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Student-Led Events Celebrate Freedom Day; Tracking Trump's Credibility; Millions to Be Uninsured under Republican Plan; Netherlands Set for Wednesday Election; U.K. Ready to Trigger Brexit, But When?; "Road to ASEAN"; #MyFreedomDay in Kenya. Aired 8-9a ET

Aired March 14, 2017 - 08:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


[08:00:00]

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KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong and you're watching a special edition of NEWS STREAM as we mark My

Freedom Day. We're joining forces with students to highlight the problem of modern-day slavery. We'll hear from our correspondents around the world

as part of the CNN Freedom Project.

The U.S. East Coast, meanwhile, is preparing for a massive snowstorm, cancelling thousands of flights and, among the travelers affected, German

chancellor Angela Merkel.

The U.K. edges closer to Brexit but how a plan for a second Scottish independence referendum changed the path ahead for Theresa May.

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LU STOUT: Modern-day slavery is a global crime that affects as many as 45 million people. It's almost impossible to wrap your head around those

staggering numbers.

But today the CNN Freedom Project is raising awareness. We are partnering with students around the world for My Freedom Day and more than 100 schools

worldwide are finding creative ways to shed light on this horrific crime.

In Johannesburg, for instance, students made posters and took part in a march to bring attention to forced labor and human trafficking.

And in this school in Abu Dhabi, young people are using music to express what freedom means to them.

Earlier today I went to Hong Kong International School for My Freedom Day and, there, the students are leading efforts to celebrate freedom and get

their peers involved. Here's a look at how committed they are to the cause.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STOUT (voice-over): I'm at Hong Kong International School to mark My Freedom Day, a student-led day of action against global slavery. Here,

students are reading books about modern-day slavery, they're making paper chains, posters, sending social updates all about raising awareness to end

this multibillion-dollar criminal enterprise.

This is just one of a dozen schools all across Asia taking part in this activity. The students here also just got back from two-week-long service

trips across the world, often involving working with populations vulnerable to human trafficking.

Earlier I spoke with Ella Horowitz (ph), one of the student organizers of My Freedom Day in Hong Kong.

ELLA HOROWITZ (PH), STUDENT ORGANIZER: If you look at the victims' stories, their fundamental human rights are being violated daily. It's

horrific, it's really horrific and I think that it's our generation's responsibility to really step up to the cause and promote equality, promote

freedom in order to bring these victims justice.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What we sensed through the week was a lack of vision.

STOUT (voice-over): My Freedom Day activities are taking place here in Hong Kong and across Asia, in cities like Tokyo, in New Delhi, in Mumbai as

well as Jakarta.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Kids are much more connected to each other in this day and young people today are so much more engaged and passionate and

aware of all the issues that are going on in the world and the fact that most of the trafficking victims in this world are the same age as these

kids. But for an accident of birth and circumstances, they could be these kids.

LU STOUT: And it's happening here at Hong Kong and at dozens of other schools around the world but this is just the start. This is a beginning

of a movement. It all begins today, March 14th, My Freedom Day.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: Those kids, such an inspiration and there are more events underway around the globe. Our correspondents are standing by for us.

First, let's go to Shasta Darlington in Rio de Janeiro.

Shasta, what are students doing there on this day of action?

SHASTA DARLINGTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kristie, I'm at the American School in Rio de Janeiro. They really have an action-packed

day; it's a bunch of activities that have been planned by the high school students to raise awareness throughout the school. Other students are

being invited.

In fact, I have a couple of the students here with me so I think I'll let them explain. Let's first go to Gabriella.

What do you have planned for today?

GABRIELLA, STUDENT ACTIVIST: We have a lot of activities going on (INAUDIBLE). We're going to have rooms with students leading the sessions

about modern-day slavery and documentaries about it.

We'll have students on the cubes (ph) with posters standing up for freedom, giving advice for those who don't have it (ph). We're going to have

exhibitions with very graphic images about -- and facts about the issue. And also we're going to write letters to the ones who suffered it.

DARLINGTON: I think that's interesting because you come from so many different countries; by writing letters, you're actually addressing a

number of governments, is that right?

GABRIELLA: Yes, that's right. We're having students sign up for it. So we're having students (INAUDIBLE) letters, giving their thoughts to the

people, to the victims (ph).

DARLINGTON: And, Tiffany, tell me.

[08:05:00]

DARLINGTON: I assume this was a new opportunity, something you hadn't done before.

What, as a student and as a person, what did you learn, preparing for My Freedom Day?

TIFFANY: (INAUDIBLE), well, I think one of the things I learned is that it's something that we don't really think about as a community as a whole.

Like when we think about slavery, it's something that sounds all sort of ancient actually.

And to learn about how like modern day it still exists and it's so predominant, it was really sort of shocking in a way and I think that this

initiative really helps bring awareness to it throughout the school as a community.

We clearly joined together and everyone is going to have the opportunity to learn more about it and in different places in the world and how it's

really still a problem that we need to address and that we really need to face.

DARLINGTON: And even in Brazil, just in the past 15 years, some 45,000 people have been rescued from slavery.

Did you study this as well?

TIFFANY: Yes. So I was able to study a bit from each country, we all got to learn a bit about it being leaders from the discussions. But it was

really something that I had no clue about, how predominant it was, just in Brazil, you know, how this issue is still occurring in our own country.

And it's something that really I wasn't aware of and I think so many people weren't still aware of. And it was really interesting to learn how massive

it still is.

DARLINGTON: Yes, both in agriculture, in textile, clothing industries.

(INAUDIBLE) when you're talking to your friends, either of you could answer this, do you have a message?

Like what's -- what can you -- what can they do to help stand up to slavery?

GABRIELLA: I think it's something which she said. It's kind of ancient; we think it's in the past but it's really not. It can happen to anyone at

any time.

Of course there are some people they're a lot -- like more up to it, they - - there's some factors but it can happen to anyone at any time. So raise awareness (INAUDIBLE).

Thank you very much.

Kristie, it's going to be a big day. This is -- so the school is just -- the classes are beginning now. So later we'll have the film festival, the

activity, the standup display, the letter-writing campaign. But students are excited and it's just been great watching them learn about these

conditions that exist around the globe and right here in Brazil -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: Yes, absolutely, they're very curious and passionate about the issue at hand. Shasta Darlington, reporting live for us, on My Freedom Day

from Rio, thank you.

Students are also starting crucial conversations over in the U.K. Eleni Giokos joins us now from Bishops Stafford (ph) in Hertfordshire. That's

not far from London. She joins us now.

And, Eleni, just how are students there marking My Freedom Day?

ELENI GIOKOS, CNNMONEY CORRESPONDENT: Well, again, various activities, Kristie. And it's all about creating awareness. It's all about perhaps

getting a little piece of what people in other countries and emerging markets specifically, you know, people that have been affected by human

trafficking or slavery and we actually in the area where the kids get a little bit of lunch.

Now if I could get you to take a look at what's being served today, it looks like a really nutritious meal actually but it's very different to

what the students normally get. And the whole reason behind this is that they wanted to show the students at Hokerils (ph) College that it's all

about sacrifice.

It's all about understanding what teenagers their age are actually experiencing around the world, people that are stuck in the are trap of

poverty, people that are stuck in slavery as well.

And we have got the head chef that is joining us now to tell us a little bit about why the meal is so different, Wayne Giles.

Tell me, I mean, it looks really good to me, but this is different. This is so different to what the students normally get.

WAYNE GILES, HEAD CHEF: It's just very, very plain today. We've gone down the route, just plain rice and vegetables, obviously, to save a lot of

money for this as well.

GIOKOS: How much are you saving?

How much did this cost compared to what you normally serve everyday?

GILES: Today I think we're saving at least a pound a person.

GIOKOS: So it's cutting about 60 p per person, yes?

And normally there's so much more food.

GILES: More of a variety, yes, a lot of -- a lot -- a lot to choose from, yes, a nice variety for students.

GIOKOS: OK. So a very different experience for them today.

We spoke to the students a little earlier and they were talking about the fact that, a few days ago they didn't really understand the notion of

modern slavery. They didn't understand that people went through -- you know, that they could be trafficked, that other children in other markets

are victims of this very dark reality.

And just in the U.K. context and in Britain, we know that victims of trafficking have increased by around 240 percent over the last five years.

And, of course, it comes in the form of domestic slavery; it comes in the form of labor as well.

And, of course, with the refugee crisis that has been on the rise over the last few years, of course, this has created a lot of criminal gangs as

well, that are exploiting people to a very large extent.

So these children here are saying that they're aware, they're going spread the word. They've put up an ideas board as well. They're coming up with

ideas. They're trying to find solutions.

We joined some of the anthropology and sociology classes. Students were talking about what is the plight of people around the world that are --

[08:10:00]

GIOKOS: -- stuck in the loop of poverty because, remember, Kristie, these issues are related.

LU STOUT: And raising awareness can take so many different forms and take place in so many different areas of a high school campus, including the

cafeteria.

Eleni, thank you for that.

And you can check out live updates, what's happening at My Freedom Day events around the world at cnn.com/myfreedomday. And you can also join in.

Just post your answers to the question, "What does freedom mean to you?" on social media with the hashtag #MyFreedomDay.

We'll look at how people from around the world respond to that very question.

You're watching NEWS STREAM.

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STOUT (voice-over): Still ahead on the program, a major winter storm is pummeling parts of the U.S. East Coast and we're tracking the system.

Also, "True or false?" is the question many have asked in response to President Donald Trump's Twitter tirade. How his administration is

wrestling with the fallout over one evidence-free claim.

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LU STOUT: Coming to you live from Hong Kong, welcome back. You're watching NEWS STREAM.

Parts of the U.S. are at a standstill right now as a powerful winter storm barrels down on the Northeast. Some 31 million people are under a blizzard

warning and thousands of flights have been canceled.

German chancellor Angela Merkel delayed her trip to meet with President Donald Trump in response to this very storm. Now CNN meteorologist Chad

Myers has been tracking the conditions -- outside, no less.

And, Chad, we know that blizzard warnings have been in effect. It looks very, very cold. Describe the conditions out there.

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Kristie, it feels like I'm getting hit with snowballs. I'm not kidding you. These snowflakes are the size of golf

balls right now and they are coming down here in Central Park, New York, I'm sure, over many other places here across the Northeast.

We will expect now almost 60 centimeters of snow in some spots across the Western High Plains, across parts of Maryland, Pennsylvania, also into

upstate New York and all of New England. That is Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts and Connecticut.

(WEATHER REPORT)

[08:15:00]

LU STOUT: Ten days ago President Donald Trump made the stunning claim that his predecessor wiretapped his phones and still he's yet to show any proof.

This isn't the first time he's tweeted out assertions without evidence to back them up. (INAUDIBLE) accused Mr. Trump of using the outrageous

statements to distract from real issues and administration problems.

Jake Tapper unpacks the president's claims and the White House defense.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JAKE TAPPER, CNN CHIEF WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: The House Intelligence Committee requested that the Justice Department provide them today with any

proof at all backing up President Trump's tweets from earlier this month, some of them, to recall, "Terrible, just found out that Obama had my wires

tapped in Trump Tower just before the victory. Nothing found. This is McCarthyism. Is it legal for a sitting president to be wiretapping a race

for president prior to an election? Turned down by court earlier. A new low. How low has President Obama gone to tap my phones during the very

sacred election process? This is Nixon Watergate, bad or sick guy!"

Now to recap, since those tweets nine days ago, this charge by the president has been called "false" by the director of the FBI, "false" by

the former Director of National Intelligence and not one credible informed source that we can find in Washington has said that the president's

accusation is true -- and I'm including Vice President Pence in that group.

To say that members of the House Intelligence Committee are expecting reams of paper to prove this charge coming their way today, well, that would be

doing a disservice to the members of that Select Committee.

And, we as a nation, we have had to live in this farce for the last nine days, where defenders of the president have twisted themselves into

pretzels trying to suggest the possibility that the tweets weren't preposterous by rejiggering the facts of the tweets, to try to make this

wild and unfounded claim by the president seem to live somewhere in the vicinity of the neighborhood of possible.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEAN SPICER, WHITE HOUSE SPOKESPERSON: I think there's a -- there's no question that the Obama administration -- that there were actions about

surveillance and other activities that occurred in the 2016 election.

That is a widely reported activity that occurred back then. The president used the word "wiretap" in quotes to mean, broadly, surveillance and other

activities.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: So to break out White House press secretary Sean Spicer's Trump- to-English dictionary, by "Obama," President Trump meant "the Obama administration."

By "wiretap," he meant any kind of surveillance.

And by surveillance of Trump's phones at Trump Tower, he meant, apparently, surveillance of anyone who may have had any conversation with anyone who

was part of the 2016 election.

Sometimes revisionism is so blatant it's not revisionism, it's just a complete rewrite. He didn't mean Obama had his wires tapped at Trump

Tower; he meant the Obama administration may have conducted surveillance during the election of some people, including some who may have spoken to

people on campaigns or having communications with those campaigns.

Those are two completely different things. One is false and one is true. But other than the word "Obama," they have little in common, as with so

many of these unfounded charges: 3 million to 5 million illegal votes, the highest murder rate in half a century and on and on.

[08:20:00]

TAPPER: The White House is spending its energy and your tax dollars trying to change demonstrably false assertions into perfectly understandable

beliefs tangentially related to the original lie.

And, while doing so, they're squandering their own credibility and they're wasting time defending the indefensible instead of devoting time to, say,

improving your lives.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: That was CNN's chief Washington correspondent, Jake Tapper.

President Trump is also on the defensive over a health care plan he wants to replace, ObamaCare. A new analysis of the proposal says it would leave

millions of Americans uninsured. For more, here's Sunlen Serfaty.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The Congressional Budget Office projecting 14 million Americans would lose their coverage next year,

with 24 million people uninsured by 2026 under the Republican health care plan to replace ObamaCare.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We disagree strenuously with the report that was put out.

SERFATY (voice-over): The White House denouncing the findings.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We believe that our plan will cover more individuals at a lower cost and give them the choices that they want for the coverage that

they want.

SERFATY (voice-over): Their strategy?

Attacking the non-partisan office throughout the week, even before seeing the numbers.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If the CBO was right about ObamaCare to begin with, there would be 8 million more people on ObamaCare today than there actually

are. Sometimes we ask them to do stuff they're not capable of doing.

SERFATY (voice-over): But the report does provide some good news for the GOP. The CBO also predicting their legislation would reduce federal

deficits by $337 billion over a decade.

And though premiums are expected to increase by up to 20 percent over the next two years, the CBO anticipates they'll actually drop by an average of

10 percent by 2026.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Something the CBO may have gotten right in this report is that the premiums are actually going to come down in cost.

SERFATY (voice-over): But the hardest hit by those higher premiums: older, lower income Americans, shattering this promise by then-candidate

Trump.

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We've got to take care of people that can't take care of themselves.

SERFATY (voice-over): The report complicating the GOP's already troubled efforts to pass their bill. House Speaker Paul Ryan trying to put a

positive spin on what they call "unreliable numbers."

REP. PAUL RYAN (R), HOUSE SPEAKER: I'm excited about this analysis and, yes, I think they sort of overestimate the uninsured number just like they

overestimated who would be insured by ObamaCare. But I do believe that if we're not going to force people to buy something they don't want to buy,

they won't buy it.

SERFATY (voice-over): But some Senate Republicans using this report as new ammunition against their own colleagues, demanding changes to the bill.

SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R), S.C.: I don't think it's good news even if it's half right. I think the responsible thing would be to look at the CBO

report and can we find ways to deal with the issue they have raised.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: That was Sunlen Serfaty reporting there.

Across the Atlantic, Dutch voters are preparing for Wednesday's general election. Some see it as a test of the populism that helped elect Donald

Trump and garnered support for Brexit. That debate has been heavily focused on the issue of immigration and the country's relationship with the

European Union.

And just ahead of the vote, Turkey suspended diplomatic relations with the Netherlands after the Dutch government barred Turkish officials from a

political rally. CNN's Atika Shubert reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): After Dutch police deployed water cannons and riot police to disperse angry

protesters outside the Turkish consulate in Rotterdam on Saturday night, Netherlands prime minister Mark Rutte used a Monday press conference to

talk tough on the Turkish diplomatic crisis.

MARK RUTTE, NETHERLANDS PRIME MINISTER: And we will still try to deescalate. But of course, to deescalate (INAUDIBLE) and we will never,

never, ever negotiate under threat.

SHUBERT: But this is more than a diplomatic blowout. It has become a political football, playing straight into Rutte's reelection campaign as he

faces off against Geert Wilders, the stridently nationalist and anti-Islam politician.

The latest polls show the candidates are neck and neck. Even before the diplomatic crisis with Turkey, Wilders told CNN Rutte's tougher talk on

immigration was a pale imitation of the original.

GEERT WILDERS, ANTI-ISLAMIST POLITICIAN: Many parties are copying what we intend to do. Everybody's talking. That's a good thing. As a matter of

fact, we won the elections before Election Day because everybody's talking about immigration, national identity.

SHUBERT: It's a tight race and the first in a series of game-changing elections across Europe. The first televised debate between the two

candidates is happening here at Erasmus University in Rotterdam and here voters remain divided.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think Rutte will win in the end.

SHUBERT: Why?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think he has acted as a prime minister the past few days and --

[08:25:00]

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: -- I think that is what people need.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think it will cause that many people are going to vote for Wilders.

SHUBERT: How would you feel if Wilders became the next prime minister?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it would be terrible. I see it as being part of a larger movement of democracies moving towards populism.

SHUBERT (voice-over): Rutte is staking his campaign on an appeal to Dutch voters not to gamble with the country's and Europe's future.

RUTTE: Remember the Brexit. We all thought that would never happen. Remember the U.S. elections. So let's not make that mistake again. These

elections are crucial. Let us stop the domino effect right here, this week, this Wednesday, the domino effect of the wrong sort of populism

winning in this world.

SHUBERT (voice-over): On Wednesday, Dutch voters will get to decide -- Atika Shubert, CNN, Rotterdam.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: You just heard the Dutch prime minister just a moment ago reference Brexit and how most people there didn't expect the U.K. to vote

in favor of leaving the European Union. Still ahead, those divorce talks are about to move forward. But Britain has another big problem. Phil

Black is live in London with the details.

And My Freedom Day is underway right now across the world and we'll tell you how young people in Kenya are joining the fight against modern-day

slavery.

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LU STOUT: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong. You're watching NEWS STREAM and these are your world headlines.

[08:30:00]

(HEADLINES)

LU STOUT: Theresa May has launched a scathing attack on Scotland's first minister. She says Nicola Sturgeon has tunnel vision for seeking new

referendum on Scottish independence before Brexit. The spat is overshadowing preparations for formal talks on the U.K. leaving the E.U.

And just as we thought the path to Brexit was becoming clearer, this is a new burden for Theresa May. Our Phil Black is in London for us, he joins

us now.

Phil, we are waiting for Prime Minister Theresa May to address Parliament. That will kick off any moment now.

And the U.K. -- and the world is also waiting and wondering, when will the government trigger Article 50?

PHIL BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Indeed, Kristie. "By the end of March," has been Theresa May's mantra for some time now and it seems that her

spokesman is really stressing the word "end" over the last 24 hour period or so, suggesting it could indeed be closer toward the end of the month

rather than the next few days so potentially still a couple weeks away.

It was thought it could happen as soon as today. Now that Theresa May does have the legislative approval, the bill through Parliament, which she

secured last night to actually give her permission to trigger Article 50 and begin that formal two-year Brexit process.

There's also been some speculation I think in the British press that she may have changed her timing because of the Scottish first minister's

announcement yesterday, her declared intent to hold yet another referendum on Scottish independence.

But if there is any truth to that, any truth to Theresa May changing her timing, well, she's not admitting to that and I guess nor would she. But

as you say, she's due to address Parliament any moment and we will be looking for any further possible indication in her words there -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: Of course the big question at this moment, as the U.K. takes another step closer to Brexit, is Scotland going to follow?

BLACK: The Scottish government says it does not want to follow and that is why it is -- that's the key justification, if you like, for claiming there

needs to be another referendum on the issue of Scottish independence.

Less than three years since the last one, back in 2014, when voters there rejected the idea of leaving the United Kingdom. Nicola Sturgeon says

there must now be another choice because Scottish voters didn't want to leave the E.U.; they're being dragged out against their will.

So not only must there be one but she wants one to happen relatively quickly, by the end of next year, perhaps early 2019 at the latest. The

Scottish first minister's hope is that Scotland can choose to be independent before the Brexit process is complete and thus transition

smoothly -- this is the hope and it's something of an ambitious hope -- transition smoothly to being an independent member of the European Union

itself.

There is no guarantee a newly independent Scotland could quickly join the European Union or perhaps even never leave the European Union following the

Brexit process.

Indeed, all the suggestions from Brussels and European officials have been that Scotland, if it was independent, would have to reapply from the

outside, go to the back of the queue and try from there.

But it is a big ambitious hope by the Scottish government to create a new reality, one where Scotland says, through a new referendum, that it does

not want to be part of the Brexit process, it wants to be an independent country and crucially it wants to remain part of the European Union.

What must happen now in that regard is whether or not the British government would authorize such a referendum to take place. It would seem

that they can't rule one out entirely.

But what they can argue about is the potential timing. And I think you'll find it's very likely that Theresa May, the British prime minister, will

not authorize a new Scottish referendum while she is also trying to negotiate the Brexit process -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: Timing the key sticking point here. Before you go, I also want to ask you, as Britain is on the brink of Brexit, we have 3 million E.U.

citizens living in Britain. We have 1 million Britons living in E.U. member states.

What will happen to them?

BLACK: It's been one of the most contentious issues. Indeed, it was one of the amendments the House of Lords tried to attach to the Brexit Article

50 bill, a promise on the part of Britain that it would guarantee the rights of E.U. citizens already living here.

Now the formal position of the British government is that, yes, it wants to do that, it very much wants to do that and do it quickly. But its first

priority must also be ensuring the rights of those British citizens who are still living in the European Union.

[08:35:00]

BLACK: So the commitment from the British government is that once these Brexit talks do finally begin, it will try to deal with that issue very

swiftly so that both the British people in the E.U. and the European citizens who are here can get some sort of certainty about knowing where

they'll be able to live, if you like, in as little as two years' time -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: Yes, many, many people just waiting to get some solid answers here. Phil Black, reporting live for us, thank you.

It is My Freedom Day here at CNN and around the world. And all day we've been showing you how young people are doing some pretty extraordinary

things to break the shackles of modern-day slavery. Up next, we'll take you to Kenya.

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LU STOUT: Welcome back.

Indonesia is on track to become the world's fourth largest economy by 2050 but to reach that target, it will need to tap into the massive potential of

women entrepreneurs. We take a look at this edition of "Road to ASEAN."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(MUSIC PLAYING)

STOUT (voice-over): In the back streets of suburban Jakarta, an unassuming cake shop has become the heart of the community. Eka Maisyaroh (ph)

started out selling single slices to make ends meet for her family. Now she has 10 staff and produces up to 500 cakes every day.

EKA MAISYAROH (PH), BAKER (through translator): As an Indonesian businesswoman, firstly, I'm proud of having a business to run just like men

do. Indonesian women are not supposed to be weak. Indonesian women should be independent.

STOUT (voice-over): But for so many Indonesian businesswomen it is tough to be independent when you lack the formal requirements for a bank loan.

Without financial records or collateral, banks repeatedly turned Eka (ph) down.

MAISYAROH (through translator): At the beginning I felt it was quite difficult to gain trust from a bank. Thank God, BTPN Bank eventually

trusted after looking at the results of my business.

So I started to borrow money from BTPN.

STOUT (voice-over): Women run half of Indonesia's small enterprises and a third of all medium-sized ones but the International Finance Corporation

says a $6 billion demand for credit for women-owned SMEs has gone unfilled.

RUBIN JAPHTA, BANKING SPECIALIST: The fact that it is such a large segment of the market that's underserved and by serving them, the impact that it

can have on the economies of countries like Indonesia and the rest of Asia and the world is tremendous.

STOUT (voice-over): Indonesia has over 100 banks. BTPN is one of the smallest but it has seen an opportunity to help meet the massive potential

of Indonesian businesswomen. Its strategy: to link small business loans to education and training.

ANIKA FAISAL, DIRECTOR, BTPN: She's the owner, she's the cashier, she's --

[08:40:00]

FAISAL: -- the employee, she's alone, she's doing everything by herself. On top of it, she's probably mom. She managed her home household as well.

So we taught them how to make sure that you can manage your cash flow.

STOUT (voice-over): The plan led the IFC to pick BTPN as its partner in a $300 million-dollar project to boost finance for female-run SMEs in

Indonesia. Two years in, the bank says its effort to provide business women with the capital they need is touching lives.

FAISAL: This has enabled them to be able to confidently say that I can manage myself, I can give my kids a better education, I can give my kids a

better nutrition, even having a better home.

STOUT (voice-over): As Indonesia grows toward becoming the world's fourth largest economy, women entrepreneurs like Eka Maisyaroh are an untapped

resource. The right mix of financial support and business help might be the key for banks to unlock that potential.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

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(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: And around the world, students are taking part in My Freedom Day, and driving this day has been one question, "What does freedom mean to

you?"

Farai Sevenzo heads to one school in Kenya to find out what children there are learning about slavery and exploitation.

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FARAI SEVENZO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Here (INAUDIBLE) school in Burunga (ph) County, 90 minutes outside of Nairobi in the north of Kenya, the 530

students of this school, aged between 13 and 18, have very much grasped the idea about Freedom Day is all about. They talked about servitude (ph).

They talked about human trafficking, they talked about the dangers of orphanages, about how they must protect their dignity.

One phrase I kept hearing all day long in their skits and their poems and their plays is that, "I matter, you matter, we all matter."

And in that they found their dignity. It's important to remember that slavery in sub-Saharan Africa is still an ongoing thing, despite it being

abolished way back in 1807.

And as a black African, it fills me with shame and a great deal of anger. Mauritania, 140,000 slaves and a population of 2.8 million. You're talking

about South Sudan, slavery to the north; you are talking about kids who are being forced into servitude but they can't see a life beyond that.

Freedom Day has been a very important step for these kids to gather their thoughts and to reinforce their commitment to a life in nobody's control --

Farai Sevenzo, CNN, in Burunga (ph) County.

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LU STOUT: And on our website, you can check out live updates of what's happening on My Freedom Day around the world and you can also join in.

Just post your answer to the question, "What does freedom mean to you?" on social media with the hashtag #MyFreedomDay.

That is NEWS STREAM. I'm Kristie Lu Stout. "WORLD SPORT" with Alex Thomas is next. But we'll have much more on My Freedom Day in the hours to come,

right here on CNN. So I want to leave you now with more of my visit to Hong Kong International School and the sound of the middle school choir.

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