>> this is "the journal." i am in berlin. >> our top stories this hour. >> trucking transportation workers bring athens to a halt as the government struggles to get bailout money. it is crunch time for into a merkle, with an upcoming vote on european stability fun. the first african woman to win the nobel peace prize has died in nairobi.

greece has one last chance to prevent its economy from falling apart. that is the word from the european commission after another round of talks on the financial situation. gris's finance minister promised more austerity after a meeting with imf and world bank officials. inspectors are expected to return to assess the situation before releasing a delayed installment of aid. the greek prime minister plans to discuss spending cuts with the german chancellor in berlin on tuesday. >> greek newspapers are speculating about the upcoming meeting between george papandreou and angela merkle. many greeks are against and imposed a write-off of greek debt. both government and opposition are worried a so-called hair cut would only worsen their situation.

>> we are relying on german assistance. we appreciate what the german chancellor and finance minister have said during the past few days. we know it is not easy for them to completely understand the difficult situation of our country. >> some members of the socialist party are growing concerned that the greek public has had all they can take. >> given the scope of the burden, we have to realize we need a basic level of consensus in society to implement our economic program. >> on monday, train and bus drivers went on strike in protest at the cuts. the greek government insists they are necessary to insure the bailout loans. the group of imf, eu, and ec be inspectors have not yet returned to athens. the money will only be released if they give the green light.

>> as you heard, the payment of the next tranche of money depends on what the troika decides. the eu says this is greece's last chance. is there a danger they will refuse to hand over the funds? >> i do not think so. the stakes are too high. what the troika will say in athens is not a game of bluff. accept you are in deep trouble. you need this money. we have to give it to you. we will go down together if we do not do this. it is a bluff. they will get the money. there will be close attention paid to how gris implements austerity cuts. until now, they have just accepted the problems and been disappointed austerity has not been fulfilled. there will be a closer watch on greece. >> european voices say there are plans to boost the eurozone rescue fund, something berlin is

not keen on doing. what is the story? >> it is a fourfold increase in the promised bailout. we will have to get used to saying the two trillion euros. what will the markets say? maybe they will get used to that and start sliding again. then what will we do? so far, it is two trillion and rising. it is a problem for berlin. the vote thursday in parliament whether to accept this new bailout fund. berlin's share is the biggest. the same problem confronts angela merkle whether it is 440 million euros or rises to two trillion. only the numbers change. the impact politically is the same. there is a question whether all member states will pull together. we will appear wednesday from the president of the european commission. he will address the european

parliament on the state of the union and say all states have to pull together. whether angela merkle sees the greater good in berlin or russell's -- or brussels remains to be seen. >> part of the effort to prevent another situation like greece involves building a better safety net. the german parliament will vote on enhancing the current stability mechanism thursday. there are concerns, but angela merkle expect everybody to be on the same page when the vote happens. >> this could be a key week for the chancellor. thursday is crucial for her coalition. on monday, she rallied support among party members with the promise of a crackdown on overspending in government. >> it is what i am going to fight for in europe. budgets are passed which do not meet the criteria of growth and stability. i want the right to declare these budgets small and void.

-- null and void. >> but merkel first needs german parliamentary approval. her three coalition -- her free democrat coalition partners said they backed it. but over the weekend, the idea of expanding the fund was put forward. some senior politicians say merkle should rule that out. >> the chancellor should make it clear very quickly that there will be no change in the stability fund parameters. >> parliament is almost sure to approve the fund. the opposition social democrats and greens say they are ready to vote for it. the question is whether coalition partners will also do so since -- insufficient numbers. merkel will try to find out how much support she can rely on. >> the eurozone debt crisis is

also affecting the mood among businesses in germany. >> they feel pessimistic. it is no surprise the situation has hit german business confidence. the business climate index has fallen again. but it has not fallen as far as analysts expected. traders interpret that as a positive sign. >> many companies in germany are producing at full capacity, and have plenty of orders to fill. the majority of the seven executives surveyed are more optimistic than at the beginning of the year. >> that is a good sign. it shows the german economy can shield itself better from the political turbulence than previously thought. >> despite their recovery, the business sentiment index declined the third straight month in september. the evo institute blames the

drop on the european debt crisis. confidence in debt-stricken countries is declining. as countries cut spending, demand for german goods fall. executives fear german sales could decline in the next six months. >> for more on the economic outlook, our correspondent since this report from the frankfurt stock exchange. >> the business climate index fell in september. this is the third decline of this index in a row, and a clear sign that companies in germany are getting prepared for an economic slowdown. nevertheless, the decline was only about one. . that shows the mood -- was only about one point. that shows the mood is better than economists anticipated. also, the relatively small decline shows that companies in germany have been resilient in the face of the slump of the

stock market this summer, also the eurozone debt crisis. companies did not cut back on production and orders, as was the case in 2008, when lehman brothers collapsed. >> as far as today's rebound goes, strategists say the market is latching onto hope authorities will make positive decisions over the next week. the dax ended almost 3% up. the eurostoxx 50 also finished up almost 3%. the dow closed up, and the euro is trading for $1.3510. it is a big day for u.s. plane- maker boeing. its first dream liner jet is being delivered, nearly three years behind schedule. it is the first new design in a decade, a medium-sized plan that

uses lighter materials. that will cut fuel consumption by up to 20%. technical problems pushed costs higher. airbus plans to launch its completing model -- competing model at the end of 2013. an italian energy giant has resumed oil production in libya. it suspended operations more than six months ago because of unrest. it is tapping 15 wells for over 30,000 barrels a day, a 10th of production levels before the revolution. the company says more will follow soon. it is trying to produce quantities to create pressure in its main pipeline to italy. >> the u.n. security council has begun debating the palestinian request for full membership in the united nations. the german foreign minister called on the israeli government and palestinians to

return to the negotiating table. the u.s. said it will veto the application if a majority on the security council votes in favor of it. for more on the u.n. debate, let us go to washington. max, how will germany be voting on the palestinian application? >> officially, there has been no word from the german foreign minister, although he said in new york city that the germans will deal with the situation once it presents itself, once there is a vote in the security council. but between the lines of his speech in front of the general assembly, it was clear where the germans are heading. he said israel's security was a matter of state for the germans and the german support a negotiated solution between the palestinians and israel. the diplomatic goal for germans is to avoid a vote at the security council. were there to be a vote in the

next days or weeks, you can be pretty sure the germans would not be in favor of the palestinian application. >> what happens now with the application for full membership of the u.n.? >> formally, it needs a vote of 9, a majority of nine in the security council. i am not sure there are enough votes for that. russia and china are in favor of the application. with brazil, india, and south africa -- let us say the measure gets a majority and no veto. it would go on to the general assembly where it would need 82 /3 majority. -- where it would need a 2/3 majority. however, the americans have said they would veto, so it is dead on arrival. the security council commission will review the application. that could take weeks or months. we do not know when a vote would

be set up. at least that gives the parties involved more time to find a negotiated deal will find -- behind the scenes. >> mass demonstrations across yemen, calling for the president to resign. thousands of women march in sanaa. the opposition wants saleh to step down immediately. he offered to negotiate if the protests stopped. the opposition believes this is another attempt to hold onto power. the case has been closed on the lockerbie bombing. that is the libyan response to the british government. one libyan was convicted of bringing down a pan am airliner in scotland in 1998. investigators asked libyan rulers to find new evidence on monday. the request has been refused.

scottish prosecutors are looking into bring further charges, including against gaddafi. gaddafi still has not been caught. interim government fighters are in battles in two cities remaining loyal to the former leader. our report begins in sirte. >> anti-gaddafi forces are again trying to take the former leader's hometown. the town has been under siege for weeks. they have bombarded targets with all they have in an attempt to subdue defenders. anyone who can get out of the city is doing so. hundreds of families fled the fighting on the weekend. conditions inside part deteriorating. fresh water and medicine are scarce. there is the constant danger of getting caught between the lines. 150 people have taken refuge in this mosque, away from the

front. >> we feel safe here. there are families with children, and pregnant women. we want to get away from the fighting. >> the city of ban walid is also under siege. there was more heavy fighting on monday, and no sign of remaining gaddafi troops are ready to give in. >> democracy activists in burma protested by gathering in rangoon. almost 60 yellow shirt did protesters staged a peaceful vigil to commemorate the 2006 crackdown on protests by buddhist monks. truckloads of riot police parked nearby, but authorities did not interfere with the protest. a civilian government backed by the military took power earlier this year. tributes have been pouring in for the first african woman to

win the nobel peace prize. she passed away in nairobi after a long battle with cancer. she founded a kenyan movement to stop deforestation. she also fought for women's rights and more democracy in africa. >> kenyans call her the mother of the trees. for more than three decades, she worked to protect the environment. her green belt movement planted 40 million trees. early encouragement came from germany. >> [unintelligible] i got very inspired by the way they were working to protect the environment. i eventually connected the environmental rights with human rights. >> in the 1980's and 90's, she was beaten by police and imprisoned for leading protests that condemned political corruption, and advocated democracy and women's rights. she was awarded the 2004 peace

prize, for the first time acknowledging the relationship between environmental protection and peace. one of her past public appearances was during angela marco's visit to kenya in july. she will be remembered as an environmental crusader and visionary. >> in debt is up next. stick around.

>> welcome back. these are interesting times in north africa and the middle east. winds of change sweeping the region. three authoritarian regimes have been toppled, and protests continued in several countries. the people of morocco are also hoping demonstrations will bring change to their country. the king responded swiftly once the discontent of the moroccan people became evident. he promised modest reforms and elections, but still has full control of the army and the right to dissolve parliament. he also has the final say on

religious issues and most aspects of the justice system. we take a look at morocco's chances for change. >> morocco is a mixture of tradition and a madonna the. the country has long been regarded as politically stable. it is a constitutional monarchy ruled by king mohammed the sixth. he came to the throne in 1999. his late father is remembered as a tyrant. mohammed wanted to modernize the state. the constitution and parliament were created, but most power remained with the king. king mohammed enjoys widespread support among the people. he is the country's foremost religious leader. the protests that erupted in february were not against the monarchs himself, but citizens wanted more democracy, a stronger economy, and less corruption.

king mohammed reacted quickly. a few weeks after protests began, he announced reforms to limit his political powers. at the king's suggestion, a referendum was held in july to decide whether a new constitution should be introduced, strengthening civil and parliamentary rights. 98.5% of voters said yes. one change means the next prime minister will be chosen by the strongest party in parliament, not king mohammed. but the opposition says the changes do not go far enough. the king continues to control the army and domestic security, and the parliament still has only limited powers. >> the first major demonstration in morocco this year was on february 20. the main protest involvement has taken its name from the state. it has held weekly demonstrations to push for more

change. thousands of people took to the streets in cities across morocco, demanding social justice and an end to corruption, one of the biggest protests in recent months. activists claim to live's referendum was not free and fair, pointing to figures that say an overwhelming majority of participants voted in favor of modest reforms. they say the number is too high to be plausible and are demanding more meaningful and believable change. >> they are furious and disappointed. they want the government to provide more jobs and to fight corruption. and they want justice. this man has been there from the start. he helped found the february 20 movement, and hopes the arab spring will help his country to modernize. >> when the february 20 movement

started, it had a clear goal -- the creation of a modern state. the current government has not kept up with the times. so far, it has only come up with partial solutions, which have failed to deal with the problems themselves. this is about the creation of a state that guarantees the rights of all citizens. >> the pronounced inequality between the wealthy and poor is one of the driving forces behind the sunday demonstrations. the protests are open to tradition. many feel moroccan society if weaker members are not treated with respect from those in more powerful positions. >> our costs are long and rich, with phosphate reserves. we demand a fair division.

at the moment, only regime elite's profit from them. >> education and medical care are rotten. we demand a decent life for the poor. >> but there are also those who oppose the february 20 movement. they also have been taking to the streets. they show they are loyal to the king and want to keep the status quo. >> the february 20 movement does not represent our views. they are pretending they want to introduce democracy. they threaten to divide the country and call the monarchy into question. >> we only trust the king. what we are seeing is a campaign by corrupt parties. >> the mood is heating up. many fear the february 20 movement might also start including radical islamists.

the majority here are against a revolution, something the activists are also very much against. >> our movement does not question the current political system. we do not want to interfere. that is the job of the parties. we do not want the parliamentary monarchy and do not want to get rid of the monarchy. we are standing up for reforms, not trying to bring down the existing structure. >> he plans to keep fighting for reforms. >> they are against revolution which ousted other regimes, but still want change. one of the biggest challenges facing morocco is to provide economic opportunities for its people, especially young people looking for regular improvement -- employment. there are great disparities between rich and poor, creating

social tensions. we spoke to one young man struggling to make a future for himself. >> he is a trained lawyer who finished his studies seven years ago. since then, he has been looking for a job. he buys the newspaper every day and scours the classifieds. he has lost count of the number of applications he has sent, all in vain. his family is poor. he thinks that is the reason he cannot find work. hear, connections are important. jobs are bought and sold, he says. >> every year, the government announces plans and programs different from the last government. but the main factors are widespread unemployment -- corruption, bribery, and nepotism. that is why the a young graduate has no faith in them.

>> he joined with four friends to write a book critical of the lack of state support. he meets with his friends in a cafe in the city. his co-authors are also well educated and out of work. the book describes what it is so difficult for so many to find a job. the text includes suggestions for policy makers on how they could improve things. >> we propose taking qualified people with business backgrounds and placing them with companies. we lobbied for the creation of special job counseling centers. we also recommended releasing fertile land to graduates with agriculture degrees. we made clear what help start- ups need. >> the trade unions' support the friends, including financial

assistance. the government does not provide adequate help for the unemployed. >> reforms in morocco. that has been the focus of in- depth. thank you for watching. captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org--