>> welcome to the journal coming to you live from berlin. i am brian thomas. >> coming up on the show, a landmark u.s. supreme court decision on gay rights. >> edward snowden spends another day at moscow airport as the revelation is causing outrage in germany. >> humiliation for australia's first female prime minister as the demands -- the man she ousted returns to topple her from the top office.

>> a major victory for the gay- rights movement, the u.s. supreme court has struck down a law defining marriage marriage as between a man and a woman. >> gay married couples will now receive the same federal benefits as their head of her sexual counterparts. hundreds of gay marriage supporters gathered outside the court to hear the verdict. judges dismissed a second gay marriage case effectively clearing the way for the resumption of same-sex marriage is also in the state of california. >> for the latest on story, we are joined by max hoffman. can you tell us more about this ruling echo >> there are two rulings, as you know. the first has a federal level to it, the defense of marriage act that grants federal benefits also to same-sex marriages. before that, it was only for

marriages that included a man and a woman. the supreme court's argument here was that the u.s. constitution guarantees equal protection under the law, so a very clear ruling, although it was coastal -- close by the numbers with five in favor, four against. the other ruling, proposition 8 in california, has a more more regional effect, obviously. proposition 8 basically was the law that struck down the gay marriage in california. the supreme court chose not to take the whole case which basically means that it put it act down to the lower court to had already ruled it was unconstitutional. same difference, you might say. it means that same-sex marriage in california very likely be possible again. >> what does it mean practically for gay men and women in the united states?

>> in the california, they will be able to marry again very soon. some say as of tomorrow, but other experts say it could be a couple of weeks. they will have access to federal benefits also through the ruling from dilma -- doma. they will be able to have joint tax returns, pension funds, all of these practical things that in the traditional marriage you already have access to. on a different level, it means the cause of same-sex marriage is a lot of momentum in the united states, even if there hasn't been a federal ruling. some are hoping for that. that didn't happen from the supreme court. nevertheless, more and more states are making it legal. four more states including california. >> max hoffman in washington, thanks. staying in the u.s., a texas

lawmaker has helped stop opposed restrictions on abortions by talking for four hours. >> wendy david used a filibuster rule to defeat a republican state bill that would have banned late-term abortions. after she stopped speaking, other democrats and spectators further delayed the vote. the bill failed when the clock ran out in a special session of the texas assembly. earlier, state troopers removed some protesters from the congress building. at least one person has died and scores injured in clashes between supporters and opponents of president mohamed morsi. >> there are fears it could be a violent standoff and it has led egyptians to stock up on food and gas supplies. wednesday, traffic came to a virtual standstill in the capital of cairo. long lines there outside of petrol stations. the divisive president marks one year in office on sunday. for the very latest, let's

crossover tour correspondent standing by live in cairo for us. we have seen more violence and now panic showing how people are very worried. morsi is due to address the nation. what can he do to calm things down? >> not much. everything is gearing up for when morsi is going to be an office for one year and this has been mobilizing weeks for this date and everyone is really expecting bloody clashes on the street between the supporters of the muslim brotherhood and their opponents. the opponents of president morsi think nothing will stop this mass protests, which we are gearing up for, unlike the president who would step down. >> the latest from cairo, thanks.

>> you're welcome. >> the german justice minister is demanding they demand how much the spy agencies have been targeting german citizens. >> after an outrage of the americas prism internet spying program, a new report shows britain tapped into the communications of millions of german citizens and businesses with its own tempora program. >> the leaks from edward snowden have sent shockwaves through germany with business leaders, rights groups, and politicians calling for an immediate end to both programs. >> this is where edward snowden is reportedly living in limbo in the transit zone. his passport has been revoked from the u.s. authorities. the whistleblower's revelations about spying programs have triggered a worldwide debate about the rights of internet users.

the german government has voiced concerns about privacy and personal freedoms. >> it is all about the right balance and that means we must not push our need for security so far that freedom is damaged. >> in wednesday's parliamentary debate, the opposition called for the german government to stop sitting on the fence insisting that fundamental rights are at stake. >> if we find that connection data in the content of millions of conversations, e-mails, and videos are being stored, that is the broadest infringement of the fundamental whites of german citizens we have ever seen. >> some delegates called for eu heads of states and governments to act at the summit in brussels this week. >> they need to talk about this. we want to know what has happened and we want to clearly state what is not acceptable by law. >> the true extent of secret

service activity on the internet remains unknown, as does edward snowden's fate as he waits in moscow airport. >> staying in europe, france has gone back into a recession. what many experts have feared for some time now. it has been confirmed by official data released today. >> it has retracted for the second quarter in a row. the outlook remains gloomy. the official forecast points to a dip for the whole year and these are putting increasing pressure on the government to reform the economy. meanwhile, european union finance ministers are making another attempt to set rules for banks that get into trouble. they're hoping to strike a deal for who should pay for bank bailouts without making taxpayers foot the bill. there are still some sharp divisions between germany and france on the issue. >> tonight emergency meeting in brussels was called after finance ministers failed to

reach an agreement last week. that is despite 19 hours of negotiations. a deal was seen as an important step towards establishing a banking union to help stabilize the eurozone. >> let's crossover to brussels. nina is standing by. wolfgang schreiber -- sure able is hoping for a humane night, no more 19 are negotiations. will he be lucky? >> defined humane. finance minister meetings really do have a tendency to go on long, so maybe he is used to ending meetings at 3:00 in the morning. this way, some of his colleagues have already said that it's going to be a long night again and finance ministers do agree on the very fact that it should not be the taxpayers but investors and creditors who foot the bill when a bank gets into trouble, but there are two big sticking

points. should the same rules apply to the 17 euro zone countries and the 10 countries that have a different currency? sweden and britain in particular argue that they don't want to be bound by strict eu rules. then there is also disagreement within the eurozone itself over just how much flexibility should be granted. should there be a common system of very strict rules? france argues that we need more flexibility to look at cases individually. they do want to reach a deal after the eu leaders get together here in brussels this thursday and friday. >> thank you, nina. we will follow that. >> following very tense talks and ross -- will brussels, here

resenting final budget plans. >> after raising spend it, they want to put the deficit at almost zero and he wants to take down the pretty enormous public debt. he is hoping that it will help to get him reelected. >> chancellor merkel's goal of reducing debt was in germany and europe. finance minister wolfgang schauble says borrowing will be at its lowest level in 14 years. the government says that this is proof of good economic management. >> the report shows everyone in germany can rely on this coalition in the coming years. if reelected, we will move the country forward down the sequenom data proves we can do it.

>> with a drop in federal spending next year, the government is forecasting a surplus by 2015. then they hope to use the revenue to begin paying off some of the $1.30 trillion in sovereign debt, but this hinges on a number of factors. employment must remain high to cover projected tax revenues. it also depends on a stable global economy and no additional bailouts for troubled eurozone members like greece. only then can merkel's coalition make good on the most costly campaign promises such as more financial support for families. >> staying with the german economy, it seems that consumers are feeling bullish about the outlook. figures out today shows that consumer confidence has hit its highest level in almost six years since well before the financial crisis broke out. lower employment and a round of big wage increases this year have been fueling the trend.

consumer spending even looks to be getting a boost from the recent floods as people replace damaged household goods. those figures are also good news for other european countries who are hoping to boost their exports to germany to get a little bit of growth. we have more from the frankfurt stock exchange. >> german consumers continue to be at a spending mood and it's good news for people here in the markets in the frankfurt trading floor and across europe. germany is such a powerhouse in the eurozone and a better the economy is here, the better it is for the eurozone as a whole and the better it is for the markets. it's not the whole story. share prices went up tremendously, mainly because of assurances from central bankers that they would continue to support the markets if needed and the economies, if needed. that was what people wanted to hear. mario draghi said so in paris before parliamentarians.

he warned them to do their homework, but if needed the ecb will stand by with unconventional measures, as he said. >> let's take a look at the numbers in frankfurt in more detail. some pretty solid gains on the side of the atlantic. the dax up almost 1.7%. heading towards a thousand. the euro stoxx 50 putting on even more gains at 2602. trading a still underway in new york, but there are also gains there. the dow currently at more than 1% and the euro losing a little bit of ground against the dollar right now. china's longest human space mission has ended successfully. >> the dissent capsule touched down in the northern grasslands of enter mongolia carrying three tigernauts, as they are

known in china. it was a trip to an experimental space station. they want to establish a permanent space presence by 2020. when we come back, a look at australia's political saga. >> 50 years since "ich bin ein berliner."

\ > >> there has been another dramatic turn in a power struggle that has defined australian politics. >> three years and two days after he was ousted from the prime minister's office by julia gillard, he has had his revenge. >> they're returning him to the job just months before national elections, which they stand to lose, after the melodrama of the past few years. the career of the australian first female prime minister is over. the labour party has dumped her after three years in power.

she says she will quit politics. >> i will have time to be back home in my electorate and to say hello and goodbye to the community at i have had the absolute privilege of representing in the parliament since 1998. >> or replacement is the man she ousted from the post of prime minister in a similar coup in 2010. now he has his revenge and is promising to stop the infighting. >> in recent years, politics has failed the australian people. or has just been too much negativity all around. there has been an erosion of trust, negative, destructive personal politics and it has done much to bring dishonor to our parliament but done nothing to address the urgent challenges facing our nation. >> he still has to win a confidence vote in parliament and the opposition is calling for an early election. >> let's give the people the say

in who should be there prime minister and who should be there government. >> tony abbott is the favorite to win the next election in september and the labour government looks headed for a major defeat. even if he wins the vote of confidence, he has a tough battle ahead. >> in a moment, we will look at the victims of torture around the world. >> first, other stories making the news. >> more than 100,000 people have been killed in the cerium civil war. about half of them civilians caught in the crossfire. efforts to organize a peace conference on syria have been put on hold and will not get started until august of the earliest. >> mongolia is awaiting the results of its presidential election. it looks like the incumbents will be remaining in power. they are reporting that the election day went off

peacefully. >> riots in the far western chinese province killing at least 27 people. mobs killing 17 and then billy shot 10 of the assailants. there is a resurgence of violence between two of the cultural factions. >> they have condemned the marxist the? to life in jail. >> he carried out a series of bombings and nearly 1980s that killed 11 people. he is already serving a life sentence from another attack. we can see him from a previous trial in the year 2000 and is among the most wanted terrorists, on the run for two decades before they captured him in 1994. they're one of the biggest

ethnic minorities in europe, the roma. they suffer from sweeping exclusions of property wherever they live. >> they said that integration has become the exception and not the norm. of the 12 million roma living in europe and most of half of them are eu citizens. >> and four days time, she will get her first wage packet. the thought fills her with ride. >> i don't just feel at home here. i've had opportunities that i never would have had in romania. click she arrived nine months ago from romania where she had no work and no money for herself and her family. in germany, she landed on her feet.

>> reading, writing, school for my child. it's helped me get on. >> the association, neighborhood cultures, helps the roma arriving in berlin. she teaches many of them german. >> these families want to build a secure future and be accepted here. they want to send their children to school, to learn german themselves, become integrated. above all, they want a normal job. of course, i want them to succeed. >> there is not always a happy end. they take us to a square in the district where up to 50 roma have been sleeping rough for a couple of weeks now. with no home and no job, they are reduced to begging.

>> they sit around on benches and spend all day and night there. >> today, it is pouring rain and some have found shelter in a church entrance. one woman with three children said she came to berlin one month ago from her village in romania. >> we have nothing. no apartment, no money, no medicine, no school. my children are really suffering in this situation. >> they are eu citizens and have the right to be here. >> where can we go? they call us filthy gypsies and curse at us. >> but her association just does not have enough funds to help everyone. >> it's frustrating and it's

hopeless. they just don't know where to go when they should ask for help, and that's a tragedy. >> the berlin government is planning to build a transit hub to give roma arriving in the city somewhere to get started. the idea is welcomed here, but just a few minutes walk away, she has found something that many roma can only dream of, a three room flat for herself, her husband, their youngest son. >> government acceptance of torture is becoming all too commonplace. that is according to a new study just released by amnesty international to mark the international date of support in torture victims. >> they want practices like to made credibly -- criminally punishable. it is not just an isolated spots that it's making a comeback, but also in areas under the direct control of the u.s. as well. >> the physical stars can only hint that the real suffering these men have endured.

the psychological damage caused by fear, violence, and humiliation is more difficult to show. the practice of torture is hidden far away from the rule of law. the human convention against torture is very clear about what is cruel and humane or degrading treatment. it includes intentionally inflicting physical or mental pain and forcing confessions. these images are based on descriptions by torture victims from syria. they tell of electroshock, whipping the soles of feet, and detention in freezing prison cells. anti-regime forces also stand accused of torturing their captives. amnesty international latest report documents such a brutal practices and 112 countries, even though most have signed the human convention against torture.

>> confessions obtained through torture and even the suspicion of torture may not be used in a court of law or any other instance. that is one article of the convention against torture. >> the us-led war on terror has also eroded standards. the guantanamo bay cap is the most prominent example. there are, many inmates have been to waterboarding stimulating a near drowning experience. the psychological damage can last a lifetime. >> today marks the 50th anniversary of a day that germany continues to cherish and its memories, a day that u.s. president john f. kennedy stood shoulder to shoulder with the people of cold war west berlin. half a century on, the reunited german capital is now

remembering the man, the speech, and that june day in 1963. >> 1963, two years after the berlin wall was built. 1.5 million west berliners live and an isolated enclave in the middle of communist each germany -- east germany. it was against this backdrop john f. kennedy stepped up to the ey microphone to speak his famous words. >> all free men, wherever they may live, are citizens of berlin. and therefore, as a free man, i take pride in the words -- ich bin ein berliner. [cheers and applause] >> the promise of freedom resonated in berlin and beyond. on wednesday, they commemorated the 50th anniversary of his visit.

>> america's presidents are very welcome here. they can feel welcome in this city and berlin offers a special platform for their words. >> several of kennedy successors have also used this platform to speak to the city and to the world about freedom. >> briefly before we go, protests and brazil are once again intensifying. the soccer team is currently playing uruguay in the semi of the federation cup. >> ahead of the match, they took to the streets. they are angry at the amount of money they have spent on hosting the tournament as well as on the upcoming world cup and the 2016 real olympics. >> thanks for joining us, we will be back again at the top of the hour. >> day with us. captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org--