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syria at this not agree for plans to send peace monitors. there are efforts to further isolate p'yongyang. bahrain gets the green light despite ongoing concerns over human rights. welcome to "pb -- welcome to "bbc world news" broadcasting to our viewers on pbs in america. how satellite technology could play a key role for protecting life on earth.

members of the u.n. security council are wrangling how to monitor the ceasefire in syria. a group of nations including britain has registered one resolution, while russia has put down a separate text. the need for additional measures to keep the peace has been thrown into focus by the deaths of several demonstrators. >> after friday prayers in,, demonstrators tried to defy a security cordon and break through the main square in the sadr of the city. troops opened fire. -- after friday prayers, demonstrators tried to defy a security cordon and break through the main square in the center of the city. security forces intervened to break up many demonstrations.

tear gas was used in this one. despite the risk, thousands of people turned out in many parts of the country to voice their opposition to the regime. and some cases, security forces did not move in. the overall casualty figures were much lower than many feared. away from the demonstrations, the military was using tanks in trouble spots. activists said that that there had been a resumption of bombardment, though not on the scale which was killing dozens of people a day before the cease-fire. they also say there has been a wave of arrests. this footage shows troops apparently randomly detaining a suspect, beating and kicking him, before taking them away. the government says that people are only arrested with legal

warrants. the soldiers seem to be shooting at random. getting them back to barracks with their tanks and heavy weapons is one of kofi annan's highest priorities in trying to stabilize the truce. so is getting international observers into the country. while the u.n. security council ponders a resolution to cover the deployment, the group is waiting to move. >> at the moment, we have the advance team standing by to board planes and to get themselves on the ground as soon as possible. >> kofi annan still has a lot to do before it is truly stable. only then, can he get on with the daunting task of trying to foster a political agreement on the country's future. >> united states says it will cancel its planned food aid delivery to north korea after the government in p'yongyang

defied security council resolutions and went ahead with a rocket launch on friday morning. the americans believed that it was a disguised test of a long- range missile. the test failed with the rocket plunging into the sea shortly after the takeoff. we are in the north korean capital. >> his swagger is that a man bred for power. kim jong un is 29 years old. today, the supreme leader. the third generation of the kim dynasty. the stature of his father next to his grandfather was unveiled this afternoon. north koreans are taught to revere them like dogs. -- like gods. the achievement would help a young man reinforce his right to

the amount of the power. there is no mention here of the rocket blowing up a minutes into flight. just a brief statement that things had not gone to plan. north korea has placed huge importance on the rocket launch. what effect will this have on the regime? working by hand, gangs of workers line the boulevards of p'yongyang. the rocket was meant to be away that showing the north koreans that the state is technologically advanced. america and the north's a neighbors said that this was a disguise to test an intercontinental missile. his father also tested nuclear bombs. strength and self reliance, they are bridges that are taught to all north koreans. now, this country's neighbors feared that their young leader,

who had suffered a blow to his prestige, maybe tempted to respond with a new show of power, perhaps by testing a nuclear bomb. this is already a deeply isolated place. developing both missile technology and nuclear weapons. today, there was only reverence for the kim dynasty. north koreans are oblivious or unconcerned that the rocket was a failure and that america, britain, and others may seek to isolate this country even further. >> formula one bpsses -- bosses say that the race will go ahead despite protesters asking it

to be canceled. >> a friday funeral turned violent for a man shot dead two weeks ago during one of bahrain's anti-government protests. hardly the best backdrop for a formula one grand prix. the police say they will ensure team safety and the decision to go ahead rests with the formula one bosses. >> what is being discussed about all rain? >> nothing. >> we're going to bahrain? >> yes, of course. >> this is worth an estimated 25 million pounds to formula one. the circuit cost 92 million pounds to build. the royal family owns the% of one team. there was a lot at stake if the race was canceled. -- the royal family owns 50% of

one team. there is a hugely charged atmosphere. the conflict is between those who support the ruling elite and those who oppose them. sectarian divisions are growing. today, this video emerged of a mob lutein a supermarket. the police appeared to be colluding with the looters. -- this video has emerged of a mob looting a supermarket. the civil unrest is not going away. as protests continue, amnesty international says that the human rights crisis is not over. >> they might use this not to move ahead because they will say that they have more space now because they have communicated to the international community that everything is normal in bahrain.

comingain's police are increasingly under attack. on the night this was filmed, a pipe bomb said the seven officers to hospital. the many want to see the government take a tougher line. the last grand prix was two and a half years ago. this will masked some deep and dangerous divisions. >> for more on this, we can speak to a human rights watch on the line from baltimore. they seemed stunned to suggest that this would be canceled. they thought that this was all blown up in the minds of the media. what is your reaction to that? >> the government has been sending a lot of energy and money on a massive public- relations campaign to clean up bahrain's image after it suffered quite seriously after

the brutal crackdown on pro- democracy protesters a year ago, which of course were part of a wider pro-democracy protest throughout the middle east. getting the grand prix reinstated as part of that campaign. what formula one and the international group have done today in confirming that the race will go ahead is that they have really played into the hands of the bahraini authorities and the narratives that the human rights situation is over. the crisis is behind them. this is very much not the case as that report made very clear, human-rights abuses continuing on the streets. also you have political prisoners in bahraini jails and

a total lack of accountability. >> since the cancellation of last year, do you think that very little has changed? >> well, what has happened is that in recent weeks there has been a bit of an escalation partly because of a recent death which has spared further protest. there is a protester who is serving a life sentence and now he is in the first month of a hunger strike. this is exacerbating tensions in the kingdom. let's remember, what is going on in bahrain is what is going on across the country. there is a growing demand for an end to the dictatorial autocracies that we have seen in the region for a decade. this is not just going away, whether it is in egypt, libya, syria. people are looking for

democratic reform and they are looking to stop the brutal crackdown. >> it was also said that we have seen the pictures of looting and a lot of use of tear gas. is the response from the government forces escalating as well? >> yes, it is. that has always been the way, i'm afraid, that the government has dealt with protests. the protests started largely peacefully. there is some of violence in response on the part of the protesters and that is to be condemned. that in no way justifies the brutal response not only in terms of the action of the police on the streets but also their response once they bring these people into custody. but torture, the chorused confessions, the show trial, but

you people in prison for long amounts of time. this is totally unjustified. >> thank you for joining us. >> david cameron said that he backs a suspension of many of the sanctions against burma in recognition of the move towards democracy. the prime minister made the comment during a historic visit to the country during which he held talks with aung san suu kyi and the burmese president. our deputy political editor has been traveling with mr. cameron and his report contains some flash photography. >> this was the moment that a british prime minister has stepped foot in burma for the first time in 60 years. the moment that he met the woman whose confinement in this house captured the world's attention. she was freed two received protests. she thought

she was free to receive her guests. david cameron said that sanctions should not be lifted but suspended. >> we must respond with caution, with care. we must always be skeptical and question because we want to know that those changes are irreversible. as we have discussed, i think it is right to suspend the sanctions that there are against burma. to suspend them, not to lift them, and not to include the arms embargo. >> this would have taken place because of the steps taken by the president and other reformers and it will make it quite clear that those are against reform. should they try to obstruct the way of the reformers, sanctions can come back. >> david cameron had never met and sung soo chee before but the smiles and the body language show that he was inspired by

what she said. -- david cameron has never met aung san suu kyi before. >> this is a jumble, anyway. >> only three years ago, you were threatened with prison. >> this is his willingness to play a bold stroke on the international stage. the real impact will only be known if reform continues and sanctions are lifted. that depends on how the government response. so, the prime minister travelled along the empty roads that lead to the opposing -- to be imposing palace of the president. he helps part of this country has moved to democracy. perhaps telling them that along the way he was greeted by the traditional festivities that they believe wash away people's

sins. the smiles were gone, the meeting more formal, but the prime minister welcome the decision to allow new elections. he left the meeting convinced that the general was sincere. this is a country where a third of its citizens live in poverty and they have waited so many decades for change. david cameron believes that the change is so deep-seated that he is inviting aung san suu kyi to london this summer. she never felt confident enough to leave the country before but she said that she just might. >> this is "bbc news," still ahead -- british customers start to stockpiles stamps ahead of a price increase by the royal mail. the united trade union has said that that will put a deal to its members which could avert a strike by a fuel tanker drivers. the union has been holding talks

at a conciliatory body to resolve a route over issues on pay and safety concerns. -- to resolve a fight over issues on pay and safety concerns. the health secretary has said that the tobacco industry should have no business in the u.k. the industry has dismissed as preposterous a plan to remove branding from cigarette packets. the government will begin consultations on the idea next week. a man has confessed to blinding a woman in an attack lasting 12 hours. tina nash had her eyes gouged out in an attack. her attacker will be sentenced next month. this is "bbc news," of the headlines -- violence has marred

syria's fragile cease-fire. the u.n. has not agreed to a plan for peace monitors. the u.n. has pledged to further isolate north korea following the failed rocket test. let's return to syria and we can speak to an activist in homs. and i asked you what the situation is at the moment? -- can i ask you what the situation is at the moment? >> [inaudible] >> obviously struggling with some audio quality. we will try to get back to that later. china and the chinese economy, the second-largest has -- the second-largest economy has slowed.

this is lower than most analysts had predicted. this raises more questions about the ability of the chinese leadership to keep the economy on track. >> china's retailers are having to try harder to ship their goods. this is partly because up delivered at times by the government to rollback the boom before it got out of control. >> consumer demand is not as big as last year. first, the government suspended all subsidies for home appliances. second, there are policies to protect the market. >> is the party over for the chinese economy? most experts say there is still momentum but the atmosphere is more muted. what china is trying to shift away from an enormous export- based drive to one that is more dependent on its cellphone. they are trying to do it at a

time where they are trying to get to the inflation under control. -- china is trying to shift away from an enormous export-based drive to one that is more dependent on its own. >> china had more than 9% growth. even with the pace of expansion, and china is still one of the bright spots for the global economy. u.k.-based exporters like this engineering business have benefited from the chinese growth in the past three years. trade with the eurozone may have been difficult, but surging demand from china has really kept things going. jobs have been created largely on the back of those exports and there is more expansion on the way. >> china is a huge prospect for us. this growth is probably 30% of our business.

that will bring growth here and with it, jobs. >> british companies will hope the chinese authorities can keep the economy on course as they prepare for a big change in leadership later this year. >> the royal mail is rationed in the number of stamps ahead is a sharp increase in prices. they say the move is intended to improve their revenue. some customers are starting to stockpile stamps. >> whether it is first class or second, many are stocking up before the stamps go up in price. supplies are running low and they cannot get any more stamps. they told us today that they had seen a significant increase in demand over the supplies. it is small businesses like this one that is most affected by the price rises.

this business owner relies on oil mail. >> we have to save the money or pass the cost on to the patients. >> he does not want to do that, said today, richard went to stock up. >> can i have 3,002nd class stamps, please? >> not likely. does get a few hundred. >> thank you. >> royal mail say that they have more than adequate stops but they have cut supplies to retailers. they cannot buy more than 20% of their annual allocation. they say that they don't want retailers profiteering, stockpiling now and selling for more later. >> they are losing money, volume is close to declining quite rapidly as we are switching to e-mail and text messaging. something has to be done to

retain the service that we will cherish. >> some consumers are trying to beat the price rises. they have been booking here since christmas. >> people have been buying hundreds at a time. we get an order on a monday. >> this country has plenty of stamps, but the stockpiling shows how keen people are right now to save every penny they can. >> a team of scientists has been using satellite images to count penguins and they have found that there are twice as many penguin's in antarctica as previously thought. >> the long march for penguin's. every winter, they journey 100 miles from the ocean in land to their breeding ground. it is the time that conservationists used to monitor their numbers. it is hard to count them.

they look the same and inconveniently for researchers, they move around. against the stark white landscape, it is easy to take a picture of all of them from space. the dark areas are colonies of the penguins. there are nearly 600,000 and winds here, twice as many as previous estimates. >> it is almost impossible to count them on the ground because of the harsh, remote environment. with a satellite, you can take a snapshot at a time of the whole operation. >> it is only recently that cameras have become part of enough to track individual animals. on the top left-hand corner, you can see the sea which ice floating on it. on the bottom right, is the land. this is desolate. as you zoom in, you can see these areas of brown. these are pangolin droppings

stretching out for miles. this alert scientists that there are colonies nearby. -- these are penguin droppings stretching out for miles. they will calculated the individuals and count them. conservationists believe this kind of satellite tracking could enable them to study how many species across the world are doing. >> satellite technology is increasingly used in the number of applications. refining those techniques will be crucial for our understanding of how life is changing in reaction to human pressures. >> although the results suggest that that there are more than was than previously thought, and many other species are endangered. satellite techniques could enable researchers to track their numbers with greater accuracy than ever before. >> our science correspondent

counting penguins. this is "bbc news." >> make sense of international news at bbc.com/news. >> funding was made possible by -- the freeman foundation of new honolulu, newman's own foundation, union bank, and shell. >> this is kim, about to feel one of his favorite sensations. like malaysia that can help us

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