♪ >> 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.

vaccine urgency, eu states put pressure on a european agency to accelerate the approval process. fears are growing over long-term damage to jobs and businesses across the 27-state lock -- 27-state bloc. this is "live from paris." thank you very much for being with us. hundreds of thousands in panic are being forced to pick cotton through a coerced state-run scheme. the center for global policy the puts pressure on global brands such as nike and adidas accuse them of using forced labor in worldwide supply change --

supply chains. china denies the abuse. >> an explosive new report lays out the scope of china's forced labor scheme under the guise of the government's massive anti-poverty campaign. researchers at the washington-based think tank, the center for global policy, have found turner's documents that showalf a million uighurs have been forced to work. reeducation centers have been forced -- forcing the minority population to work. chinese authorities call them reeducation centers and say they are necessary.

>> based on their voluntary choice of occupation on a voluntary equal basis in accordance to the law. there is no such thing as the forced labor situation described i some people with all tier your motives. >> the rort has far-reaching implications for the global cotton supply chains. the region produces more than 20% of the worlds cotton, and china is the world's largest cotton exporter. the u.s. has already imposed sanctions and restricted cotton imports from a paramilitary organizationhat produces 1/3 of t region's cotton. several clothing companies have also promised to cut ties, but tracking the products made with forced labor is no easy task. causing potential headaches for the fashion industry. >> rights activists have said

the province in china is home to traditional internment camps that have imprisoned at least one million uighur people. china defends the camps as vocational training centers to counter extremis the organization behind the search, condemned by the chinese government as being regionally motivated. >> in 2018, the state transferred well over 500 million uighurs, and it was a scheme set up by the same person who set up the police state and the mass campaign of internment camps. the problem goes very deep because the chinese state is trying to put the uighurs to labor. they need to be busy and preoccupied. children are being separated from parents at boarding schools. parents are being put to full-time work because if you work in a chinese factory, you

cannot go to a mosque and cannot participate in traditional community or religious activities. 70,000 officials each year are descending on uighur villages, asking in advance how many people are needed to pick cotton in the fields. according to media reports, they go to every household, perform forced indoctrination and transformation. the account speaks of uighurs professing, "i used to be lazy, but now i'm willing to pick cotton." it is grueling work and poorly paid. in some cases, the work is performed by migrants looking to make money.

>> we are looking for more, of course, on that story for you. next, boko haram is claiming the kidnapper of over 300 schoolchildren in the northwest of nigeria. the kidnapper took place as nigeria's president was on an official visit. an analyst from the institute for global chae joins us now. is this claim credible? >> good evening. we cannot say 100% for sure if this is from boko haram, and i hope it is not, but it is likely boko haram is responsible for the attack. boko haram has made inroads into the northeastern part of nigeria where the attack took place. secondly, we know that the

attack itself bears boko haram's hallmarks. for example, when the attackers went, they were reported to have been shouting "god is great" in arabic, which is a boko haram homework. the claim of responsibility is most likely true. >> boko haram best known perhaps for the kidnapping of many girls, some of whom are still missing. what fate lies in store for the children who are still missing? >> you are right,t's another indication this could be boko harabecause this particular kidnapping -- there was another

abduction where 110 schoolgirls were taken two years ago. boko haram could be using these boys for two things -- number one, an attempt to indoctrina and use them as fighters. they are notoriousor conscripng fighters in this way. secondly, they may t do the first one, but they may use these boys to get money from government and get their deined fighters in government detention released. >> it seems boko haram -- correct me if i'm wrong -- has been relatively quiet over the past year or two. why would they be emerging now? what is the true situation on

the ground? >> they had been quiet two or three years ago, but they he been active in the last 18 months or so. soldiers from nigeria were killed in december 2018. some of their deadliest attacks took place this year. number one, the multinational joint tax force has weakened in the last 18 months or so because chad has been dragging its feet and says it would not continue in the multinational task force because other countries are not

paying their fair share. the other reason is the continuous weakness of the security and law enforcement system in nigeria and other countries and to find that the area in the northeastern part of virginia and the northwest where the attack took place, it is easy to supply arms, fighters, and all that. the area where this particular incident took place is not far from the sahara where they make weapons in that part of the world. >> this lack of understanding, or it almost sounds like an argument as you are describing it, between the joint task was countries -- is there a link between that and the fact that boko haram over the past 18

months has been getting stronger and stronger? >> there is definitely a link. when the multinational joint task force weginning to investigate, they succeeded in pushing to the fringes of the region. that resulted in the multinational task force becoming weak. in chad, 1100 soldiers from nigerian soil who were fighting boko haram,t that time, boko haram was waitingo fill that vacuum, but chad insisted the mission has expired. there was actually an editorial for the weakeni o the multinational jnt task force. that tells you how powerful they

were. i think the countries in the region would do better to sit at the table, be in the multinational joint task force, plan on slots and continue them together. otherwise, we will continue to play a game of hide and seek with boko haram. >> in the meantime, these 330 three schoolkids are missing, thought to be in the hands of boko haram. thank you, sir, for joining us and sharing your analysis of the situation with us. of course, we are looking forward to developments in these stories for you and hope these youngsters will be returned to their homes as soon as possible. next, facing strong pressure

from germany and other european union nations. a meeting to assess the pfizer-biontech coronavirus vaccine was moved up. it is likely to bring vaccinations a step closer to eu citizens. as infection rates rise and people are still dying, there are also deeper fears of a prolonged negative effect on the economy with jobs and businesses being lost on a permanent basis. >> fresh covert restrictions across europe have many crying bah humbug -- fresh covert restrictions. the government is requiring gatherings be limited to just six people. while shops are open, and 8:00 p.m. curfew is in effect, and officials are urging people to take precautions. >> [speaking foreign language]

in january. in germany, anxious shoppers were rushing to stores to buy last-minute presence -- presents before the new national lockdown goes into effect on thursday. the czech republic, too, is battling a rising tide of new infections. restaurants, hotels, and fitness centers which had just reopened two weeks ago will shut again friday, and an 11:00 p.m. curfew will be put in place. in italy, the government has banned attendance for midnight mass on christmas eve. travel between regions for the holiday period starting on

december 20 will only be allowed for emergencies. belgium is enforcing the strictest measures yet. just one guest per household for christmas. two best -- two guests are allowed for someone who lives alone. >> holiday restrictions in force across europe. in france, most of the restrictions lifted, but a large-scale curfew still in place across the country. workers have taken to the streets of paris to protest about the continuation of the enforced closure of their workplaces. bars and workplaces are still closed because of the anti-covid regulations. no opening is envisioned until next month. our reporter was out with the demonstrators. >> sadness, disappointment -- those words best some of the

mood among the demonstrators. thousands gathered to protest against the government's decision. museums, theaters, cinemas, cultural centers were set to reopen today, but due to the bad figures with the covid-19 pandemic far from under control, the government had to postpone the reopening of these venues, dashing the hopes of an entire center who says their jobs are at risk and that huge amounts of money have then lost over the past few months. people here do not understand why culture is not deemed essential. they do not understand the government's decision, and they are protesting, trying to make their message loud and clear. the prime minister on the other

hand repeated this morning that these were tough decisions to take, but they did not have any choice. they are doing this for the safety of the french people. unions are heading to the highest court in france to launch an appeal and tried to get the government to back down that decision, but it does sound very unlikely. >> our reporter on the streets with the culture workers demonstration, of course, wanting their laces of work to reopen, but they remain closed because of the covid-19 situation. let's turn around to business. the european union is about sweeping legislation to curb the power of big tech companies. they could try to break up companies like google or facebook if they do not comply with new restrictions. for more, let's bring in our editor, kate moody.

what do we know about these guidelines? >> there were two separate proposals we are talking about, one with police content online and the other targeting market monopolies. the digital markets would tackle what the media sees as unfair competition, giving smaller tech companies more leverage and visibility when it comes to things like the results that show up when you do a search online. noncompliance could lead to fines of up to 10% of global revenues, and if companies are found to be repeat offenders, authorities say they could take steps to structurally separate their businesses. the digital services act, meanwhile, would make companies oversee or remove content deemed illegal or harmful. all this will need to be debated at the european parliament. all 27 member states will need to approve the final legislation, which could -- which means it could be years before it takes effect.

the trump administration has long said that brussels is waging a war on american businesses. the eu's competition chief, who has been accused of waging this work, said it was merely about updating the bloc's rules for the digital age. >> now we have such an increase in the online traffic that we need to make rules that put order into chaos. >> what has the reaction been in silicon valley? >> firms that have been rallying against these tighter legislations will probably continue their efforts to have them watered down. a statement from google expressed concern that the eu appears to be "specifically targeting a handful of companies" making it harder to develop new products to support

small businesses in europe. the team of commerce focused on that criticism. facebook, perhaps surprisingly, has issued a statement saying it believes these puzzles could help preserve what is good about the internet, but it did say brussels need to make sure the rules apply specifically to apple as well, pointing out that apple controls and ecosystem and uses its power to harm consumers, and it is a sign of possible division in silicon valley. the question now is -- will these tech giants turn on each other or will they try to coordinate their response in what appears to be a te of pending lawsuits and litigations against them? >> it's that time you should take us to wall street then.

how have stockmarkets been faring today? >> sharply higher gains, about 1% across-the-board. the dow jones rallied about 300 points in the final moments of trading. stocks did gather momentum towards the end of the session as the u.s. congress appeared to take steps towards another round of stimulus and relief funds. there seems to be some optimism that enough lawmakers on both sides of the aisle might support a new compromise, 700 $48 billion stimulus proposal, extending unemployment benefits for millions of americans. the american central bank kicked off a two-day policy meeting today. on wednesday, it is expected to give its latest snapshot of the year, giving us an idea of the state of the u.s. economy, possibly an idea of how long it's ongoing buying and lending programs will go on, how long it expects that emergency support to last.

governors unanimously voted to join a central network of banks with the goal of mobilizing low-carb -- low carbon investment. the u.s. and india are the only developed nations in the world to joinhe group of course, donald trump withdrew the united states from that international climate adrift -- climate agreement. joe biden has vowed to rejoin as soon as he is put into office. it is an independent body, not specifically part of the presidential team, but it is a pretty symbolic move as we enter the final month of the trump administration. >> kate moody, as you can see, working from home. let's try to keep away from covid-19 as best we possibly can here at france 24. it is time for focus. dangerous pesticides banned in

the eu are still being produced here and exported. a dangerous contradiction exposed by greenpeace and the swiss ngo public eye. places like brazil and the united states make up a lucrative market for these pesticides. more on the extent of this dubious trade, and there's a dubious twist -- these countries then export food products to europe. >> welcome to forward farm. the site, which presents itself as an ever on agriculture center, is run by a pesticide giant. it is ideally located for lobbying. >> almost every month, products or disappearing from the market. >> we start with a detailed

presentation of the benefits of agrochemical products. >> they are really useful for sustainable production. in the last 50 years, we were able with new technologies to produce the same amount of food on 68% less land. >> the european union has banned the use of hundreds of pesticides on its soil. producers keep having to seek alternatives. for example, here, they are wondering how to replace the chemical that used to be used to stop potatoes from sprouting. >> we see that legislation is having different interpretations in different parts of the world because the same products are still around for canada or the u.s., so it is the way our legislation group is looking at it, which is very careful, always trying to be at the very, very safe side, so making sure that if we are not 100% sure we

can avoid every risk, we are not going to allow it. >> yet, these strict rules do not prevent the eu from exporting its pesticides outside the bloc. it is legal but difficult to justify. >> these products have to be also declared to be legal authorities if you were exporting them, so it is not that a country can export what they want. they have to declare what, when, and to which country, so it is a fully transparent process to do this,2d but it is not easy. >> theransparency of the process is regulated from helsinki and finland by the european chemicals agency. exports of products that are banned in the eu are then authorized by a team. >> the purpose is to divine

information about this -- define information about this or that substance and then make rules to govern that substance. >> they produce a document informing the destination country why the product is banned in the eu, and then the product is shipped off to the u.s., brazil, ukraine, morocco, and elsewhere. according to a recent study, 80,000 tons of band pesticides were exported from the eu in 2018. >> destination countries for band pesticides were also the main countries for which europe imports agricultural and food products, which means these pesticides come back in to the countries that european countries' residents then find on their plates. >> i think it is absolutely not

right. >> it is up to the member states to act on the commission's recommendations. for the moment, france is the only eu member planning to banned exports of these pesticides by 2022. anyway, pesticide lobbyist insist such bands would not stop the trade in these products. >> if we ban the production of exports of these products, they would just be produced elsewhere. a european ban on exports will not stop there production.

>> pesticides deemed too dangerous to use on european soil but still used widely outside the eu. >> strange paradox. stay with us. more news to come. ♪

12/15/20 12/15/20 [captioning made possible by democracy now!] amy: from new york, this is democracy now! of america,oul democracy prevails. we the people voted. faith in our institutions held. the integrity of our elections remains intact. amy: as the electoral college formally votes to make joe biden the 46th president of the united states, we will look at a growing movement to elect the president through a national