does not join the crowd, her relatives tried to console her as her baby boy has died. >> with much of pakistan devastated, former president pervez musharraf has chosen this moment to talk publicly about returning to his country. he is currently in london where he says he will be going home under a new political banner. >> [inaudible]
5:40 pm
standing for myself. standing for the party i will create. i do intend on creating a new party because i think the time has come in pakistan when we need to introduce a new political culture which can take pakistan forward on a democratic part, not on an artificial make- believe democratic party. >> that is what you did last time? >> no, last time there were many issues involved which did not -- although i was legitimate, but i lacked the legitimacy because i was in uniform. i did very well for pakistan. i can challenge anybody on any point as far as pakistan and people of pakistan.
5:41 pm
we did wonders for them in seven years. >> pervez musharraf speaking to us. still to come, a river of mud searches through a village in italy. a local cameraman films the destruction. a breakthrough in me cold relations between serbia and kosovo maybe a minute. serviette dropped its -- serbia. that opened the way for direct talks. >> four weeks it seemed a major diplomatic confrontation would take wake at the -- would take place at the un general assembly. the un and the 22 eu members
5:42 pm
refuse to accept it, telling belgrade its own eu hopes would be jeopardized. belgrade agreed to change the text to one calling for dialogue with kosovo. >> the resolution welcomes the readiness of the european union to facilitate the process of dialogue. which would help to secure regional gains, and improved the lives. >> the resolution was unanimously accepted. this is a hugely important moment since serbia has given up its fight for kosovo. belgrade says it will never recognize the secession, but is prepared to direct talks. the message from serbia is it will not allow the cosimo issue to obstruct its own hopes. -- not allow the kosovo issue to
5:43 pm
obstruct its own hopes. >> we must not lose kosovo. >> board for the government, if it is an attempt to move on -- but for the government, it is an attempt to move on. >> latest headlines for you, a new report into the belgium sex abuse scandal claims it affected every catholic convert -- catholic congregation. this pastor has withdrawn his threat to burn copies of the koran. in italy, one town has been hit by flash flooding and mudslides. heavy rains caused the river to burst its banks. one person is missing.
5:44 pm
>> watch as the mudslide engulfs this tiny village. the sheer force and speed carried cars with it. the unleashed cascade funneled its power. heavy rainfall has overwhelmed the river which runs under the village. rescue workers checked the coastline to see if anyone was swept away. they continued at seeing with the search. it took several hours for the water levels to subside to allow clean up to begin. the central area was covered in rubble. the town only has a population of 900. we watched silently as the aftermath was being moved aside.
5:45 pm
it is one of the most beautiful villages on the southern coast. it is regularly used in films. the devastating mud slides have been impossible to predict. >> from floods and mud in italy to fire in san francisco. emergency teams are trying to put out remnants of a huge fire sparked by a gas explosion. at least four people were killed. the explosion produced a crater 5 meters deep. >> these are the first minutes after the explosion ripped through a neighborhood.
5:46 pm
firefighters can do little but watch as gas fuels the inferno. officials say more than three dozen structures in this area were destroyed after a gas line exploded. the morning revealed smoking ruins where hours before there were homes. several people are known to have died. several dozen have been injured. the explosion left a giant crater in one city. >> this is very difficult. the sun is shining over there but there is still a dark cloud over this city. unfortunately the numbers will get higher. >> the fire burned into the night, spreading to more homes before gas could be shut off. local residents fled with what they could have. >> all the things that we lost, but we have our lives.
5:47 pm
>> i never felt heat that intense. >> is there any way to describe that? >> it was like hell on earth. all you see is a 80 foot flames. >> the explosion occurred two miles from the airport. it was first feared a plane had crashed. authorities are investigating why the gas pipe ruptured. locals are wondering how long before they can return to their neighborhood. >> for centuries it was a matter of political significance. which way is turkey facing at the crossroads of europe and asia. the direction turkey juices matters. on sunday turks vote on a new constitution. >> eight years at the pinnacle of power but he still knows how to move a crowd.
5:48 pm
[applause] >> he is the most successful politician for a generation. he connects to ordinary turks. he speaks their language. today he is in a fight for political survival. over the past week there has been in tens canvassing by the two sons. government supporters determined to push this through and sensing a rare opportunity to weaken the prime minister. >> this referendum is no longer a simple yes or no. it has become a question of whether or not they trust the prime minister as the man who has dominated politics for a decade. the closest of the contest must be worrying. this is another stage in his struggle to campaign the --
5:49 pm
causes important enough to risk a referendum. >> his party was stopped. the risks being completely paralyzed. unable to pass any reform because all the major significant reforms have been taken by the main opposition to the constitutional court which ruled conservatively. >> the secular opponents still worry about his deep religious belief. he is clearly enjoying his new role as a champion of the islamic world. his expressions of faith are those of religious conservatives. and this speech marking the anniversary of the koran, he chastised fellow muslims for failing to make their faith better understood in the west. but at heart he is a politician
5:50 pm
interested in winning votes. with an election due next year, his referendum has turned into a test of his own popularity. no wonder he is giving it all he's got to make short of a win on sunday. borderr last month's clashes which left soldiers dead, the un is giving higher priority to the difficult job of marking out the blue line that is supposed to keep the two sides apart. much of it passes through land littered with mines. >> un peacekeepers leaving a heavily fortified base in southern lebanon. after years of fighting, it is the job of these troops to keep the border quiet. that uneasy quiet was shattered
5:51 pm
last month in fierce fighting. soldiers from both sides were killed after lebanese troops fired on israeli is trying to present -- remove a tree from the border area. the incident -- un efforts to clearly mark the blue line. here on the border this illustrates the problem the un has. in order to mark out the blue line with posts, they have to clear dozens of minefields. in this area there are more than 1000 anti-personnel mines put down by israel during previous wars. >> it takes minutes to lay a mine field. clearing this in scorching heat is dangerous and backbreaking work. progress is slow. >> we have to open [unintelligible]
5:52 pm
just to reach the point where the [unintelligible] >> only once you have cleaned the mine field can you put the pillar down and mark the blue line. for un forces, this is a crucial part of keeping the fragile peace. >> confidence within israel and lebanon is not at a high level. we have to address this misunderstanding. >> the last major war was in 2006 between israel and hezbollah. the militia is still a force in southern lebanon. it says it will get involved in future fighting. >> hezbollah is in a position to protect the country. our lebanese army is not fully equipped and capable of
5:53 pm
defending our land. >> hezbollah will enter the next time? >> yes, this is the decision. >> such threats underlie the delicate nature of keeping the peace and need to demarcate the border once and for all. >> an australian cycled around europe missing -- looking for his missing son will be reunited. he quit his job as a fireman to search for his son. the boy was abducted by his mother in 2008. >> he cycled more than 3,000 miles across nine countries. the image of his missing son printed across his clothing. now this journey and search have come to an end. earlier this week he got an anonymous e-mail telling him the boy had been tracked down.
5:54 pm
>> i had been cycling between nuremberg and stuttgart. there was an e-mail from someone identified. it simply said, andrew has been found. authorities will contact you. >> andrew was abducted in australia by his mother in 2008. it is thought she took her son with her to germany. with no news of his whereabouts, he quit his job and set up a web site. andrew is now in foster care but his dad is hoping they will be reunited. >> he has not seen me for 2.5 years. we need to make sure he is comfortable with me before we go any further. >> i very much want to pick him up and give him a big hug, but i know i will not be able to do
5:55 pm
that straightaway. i am very calm about knowing where he is. i except it will take time before i can see him. >> melinda thompson has been arrested and will be extradited to australia. this is a story of family breakdowns, but his long search has had a happy ending and shows sooner or later missing children will be found. >> as efforts intensified to free the 33 miners trapped in chile, 50 miners in spain have intentionally trapped themselves. the striking of unpaid wages -- they walked off their jobs nine days ago and are seeking subsidies to buy coal to keep their mind going. you can find that and much else on line at bbc.com. we are on twitter and facebook
5:56 pm
as well. thanks for being with us. >> hello and welcome. >> see the news unfold. get the top stories from around the globe and click to play video reports. go to bbc.com/news to experience the in-depth, expert reporting of "bbc world news" online. >> funding was made possible by -- the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu, newman's own foundation, the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation, and union bank. >> union bank has put its
5:57 pm
global financial strength to work for a wide range of companies, from small businesses to major corporations. what can we do for you? >> there is one stage that is the met and carnegie hall. >> o, that this too, too solid flesh -- >> it is the kennedy center -- >> check, one, two. >> and a club in austin. [woman vocalizing] >> it is closer than any seat in the house, no matter where you call home. >> ♪ the top of the world, and i'm there, i'm home ♪ >> pbs -- the great american stage that fits in every living room. your support of pbs brings the arts home. >> "bbc world news" was presented by kcet, los angeles. presented by kcet, los angeles.
5:58 pm
5:59 pm

114 Views

info Stream Only

Uploaded by TV Archive on