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NEWS STREAM
Kenya presidential election declared null and void; Trump to donate $1 million of own money to recovery; Pyongyang condemns South Korea-U.S. bombing drill; Mumbai building collapses at least 33 dead; Deadline for U.S. to reduce diplomatic staff in Russia; Flooding threat spreads as storm sets rainfall records; Rohingya Muslims flee deadly violence; U.N. investigator: anti-Rohingya rhetoric worrying; Facial recognition: paying with your face. Aired 8-9a ET
Aired September 1, 2017 - 08:00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[08:00:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN ANCHOR: And we begin with the stunning standing political development out of Kenya. A spokesman says that President Uhuru
Kenyatta will soon address the nation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: That after the country Supreme Court has declared last month's election null and void. It is ordered a new vote within 60 days.
Now the judges have upheld a petition filed by the opposition leader Raila Odinga. He has claimed the re-election of President Kenyatta. You see
here it was fraudulence.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: Now for more, Farai Sevenzo joins us now live from Nairobi. And Farai, this is a stunning development. When ruling was announced, what was
the reaction from President Kenyatta, from the opposition and of course, from the people of Kenya?
FARAI SEVENZO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we will hear on bureau rooftop here, Kristie. And we could here as soon as the judgment was announced,
voices, rejuvenation and applause from all corners of the streets where we have our bureau.
And of course, within the Supreme Court itself, Mister Odinga was being bear hugged and congratulated is matter that we cover to the very brink of
-- of oblivion in the political atmosphere and this is what he had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RAILA ODINGA, OPPOSITION LEADER, KENYA: We have not fail at electoral commission as currently constituted. They have committed criminal acts,
most of them belong to jail.
And therefore we are going to pass for prosecution, all the electoral commission officers who have caused to monstrous crime against the people
of Kenya.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SEVENZO: And there you have it. In just a short few minutes ago, the IEBC chairman who was on the television announcing his reacting. And he say
that the course and pin point an even towards him personally.
That his organization, the Electoral Commission are quite willing to talk to the Department of Public Prosecution if this is the road Mister Odinga
wishes to follow.
But of course it spins the whole scene out of count, because here we were expecting Uhuru Kenyatta to be the president in 2017 but now all the people
of Kenya must go back within 60 days to re-run, to redo this residential election. It's an unprecedented move by this court.
It's never before happened on the African court and it is going to cause some kind of tremors within the regional. Already, the market is starting
to be wobbly, destabilized now.
Already people on the street wondering, what is jubilation approaches that this is going to be another very long interesting chapter in Kenya's
political process, Kristie.
LU STOUT: Yes, this as you point is an unprecedented turn of events. And we know that when the election took place, international observers were
there, observers like John Kerry. They said that this election worked. It was free and fair. Now it's been declared null and void, any new evidence
as to why?
SEVENZO: Well, this is -- this is a very important and you may remember, we already talked about (INAUDIBLE), Mister Kerry, (INAUDIBLE), former
prime minister of Senegal, former president of Ghana, they all their stamp of approval on this election.
And you have to wonder what it is that the judges saw was wrong with that and I can always tell you what part of the judgment says as to whether the
way irregularities and illegal -- illegalities committed in the conduct of the 2017 presidential election.
The court was satisfied that the fist respondent, that is Mister Odinga was right and that (INAUDIBLE) among other things, these were irregularities.
So it begs the question what did the observers see that the rest of us did not or indeed Mister Odinga did -- could not see. So it's going to be
necessary in few weeks and the moment it looks like it's all peaceful and there's much jubilation on the street that had been the case just two weeks
ago. Kristie.
LU STOUT: Yes, jubilation on the streets but there was a lot of fear a weeks ago of -- of major violence during the election. With this new
ruling and the election coming up, the new one, could there be public in rest?
SEVENZO: Well now, that is a very, very good question.
[08:05:00] You remember of course that the violence that happened in Kenya 2007 is a fact of history. More than a thousand people were killed in
intertribal fight about who should be who and who is leading who.
At the moment that scenes have been abated, dissipated by this quarterly because their final results, the opposition that it was to go to the courts
and the court had to deliver this that basically said, let's do this whole thing again.
And what are those people are arguing is that it was a political decision. (INAUDIBLE) Kenyatta, are lawyer saying this just earlier on. And that in
order do this, this really was for peace and maybe will see such violence again, Kristie. But it's an interesting prospect to come for the whole
country.
LU STOUT: Yes, as he put it, the political tremor has been set. Farai Sevenzo, reporting live for us from Nairobi. Thank you, Farai.
And now to Houston, Texas, finally, some of the floodwaters receding but still about a third of America's fourth largest city is underwater.
Hurricane Harvey and its aftermath of taking at least 47 lives, a new danger seemed to emerge every day. Some of the industrial plants and
refineries around Houston have been damaged, releasing toxins in the water that already contains sewage.
The mayor of Houston struck an optimistic tone, declaring the city open for business. There are fewer people in shelters and more bus lines had resume
service. Countless people though are still stranded, waiting, hoping to be pulled to safety.
Emergency workers have so far rescued some 72,000 people. U.S. Vice President Mike Pence is getting firsthand look at the devastation.
President Trump plans return to the disasters of this weekend and he's already dipped into his own wallet to help. Joe Johns is at the White
House and he joins now.
And Joe, can you tell us more about how President Trump has firsthand help to the victims and what he will do when he returns to Texas this weekend?
JOE JOHNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we're told -- and pardon the noise behind me. There have been construction on going here at the White House
for a couple of weeks now.
The president is going to Texas as well as Louisiana this time. He only went to taxes earlier in the week and it sounds like it's going to be very
different trip than the first time.
The first time, the stated intention was to go on the ground but not to go to the affected areas so as not to draw away the public safety personnel
who would have to help protect the president and who are fully engaged in the response to the storm.
This time is likely the president is going to get much closer to what really occurred and he's also expecting to speak to some victims. So a
very different trip for the president the second time in a week going to the affected areas, Kristie.
LU STOUT: Yes, a very different trip, after he pledged to donate some one million dollars of his own personal fortune to the victims of Harvey. Now,
Vice President Mike Pence, he just tour the areas hit by the storm. What is he promising to do to help the people of Texas?
JOHNS: The vice president was certainly a motive on this trip as he spoke to volunteers and individuals affected by the storm also saw some of the
damage.
What's clear coming from his perspective and what the administration clearly wants is to get started here in Washington D.C. talking about the
down payment for recovering and rebuilding the affected areas in the Gulf Coast region.
We're also told on Capitol Hill, there are already discussions about a longer-term aid package, the vice president indicating on the ground in the
Gulf Coast that it's at least possible that there will be votes on Capitol Hill as early as next week when Congress returns from its August recess to
try to get the ball rolling on this money.
But they have a lot of other things on the plate and that could in fact slow things down on Capitol Hill, unless there's a real will to get cash
out there as fast as possible. Kristie.
LU STOUT: You know, that was just good to hear because there is a lot of people definitely need it. And I want to ask you a question about the mood
in Washington this week, especially in the wake of Harvey.
Has it shifted from all that political fighting over building a wall and talked of the shutdowns to actually coming together to help the people of
Texas and Louisiana?
JOHNS: Well, that the hope and we'll get a better feel for that when Congress returns to Capitol Hill next week. They have been off for a long
session.
We do know that members of Congress from Texas have been on the ground helping out and expressing their concerns that Congress needs to come
together. There are a lot of issues that this Congress has to deal with when they come back.
There's the debt ceiling that they have to increase fast. They also have to pass a bill by the end of September to keep the government operating.
So a necessity for Congress to work together during this next few weeks and this hurricane is a big part of that.
[08:10:00] LU STOUT: Yes, absolutely. Joe John, we thank you for your reporting. Take care. And now to the pressure building around North
Korea.
Now, North Korean media published new commentary saying that the current situation is turning unfavorable for the U.S. and that there is no way out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: Pyongyang calls Thursday is bombing drill over the Korean Peninsula by the U.S. and South Korea a rush act. The exercises were held
after North Korea launched a missile that pass of Japan on Tuesday.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: CNN's Will Ripley has a reporting from inside North Korea. He filed this report a short time ago.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: North Korea's latest response to that show of force in the Korean Peninsula, that bomber and fighter jet flyover has
not been to threaten a retaliate for a missile strike of their own as they did last month when they laid out a plan to fire missiles towards Guam
after B-2 bombers flew in the Korean Peninsula.
This time around, they are opening the door, it seems like for potential diplomacy with the United States, putting a commentary in the mouthpiece of
the ruling Worker's Party.
The Rodong newspaper saying that the United States is in a situation it cannot get out of the situation that is getting worse by the day and that
the only solution is for the U.S. to reverse its long-standing policy of refusing to acknowledge North Korea as a nuclear weapon state.
This just puts the U.S. in a tough spot because if they were to do that, it would essentially be rewarding North Korea and its leader Kim Jong-un for
bad behavior for nuclear testing, missile launches that violate international law.
But North Korea said they're developing these weapons to protect their national sovereignty and the commentary reads in part as the U.S. escalates
the confrontation with the DPRK, that's North Korea and waste time to find out a solution.
The striking capabilities of the DPRK's strategic forces which put the whole U.S. mainland in their strike range will rapidly increase.
So essentially North Korea saying either you recognize us or no matter what sanctions or pressure you throw at us, were going to continue to build
missiles and develop nuclear weapons, and become an even greater threat than they already are.
Russian President Vladimir Putin speaking out on this is as well saying quote, Russia believes that the policy of putting pressure on Pyongyang to
stop its nuclear missile program is misguided and futile, provocations, pressure, and militarist, and insulting rhetoric are a dead-end road.
That is a job if you could interpret it that way at President Trump for his fire and fury, locked and loaded comments that certainly did draw a strong
response from North Korea.
And on the ground the here in Pyongyang, this is to show you how seriously they take their missile program. They just unveiled a new stamp
commemorating the July 28th launch of the Hwasong-14.
That intercontinental ballistic missile that North Korea says has the capability of reaching the mainland U.S. with a nuclear warhead.
They believe these weapons are the leverage to get them a seat at the table and to get them respect even at the international community continues to
condemn their actions. Will Ripley, CNN, Pyongyang, North Korea.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LU STOUT: All right, that was the latest on the North Korean capital. Let's go straight to Ian Lee standing by the Seoul, South Korea.
And Ian, tell us more about those drills. The U.S.-South Korean drills that North Korea calls a rush act. What happened during these exercises?
IAN LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Honestly, they were unique in the way that they were carried out. You have military aircraft from Guam which has been
the target of North Korean threats.
B-1 bombers coming from there, you had F-35s, so as advanced stealth fighters coming from Japan and an F-15 aircraft from here in South Korea,
all coordinating, all operating in this exercise showcasing their advanced and unique capabilities to wage war in the event that hostilities do break
out.
And that exercise lasted for about 10 hours this is the second one that has taken place since North Korea conducted that missile test on Tuesday
shortly after that South Korea carried out its own -- its own military exercise which was designed to showcase how they could go after the North
Koreans leadership in the case there was a war. Kristie.
LU STOUT: It is interesting to hear the Russian President, Vladimir Putin weigh in on North Korea saying seeing that any, you know, additional
pressure on Pyongyang is a in his words quote, dead and raw. So what is Putin calling for as a solution a way to resolve the issue?
LEE: It's pretty simple, Kristie, he's saying that he wants everyone to get together around the table and hush it out, diplomacy -- direct
diplomacy that's what he's calling for.
And without any preconditions which will be difficult because United States has always said that they won't sit down with the North Koreans until they
abandon their nuclear program.
So you do have an impasse there at the United States and its allies look like they're going to go down the route of more diplomatic and economic
sanctions to pressure North Korea.
[08:15:00] But as we heard from Will's reporting, that seems to have the opposite effect only to as the North Korea says to accelerate their nuclear
program. Kristie.
LU STOUT: All right, Ian Lee reporting live from Seoul. Thank you, Ian. You're watching News Stream. Still ahead on the program, Washington gives
Moscow a diplomatic deadline after Russia gave the U.S. until today to reduce the number of its diplomats.
Also ahead, dozens are dead after a residential building collapses in the financial capital of India. What authorities believe may have caused this
tragedy.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LU STOUT: Coming to you live from Hong Kong. Welcome back, this is News Stream. Now turning now to India's financial capital. Now authorities in
Mumbai have ended search and rescue operations at the scene of a collapsed building.
They said all the victims have now been accounted for, 33 bodies have been found in the rubble, one of them a baby. Only 20 days old. This is the
second major building collapse in Mumbai this summer.
Journalist Liz Neisloss is following the latest developments for us there and she joins us now. Liz, this is such a horrific event, the final word
that you're hearing are human toll of the disaster.
LIZ NEISLOSS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, 33 people died in this building collapse. And Kristie, the very difficult part in the beginning of the
search was no one really knew how many people lived in the building.
There was no actual tally, so they really didn't know how many people they would pull out how many people they could rescue until they come through
the entire building. That process is now complete.
There is actually a man standing on the adjacent building. Right now, you may see pieces falling down. You may see a crowbar at work.
He is standing on the roof of the adjacent building, pulling down pieces of the roof of the building that collapse which are still attached to the
adjacent building, and sending them tumbling to the ground. Kristie.
LU STOUT: Yes, it's a horrific scene that's there right behind you. And this is the third time that something like this has happened, the third
building collapse in Mumbai in less than a month. Why is this happening?
NEISLOSS: Well, many critics will quickly tell you their shoddy construction work here. There a lack of safety measures. Earlier in
August, 17th, people died when a building collapsed in Mumbai.
An investigative team found that was due to illegal construction work on the ground floor of the building, a nursing home was being renovated.
Kristie.
LU STOUT: A terrible, terrible accident. Liz Neisloss reporting live on the scene for us in Mumbai. Thank you so much, Liz, and take care.
Now there are new developments in a diplomatic standoff between the U.S. and Russia. Friday is the deadline Moscow has given the U.S. to reduce the
number of its diplomats in Russia.
[08:20:00] And meanwhile, the U.S. State Department ordered the closure of the Russian consulate in San Francisco as well as to annex building, one in
New York and one in Washington.
That's in retaliation for Russia expelling hundreds of American staffers about one month ago. CNN's Fred Pleitgen is following developments from
Moscow.
He joins us now and to clarify this for our audience, Russian officials are not being expelled from U.S. here, but the U.S. has ordered the closure of
the Russian consulate and annexes. So how is Moscow interpreting that?
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, they say that they the regret these new moves by the United States. It really is quite interesting
because what U.S. is saying is that they're trying to achieve parity with the Russians.
So as you just mentioned, Kristie, the Russians told the U.S. a couple of weeks ago that they want them to have exactly the same number of diplomatic
staff in Russia, as Russia is allowed to have in the United States be in 455 personnel.
Which does not only include Americans, also is the Russian staffer and says that the Americans employ here. So the America not only have 455, they
actually had to close down their consular offices for about a week they said.
As they worked at getting rid of some of this staff of let some of these staff go to be able to meet that number. Now their consular services have
opened up again but the U.S. says look, if Russia wants this parody of the number of staff in both countries then the parity also have to extend to
diplomatic institutions in either country.
That's why the U.S. is saying look, you guys have to closed down the consulate in San Francisco and with that, both countries have three
consulates on each other's territory and the U.S. says that is where that parity come.
Now the Russians obviously interpret this in a very different way, Kristie. They say that this is another aggressive move on the part of the United
States.
They say that none of this was initiated by the Russians and one really interesting comment that came out is actually by the Russian Foreign
Minister Sergey Lavrov.
Who earlier today said that he believed that this closure was a continuation of Obama administration policies aimed at tying President
Trump's hand as President Trump tries to improve the relations between the U.S and Russia.
So once again, the Russians criticizing the policies of the United States, the moves of the United States, but specifically taking the President Trump
out of that criticism as they have done in the past. Certainly that was one really interesting nuances on some of the things that Sergei Lavrov said
earlier today. Kristie.
LU STOUT: That's interesting. So by taking President Trump out of the picture and saying this all goes back to Obama air politics. Is there a
window of opportunity here to shore up relations between Moscow and Washington?
PLEITGEN: You know that's a very, very interesting question. And certainly if you ask the Russians, they will say that they believe that
there is. Sergey Lavrov also said earlier today that the Russians want better relations with the United States.
One of the interesting things that he said is that he believes that the Russia -- that the Russia believes it takes two to tango and he believes
that the U.S. right now is break dancing solo when it comes to relations between the United States and Russia.
They said the two countries simply aren't seeing eye-to-eye but that's what the Russians want of course. The U.S. will say look, we believe that you
tried to meddle in our electoral process. That's why these sanctions came into effect in the first place and that certainly some of the U.S. won't
forget easily.
So overcoming the differences between the Russians and the United States is going to be a very, very difficult process, and if you listen to Russian
politicians, you listen to Sergey Lavrov, you listen to President Vladimir Putin, they say they believe that this is going to take a very long time
because sanctions by their nature are very, very difficult to revoke.
So at this point and time both sides are saying they want better relations. Both sides are sort of laying the blame at each other's doorstep for the
relations being the way they are, but it also appears as though the two sides don't seem to believe that those relations are going to improve
anytime soon with everything that that brings with it in terms of these two countries.
They are so very important for international politics cooperating on the international scene. You see that for instance when it comes to North
Korea, you see that when it comes to the Middle East with the bad relations between these two countries are making it very, very difficult to find
common ground on some of those very important problems around the world. Kristie.
LU STOUT: Yes, so the relationship not improving anytime soon, especially in the eyes of the Kremlin. The U.S. is quote break dancing solo.
Interesting choice words there. Fred Pleitgen, reporting live from Moscow, we thank you.
Now, a desperate situation for tens of thousands of Rohingya Muslims, many are stranded on the border of Bangladesh having to escape what they
described as mass killings in Myanmar. We got the latest straight ahead.
[08:25:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LU STOUT: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong. You're watching News Stream and these are your world headlines.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: Kenya Supreme Court has declared last month's presidential election, null and void. And has ordered a new voted within 60 days.
Judges have held the petition filed by opposition leader Raila Odinga who's called the court's decision before.
Meanwhile, a lawyer for President Uhuru Kenyatta says the decision is political. North Korean media have published a new commentary saying the
standoff with the U.S. is turning unfavorable for America and that there is no way out.
This is of course through these bombing drills over the Korean Peninsula by the U.S. and by the U.S. and South Korea quote, a rush act. The exercises
were held after North Korea launched a missile that and pass over Japan.
The U.S. travel ban on North Korea begins today in any U.S. citizens there must leave. The U.S. State Department says the ban addresses the serious
announcing risk of arrest and long-term detention of U.S. citizens.
The fall follows the death of University student, Otto Warmbier who is detained for attempting to steal a propaganda banner. U.S. President
Donald Trump says he will donate $1 million dispersion to recovery efforts in Texas.
Also believe the White House says will ask Congress for emergency funding to help those affected by Hurricane Harvey. Now these 47 people were
killed in storm and many others are still stranded.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: Now Hurricane Harvey broke records soaking Texas with historic amounts of rain, the amount of water endorsed Hurricane Katrina and is
stacking up to be one of the worst storms in U.S. history. Now, for more, here's Tom Foreman.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Forty-five million gallons every minute, that's how much water flows overall that falls up at Niagara and yet they
would have to run for 381 days to equal the amount of water that Harvey has dumped on Texas and Louisiana.
Some experts now putting the total dump there at 25 trillion gallons, some say less but is it possible that could that much. Well, look at the
vastness of the area and you'll see how it might be.
If you put this over in California it would stretch from Los Angeles up to San Francisco. Show that to the East Coast over here and would you have it
going from Washington D.C. to up above New York.
And by comparison, the worst tropical storm rainfall in California was 1976 Kathleen, what was that, just under 15 inches over a much smaller area.
What about on the East Coast, that was New York in 2011, Irene a little over 13 inches.
But look Harvey, this massive amount well over 50 inches in some areas, really high other areas even if it wasn't that high.
[08:30:00] That's why all the records are being shattered here. And if you were to compare this to Katrina for example, very different types of
storms, Katrina had broken levees, all sort of things like that.
Here is a comparison, a lot of New Orleans into that flooded with somewhere between 10 to 20 feet of water. This is what 20 feet would look like next
to me.
If you took all of the water from Harvey, and you compress it into a smaller area like this, it would completely engulfed buildings that were 12
stories tall.
And bear in mind, even when this water starts going away, the danger will still be there because this water isn't pristine, it's now been infused
with petrochemicals and now with agricultural runoff, and toxins from homes, and businesses, and raw sewage. Many, many, many threats out there,
even as the war drains off.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LU STOUT: Wow, extraordinary and unsettling visualizations by CNN's Tom Foreman. Now to Myanmar and the desperate plight of Rohingya Muslims
trying to escape deadly violence in Rakhine State.
The latest arrest began when Rohingya militants attacked border post and the military responded with what it calls clearance operations. Now the
U.N. says some 50,000 Rohingya have fled in just the past week alone.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LU STOUT: There's no time to waste to try to make it to safety, desperate families fleeing from violence at home. They are Rohingya Muslims from
Myanmar. A State with ethnic minority described as the most persecuted people on earth.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): They are beating us, shooting at us and hacking our people to death. Many women were raped and killed.
LU STOUT: State Media says nearly 400 people have been killed. The U.N. says nearly 50,000 Rohingyas have fled Myanmar in the past week, many
seeking refuge in Bangladesh since clash has began between Myanmar security forces and Rohingya militants.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): We were tortured by the military and their accomplices. We have to flee to save our lives.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): Last Friday, the military killed five people in our area, one of them was my son. They were tortured to
death. Our house was set on fire. We lost everything there.
LU STOUT: CNN can't independently verify the stories of those who fled. The office of Myanmar's de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi has not responded
to CNN's request for comment. The journey they have to take is treacherous.
First, escaping burning villages and gunfire on the Myanmar side, then making a dangerous river crossing carrying their children and belongings.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): We have to walk along way. We have to cross hills, (INAUDIBLE) and paddy fields to make the journey to
the Bangladesh border.
LU STOUT: Some don't make it on Thursday. The bodies of 12 children and eight women were pulled out of the Naf River along the border. The border
guards said that they had likely tried to escape in a boat which capsized.
As Rohingyas still driven out by one state, many are being refused entry to the next. Around 1,000 have been forced to return in the last week alone
and at least 20,000 are stranded in no-man's land between Bangladesh and Myanmar with no food, water or shelter. For those who do make it, they face
overcrowded, makeshift camps and sparely humanitarian crisis.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): I cannot bring anything. This cross was given to me by someone here. I lost everything. There's nothing
left in my home in Myanmar. Everything is destroyed.
LU STOUT: The government says it is conducting clearance operations of what they call hundreds of extremist terrorists and blame Rohingya for
killing people from other ethnicities.
The Rohingya militant RSO admitted staging a coordinated attack on police pose a week ago, killing 12 security officials. The leader says they want
to fight for the rights of Rohingyas and accuse Myanmar of atrocities.
ZEID RA'AD AL HUSSEIN, UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER, HUMAN RIGHTS: Decades of persistent and systematic human rights violations have almost
certainly contributed to the nurturing of violent extremism.
LU STOUT: Facing a hopeless future, many of the families who fled, left their young man behind.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): I sent my son to hunt. I'm leaving at the hand of the almighty Allah. We are ready to face any
situation.
LU STOUT: They face a battle with no winners.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LU STOUT: It was a desperate increasingly hopeless situation. Now earlier I spoke to Yanghee Lee, the U.S. Special Rapporteur to Myanmar.
And she told me that the whole process of trying to heal the wounds from last year's violence, quote, has been derailed completely. She's also
urging Aung San Suu Kyi, the de facto leader of Myanmar to do more to address the latest violence.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
YANGHEE LEE, SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR, UNITED STATES: I really think that she can do more. I think that we've call the international community who
wanted to give her time and space just as she requested.
[08:35:00] But right now, things are not going properly the way I think that she had anticipated. And I would like to also remind the viewers of
your program that it's not just the right kind state there is humanitarian need.
And the lack of access to humanitarian assistance is also a kind as we speak in northern China and then in 10 states as well.
LU STOUT: Yes, there are number of humanitarian crises underway right now and Myanmar -- I want to get your thoughts on this disturbing trend coming
out of the country.
The rise of anti-Rohingya and anti-aid group rhetoric and propaganda coming from both State Media and the Myanmar government, does not alarm you?
Y. LEE: That does it really worries me. It goes beyond alarm that worries me. I think that is the first thing that I would like to call on the
Myanmar government to resist this, to refrain from this because it's just inciting more violence.
And you know violence begets violence and in this time of -- in this time of period, we can't do with any more alternative news or fake news, or a
horrific horror stories that rumors.
LU STOUT: The U.S. Security Council discussed the situation this week. No joint statement was issued, is this just another failing by the
international community to address the plight of the Rohingya people?
Y. LEE: I was -- to be honest I was a little bit disappointed rather very much disappointed that there was no action taken. This month is when the
general assembly opens the somatic debate begin again and high-level debates.
So I'd like to again try to see if the United Nations can do a little more, step up and do a little more to convince not just the Myanmar government
but to convince the Rohingya population and international community, and also the (INAUDIBLE) community and the Buddhist community to refrain from
any further violence.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LU STOUT: And that was Yanghee Lee, the U.S. Special Rapporteur to Myanmar speaking to me earlier urging action at the upcoming U.N. General assembly.
You're watching News Stream.
And still to come, forget about credit cards or smart phone, apparently in China, you can now settle your bill with just a look.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LU STOUT: Welcome back to now. The U.S. jobs report for August has just been released. The U.S. economy added 156,000 jobs last month.
Now economist had expected to rise about 180,000 jobs. The employment rate ticked up to 4.4 percent. We're going to have much more in the story in
CNNMoney happening about 20 minutes from.
Now electronic, that's been around for some time now, but in China, tech companies like Alibaba are giving it a new twist. Andrew Stevens tells us
how you can buy a meal in some places just by showing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
[08:40:00] ANDREW STEVENS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Facial recognition technology is becoming big business in China and it's being used
increasingly around the country.
The big tech companies are now getting involved to team up with retail operations to promote what they say is the customer shopping experience.
Well Alibaba is one of us tech jobs, it's just rolled out what is calling the world's first facial recognition payments application. It started out
with KFC, but coincidently it's rolling it out in his hometown of (INAUDIBLE).
It's a simple process stand in front of the camera, make an order and then wipe for facial recognition. Once that sophisticated, key in a mobile
phone number for additional verification and the payment is extracted from all any pay accounts.
It's all about security says Ali. Then the company says that the smile to pay a program is as good can recognize someone even if they change their
looks.
KFC, which is now part owned by Alibaba is also working with another tech giant Baidu, facial recognition of this store in Beijing is used to profile
the customer and then also menu choices.
It also tells you what did you have last time, all of this part of a new Chinese revolution in artificial intelligence fueled by Beijing.
A.I. is being used for security purposes by Chinese companies Didi Chuxing, the big ridesharing app for example, uses it to help verify the driver's
identity.
But there's also one other happy customer and that is the Chinese government. It's also collecting this big data helped in part at least by
the fact that they are virtually no privacy laws here in China.
But commercially, the end of the game here is all about being able to leave your home, you don't need your wallets, you don't need your keys, it just
need your face. Andrew Stevens, CNN, Beijing.
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LU STOUT: Now it was the summer blockbuster that thrilled audiences around the world and help empower young girls in particular.
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LU STOUT: But unfortunately, not everyone who saw the wonder woman film embraced the films positive message such as the Trolls who targeted these
cosplayers from Sri Lanka, making fun of their outfits at the countries comic-con gathering.
And saying pre-degrading things above of my mind but thankfully, Wonder Woman herself stepped in to save the day. Actress Gal Gadot upraised the
two girls saying, looking amazing ladies. That just goes to show even just a small act of kindness, yes, that can be pretty heroic.
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LU STOUT: And that is News Stream. I'm Kristie Lu Stout, but don't go anywhere, World Sport Christina McFarlane is next.
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