>> you are watching the "journal" from dw in berlin. >> our top stories for you at this hour -- >> u.s. authorities uncover what could be the biggest money- laundering scheme in the country's history. and ceremonies are held to remember the victims of a racist arson attack in germany 20 years ago. it is being called one of the

biggest money-laundering cyber crimes in u.s. history. seven men have been charged by u.s. officials for helping criminals launder their money for a transaction fee. >> the operation, based in costa rica, is accused of laundering $6 billion in illicit funds. it served around 1 million customers and according to the indictment had developed into a central hub for criminals. >> the liberty research founder and his associates were arrested at the madrid airport last friday while attempting to return to coaster rica. the charges filed by u.s. authorities say liberty reserve was one of the main ways for cyber criminals to transfer funds are around the world anonymously. the money-laundering scheme used middlemen to convert cash into online credit. all that was needed was an e- mail address. payments delivered to your reserve were credited to third parties who, for a small fee, transfer them back under a

different cover. customers could then access the money anywhere in the world. operations were based in costa rica, where there are no laws regulating online business. u.s. officials said concealing global cyber crime was liberty's main aim. >> liberty reserve deliberately operated in a way to attract and eight criminals to break the law and to launder the proceeds of their crimes. serious crimes include a identity theft, investment fraud, computer hacking, child pornography, and even narcotics trafficking. >> liberty preserve allegedly processed transactions for 1 million users worldwide. the indictment says nearly all of its business was related to a suspected criminal activity, and the authorities have closed down the operation. >> for more on this, we are joined by richard walker from our dw business desk.

what exactly is digital currency, and what is the point of it? >> there are lots of different kinds. one of them will be quite familiar to our viewer. if you have a facebook account, you may use facebook credits. if you have an xbox, you might use exxon points. if you have an amazon account, you might use amazon points. these are really just to get you to buy more from the platform in question. the difference with liberty reserve was that this was a system designed to transfer money from one person to another. there is another system out there that has been getting a lot of publicity recently called bitcoin. with the indictment says about liberty reserve is that it was deliberately designed as a criminal system. a much more over money laundering machine. >> explain to us how such a criminal system managed to get away with this for such a long time. >> what is interesting is actually it did not go unnoticed for all that time.

looking in the indictment, in 2009, it was noticed very much by the costa rican authorities. they went to it and told them to register as a money transfer system. according to the indictment, it applied to register and was then rejected because it did not have those money-laundering controls in place. in 2011, costa rica seized $20 million from an account from liberty reserve at the request of the americans. at that point according to the indictment, littery reserve started scattering money across the globe to cyprus, to russia, so perhaps given that, it is perhaps not surprising a took a while for these red flags to turn into charges. >> in this high-tech world, digital money is getting more popular. what can be done to tackle systems like this in the future? >> i think we're headed for something of a public debate on this. if these charges are proven,

liberties that controversial that the money-laundering system will be taken down, but where you draw the line? any central banker would say to get rid of any kind of digital currency. but supporters of bitcoin would say the central reserves are not doing their job and are printing money. >> thank you very much. >> afghan insurgents had attacked another humanitarian organization, the second in a week. authorities say a suicide bomber blew himself up. >> attackers stormed the building. a two-hour gunbattle with security forces and sued. one guard was shot dead. officials say seven foreign workers were evacuated from the office, one with minor injuries. >> a second day of sectarian violence in northeastern myanmar has left at least one person dead and four injured. >> mobs of buddhist and attacked

muslim districts in the town near the chinese border. the president's government urged a halt to the violence. rites began after reports that a muslim man had set a buddhist woman on fire. on to some economic news now. it is report card time in the eu. the european commission has issued a new list of recommendations for -- of who are the stragglers in the eurozone and who are the achievers. after years of being fixated on austerity, the focus now shifting to growth. >> it is giving some member states a little more slack to deal with the sovereign debt crisis, while telling germany to remove obstacles to strong internal demand. >> the commission also had some stern words for the common currency area's #two economy, france. >> the eu commission handed down recommendations to the member states, indicating the progress has been made against spending.

but many countries have been given the extra homework of implementing strengthen -- sweeping structural reforms. >> because of the good progress made, we now have the space to slow down the pace, depending on the situation in each country. >> six countries including spain and france, will get more time to reduce debt, but it is a reprieve with strings attached. the commission also said paris must modernize its labor market and pension system. >> in return, it is crucial -- indeed essential -- that france use this additional time to tackle its underlying problems of economic competitiveness. >> there was also a to do list for germany. the commission must find ways to increase demand. >> indicating that germany

should -- and in fact germany is already doing it -- a line wages with productivity. >> for some countries, the generally positive reports are just a short reprieve until the june summit with the >> more now from our brussels correspondent. exactly what the european commission's priorities are. >> there has been a shift of priorities. the commission has always said that it was important that countries bring their budgets in order, but at the same time, they have to create growth in jobs, and all the cuts that the countries have implemented have meant the economic situation just got worse in those countries, and the commission is acknowledging that and is giving some of them more time, and they are phrasing it differently now -- they are saying they are setting a focus on creating jobs and growth, but we have to continue -- but they have to continue fiscal consolidation.

that may sound like a small change, but it will definitely set the tone for future policies. when we talk about implications, the commission has also said that countries that have been given more time have to use that time wisely to implement reforms, but there would be no sanctions. it is a bit like a teacher giving up report cards at the end of a term with some countries receiving good marks and other countries receiving bad marks, but nobody has to repeat the year even though somy poorly. the question is -- will the increase efforts just because they have been told off? that is hard to conclude. >> from report cards on to wednesday's market action, after two days of solid gains, that day. european markets turned - -- negative in the session. >> no one here on the frankfurt floor like to hear about economic clues. -- economic news.

in bad economic news, it was that the german market was looking not as bright as expected, possibly leading to a slowdown for the economy, one analyst said. after the dax had gone up two days in a row, practically back to record levels, now there were hefty losses. adding to the dim mood was news from the oecd. the organization cut back its prognosis for germany's economic growth this year to only 0.3%. adding to the mood also, the expectancy speculation, perhaps fear, that the fed, the u.s. central bank, might cut back on its very liberal policy of pumping money into the economy and into the markets. >> history was made in france this wednesday as two men celebrated the country's first same-sex marriage.

they exchanged vows in the southern city of montpellier. it is less than two weeks since france's gay marriage bill was signed into law. the ceremony was held at city hall. the gay community has hailed the wedding as a beautiful moment the first of many as hundreds of couples planned to do the same thing nine weeks to come. >> for more on the story, we are joined on the line from paris. this has been a controversial issue in france for a long time. how much opposition has there been to today's ceremony? >> i'm sure all the people who are opposed to gay marriage from the start of opposed to the ceremony, but in terms of actual protests, there has been nothing significant. police were there in a certain degree of force to deter any troublemakers. i do not think there was any real risk, though there could have been crowds of people

shouting and heckling. there are many people who still remain bitterly opposed to the whole idea of gay marriage, not because they are necessarily anti-gay, but because they believe marriage has been changed in a way that they do not like. those people will remain unhappy, but i would say the vast majority of people have accepted that now the law has been passed there's not much more they can do now. >> we have just seen some pictures of the opponents to the ceremony. does the fact that this wedding has not taken place now mean the debate is over? >> well, i mean, it does in a way. the debate is over. this has become law. the opponents are very divided among themselves about what to do now. the mainstream part of the movement are saying the era or the age of demonstrations -- the period of demonstrations is gone now.

they are very divided. they are very loath to commit to repealing it. once it is enacted, they admit it would be very hard to roll back on. i think that the focus will probably now concentrate on other related issues. there is a feeling among both supporters of gay rights and people who worry about it that that our next steps, and this could be legislating to make it easier for gay couples to have adopted children. these are very, very sensitive issues, which have been deliberately left out, but which could easily come up under pressure from gay rights groups, and they will once again certainly excite the ira and opposition of people who up until now have been focusing on gay marriage. >> thank you very much for the analysis. a lot to talk about on that one. >> sports ministers and officials from about 100 nations

have gathered in berlin, hoping to clean up the image of world sport. >> doping and match fixing scandals have deeply damaged the reputations of a range of sports and sports federations in several countries. >> sport is meant to be something that brings nations together, not a chance for crooks to make a dishonest dollar. >> betting on sports events is big business and around the world, but it is also a big opportunity for money laundering, fraud, and other crimes, sometimes even involving sports professionals and officials. chancellor angela merkel told delegates at the conference sports association's need the help of their national governments if they are to tackle such crime. >> they need the support of their government or parliament when it comes to fighting the sometimes powerful culture of crime surrounding sport. fighting crime within sport is one of several issues on the agenda at the conference in berlin. in some countries, whole sections of society are excluded from sports.

girls in afghanistan and the taliban faced punishment and even death just for playing football. sport is for everyone -- that is one of the messages of the event. event. >> welcome back. thanks for staying with us. encouraging young people to turn off their video games and get outside and take part in some real gains is difficult enough, but how you challenge them to pursue a sport when you know it is full of cheats? >> that is one of the challenges facing the international officials in berlin. they want to broaden the general appeal of the sport. >> studies show the number of people who do sports on a regular basis is declining. delegates are calling for sports to become a fundamental right for all. >> no matter how you move it -- on the track, doing gymnastics,

in a fitness studio, or if you look for the extremes -- exercises good for you. surveys say about 1/3 of germans know it and feel it and exercise at least once a week, and they will not be put off by a spot of bad weather. >> i've always done it. i've been exercising since i was a kid. it is just a good feeling. it balances out all of the stress and when you are not feeling so great. >> the 1/3 of germans also admit to never working out. it is difficult to define when activities some would see as a normal part of life really amount to exercise. >> the perception of what a sport and what is not is very different. for someone who sees a daily by a grant in the morning as sport, a to would never cross the mind of someone who is an athlete to see it as physical activity.

>> children often have too little space to play and schools have to save money with physical education and major target for cuts. when children and young adults do join sports clubs, the trainers their notice a clear tendency in terms of physical development. >> you can tell that they spend a lot of time in front of the computer. they are less flexible, have slow reflexes and are often shabbier than they used to be. i'm glad about every child that turns up and wants to join. >> social background is also a major fitness factor. fewer children from ethnic inorities or whose parents have little education take part in organized sports activities. where you are from determines how thick you are. >> the prime factor in sport is not who has the best muscle fiber to then go on to play football or table tennis. it is much more about social factors that are also vital for

many other areas. that includes education and social security. >> biting social injustice and investment in education and infrastructure -- that appears to be the best formula to make sports a universal pursuit. >> joining us now is a professor of education at the free university of berlin. one of the topics of the conference is called access to sports is a fundamental right for all. what is the aim of the initiative? >> we almost some of the benefits we can get from sport, both in terms of mental and physical health and social cohesion. unfortunately, not everyone is getting equal access to these benefits. children with disabilities, older people with disabilities, especially girls and women have not really been thought up. our commission took the position of how we can help other sports ministers learn from what is being done in other countries so

that more children and also older people can have the benefits of sports. >> how relevant is sport for today's young people? how does one encourage them to do more of it? >> there's lots of successful strategies. young people want to have our lives, enjoy energy, a joint physical health and mental health, and sport is basically the best way to do that. this is why i need to think of programs which are appropriate for kids at different ages as they grow up and for adults a different point in our lives and not just think that what we learned in physical education class 20 years ago we can keep doing. there's lots of fun ways that you can bring in sort of what we know from the digital world, using things like an iphone for running a different video games that you see kids using in europe or other ways of making it more fun for kids in africa who did not have access necessarily to technology, but new kinds of programs make it more fun and less like boring

physical education class. >> you are founder of the project box girls. it sounds unusual to teach young girls boxing. what is the name? >> it gets started as a knick -- neighborhood initiative for the girls in my community who i thought could use some support in terms of their leadership development. since i was very excited about olympic boxing, we used boxing and self-defense as the way we help them develop their own strength, develop their self- confidence, to take more responsibility for their communities. we started that in berlin. in 2005, the german government suggested us as a model project for the u.n. year of sport project. we were able to meet people in other countries -- namely kenya and south africa of -- and we help people who are interested in girls' sports in nairobi and cape town start programs there. now fox girls international has two sites, and we have constant

requests from other countries to help them build good, strong sports programs in their countries. >> thank you very much. in other news, three activists have been detained in tunisia after they have staged what has been called the first topless protest in the arab world. >> the women protested in front of tunis' main courthouse here they are demanding a third is release and 18-year-old tahitian girl arrested for painting the name of their group on a wall. ceremonies have been held this wednesday to remember the victims of a racist arson attack which took place 20 years ago there. three girls were killed when neo-nazis set their house on fire. it shocked the nation, and the town pledged there would never be a repeat of such an incident. >> these school children were not even born when a deadly

arson attack against a turkish family put their town on the map. on the 20th anniversary of the crime, they are taking to the streets, demonstrating against racism. in city hall, german and turkish politicians gathered to pay their respects to the victims. speaking before the assembly, she called for solidarity between ethnic germans and migrant communities. >> people should live together in peace, no matter what their origins. these of the values by which we should raise our children. >> she lost two daughters, two granddaughters, and a niece in the attack. 14 others were injured in the attack, some of them severely. a court sentenced four young right-wing extremists to prison

for the crime. by now, all of them have been released. none has apologized. the mayor praised the family for remaining in the town in carrying on without hatred. >> in all these years, you have never let anyone doubt that you are here to stay, that this is your home. >> the city has planted five chestnut trees on the site where the house once stood. each one in memory of a family member who lost her life in the attack. >> on to a big philosophical question now -- what makes art art? it is a question lots of people ask themselves when visiting modern art galleries. >> this is not any different. just a few examples of the rich diversity of our own show. >> if you do not get a chance to go this time, we will take you there now. >> they have all flocked to

venice to preview it. art collectors, museum curators, and critics. it has weathered plenty of tough economic times over its 118-year history, but today, it still one of the world's top exhibitions. >> an understanding of culture in the world -- i'm not bragging, but there's not really many other places you can do that. >> the curator is tasked with putting together a show that is contemporary, that does not follow the trends. he showcases both forgotten artists and up-and-coming talent. this year's event features 88 national pavilions, and for the first time, two countries are trading spaces. france and germany have swapped pavilions, just-in-time for the anniversary of the treaty of friendship.

the most famous name on the list -- ai weiwei of china. >> we decided this year to portray germany as a cosmopolitan country. this year, things could be completely different. >> on saturday, our fans can see what this year's exhibition has to offer. >> the idea of cultural ambassadors representing their own countries in the national pavilions has become less and less relevant, and not just in the german pavilion, but the public do not care anyway. what they want is art. >> that was one of classical music's business scandals. audience members smashed chairs, booed, and police had to intervene at the premiere of ego stravinsky's rite of spring.

100 years later, the pieces being performed at the same theater. a russian director and his orchestra are staging back-to- back ballets of the groundbreaking work. one version is a modern interpretation by a german choreographer. the other, a reconstruction of the work's original choreography. >> wow. you feel free to decide, but no throwing chairs. >> that is all for us from now. thanks for being with us. >> for more news at the top of the hour, keep it on dw. captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org--

but two of the most dangerous things in honduras agreed to stop the violence but not turn in their weapons. what will the impact be on the most dangerous countries in the world? plus -- quit the jersey shore is open for business. >> rehr schuring words from president obama seven months after hurricane sandy struck the northern u.s.. how are low-income areas fairing? ♪