>> this is dw news come alive from berlin. on the eve of germany's next lockdown, when will vaccinations begin here? the health minister is confident the bi and pfizer vaccine will be approved before christmas. regulators are under pressure to approve the vaccine. sterilized against their will, tortured for speaking their mother tongue. an exclusive report inside china's reeducation camps, where

muslim minorities are being oppressed. and he's making a list and checking it twice, and taking no chances before his big night. even santa claus flows paemic procols as he lcomes visors this home near the north pole. >> to our viewers in the u.s., and all around the world, welcome. germany is hours away from the start of a new lockdown. coronavirus infections continue to surge. covid-19 deaths are at record high. schools and 90 central businesses will close beginning tomorrow, leaving shoppers scrambling to buy last christmas gifts. but there is good news for anyone whose biggest holiday wish is a covid vaccine.

the european medicine agency has brought forward a meeting at which it is expected to improve the vaccine developed by biontech and pfizer. >> there's always a surge of people at christmas time hunting for last-minute gifts. this time, it has come earlier than usual in germany. wednesday, stores will close as they enter a tough lockdown. even if not everyone finds where they are looking for, a welcome christmas present may be coming soon. germans are waiting for the first coronavirus vaccine to be approved. so far, not even the health minister knows when that will happen. >> our national authorities are supporting the european authorities to their best ability. the goal is to secure approval before christmas. >> germans have watched vaccines rolled out in the u.k. and the u.s., but the decision here is to wait until a drug is approved

by the european medicines agency. it was not until the end of the year. the signs are it will now come next week. >> if it gets approved by the 23rd of december, together with the producer, we will try and allow for a rapid delivery to the federal states. the federal states can then deliver it to vaccination centers. i'm expecting vaccinations to start two to four days after that. mass immunization centers are currently being equipped. millions of doses of vaccine are on order. those with heightened risk of infection will be invited first. the elderly, as well as health care workers. the question of priority is controversial. >> many people want it as quickly as possible, but there is not enough, at least in the beginning.

that is why we need clear and transparent priorities. the vaccine is being kept under key and lock and is highly protected. >> the vaccine is coming to germany, but unlike with father christmas himself, nobody can yet be sure when to expect it. >> let's take this to barbara wesel. the european medical agency has moved the date of a vaccine approval forward by a week, but the u.k., the u.s., canada, they have already started their vaccination rollouts. why is europe taking so much longer? >> europe is taking longer because the other countries, great britain, canada, the u.s., have authorized this by a so-called emergency authorization. that is a totally different cattle. what that means is the liability for the vaccine and effects,

or damages it could bring, rests with the state, not with the firm that produces it. so it is a completely different thing. the european union has tried to stay together from the beginning on this, and said they value the safety of their citizens above the speed of the authorization process. and the agency in amsterdam, it does a more thorough job than probably some other countries. they look at more data, more intensely into possible side effects. for instance, in great britain, the problems with allergy sufferers came up, and how safe it is for people over 18, under 18, are there enough persons in the test group? all of these need to be researched into. . that is what they are doing. normally, that takes a bit

longer. a normal process like this would take a year or more. >> but still, it leaves a lot of doubt that the difference of a few weeks will make a difference when it comes to determining how dangerous or safe these vaccines are. we know that germany has put pressure on the european medical agency to expedite its approval. did that have an impact on their decision? >> we can never prove it, but it is extremely likely, because it is a political decision. the germans want it now. internationally, to see the pictures of people getting the vaccine in britain and the u.s. and somehow created impatience and the feeling -- particularly in parts of the press -- that germans would miss out on this. the argument was it was invented in germany, why are we so late with getting the vaccine? of course, that is not true,

because it is distributed proportionately across all european countries. the political decision to speed it up as much as possible and coming as a christmas present now. >> barbara as always, thank you. during the first wave of the pandemic, germany was praised for keeping infection numbers relatively low. we know now that the virus would eventually put germany in its place. there have been exceptions. the southern german city of two have stuck to a simple formula to protect its members, and it has worked. teresa trover has this report. >> just under 100 senior citizens live at this care home in tubing. to keep infections out, visitors must follow strict rules on hygiene.

in recent weeks, visitors have also been able to take advantage of the free on-site coronavirus test. especially -- a specially trained carer takes the swab and it lasts a few minutes. give up 30 to 40 tests a day, but the number is growing. a few minutes later, you get the result and go ahead with your visit. they pay for the testing program, and no one was tested positive here for weeks. that's a big relief for the managers and residents alike. >> it means we can say that after a negative test, visiting can go ahead it is crucial for the well-being of the residents to keep up theisocial contacts. we know it puts psychological stress on many of them when visiting had to stop earlier in the year.

and it is not just in care homes, but also the rest of the town that extra measures are being taken to protect the elderly. segregating shops helps them avoid contact with others. subsidized taxis and mas are avaible for those in high-risk groups. that is a deliberate strategy. the mayor was criticized for speaking out in a way that many saw as agist. the town has since spent -- since spent half a million euros attacking elderly people. >> as a mathematician, iooked at the figures. in april, it was clear people over 70 were most at risk of dying. so we had to take extra steps to protect them. it would also stop intensive care units from becoming overloaded. >> the strategy seems to be working so far, and older people appreciate this preferential treatment. >> o course everyone has to

take responsibility r themselves, but in general, i think the measures that have been taken are absolutely right. >> to my mind, it is all being done very well. i use the transport service when i need to. >> i am wearing is mask mr. palmer sent me in the post. i keep it in the car so i don't forget it. it is a good precedent given to older people. >> a few>> hours later, a couple of senior citizens do get tested positive. one in the care home we visited earlier. so going into the strict national lockdown is something both the residents and mayor accept as necessary. >> we aren't perfect here, and we didn't manage to improve our contact acing, so if there is a lockdown, it has to be the same everywhere. otherwise, everyone would come here to do shopping.

it has to apply to everyone. >> the town has als come up th its own christmas plan. instead of having festive market stalls, they are setting up a testing station where everyone can get a free test before they go and visit their family over the holidays. >> let's take a look at some of the other developments in the pandemic. a study in spain found one in 10 people has been infected with the coronavirus. a national survey studying antibodies shows almost 5 million spaniards have contracted the virus so far. though who is in talks with pfizer and moderna about including their coronavirus vaccines for poor countries at affordable prices. the kovacs initiative aims to ensure equitable access to covid-19 vaccines around the world. top u.s. public health expert dr. anthony fauci has called for

president elect joe biden to be vaccinated as soon as possible in the interest of national security. he said vice president elect kamala harris should also get the vaccine. let's take a look at some of the other stories making headlines around the world. u.s. senate majority leader mitch mcconnell has congratulated joe biden on his election win. in a speech on the senate floor, he ended weeks of silence over president trump's defeat. it came a day after the electoral college officially confirmed biden's victory. dozens of police officers have been injured in clashes with anti-lockdown protesters in ukraine. demonstrators gathered in kiev to rally against recent coronavirus restrictions. nonessential businesses, gyms, and schools will be shut from the eighth of january in an attempt to curb the spread of the virus. british and european union negotiators are reportedly making progress in their post

brings it negotiations. germany's e.u. ambassador says a trade deal could be possible by the end of the week. negotiations stalled last week with a deal looking increasingly unlikely. the u.k.'s transition period out of the european market ends on december 31. critics have called it a 21st century genocide. china's so-called reeducation of more than one million uighurs and other muslim minorities. exiled uighurs have been dealt a blow by the criminal court. it has rejected calls to investigate beijing for alleged genocide and crimes against humanity. china maintains its goal is to reeducate people and steer them away from islamist extremism. muslim minorities say beijing is trying to wipe out every trace of their identities. we have this exclusive report tonight. >> scenes of a family outing,

her, her husband, and their daughter are in turkey, a safe location for now. but a normal life is still far away. she says she does not feel safe anywhere. >> i still wake up from nightmares in which i see myself in a chinese internment camp again. the images and memories of the interrogations, the beatings, and the things they did to me in their haunt me. i have felt sick for a few days, they haunt me. i argue with my family. i even think about hurting myself. >> in 2017 she was arrested in china's westernmost region. she was born in china and was living in kazakhstan at the time. on a trip back to china, she was detained by police and held for a year in several reeducation camps. >> they tortured us, they had

cameras everywhere. you are not allowed to pause, scratch your head, or cry. if they saw that, they would force you onto a metal chair. he would sit there for 12 hours 24 hours, if you try to move, it would get tighter. then they would make you repeat chinese words you did not know. if you forgot them, they used an electroshock device on your head. >> and kaz extent, her family did not know where she was. at the same time, authorities started to detain large numbers of the muslim minorities in the region. i traveled to the region to see for myself. this middle school was one of the camps she had been to. in 2018, a high wall was built around the school, and shacks were built in the courtyard. today, the school is back to what it was. china has defended the facilities as training centers and declared them by 2019 all trainees had graduated.

but she has told us many of her former inmates were later transferred to regular prisons. on the outskirts, there are two more facilities. >> there are now five policemen following me. a prison with watchtowers and another camp were both built in 2017, when the campaign against ethnic minorities took off. >> if you film here, we will have to take measures against you. this place is a state secret. >> she was told she was detained because she had been to kazakhstan. that was seen as a sign of being disloyal to china. more and more observers are calling what is happening in the region a genocide after reports of forced birth control sterilization and abortions. in the camp, she recalls the inmates were administered injections of an unknown

substance. >> after the injections, some women stopped having their periods. those who had it still were given one pad. they had to use it for two or three days. if their period would come it would come, if not, not. we stopped feeling ashamed about it. most of us had stopped crying by them. >> she is one of the lucky ones. she was finally allowed to leave after her husband had campaigned for her in kazakhstan. she has no news from her relatives in the region. >> we want to bring in -- she is with the world uyghur congress in montreal and canada. it is good to have you on the program. is the international community doing enough to protect the uyghurs and other minorities in china? >> i think it is fair to say there has been a lot of public

awareness in recent years about the uyghur genocide, but there has been a lot of concrete actions to address the uyghur genocide. such actions are targeted sanctions on officials or chinese entities responsible for this genocide. it was also pushing for an independent mission to go on the ground and really assess the situation. whether it is the youth allegation, but it also means protecting women refugees, aside from seekers, who are stranded in third countries, and also not being deported back to china, where they are facing imminent threats, where they could be thrown in internment camps. it also means states have the responsibility to adopt meaningful legislation to address the uyghur forced labor, as well. >> i would like to get your

reaction on the news today of the icc's decision not to investigate accusations of genocide and crimes against humanity against china. >> i think it comes up as a huge disappointment for the uyghur community. this community has been looking for some sort of accountability or justice in recent years. it has not found any. but it does not come as a surprise, because the chinese government is not signatory to the international criminal court. so i think there is no surprise. this is why an independent peoples tribunal was established, to address the specific question of genocide, and examine whether it is genocide, crimes against humanity, or not. at this point, i think it will be very useful for states to

then base their decision or future actions on the upcoming judgment. >> there's a new report out today that claims the chinese government is forcing ethnic minorities to pick cotton. you have said -- you have been quoted as saying virtually the entire clothing industry is potentially implicated. what should the entire clothing industry do? >> i think it is very simple, to start with acknowledging the claimant in the uyghur region, and know that operating any businesses in the region right now, given the atrocities that the chinese government is carrying out, it is hard to respect the eu guiding principles on human rights. so i think businesses have their responsibility to respect their

own sets of symbols -- principles, then they have to act showing it. for this, we have a specific and simple demand, to start with the signing of the call to action established by the coalition to end uyghur forced labor over the summer. >> we appreciate your time and your insights tonight, thank you. same sex couples will not be adopting children in hungary. that's part of the new anti-lgbt legislation approved by the hungarian parliament. a change to the hungary and constitution also states a person's sex is determined at birth and cannot be altered. it is the latest push by the prime minister's party to have more socially conservative policies in the country.

joining me to discuss this is my colleague. pablo, breakdown this latest round of anti-lgbt measures in hungary. >> you mentioned a few of them. the main one is it prevents gay couples from adopting now. it is very clear and states a parent -- parents need to be a man and a woman. up until now, lgbt members, members of the community, could adopt as single parents. if they were in relationships -- also in hungary, there is now also gay marriage permitted. so it complicated matters even more. now it's adding another layer and difficulty for members of the lgbt community to be able to adopt children. at the moment, they can do it as single people, but it needs to be approved by the parliament.

>> is there anything members of the lgbt community in hungary can do to stop these measures? >> obviously, there has been uproar by activists who are incredibly angry. it's another example of how their rights are being taken away from them. there have been protests online. protests from activist groups. it is just another step forward by the party in taking away these rights. earlier, i spoke to an activist in hungary. he's is incredibly angry, particularly with europe. he feels europe should do more. let's hear what he has to say. >> of course these are difficult topics. some are clearly in the mandate of the cpetence of the member states and not t eu. but you see a systematic undermining of rule of law,.

democratic principle human rights. you cannot focus anday this or that provision is not in line, you have to see the broad picture. the broad picture is very gloomy. i think with the current legal framework, hungary will never be able to join the eu. beforehat, they were insistent on having these laws and democratic printable's, rule of law and human rights in place. ever since we joined, the eu is not doing anying to enforce the basic suppose. so we thi it is very important for the eu to not focus on pieces of legislature, but also the broad picture and see what happening in hungary is the undermining of basic democratic principles. >> very strong words about what is going on, and what the feeling is in hungary. another aspect he was talking about timmy is he was saying they will try and fight this through the constitutional court in hungary, but it will be a

long process. up until then, the rights of the lgbt members will be difficult in hungary. >> and there are scandals in the country and outside the country with hungarian connection. but that's a different story. thank you. he's making a list and checking it twice. it is that time of year when children visit santa claus to tell him their christmas wishes. normally, children sit on santa's lap. but that's not socially distanced. like many other things, that has had to change because of the coronavirus pandemic. luckily for those making the trek to santas village in finland near the arctic circle, the man in red has everything under control. >> it is unusually quiet in santa's village. at this time of year, the little town in the arctic circle is usually bustling with people. but not even the magical enclave

is exempt from the pandemic's global consequences. in times of uncertainty for old and young, st. nick has a reassuring message. >> we all have to be very good and nice. and we have to follow all public health recommendations and social distancing rules. we all can find new ways to be in contact with our friends, relatives, and loved ones. >> and santa leads by example, greeting those who have made the trip to his village through plexiglass. sporting masks and pacifiers, traditions are reinvented in the arctic circle. after all, staying in good graces with santa tkes commitment. >> i'm a regular visitor here. i have been trying to get off of the naughty list for years. >> for those unable to come see father christmas personally, the elves at the post office are working overtime to make sure all wishes are granted.

as rudolph and his herd start warming up for the big trip around the globe, santa has one last word of advice. >> be nice to each other. christmas is coming soon. >> that's right. naughty or nice, santa claus is coming to town. after a short break, i will be back to take you through the day. stick around. we'll be right back.

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♪ >> welcome to "live from paris" world news and analysis from ance 24. half a million uighurs are being used as slave labor by the chinese state. campaigners say over one million have been forced into internment camps. boko haram claims the student kidnapping in the north of nigeria. 333 students are unaccounted for.