captioning sponsored by wnet >> sreenivasan: on this edition for saturday, april 1: key members of the trump administration disclose their personal wealth; national geographic's "seven things you need to know about climate change"; and in our signature segment, the island of cyprus, long divided, restarting talks aimed at reunification. next on pbs newshour weekend. >> pbs newshour weekend is made possible by: bernard and irene schwartz. judy and josh weston. the cheryl and philip milstein family. the john and helen glessner family trust-- supporting trustworthy journalism that informs and inspires. sue and edgar wachenheim, iii. barbara hope zuckerberg. corporate funding is provided by mutual of america-- designing customized individual

and group retirement products. that's why we're your retirement company. additional support has been provided by: and by the corporation for public broadcasting, and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. from the tisch wnet studios at lincoln center in new york, hari sreenivasan. >> sreenivasan: good evening, and thanks for joining us. america's first billionaire president is surrounded by many staffers with a very high net worth. a batch of the financial disclosure forms top white house staffers are legally required to fill out shows 27 administration staffers have assets worth a combined $2.3 billion. among the wealthiest are trump's daughter, ivanka, and her husband, jared kushner, both serving as unpaid west wing advisers. they have assets worth at least $240 million and as much as $740 million, mostly in real estate owned by both families. national economic council

director gary cohn, a former president of goldman sachs, has assets worth between $254 million and $600 million. technology adviser reed cordish, a baltimore real estate developer, disclosed assets between $92 million and $798 million. chief political strategist steve bannon, the conservative consultant and media entrepreneur, valued his assets between $10.7 million and $48.6 million. the 180 disclosure forms released by the white house last night did not include anything from the president, vice president or cabinet members. in colombia, heavy rains triggered lethal landslides overnight. the colombian red cross said at least 127 people died and more than 200 other people were missing after rains pushed a river over its banks overnight as many residents were sleeping in the city of mocoa near the country's border with ecuador. rescue workers have been searching for survivors in the rubble of damaged buildings, and colombia's president juan manuel santos visited the site today.

in paraguay, a proposal to end term limits for president horacio cartes has sparked violent protests. they escalated today in the capital city of asuncion after demonstrators torched the country's congress building last night and clashed with police. all this after the national senate approved amending the country's constitution to allow president cartes to run for a second term next year. presidents are currently limited to one five-year term. police sprayed water cannons and fired rubber bullets to disperse the crowds. one protester was killed and more than 200 were detained. iraq says it has killed the number two leader of the islamic state militant group, or isis. a report on state-run television today said iraq's own air force planes killed ayad al-jumaili and other isis leaders in a bombing raid near iraq's border with syria, but the report did not say when the attack occurred. jumaili is described as the top deputy and war minister to isis leader abu bakr al-baghdadi. iraq also said today it killed

more than 100 isis fighters in air strikes in the iraqi town of baaj, also near the syrian border. wednesday's deadly crash between a pickup truck and a church minibus in texas may be the result of texting while driving. an eyewitness tells the associated press the pickup driver admitted to him he had been texting. the eyewitness is a driver whose passenger captured this video of the truck swerving on the two- lane road 75 miles outside san antonio moments before the head- on collision killed 13 people in the van. the eyewitness says the 20-year- old pickup driver, who survived, told him: "i'm sorry. i was texting on my phone." police say they are investigating distracted driving as a cause. texas is one of only four states that have not banned texting while driving. police in atlanta have arrested three people in connection with the fire that caused the collapse of a busy section of interstate 85 on thursday. one of them was charged with arson today for the fire that broke out in a storage area for construction materials and equipment. authorities say it could be months before repairs to the highway overpass are completed

and the road, just a few miles from downtown atlanta, reopens. >> sreenivasan: venezuela is undergoing a constitutional crisis with its supreme court today reversing its own decision from earlier this week that had transferred powers from the national assembly to the court, which is loyal to president nicolas maduro. following the court decision today, maduro said, "the controversy is over."" wall street journal" reporter anatoly kurmanaev is in caracas and joins me now via skype to discuss the political crisis. anatoly, we've been covering the dissent of venezuela and certain conditions for some time now, but this week was definitely very new. what was at the core of the decision that the supreme court made? >> that's right. they reached a new low, the

slide toward dictatorship. the move this week was quite unprecedented and quite unexpected. it came out wednesday night, as part of a mundane interpretation of an oil law, and it was just one sentence at the very end of a 20,000-word ruling that said that the supreme court will take over all functions of the opposition-controlled congress. since then, it has been quite a roller coaster. in caracas, we had a general, a stawrch ally of the government, come out and say that the ruling is unconstitutional, a break in the law. we had president maduro have a very long session yesterday, saying this was open to understanding, a mundane controversy, and this morning, the court reversed its decision on maduro's order, again, something completely unprecedented. maduro was saying it shoels the separation of powers, and they

saying exactly the opposite >> sreenivasan: the fact that the president could influence the court is what it took for him to reverse, this or the court to reverse this. >> that's right again, the president seems to be dig himself down really low ratings with protests in the streets of caracas. this afternoon, protesters blocked main highway, clashed with police, tear gas, and promised more protests next week, keep up international pressure on maduro. they promised to keep drafting laws. so whatever was behind the decision, it left the country even more unstable than before >> sreenivasan: this is in the context of, you know, just last week, we were having a conversation about decrease in medical supplies, and also the international community is starting to weigh in on this. >> absolutely. , colombia and brazil have

recalled their ambassadors, quite unprecedented measures. again very strong condemnation, and more coming in every day >> sreenivasan: all right, anatoly kurmanaev from the "wall street journal," joining us live on skype from caracas today, thanks so much. >> sreenivasan: a united nations envoy will host a dinner tomorrow for the rival leaders of cyprus, the island in the mediterranean sea that's been divided for decades between its two main ethnic groups, greek and turkish cypriots. the dinner is a prelude to resumed peace talks toward settling a conflict that has pitted two nato members, greece and turkey, against each other. in tonight's signature segment, newshour weekend special correspondent christopher livesay went to cyprus to report on the island's troubled history and prospects for reunification. >> reporter: the mediterranean island of cyprus is a country divided.

the majority, ethnic greeks, live in the south, in the republic of cyprus, an internationally-recognized government and member of the european union. in the north are mostly ethnic turks calling themselves the turkish republic of northern cyprus, officially recognized by only one country, turkey. it's a standoff born of a war four decades ago. the flags of each nationality still fly opposite each other across a united nations- controlled "buffer zone," which stretches the entire 180-mile length of the island and cuts right through the divided capital city, nicosia. people passing from one side of the island to the other must go through checkpoints. it's a really short distance. rita severis, a greek cypriot, is the founder of an art museum located steps away from the buffer zone. the whole city is divided in two? >> yes, with one street. >> reporter: this is like the berlin wall... >> exactly. >> reporter: ...of nicosia. >> exactly. exactly. only there isn't a wall.

you see the u.n. patrols. they're doing their patrol at the moment to make sure that nobody is in. >> reporter: where is the turkish side? the greek cypriot government granted us permission to enter the buffer zone with a military escort. watch for the low hanging wires here. we saw a bizarre maze of ruins, crumbled walls-- home to nothing but the occasional stray cat or dog. these armed soldiers are the only other sign of life in the buffer zone. although greek and turkish cypriots have lived together in peace for centuries, tension and violence grew in the middle of the last century just as cyprus was gaining its independence from britain. abdullah cangil, a turkish cypriot, says turks felt safer under british rule and feared cyprus would become part of greece. violence erupted between the two ethnic groups.

>> reporter: in 1974, the situation exploded. encouraged by athens, greek militias sought to unify cyprus with greece. to stop that, turkey sent troops on the pretext of protecting the turkish minority and occupied the northern third of the island. >> we could see far away in the distance the turkish parachutists coming down. we could see the planes that were bombarding the hospitals full of bodies and wounded people. >> reporter: the war lasted only a few days, but more than 2,000 turkish and greek cypriots were dead or missing.

one of the fiercest battles took place at the island's main airport in nicosia, now abandoned. major robert szaksazon says these runways are used now only by u.n. peacekeeper helicopters. >> you can see some bullet holes in the fuselage. >> reporter: this cyprus airways jet has sat here for 43 years. >> it's a symbol of the fighting from that time. it's still here in the buffer zone. >> reporter: the buffer zone was supposed to be temporary. but partition went on year after year with failed negotiations among the cypriots and the island's so-called guarantors "" motherlands," greece and turkey, each backing up their ethnic kin. >> we've had many times when our hopes had risen, and we thought, "oh, tomorrow it will be over. we'll join our land again." always fell flat on our face! >> reporter: now, there is new hope for reunification. in january, greek cypriot

president nicos anastasiades and the head of the turkish cypriot minority, mustafa akinci, who hail from the same small village in cyprus and are especially eager for peace, met in geneva for high level talks brokered by the u.n. ozdil nami is the chief negotiator for the turkish cypriots. >> this is final stage, make or break time. everyone realizes this. >> reporter: on the other side is greek cypriot foreign minister ioannis kasoulides. is this just the umpteenth example of negotiations that will ultimately fail, or are we really on the brink of a breakthrough? >> we are nearly at the brink of a breakthrough. >> reporter: the biggest issue, both sides agree, is security. turkey still has some 35,000 troops stationed in northern cyprus. >> in order to feel secure, we demand that a certain number of turkish troops remain. >> reporter: you don't see the presence of turkish troops in

cyprus as a non-starter for the greek cypriot side? >> no, no, these issues are all under discussion. there are alternative ways of providing security for everybody involved. military element presence of troops is one dimension. we will wait and see how strong, how many troops. >> for us, it makes no sense to keep troops from turkey on the island. >> reporter: but aren't the turkish troops guaranteeing the security of the turkish minority? >> well, why don't you put the russian troops to guarantee the russian minority in the baltic states? come on! you have to be reasonable about what we can do and what we cannot do. this we are prepared to negotiate. >> reporter: another major issue is property rights. after the 1974 war, there was a mass migration of both peoples.

more than 160,000 greek cypriots living in the north fled or were forced to move to the south, and 40,000 turkish cypriots living in the south moved to the north. in the northern coastal town of kyrenia, rita severis' family had been one of the biggest property owners with an olive oil factory, land and several houses. so, before partition, before the turkish invasion, your property was featured on tourism posters? >> oh, yes. >> reporter: overnight, her family, like other greek cypriots in the north, lost it all. so, what will happen to that property and to the other properties you lost if cyprus is reunified? >> we would have three choices. restitution, provided that it is not used by somebody. that means they take our land in the north and give us land of equivalent value in the south or compensation. >> reporter: it's a difficult

problem for turkish cypriots, too. take abdullah cangil, one of those forced to give up his property in the south and move north. >> i was 24 years old when i came here, and now i am 67. >> reporter: cangil put a lot of work and money into the house. put in a pool, planted a grove of orange trees. it's where he raised his family. >> reporter: cangil believes without unification there's little future for the turkish minority on cyprus. >> reporter: if he has to move because of reunification, he says it will be hard but he's willing to make the sacrifice. chief turkish cypriot negotiator ozdil nami says whole towns may

change hands in the remapping, but past mistakes won't be repeated. >> if there is going to be relocation of those, it's not going to be through forced eviction of any sort. so we are not going to have a refugee crisis. >> reporter: economics are another factor driving unification. under one unified federal government, all of cyprus could reopen trade with turkey and have access to the e.u. common market. and something else offers benefits for both communities: newly discovered deposits of natural gas off the southern, or greek cypriot, part of the island. >> it will give substantial revenues for both. it will be promising not just for the present generation, but for the future generations. we have no plan b. our determination is to resolve the problem. >> reporter: abdullah cangil, the turkish cypriot man we met,

says the people of the island are ready to live together again. in fact, he's in contact with the greek cypriot he considers the real owner of his home. they're now friends. >> reporter: is peace possible? >> i would say that if the greek and turkish cypriots were left on their own with no" motherlands" or anybody else interfering, yes, peace would be possible. if it doesn't happen now within this year, it will never happen. so, either it is now or never, i feel. >> sreenivasan: new characters with autism are being featured on children's tv and in film, "" sesame street" and in the new "power rangers" movie. read more about it at www.pbs.org/newshour. >> sreenivasan: 2014 was the

hottest year on earth since susan goldberg modern record-keeping began in 1880. that is, until 2015. and then that was replaced by the hottest year on record, 2016. in advance of earth day, which occurs three weeks from today on saturday, april 22, the new edition of "national geographi"" magazine out this week, and the web site, www.natgeo.com, have published "seven things you need to know about climate change." to discuss that guide and related issues, i am joined from washington by "national geographic" editor-in-chief susan goldberg. first, why does "national geographic" feel it's necessary to do this type of a story? >> we want to do stories about climate change because "national geographic" has been doing this kind of coverage for our-- really, the entirety of our 129-year history. we've been writing about the planet and the health of the planet, animals, the environment, history, and cultures. and all of these topics are affected by what we're seeing with climate change >> sreenivasan: you're not a partisan organization. you're not trying to take sides in the political debate, though,

are you strongly proscience and profact. >> well, what we we always say is we're on the side of science, we're on the side of the facts, and we're on the side of the planet. and i think you can be on the side of the planet and not be partisan. we are a proudly and strongly nonpartisan organization, but what we are trying to do is give policy makers and the public the facts so they can make informed decisions about things like climate change, the environmental protection agency, and how to keep the planet healthy >> sreenivasan: reporter, let's tack a look at the cover of the piece. it rattles off some of these seven reasons. the world is warming, number two, it's because of us, and three, we're sure. those are usually the topics that are the most challenged by climate-change skeptics or defort myers? >> people almost view how they view climate change as part of their identity. the way i think we can play a role here is help people understand by presenting stories through pictures, through amazing graphics, and, also,

dishing up a healthy dose of the facts, but doing so in a way that will draw people in, rather than put them off >> sreenivasan: one of the sections in your magazine is the ice is melting fast. we have heard several different stories just in the last few months about ice shelves breaking off. how significant is this? >> well, it's really significant in two ways. if you took alaska and california's land mass together, that's how much sea ice didn't form this year in the arctic. and then what-- and so that's one aspect of the story. the other is the melting of the ice sheets and glackierkiers in green land and in the antarctic and the melting of those is what is causing the sea level rise that we're already starting to see >> sreenivasan: we're also seeing wildlife being impacted around the world. i mean, there were stories just in the last few weeks about huge chunks of the great barrier reef that are dead. >> exactly. and the coral is just one aspect of what's happening with the rise of sea temperatures and the

rising asidification of the seas. so we're seeing animals showing up in place where's they never really have before, whether you're talking about what happens underneath the water or on the land >> sreenivasan: you know, and this is at a time when you have new leadership at the white house and also the environmental protection agency, and they're making fairly significant policy judgments right now. >> the administration has proposed a 31% cutback in the e.p.a., and while, this of course, has to go through congress, and it could look different on the end, the president's budget is always a good indication of his agenda. so he wants to cut back the e.p.a. 31%, dismantle programs to clean up the great lakes, clean up chesapeake bay, clean up puget sound and any number of other areas. so it's our job at "national geographic," not to comment on the policy change, but to explain how that could affect people and wildlife >> sreenivasan: susan goldberg, editor in chief of "national geographic" joining us from washington today. thanks so much. >> thank you, hari, appreciate

it. >> this is pbs newshour weekend, saturday. >> sreenivasan: after 111 victories and four national championships in a row, the university of connecticut women's basketball team finally knows how their opponents feel. in one of the biggest upsets in college basketball history, mississippi state beat connecticut in their semi-final game of the n.c.a.a. tournament last night. guard morgan williams sank the winning jumpshot at the buzzer in overtime to beat uconn 66-64. mississippi state will play south carolina for the national championship tomorrow night. francine wilson's 1977 trial for killing her abusive husband changed the way domestic violence is viewed by the public, police and the judicial system. word now from her son that wilson died last week in leighton, alabama. after suffering years of physical abuse, wilson killed her husband by setting fire to their home while he slept. at her murder trial, a jury

found her not guilty by reason of temporary insanity in what became known as the "burning bed" defense. francine wilson was 69. the artist who created the iconic rainbow flag of the gay rights movement, gilbert baker, has died. baker, who liked to call himself the "gay betsy ross," created the flag in 1978, and it was first carried at the gay pride parade that year in san francisco, where friends gathered last night to commemorate baker and his legacy. baker said each of the flag's colors had meaning, such as red for life, orange for healing and blue for peace. gilbert baker died at his home in new york city yesterday. he was 65. on pbs newshour weekend sunday, how brexit could affect daily life in the british territory of gibraltar. >> what is going to happen with all the groceries and the shoes and other things we export from spain to the u.k.?

>> sreenivasan: finally, speaking to business leaders in columbus, ohio, today, vice president mike pence predicted president trump's supreme court nominee, judge neil gorsuch, will win senate confirmation next week "one way or another." republicans would need six democratic senators to reach the 60 votes required under current rules to confirm gorsuch, but republicans have hinted they're willing to change the rules to confirm him by a simple majority. only two of the 48 democratic senators have said they'll vote for gorsuch while most have vowed to filibuster. that's all for this edition of pbs newshour weekend. i'm hari sreenivasan. good night. captioning sponsored by wnet captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org >> pbs newshour weekend is made

possible by: bernard and irene schwartz. judy and josh weston. the cheryl and philip milstein family. the john and helen glessner family trust-- supporting trustworthy journalism that informs and inspires. sue and edgar wachenheim, iii. barbara hope zuckerberg. corporate funding is provided by mutual of america-- designing customized individual and group retirement products. that's why we're your retirement company. additional support has been provided by: and by the corporation for public broadcasting, and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you.

-narrator: at a famous new york dance center, a new show is about to begin. [ indistinct conversations ] -as one of my teachers said, "you know what to do." [ laughter ] you know what to do. it's all there. everybody, just take a deep breath in. [ inhales deeply ]