confront protestors in ukraine. trying to remove demonstrators who have occupied the building. hello i'm jane dutton in doha will world news from al jazeera. also ahead, lying in state. nelson mandela's are coffin is lying in state. modification are targeted in are central african republic.

and high hopes. you'ruruguay has become the firt country in south america to. clear a protest camp in one of the capitol's main squares. they want the president to resign after he rejected a trade deal with the eu. tim friend joins us live from kiev. tell us about the late latest of the skirmishes. before dawn they moved into the square behind me here, independence square which they've occupied for more than two weeks and of course it's been their symbolic protest against the president, viktor

yanukovych, who has produced all this reaction from the authorities. city hall was another area, another location, where they'd occupied and were holding out in protest against his last-minute failure to sign a deal with the european union, and take ukraine closer to moscow. there was hope of negotiation, only 24 hours ago. but suddenly at night, the riot police swamped this area, and moved in, taking down the barricades and pushing the protestors back to the central part of the square. my colleague, robin forester walker has the story of the night's events. >> everyone had been expecting

it, confrontation. revolutionary center of kiev, government unable to save face. government militants stormed the blockades. it seemed like a battle to reclaim the square held by the opposition for more than a fortnight. progress was slow. it took them three hours for hundreds of police to break the lines but the real objective to dismantle the elaborate blockade of wood and steel. the purpose has been not to take down the square but to take down the protestors earn campment. all the while opposition leaders kept up their calls for the movement to stand firm and stay peaceful. some youths appeared in the mood

for trouble. to prevent violence but with consequences. katherine ashton the eu foreign affairs chief who earlier had toot with demonstrators -- stood with demonstrators in the square, criticized the use of force. >> i'm making clear. >> president yanukovych's strongest ally, viktor yanukovych's hands are still tied. a show of strength that enough is enough, and that it's time for everyone to go home. robin forester walker, al

jazeera, kiev. >> katherine ashton is there, what is she likely to do, what is she liec likely to achieve? >> she's already expressed her alarm at the night's events and so has john kerry, the u.s. secretary of state. the international community disappointed and have condemned president yanukovych's decision to once again use pretty heavy-handed tactics. especially when you consider that negotiation was the talk not so long ago. and i think katherine ashton might hope to reengage but of course the protestors right now are in no mood to talk to the president because they feel that he's treated them unfairly, and that he hasn't lived up to his

promises. he was on tv just a few hours before the riot police went in saying he regretted some of the heavien-handed police tactics of a week ago and now we've seen this new initiative by the riot police. so i think it's going to be terribly difficult now to get any sort of compromise. >> it seems to be the case. thank you for that, tim friend. nelson mandela's coffin is lying in state in pretoria. flanked by soldiers dignitaries and members of his family. mandela will lie in state for three days until his funeral on sunday allowing south africans to pay their respect for one last time. what's happening at the moment, mike? >> well, jane at the moments we're waiting for the official

delegation, the first to file past nelson mandela's rg coffin and his family will file past the coffin. after that there will be various other di dignitaries will do so, they will be filing past the casket as well, they have been bussed in from all areas of the city and beyond, brought close to the union building's venue and throughout the day we expect to see a stream of people moving past the casket to pay their last respects. >> mike, tell us about the symbolism of journey and the fact that he's lying in state there. >> well, the union buildings at the seat of the south african government but importantly for decades it was the very bastion of white power.

this building behind me was a symbol of the white apartheid regime that completely ruled the country from a fist of steel from the time it came to power in 1948. in 1994, that was when nelson mandela was sworn in as the country's first democratic president in the amphitheater of that building. an amphitheater that was now named after him, the nelson mandela amphitheater. so certainly, this particular building represents in a way the beginning of nelson mandela's struggle if not the target of it and now it represents the final moments in that journey that nelson mandela has made through his life. >> do south africans miss it, not only from sout south africat all over the world miss it, to where he will be entumed? >> verentumed --

tombed? >> each day at the end of the day his coffin will be transported back to the military air base where it's being kept overnight. tomorrow morning the procession will once again make its way through the streets of pretoria, and will be brought here for another day's viewing, that will happen on friday, given ample time for people from south africa, and indeed from the world, to file past the casket and pay their respects. there will be further speeches made in that amphitheater, the nelson mandela amphitheater. i have been told by officials that time was limited at yesterday's meaferl service and there were many -- memorial service. representing countries, representing organizations, representing many of the interest groups throughout the world that nelson mandela's life

affected so much. >> we look forward to hearing that. thank you mike. meanwhile outside the union buildings people are gathering to celebrate mandela's life. ♪ >> the mood is fessative with hundreds of people dancing and singing as they remember their first black president. jonah hull joins the crowd. >> the body is laying in the amphitheater of the state buildings. behind me the people have gathered in the park and the buildings behind the state building. they will form long queues over the next three days to pass by the body and pay their respect. the crowd here chanting songs, gathering themselves for the journey up to the union buildings. an emotional moment, of course but very much in the vein of the

celebration, after the death of mandela, six days after he died. guys i'm with al jazeera, tell me what this means to you, what do you feel being here? >> this day today means i'm free. i put it right by my heart. that's where madiba was, right by my heart. his legacy continues on. viva madiba! i have never seen a country coming together here because of one person. recognition building, history in the making. >> thank you very much. well, there you have it! the sentiment of the crowd here. celebration, song, it will go on all day for the next three days here in pretoria as they make their way up towards the union building. >> the u.s. has approved $60

million in defense equipment for foreign forces in central african republic. two french soldiers were killed on monday night as they tried to disarm local officials. french president francois hollande has flown in. reporting from bangui. >> this is a country being swept up. these pictures, by amnesty international, shows the aftermath on an attack on a mosque. these people burned it down. the graffiti on the wall insults the rubble president, michelle djotodia. >> the big problem now is everyday passing.

the new hor is horrific situati. now we are watching fighting among communities. >> french soldiers are here to protect civilians but they too are becoming targets. the french president francois hollande's visit was to reassure bangui. african forces are more visible on the streets. they are protecting the african union's special representative to the country. >> just international community and the logistical, the communication, all of that and we are calling all the people of central africa to take their future in their hands. >> the role of african union soldiers will become

increasingly efficient here. the only safe way to get around bangui at the moment. no french soldiers on the streets at the moment. there is no rule of law here. muslims are being targeted by christians, and christians are being targeted by muslims. on monday, french soldiers were disarming rebel groups. now they must work out their next strategy. that leaves armed fighters free to roam the streets and angry mobs to take out their revenge. al jazeera, bangui. the southeast asian games head to myanmar for the first time. a home advantage. and why a sea change off the california coast means a feeding frenzy for whales.

>> this isn't a new channel, this is a watershed moment in media for america. >> this entire region is utterly devastated. >> people our here are struggling. >> the fire jumped the highway we took earlier. >> your average viewer want's to actually understand how the health care law is going to help them or hurt them. >> they know they can get extremist bickering somewhere else. >> people say that we're revolutionary. our revolution is just going back to doing the best in journalism. >> this is the place to go watch high quality journalism, period. >> you're watching a al jazeera. a reminder of the top stories. an attempt to forbes out

protestors camped outside. the protestors want president viktor yanukovych to resign, after he rejected a trade deal with the eu. $60 million of defense equipment for the central african republic. french president francois hollande visits the country after the death of two soldiers. mourners have the next three days to pay their respects to the former president nelson mandela before he is laid to rest on sunday. let's talk about this more with our political analyst isha kadje. we saw the british prime minister david cameron taking

selfies on himself. rkts the message that madiba will be buried on sunday and physically he has left us. >> we are expecting more speeches and we're waiting on the family as well. how much pressure do you think there is on the family all eyes on them to carry on with his legacy? >> i think the pressure is on the family but that it's shared across south african society. that it's a pressure that's largely felt and should be felt by leaders across the political spectrum in south africa but particularly by leaders of the anc and its alliance partners. it is a stark requirement that south africa has not yet fulfilled the promise it made to its citizens in 1994. >> talking about leaders let's talk a little bit about jacob duma. when he walked into the stadium,

people booed. >> that's right. >> let's listen to the response. i mean, quite extraordinary that they felt that that was the moment to express it. but it really shows how frustrated so many south africans are. >> and while the master of ceremonies, the program director, even december mo desmu called for more respect, it is indicative of the frustration that what many south africans feel is a betrayal of madiba's legacy. no proper sanitation, the education that children receive is of a poorer quality that other south africans receive. although we have made strides in health care recently.

many south africans are feeling very, very frustrated that the dream of freedom has not been realized in a practical sense in their day-to-day lives. >> now the first great man in south african history lying in straight. thank you. upheld a law which i shall tell you about which criminals gay sex, that a law that decriminalizes homosexuality was unconstitutional, deleting a section of the penal code that dates back to the mid century. >> disappointment for gay and lesbian groups listening to the two man supreme court, as they deliberated on the objections tot indian penal code in 2009.

the high court, supreme court were absolutely adamant and very clear in their judgment that they were not making any judgment about gay and lesbian lifestyles or the law, as it stands in india, but it was the procedural aspects of how penal code 377 had been removed by the deli high court. and the decision to remove the penal code is not up to the high court but up to the supreme court. really throwing the ball back in the court of parliament's side, you need to debate this, talk about this and make the decision on whether penal code 377 is removed from the indian statute. it is a blow for gay and plebs rights at the moment but the

amost important point is with whether this issue will be debated in parliament at the moment? we've recently seen state elections and everybody talking in india now about a potential general election in 2014. perhaps the question is how high up the agenda is this issue or will it be debated in the new parliament post a general election? in thailand, protestors ar aring pressuring yingluck shinawatra to step down. myanmar is about to host its first major sporting event in 44 years. the opening ceremony of the 27th southeast asian games will begin in 24 hours. a tradition that will likely pull the crowds.

florence louie reports. this is warming up for a practice session. speed, agility and a bit of ruthlessness is what you need to play this game well. players can use any part of their body except their hands and arms. the objective is like volleyball, to keep the ball aloft before smashing it across the net. >> i like the fact that you have to keep the ball this the air. it's exciting especially in that split second when the ball is above the net and it's anybody's to take. >> the national team last won gold in the asian game three years ago. the malay word for kick, or basket or ball in thai. the two nations have traditionally dominated the sport malaysia and thailand. it's a popular sport played in

villages across the country. any small patch of ground can be turned into a court. players tuck their longees into their belt and play barefoot. >> we have a theme here, myanmar will dominate. >> an adaptation of chinlun. noncompetitive and with no opposing team. the emphasis is on grace and skill. the last time myanmar hosted the games was in 1969. it missed out on other opportunities when the military ran the country. the return of the games after 44 years is a muj source of pride for these and the hoping that a bit of home advantage will help them win medals. al jazeera, myanmar.

>> legalizing the marijuana trade, politician he passed a bill allowing people over 18 to use the drug. the law was chme championed, poy studies he thinks the law is visionary. >> the problem is, the solutions to so much of the drug war have to be counterintuitive. that is to say the obviously knee jerk solution is often the wrong one. what i mean by this, this is a prop i use, it is a children's toy, a finger trap. the knee jerk reaction is to pull. but the harder you pull, i the e you get stuck. but if you push in a little bit, you get released, what they're doing is pushing organized crime out of the scenario.

>> russia and u.s. have ended a 13-year agreement to convert soviet nuclear bombs into civilian use. >> tom ackerman has the story. >> the material was removed from russian strategic and tactical war heads. a program in which the u.s. and former soviet union countries have eliminated 80% of their nuclear arsenals. the deal had other attractions for both countries. >> what it removed was a huge proliferation concern. if russia had to store that, they would have had to add steps to secure and protect it. by blengd it down and then burning the fuel in nuclear power plants we don't have to worry about it anymore. >> the 100 u.s. nuclear power

plants account for nearly a third of the world's power. >> 10% of the electricity generated in the united states over the last two decades, 20 years, has come from former weapons material that has been converted. >> but the climate for continued cooperation may have passed. russia refused to renew the nuclear threat reduction program with the u.s. which expired last month and since japan's nuclear plant disaster, the market has changed too. american power generation from now on it will be fuel already enriched in russia's own processing plants. tom ackerman, al jazeera, washington. answer increase in the number of fish off of california is bringing about a speblg spak

tackle. >> we're seeing anchovies in numbers that we really haven't seen any time in the recent past, say, ten, 20 years. >> and that increased food supply has created an unprecedented buffet for hump back whales which eat as many as 2 tons of anchovies per day. >> it has attracted killer whales and dolphins which are arriving en masse. it is like a wwf campaign here in the sea. >> the sea lions can pick off the remaining anchovy iies which

are stunned. >> 25 years ago here in the monterey bay it would have been unusual to see any hump back whales no matter what time of year. >> the worldwide moratorium, has brought back the whales. this year there are at least 200. scientists like baldo marinvich can't explain it. >> there's a big celebration. it's been a huge boon to the local economy and raised the profile of marine research and ocean awareness. >> for mike sack and his crew, the steady flow is good for business. but the joy of seeing these whairls up close. >> i love it any time i see a hump back whale or any whale

throw up that tail fluke, it's amazing. >> in this one place, it's been a very happy summer. jacob ward, al jazeera, monterey, california. we will show you why. plus running the company, general motors has made history to name as ceo the first woman to lead one of the big three automakers. i'm david shuster in for ali velshi who is in had south africa. this is real money. >> this is real "real money" and you are the most important part of the show.