it would affect pensions and more. negotiations are still taking place. those are the headlines. i'm richelle carey. "america tonight" with joie chen is up next. you can always go to aljazeera.com for the latest. >> on "america tonight": a way out? the deal that could put out the fires in ukraine's capitol city but stoke tensions on another front. also tonight, the al jazeera investigation that exposed allegations of corruption by california lawmakers. >> the allegation that you have accepted tens of thousands of dollars of bribes.

>> now there's more to it. indictments against the brothers calderon. and smoke 'em if you got 'em. the dutch experience with dope. how it might be a model for u.s. states taking up recreational marijuana use. though some communities claim things are just going to pot. >> the same goes for the use of cannabis and wheat. it's just not good for the brain. >> and good evening, thanks for being with us. i'm joie chen. again at this hour a hoped-for turning point in ukraine's revolution, raising threats of new chaos, after weeks of battling with protesters and security forces in the capitol of kiev, viktor yanukovych reached agreement with protesters, meeting some if not all of their demands. the country would revert to a previous constitution, hold

presidential elections by the end of the year. a key opposition political leader, the former prime minister yulia tymoshenko, would be released from prison. but there is reason for some concern. the president is reported to have left the capitol city for his home turf. also his political strong hold in eastern ukraine, close to the russian border. in maidan square, where anger is still running high, and protesters who have been through so much are in no mood for celebration. >> a lot of people on this square feel that that deal doesn't go nearly far enough and when vitaly catholics and others came up on stage to talk about what had been achieved, he received quite a bit of heckles from the crowd and we are still hearing the occasional chants of death to the bandit, that's a radical

slogan effectively calling for yanukovych to go. there are still radical forces here that have even said they're prepared to take the president by force if he's not prepared to resign immediately. there have been serious concessions made by president yanukovych and the parliament now making some very significant votes in favor of potentially releasing yulia tymoshenko, the opposition leader from prison, and also in favor of the interior minister being released, from the hands of security forces. and yet: this is not a place or a time for celebration. instead the last rites have been delivered by the priests to those who have fallen over the last few days given the number of people killed so recently, many people will still be wondering whether that was a price worth paying for this deal.

>> for more on the latest developments we turn to andriy shevcenko. there are rapidly moving pieces in all this, but does it appear andres, that there is a chance for a peace deal here? >> we witnessed the beginning of the collapse of this dictatorship which president yanukovych had been building, has been building in the country. so i'm carefully optimistic about what's been happening in kiev but it's way to short of -- too short of the demands of the independence square, demands of the maidan. people want yanukovych to immediately step down. >> that is what you said earlier in the week when we spoke to you, that you felt that even mr. yanukovych would understand that there really wasn't a way out now. as you talk to others in the opposition, from the various

parties from the protesters in the streets, do you have a sense they can be satisfied unless he is completely gone? >> absolutely. we saw some major developments today, the parliament changed the constitution diminishing the president's power, also the parliament voting for a special law that is going to free prisoners and punishment against them. finally the parliament agreed to release yulia tymoshenko, a well-known political prisoner. people really want yanukovych out. he fled today for his home city of donetske. i think it is a very clear sign, clear signal that i think he has

lost ground here in kiev in the capitol of the country. >> is it clear that the opposition can unite in some way to govern the country quickly? >> i would say so, quite so, i think we will see a new technical government which will be formed by the three opposition parties and i think we will see some nonpartisan experts, nonpartisan managers in that don't -- in that government. but as of the moment, the priority is to finally set the date for an early presidential election. today yanukovych and three of the opposition parties signed a formal agreement that said the election is going to take place no later than december of this year. it is going to be another presidential election. but most of the protesters were extremely extremely unsatisfied with this. they want him out immediately.

>> and andriy, can we just clarify? you know there are whether he is leaving the country and would that be required for this to go forward? >> for what we know, tomorrow in an eastern city of kharkiv there is going to be a big meeting of yanukovych supporters that's what they announce. and supposedly they might talk about federalization of the country. so it is going to be sounds like half separation of the east of the country from the rest. so this looks really warning because it is a sign the country may be disintegrated. but i really think this is probably the last chance of yanukovych to hold the group of his power. we know that this snakes are -- the snakes are

extremely vicious when they have been trapped and i think this is exactly what we see from yanukovych. >> thank you, andriy shevchenko, on the line from kiev. when we return to america tonight, al jazeera's investigative team experienced allegations of corruption at the top levels of california governments. now there's more to it. we'll tell you what the al jazeera investigative team learned and the new indictments in the case. looking ahead to next week on our program, the sandwich generation. >> i don't want my daughter to ever have to go through this. if she sees me starting to decline, just let me go down to the desert and dry up, and not come visit. i wouldn't want her to be burdened with that. >> tough decisions for a silent army of children who become parents to their parents. that leads off our special week-long look at aging america. monday on america tonight.

on techknow, our scientists bring you a sneak-peak of the future, and take you behind the scenes at our evolving world. techknow - ideas, invention, life. on al jazeera america >> in the golden state >> in the golden state allegations of bribery extortion and frayed threaten to tarnish the reputations of california politicians. massive health care fraud. our investigative unit took us

inside the elaborate undercover sting to expose a political scandal made for hollywood. that has now upset the balance of power in california, and there's more to it. indictments handed down in the case. here is the exclusive report filed by al jazeera investigative reporter josh bernstein. >> los angeles. a city where fame and infamy go hand in hand. >> tax credits work. >> reporter: here, everything seems larger than life. including its politicians. that's state senator ronald calderon, he is one of california's most influential lawmakers and he's the target of an ongoing federal investigation. according to a sealed affidavit obtained exclusively by al jazeera's investigative unit the senator is for sale. a politician willing to influence legislation in exchange for money.

as part of an elaborate undercover sting, fbi agents posed as owners of an independent film studio. they approached the senator and allegedly paid him off. >> they had to establish bank accounts. they needed a business license. and so it's a very extensive, lengthy operation. >> reporter: senator calderon allegedly wanted his family added to the payroll. according to the affidavit he told undercover agents, any help you could do for my kids, that's diamonds for me. so the agents hired his daughter. they paid her almost $30,000 and she never had to show up for work. at the world famous pebble beach resort, the senator attended a fund raiser for his brother's charity, californians for divert. guide an ongoing probe, calderon is still rubbing elbows and

raising money. >> what streets are you on now? >> the embattled senator has declined to comment so we caught up to him when he was arriving at another five-star resort. >> excuse me, senator calderon, josh bernstein from al jazeera. how are you? >> good how are you? >> we are hoping we could ask you some questions about your ongoing legal problems. >> i'm actually here for a fund raiser, i'm not going to discuss any of that. >> are you going to resign if you are indicted? >> calderon, may be best remembered for falling hard for an elaborate undercover sting. >> federal officials filed a 24-count indictment against senator calderon. and his brother tom as well, tom calderon is a former california lawmaker who now works as a lobbyist. charges handed out by a federal grand juries. >> this morning after he had been informed charges had been filed against him, california senator ron calderon has agreed

to surrender to federal officials on monday morning. the indictment describes a scheme in which ron calderon allegedly solicited and accepted approximately $100,000 in cash bribes, as well as plane trips, gourmet dinners and trips to golf resorts. ron calderon we allege took the bribes in return for official acts such as supporting legislation to those that would be favorable to those that paid him bribes, and opposing legislation that would be harmful to them. the indictment continues to state that ron calderon took in relation to state law that gave tax credit to studios that produce independent films in california. >> authorities charged ron calderon with mail and wire fraud, bribery, money laundering and tax fraud as well. if convicted on all 24 counts he would face a maximum penalty of 400 years in prison. calderon's brother tom was

charged with money laundering as well. now to the wild winter weather, warmer weather spawning tornadoes in areas still buried in snow. from north to the gulf of mexico. while high windows winds peeled back the roof of this high school jim. gym. gusts over 60 miles per hour sent shopping carts flying, wild weather blamed for a pileup in illinois as well. >> couple of the semis were sideways and cars had gone sideways under the lengths of it and into the back of it. >> the whiplash from freeze to thaw has raised worries about freezing and thawing and believe it or not, potholes in the road. before the next round of rain ice and snow. as the 2014 winter olympics wind

up, we evaluate the running tab of this international sporting event. it's actually the most expensive in history and cost $50 billion by most estimate, earlier this week i spoke to economist andrew zimbalist. when the flame is extinguished will it all have been worth it? >> nobody knows the actual number. when i was in st. petersburg last june, at that point they said $51 billion had been spent. actually much more has been spent since then. maybe it was $65 billion, maybe it was $70 billion. of course it's only putin who knows what the real numbers are. he is holding most of the data close to his vest. >> part of the reason that number has been as mushy as the snow in sochi is the frequent reply raised suspicion that the vladimir putin's oligarch friends, skimmed much of that number by padding their construction bills.

but beyond corruption allegations, economist andrew zimbalist says the host structure is bigger and more valuable than the games. >> creating a 12 month a year tourist town out of a small summer resort in sochi. so it involves road transportation. it involves communications infrastructure. it involves rail infrastructure. all connecting sochi to the surrounding mountains and also connecting sochi to moscow via rail, and a very vast expansion of the sochi international airport. >> and as zimbalist points out, there are long term costs that we can't see. >> some of sochi's earlier charm as a kind of bucolic black sea resort might have been destroyed by all of the construction. and we know residents are saying

there is so much pollution in the water now they can't swim in it anymore. so it's very hard in a general case for any of the previous hosts of either the winter or summer games to claim that these paid off economically, in the sense they created infrastructure needed for long term development, or in the sense that they've awakened the world to this area in ways they didn't know about and they'll start coming in large numbers for tourism. >> as proof the olympics can be profitable. but try telling that to cities like torino, or athens, the empty stadiums and crippling debt have become the legacy of the 2004 games. >> it is very difficult to claim that these are sensible economic investments. the winter olympics typically generates around $3 billion. if you add up the television money, add -- up the television

money, the ticket sales, the sponsorship money, all of the value is $3 billion. you shouldn't invest $51 billion to generate $3 billion. judge so is there warning to other cities, amate, oslo, all these other cities that are bidding for the winter games: be careful what you wish for, you might actually get it? >> i think the message is out, a lot of cities are receiving it. there are several cities in the united states that had started the process, started the thinking about bidding for the next summer games. many of those cities have pulled back. sweden which had been involved in a bid for the next games has also decideds not to bid. also decided not to bid. >> but for russia any amount might still be worth it. well-known for his personal interest in athletic achievement, success at sochi no matter the price might be the olympic ticket to a lasting legacy and a place on the international podium. that zimbalist points out underscores the reel roi -- the

real roi for those countries that wish to host the games. >> what you have with the world cup is the emergence of the bricsc countries, these are all very large countries that have been developing very rapidly who are basically now standing up before the world, saying this is our coming-out party now we can join the big guys. >> that was smith college economist andrew zimbalist on the risks and rewards of the olympic games. when we return. going to pot. >> we provide the people with cannabis and hashish in their spare time. >> in their spare time? >> in their spare time. they are not here while working. >> the dutch dope and what the americans can learn from the netherlands and its experience

with recreational marijuana. an in-depth look after the break. agree to anything in washington no matter what.

>> now a snapshot of stories >> now a snapshot of stories making headlines on "america tonight." >> the militant group al shabaab carried out an attack on command, at least 12 people were killed including the country's former intelligence commander, president himself however was unharmed. university of mississippi wants criminal charges filed against three freshmen after a statute of civil rights icon james meredith was found

vandalized with a noose around its neck. the suspect students failed to show up for questioning though with campus police. city of detroit has filed a bankruptcy exit plan on federal court on friday. the plan details how the city will reduce an estimated $18 billion it has in debt. city officials proposed 34% cuts in pensions for general city retirees, 10% pension cut to police and fire retirees. it has been a month since colorado's new recreational marijuana law took effect, although there are still only a few dozen businesses for licenses to sell in the entire state. consumers from all over the world have descended on colorado to get high legally. "america tonight" correspondent lori jane gliha went to the netherlands to find out what we might learn from a country that has allowed pot use for nearly

40 years. >> reporter: in amsterdam there are plenty of places to purchase pot. >> they are pretty easy and open here. >> yes yes, like everyone is so welcome, it's so normal here, they're pretty comfortable. >> reporter: with its 17th century buildings that appear stuck in time, lining the more than 60 miles of canals, have ththenetherlands capitol city ia magnet for millions of visitors every year. many of them drawn by the easy access to marijuana. >> there are about 200 coffee shops like this one throughout amsterdam. although this says coffee shop on the outside, this is where people actually buy marijuana. >> we provide the people with the cannabis and hash issue in -- cannabis and hashish, in their spare time.

>> in their spare time? >> in their spare time. they're not here while working. >> jason denenting owns the most famous coffee houses in the country. you may have seen it featured in the movie oceans 12. >> so business? >> business. >> what do people come here to get? >> well, we sell hash and wheat and about 80% of what we sell is cannabis. >> the deal is that street dealers who sell hard drugs would be put out of business if licensed businesses like this are able to sell soft drugs, marijuana and hashish. in the netherlands it's been legal since the '70s. >> for me, only pleasure. >> what are you able to sell here? >> the difference here it's not legal, it's tolerated, and as a coffee shop you do get a license, a permittance to sell cannabis.

>> we asked owner rans to show us his stash. >> people who stand behind these bar are called dealers? >> yes, dealers, nothing wrong with that, car dealers. hashish dealers. >> allowed to have 500 grams on the premises at one time. and customers are allowed to buy five grams each. >> this comes to about five grams. >> how many joints can you make out of five grams? >> personally i make about three joints out of a gram. >> in 1996 they reduced it. in colorado -- residents are allowed to buy more than five times what's currently allowed in the netherlands. we asked denver mayor michael hancock whether he feels comfortable with that. >> well, it was those concerns in amsterdam that really kind of fueled if you would those of us

who were in opposition to legalizing recreational marijuana, i spent some time as a younger person in amsterdam. so i had some experience with this. >> he says changes may have to be made. >> you know what? listen there will be lesson learned. whenever you do any kind of new law particularly something on this scale, this is a huge culture shift not only for colorado but entire united states. >> and there may be more lessons learned from the netherlands. it may surprise you to know as progressive the netherlands may seem, in some ways the pot laws here are more restrictive than those in the american states where its use has been legalized. in colorado for example you can buy pot-infused candy and brown brownies. but coffee shops in amsterdam

cannot carry as many edibles. only allowed to carry something called space cake because marijuana laced food is hard to take. >> that is one of the side effects, of course, your sugar level drops and then people faint. and yeah, that's not what people want in amsterdam, that they are all people laying around and gasping for air or something. i don't know how to explain it. >> have you experienced it people gasping for air? >> i've seen a lot of people passing out. >> denver mayor peter hancock says he is worried about young inexperienced consumers too. >> whatever they're eating might be something that gives them an impact or cause and effect that they were not expecting. >> the netherlands laws also

effect how shop owners transport marijuana into their stores. the netherlands adheres to a 1961 u.n. convention which banned countries from growing or transporting large quantities of drugs for sale. that's 11th the dutch in an uneasy position. where dealers like jason can sell marijuana but his dealers can't grow it. >> i tell them which qualities i want ant what varieties i want. >> where do they get it? >> they get it on the black market. they talk to growers. all that is illegal. maybe it's better that i don't know. >> amsterdam mayor rarely talks to american media. but he sat down with "america

tonight" to talk about this. >> you can use it and the coffee shops can sell it to the users in small amounts. but we have what we call a back door problem. it is still forbidden to transport it in huge amounts. this is what we call tolerate, and that is because many people think that international rules regulations forebid us. that is a disadvantage of our system that we have learned to live with. >> living with it means policing tolerate amsterdam's coffee shops but crack down on marijuana farms. in january, underneath this shed, dutch police discovered annal illegal marijuana farm --

an illegal marijuana farm. containing some 1200 plants. police conduct about 5,000 marijuana raids like this annually throughout the country. and there are signs that at least some in this country are pushing back against the permissive drug culture. over the past few years a conservative party inside the coalition government has been working to eliminate drug tourism. it passed an international law that would ban international travelers like jess wood from entering coffee shops. >> do you think that would restrict you? >> it would like go to a holiday where you could smoke cannabis freely, more pointless here, because a lot of people have come here for cannabis, and there's nothing here, and obviously there's going to be a big difference. >> some cities have pushed back so the government allows cities discretion on whether the new law is enforced. amsterdam's economy, it is why

mayor funder lan made a compromise with the national government to avoid imposing the ban. he promised to reduce the total number of coffee shops and to force those within 250 meters in proximity of schools to limit or even close. >> those school or a playground for children next to a coffee shop. we're doing a lot of effort to reduce the alcohol drinking among the underaged, minors, but the same goes for use of cannabis and wheat. it's just not good for the brain. >> michael phaling's shop could be one of the first to spoke. he is the spokesman for the cannabis retailers association. his shop is fairly close to a

school. >> you pretty much have to stop what you do here? >> that's why i bought a second coffee shop that is not affected by that rule, so my customers my regulars from all over the world they can purchase their cannabis at a different location. >> as the laws in the united states are starting to loosen up when it comes to marijuana use on a recreational level, it seems like things are a bit more restrictive. why do you think that is? >> it is a bit of ebb and flow in the political landscape. that's why i think a lot of politician he in the netherlands who are only nationally centered in their thoughts and their knowledge that it has come as a real surprise that the united states now has sort of leapfrogged this country. ahead on america tonight: outside amsterdam, the backlash against the easy pot culture. >> i must ask you to stay over

there because you are a nonresident of this country and therefore you are not allowed to come into the coffee shop. >> later in our program we return to kiev, the hearts and souls that fueled a revolution in independence square.

>> now we return to our look at >> now we return to our look at a pot pioneer, the netherlands

and a bit of a surprise. even as more u.s. states take on the issue of recreational marijuana use, "america tonight"'s lori jane imlee ha ga reports on pushing back in the netherlands on a more permissive pot culture. >> this is as far as i can go. >> this is as far as you can go. i can go into the coffee shop, you are a nonresident of this country and therefore you are not allowed to come into the coffee shop. >> mark yosemans is a coffee shop owner in mostrict. the city is a backlash against the netherlands pot policy. the mayor here is enforcing the ban on foreigners buying pot. they are not even allowed inside coffee shops here. >> not even for a cup of coffee, to use the toilet or bathroom, it's not allowed anymore.

so i'm forced to discriminate. i can't understand why and neither can my colleagues. >> mas trict is not far from germany luxemburg and france. on the river mas. 90% of his customers he said cross the border to buy weed. but right now his coffee shop is closed. the city initially shut it down because he refused to honor the ban imposed by the mayor. "america tonight" requested an interview with mastricht's mayor. but he repeatedly declined saying the law is under national review.

city councilwoman vivian spoke to us. >> the coffee shops were established to provide the local market and small-scale shops, and it was never meant to supply the netherlands, belgium, france, germany, to buy their products in the coffee shops. it was meant for the local market. it's gotten too much for us to handle so we had to take action. >> reporter: over the past couple of years she said the number of foreign visitors to the city's coffee shops has tripled to 3 million. that she says causes crime and traffic jams. >> iowa, hmm. >> an influx of visitors is something that denver mayor michael hancock worries about too. >> we are accused of the availability of it in the market. what we can do best is put regulations in place.

make sure we properly fund and equip the employees that are going to implement the regulations and enforce those laws. i think everyone who utilizes, access the laws whether they are visitors to colorado or they're residents have a responsibility to do responsibly. >> he says it increases the number of street dealers. >> we have about 150 street dealers roaming the streets of the center to check out if they can find a foreigner who is looking for cannabis products. if so, if they find one they will take him to the outskirts of town to the suburbs to area where the people are living, where children are playing in the street and that's the place where they do the actual deal and that's where they hand over the drugs and receive the money so things have been changed enormously in a negative way. >> we understand that there still is dealing on the street. but the supply of drugs is exceeding the demand so the

drug-runners as we call them are getting a bit more aggressive. but i am quite sure that the nuisance of dealing on the street will decrease, when time goes by. because the demand simply isn't there anymore. >> for now, mark's shop remains shut down while he fights the rules in court. >> how does that affect your business? >> i've been a coffee shop owner for 30 years and i made my money. so i'm fine. but at the coffee shops in the united states alone were working 425 people who all lost their jobs and they cannot find a job anywhere else because if they are being asked after their experience they have to say well i've been a drug dealer for around 30 years. well, nobody will hire you as you give that as your experience. that's a big problem. >> reporter: in amsterdam, mayor eberhart vanderlam.

continues to embrace the pot trade and the millions it trrkz every year. attracts every year. >> what is happening now in colorado is inspirational for amsterdam. >> ironically, the city has been a pioneer for allowing marijuana use can now looking to the united states for moral support. >> sometimes the dutch have to defend their policy and when the americans come and stand next to us, it will be accepted more internationally. i say welcome to the club and thank you for joining us. >> welcome to the club indeed, lori jane dplee h gliha joins ud this idea the united states is joining in, do the folks in colorado think we're more aggressive and the united states is catching up. >> interestingly, everybody we talked to seemed to be looking at the united states for are advice. they seem to admire some of the

things we have in our laws in colorado. for example some the back door problem. it's tolerated to sell the marijuana but you can't actually legally transport it and grow it. what they liked about the criminally poll some people are actually looking to grow 70%. so they are looking at the united states, maybe to establish some sort of legal policy so allow the transportation of mdges. marijuana. >> in the united states, there must be some are, from the town of mastricht, is anyone there in colorado trying to replicate creating an internal border? >> in colorado there are certain cities that have voted not to allow marijuana sales.

and there is one border town that has voted to allow the sale of marijuana and some who have not. it's going to be interesting to see whether or not it's going to be a problem or not. because there are a few dispensaries that are actually open at this point. i think it's a year before we see dispensaries open up, to see whether it mimics what's going on. lori jane gliha, thanks. more than $100 million in tax revenue, that's what colorado is expected to rake in. to talk about weed windfall, we're joined by michael elliot, i want to apologize.

i'm sure everybody has some pun on your business, but i did want to talk a little more serials about the real money issues. yesterday was i believe tax day in colorado, the day you turn in your tax revenues each month. >> that's right. >> so far are things the indicating that this will be bigger than otherwise? this will be as you just mentioned you know, everything legal category can bend, colorado springs by one vote decided to ban it through their city council but they might bans

that there november with a vote of the people. it's quite pooh bit of money and taking a bite about the black market. >> when you talked to the merchants who are in the industry now, what are they telling you? what is the experience like in these first two weeks? >> it's pretty overwhelming. we been through a center of 500 catering to a business, now we only have 60 or so businesses that are recreational, and it's been overwhelming. it's also because you know one of the best aspects of our system is the businesses have to grow what they sell. it's our way of locking the black market out. but it also takes time to produce enough to meet this new demand. >> there are some complexities i've heard, particularly about the financial part and it is a little bit difficult to get your head around. but i guess it goes to this. when it comes to money, money is legal tender, federal legal tender. the federal government doesn't allow the sale of marijuana, does this amount to money laundering if a bank is to take in a lot of cash from some of these businesses? >> we have about 500 pages now of marijuana law in the state of colorado but we have not been able to fix

banking and we have really tried. it is because the banks are federally regulated through bank secrecy act, we have memos that have come out from the obama administration last week, the great part about it was the acknowledgment that this issue needs to be fixed, that it is a security and an accountability issue. but the problem is it is still federally illegal. and the banks are saying those memos aren't good enough, we need a federal solution. we're saying the same thing, we need a federal solution through congress or through the president. >> what do the merchants do in the meantime? i assume that they must largely have -- i mean, you can't charge it to your credit card, so you would be still largely a credit business. a -- cash business. isn't this even a security risk for merchants? >> it is a huge security risk for merchants, the owners, the employees, the customers. yesterday was tax day and there are state and local you know elected or government employees that have to collect those taxes. and they sure don't want to be collecting all that cash either.

so every business is handling on their own. there is private arm security. we do have a lot of good regulations on security. mandatory video surveillance. locks and -- there's a lot there. the businesses have been handling it very well, it is extremely challenging, this is a silly problem we have, we need to solve this. >> it is quite striking and interesting to think about all the legal ramifications because other states will be looking to you as they take up this issue as well. >> that's right. michael elliot is executive director of the million marijuana industry group, who joins us. >> thank you. >> and ahead this hour, the people crumbling, people in independence square, ukraine through the lens, next. >> aging america... the sacrifice growing children endure, to care for their parents >> i left my job as a lawyer...

>> best ways to cope... my husband was like a single father... >> my mother said: "take care of dad" on al jazeera america

take a new look at news. >> finally from us this hour, we return to ukraine. >> finally from us this hour, we return to ukraine. to kiev. the capitol city, which is known to ukrainians as kiev. and to the protests at independence square which we have seen so much of this week, to arresting incidents, about the fight for revolution to make a difference in that country's

future. we return now to the voice of a film maker we spoke to just yesterday. who has been able to chronicle the images from kiev and from the people of maidan and he has brought us the story of what he has seen in these last few days. >> everywhere you see activity. there is a sense of it being a human army. because everywhere you look there's activity, carrying food, carrying something for the hospital, barricade, not organized by any particular leader or commander. people taking the initiative and mobilizing themselves because they want to feel like they're doing something to support the cause. an old lady who is walking around with tea. and there's more food going around i would say than people can almost eat. because so many women are

just there and they want to feel they're supporting their guys who are on the front lines. so the mood on the square is kind of this intense energy. it's a combination of emotion, grief, for the people who have died, anger, that things have gotten to this point, but also confidence. people have -- don't seem to have any fear. there's a lot of people out there. and they don't seem to have a fear of dying, actually. i mean they say it's victory or death. and they're not fighting for any particular politician but they're just fighting for the future of their country, what they believe is freedom. previous to yesterday i think there were about six deaths. but yesterday that number jumped to close to 100. so there were a lot of people, lot of demonstrators did get shot even though they were carrying shields and wearing bulletproof vests, the ammunition was so strong that it

actually pierced through that. field hospital in the lobby of the ukraine hotel right above the square, and there were medics there and doctors operating on people right there in the lobby, they constructed a field hospital. i went there towards the end of the day. and it -- they just happened to at that time be taking the bodies out of the field hospital. and they were actually taking them onto the square. so when they were taking those bodies, the people sang the national anthem. >> people were chanting glory to the heroes which is a common chant. that you've been hearing on maidan square and glory to ukraine, ukraine above all. those kind of funerals have been happening a lot in the past 24, 36 hours. i mean these people are seen as heroes because they died and they were -- then they fought for many people who were not able to be there or who could not stand on the front lines.

so it was very emotional actually for everyone, you could see a lot of people crying. it was very easy -- these deaths have mobilized people to more radical kind of action. i don't think a political solution is possible. people are radicalized, instead of bandits out, it is death to bandits. people not settling for any kind of compromise, but people wanting to get rid of president yanukovych, not a month or two or six months from now. >> the film maker demian colodie. he is an american and a ukrainian. he is reporting to us on what his community wants. we'll continue to follow events in ukraine. that is it for us on "america tonight." please remember if you would like to comment on any of the stories you've seen here log onto our website,

aljazeera.com/americatonight. tell us what you'd like to see in our nightly current affairs program. and please join the conversation with us, on twitter or our facebook page. good night. we'll have more of "america tonight" tomorrow. >> hello i'm morgan radford live from new york city. this is the stories we're

following for you now. many protestors in independence square say they won't leave until the president steps down. venezuela, two weeks of 18th government protests, venezuela's are president is blaming outside influences and threatening to expel cnn reporters. california legislator ron calderon faces 24 federal counts for fraud and bribery. he's accused of taking $88,000 in bribes to influence legislation and his brother tom is also facing charges. on friday the president met with the dalai lama. china warned it would damage relations between the two countries. it is the third time the

president has met with the spiritual leader during his presidency. detroit has produced a plan for moving out of bankruptcy. i'm morgan radford. those are your headlines. consider this is next. >> the deadly violence in ukraine leads to a major agreement. venezuela's violent repress takes a turn for the worst. >> what drives people to wall street. how do they change when they get there? smear campaign strong enough for congress, made for the oscars. >> i'm antonio mora, welcome to "consider this". here is more on what is ahead. . >> a new deal that may end three mondays of