>> funding for this presentation is made possible by -- the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu, newman's own foundation, and union bank. >> at union bank, our relationship managers work hard to know your business, offering specialized solutions and capital to help you meet your growth objectives. we offer expertise and tailored solutions for small businesses and major corporations. what can we do for you? >> and now "bbc world news." >> hello and welcome. >> not guilty, one of japan's

most influential politicians is cleared of breaking fund-raising laws. rupert murdoch appears before the ethics inquiry denying he had -- ethics inquiry. >> that is a complete myth that i use the influence for supposed political power to get favorable treatment. >> liberia's former leader awaits its fate on war crimes charges. it is 11:00 in the morning in singapore. >> it is 4:00 in the morning in london. broadcasting to viewers on pbs in america and iran the world. -- in america and around the world.

>> one of japan's most influential politicians has been found not guilty. of breaking the political fund- raising laws. the former leader of the democratic party had been accused of overseeing and false accounting by his staff in the 2004 tokyo land deal. his acquittal could prevent a major obstacle to the government plans to increase the consumption tax. >> during the hearing, there was no direct evidence to link him to the charges he faced of conspiring with his aides to make false reports about his political fund-raising. when he was found not guilty, to the judge.

this is a man who is not a member of the cabinet in japan. he is -- his membership with the democratic party in japan is suspended. this could mark a watershed in japanese politics. he could challenge [inaudible] perhaps he could also try to stymie the efforts of the government to double the consumption tax. he is very much against it, a staunch opponent of that move. the prime minister and some economists say it is vital if japan is ever going to get a grip on its public debt. to push japan into some type of greek meltdown if things go wrong. >> joining asked for his views on the verdict and the political repercussions is the director of

asian studies in tokyo. thank you so much for joining us. what is the case and verdict say about judicial reform in japan? >> everybody expected the verdict of not guilty. in the courts to public opinion, i think he is guilty. i think he symbolizes the cash and carry approach to politics, and in japan. decidedecutor's office not to indict two times. under a 2009 judicial reform, there is a citizens' panel that overruled the prosecutors. private lawyers conducted the prosecution. the only problem was they did not have any evidence. it was testimony by one of the secretaries who argued that the evidence had been coerced and the prosecutor had a strong arm to him. he had a recording of the conversation with the

prosecutor. the judge disallowed this evidence. and so he is humphrey in terms of the judicial process. -- home free in terms of the judicial process. the big issue is will the party reinstates his membership? will he make a leadership bit in september? the prime minister has lots of headaches. his popularity has plummeted because of his pro-nuclear stand. nobody wants a tax increase in the parliament. he is going to create a lot of headaches. on the transpacific partnership, he is very much against that. >> professor, you raise a lot of questions about the verdict and what this will mean for the prime minister. what will the political landscape looks like going forward? >> he is one of those guys who has been around since late

1960's. he is a guy you can make things happen. there is a lot of people who are frustrated. in japan, politicians have not made things happen. they have not responded with urgency. there are opportunities for him. he is indelibly tainted. i do not think he is going to be able to create a new party or make coalition with renegades from other parties. i think what he is going to do is mostly held capsized the dpj ship. >> do you think that with him been acquitted, this will be the death of the consumption tax? >> the prime minister has staked his political life on passing this. it will be interesting to see how this works out. i do not think he has the votes

on his side. i think is going to be a very difficult process. he is in a position to tap into the public mood. >> thank you, professor, for joining us. >> the media tycoon has told the leveson inquiry that he wanted to end what he called on the myth that he used the power or influence of one of his british newspapers to gain favorable treatment. he told the inquiry in london that he has never ask the prime minister for anything. >> in the long-running leveson inquiry, this was the most awaited witness so far. the chairman of chief executive of news corp..

>> as for of the evidence i shall give shall be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. >> mr. murdoch, known for his strong views, appeared surprisingly reticent about his decades of a powerful newspaper proprietor. >> i have never asked mr. blair for anything. >> this afternoon, when he was asked about his wish to support the conservatives, mr. murdoch said there were many key media matters he had to discuss with the new government. >> there was always a political storm around your mergers and acquisitions. >> i welcome that question. i want it -- i want to put it to better once and for all, that is a complete myth.

>> what is the myth, mr. murdoch? >> that i used the influence to get favorable treatment. >> meanwhile, the man who was the go-between has gone. adam smith described as the point of contact between the minister and the murdoch's, bidding for control for bskyb. material included apparently e-mails -- damning emails -- the culture secretary paid tribute to the special adviser and insisted that he had acted would scrupulous fairness in his traditional role overseeing the bid. >> transcripts of conversations and text published yesterday

have been alleged to indicate there was a back channel through which news corp. were able to influence my decisions. this is categorically not the case. >> defeated many reminders that he remains under pressure, heat -- a feat needed any reminders that he remains under pressure, he had to endure this taunt. >> words which at good the scene sounded by the leader of the opposition just minutes before at a charged session of prime minister's questions. >> while this culture secretary remains in place, while he refuses to come clean on his meetings with rupert murdoch, the shadow of sleaze will hang over this. when is he going to realize it is time to stop putting his cronies before the interest of the country? he called -- we call for an

independent inquiry. whether it is cleaning up our financial system, whether our debts, i did not duck my responsibilities. >> it is ironic that britain's political leaders have spent years trying to get close to robert murdoch -- close to rupert murdoch. now that is proving a major political problem. there'll be more at the leveson inquiry on thursday. ispakistan's prime minister due to appear before the supreme court in islamabad shortly. two years verdict on contempt charges laid against them. -- to hear his verdict on contempt charges laid against them. he is accused of refusing to obey a court order. for more on this, we are joined

from islamabad. this is the case with huge implications. remind us what he is accused of. >> there has been historic judgment if he is convicted at the supreme court. we have that a few false starts, but it appears that a final verdict will come in the coming hours. a ruling that the court made about two years ago. they called on him to reopen corruption cases against the president's. he did not do that, he did not did that because he said the president enjoys immunity under the constitution. that is why he could not reopen the cases. the court said, we will try to you for content. if he is convicted and found guilty comment -- found guilty, he can get a jail term of up to six months. >> he is appearing himself.

>> yes, he will be appearing. there are suggestions that he will be with a lot of the cabinet ministers as a show of support. it does feel that -- you might remember earlier, there were talking about the possibility that the government could collapse. that thought has gone away. there is suggestions that if he is convicted, the conviction could be stayed while appeals take place. if he is in jail, there is a suggestion that it could be a declared a sub-jail. an historic judgment in any case if he is found guilty. >> explain to us what has this case done in terms of the political stability of the country? >> earlier in the year, it

really did feel like it was a case of destabilized political spectrum. everyone was so involved in the survival of the prime minister and the survival of this government. it felt like the military was intervening as well, to put pressure on the supreme court. if allied the supreme court was becoming very much a political player as well. that seems to have fizzled out a little bit. because of the maneuverings of this government. it does feel the government has got through the biggest crisis. . it does face a tough test today, but it could well survived to become the first pakistani -- whatever happens today. >> we are live from singapore

and london. a week after india test launched a missile, pakistan does the same. >> it is lonely at the top. let's take a look at the stories making headlines around the world. the inquiry into ethics in britain is making headlines across the papers. rupert murdoch's evidence. the financial times report that mr. murdoch was back to his old form delivering a commanding performance. the independent is leading with the u.k. slipping back into recession in the first quarter. it reports the government strategy for recovery is coming under fire. the telegraph business section is headlining the european commission's plan to relax fiscal targets. it reports that the move could face opposition from germany.

french politics mix the front page of the irish times in a report that candidate francois hollande was the fiscal tree be reopened. u.s. regulators are investigating the big-name hollywood studios for inappropriate payments. >> one of japan's most influential politicians has been found not guilty of breaking the country's political fund-raising laws. >> the head of news corp. and rupert murdoch has told a british inquiry that he never uses and plans to seek favors from prime ministers. the former president of liberia will hear whether he is found

guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity. he is accused of fuelling a civil war. murder, rape, mutilation, and the use of child soldiers. >> the civil war was driven by rebels brutalizing civilians and destroying towns and villages. the prosecution said the godfather in this campaign of terror was charles taylor, the then president of neighboring liberia. in 2006, he was arrested and brought to the head to stand trial. he has always denied armin and supporting sierra leone rebels. >> i never, ever, at any time, knowingly assist in the invasion of sierra leone.

>> the prosecution argued that he was intent on pillaging the diamond riches. >> it was alleged that she had received diamonds from mr. taylor after attending dinner hosted by nelson mandela in 1997. >> i had a knack of my door. i opened my door. two men were there and gave me a pouch and said a gift for you. >> she told the court she did not know where the small stones had come from. mr. taylor said it was a diabolical live. the defense team alleges that the case against the former liberian leader has been a political conspiracy by western nations, which want to prevent them returning to power in west africa. >> we segment that is to the

shame of this prosecution that it has the smarts to the lofty ideals -- besmirched the lofty ideals of criminal law by turning this case into a 21st century form of neocolonialism. i am not apologizing for saying that. >> the verdict would be a critical moment. his trial has shown the international justice can bring even the most powerful. >> pakistan successfully launched a ballistic missile capable of caring and nuclear warhead and wednesday. it was launched into the indian ocean. it was described as an intermediate range missile. 3,000 kilometers. last week, india successfully launched its first intercontinental ballistic missile. i am joined by a lecturer in defense and strategic studies.

thank you so much for joining us. what do you think prompted pakistan to launch this missile? >> it is basically a demonstration of pakistan's resolve to continue to modernize its capabilities. the significance of this is not that it is our response to india's test, but it intends to upgrade current capabilities. on this particular missile, the range has been extended by around 300 kilometers. the earlier version -- probably, it has been organized to achieve greater accuracy. india is not investing in missile defense. however, i do not agree -- there

is already another version. it has a range of 2005 hundred kilometers. -- 2,500 kilometers. >> i am sorry to interrupt. the think that with this missile launch, this will heighten tensions in the south asian region with india? >> there is an ongoing arms race. it has been triggered by india's global ambitions. pakistan does not have any ambitions -- however, i think both countries continued to add

to their capabilities after they achieved a short strike potential. until that happens, we will continue to seek an advancement in missile tests. it would not bother pakistan on what india does. >> we will have to leave it there for now, thank you so much for joining us. >> the presence of the united states is a job like no other. -- the president of the united states is a job like no other.

these men seem to share a special bond explored in a new book. >> a firsthand report on u.s. relations with europe has made to president kennedy by former president eisenhower. >> they are bound together by simply having done the job. they have a secret clubhouse across the street. they have special rules. they're bound together because they have done the most difficult job. >> ok, you've on covered a lot of stories about conversations that presidents have had with former presidents. what surprises you the most? >> richard nixon becoming a late-night telephone body of bill clinton. that is someone no one would have predicted.

that was surprising to me. the second one is bill clinton having been president -- they become allies, partners in all kinds of projects across generations. that is the kind of power that having done this job -- one of my favorite parts is the presidential clubhouse. hardly anyone knows it exists. this is a 19th century town house. since 1969, it has been the overnight retreat an office of every one u.s. ever been a former president. this is a very exclusive club. only three people can get

reservations. it has just been renovated. one of the ways the u.s. government -- you guys are different from the rest of us. we will give you a special after job privilege. there is no sign on the door. >> is the interest of the president's club to protect the office of the president more than it is to protect your own legacy? >> one of the things he gets out of being in the present club is that you have room to rewrite history. they all do it when they leave office. they're all trying to burnish a reputation. they compare themselves to each other and they also share a belief that if the office of the presidency is not preserved and strengthened, the country is in danger. they believe that is one of the great battle equities of the american democracy, the power of the presidency.

they're all advocates of that. >> football, the european champions league. they will face chelsea next month with the final taking place in their own stadium. >> able be an epic final. -- it will be and at the final. >> one of japan's most influential politicians has been found not guilty of breaking the country's political fund-raising laws. thank you very much for watching.

>> make sense of international news at bbc.com/news. >> funding was made possible by -- the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu, newman's own foundation, and union bank. >> at union bank, our relationship managers work hard to understand the industry you operate in, working to nurture new ventures and help provide capital for key strategic decisions. we offer expertise and tailored solutions in a wide range of industries. what can we do for you? >> "bbc world news" was presented by kcet los angeles.

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