among the week's top stories from r.t. russia's refresh constitution comes into effect after getting solid backing in a challenging week long as we gauge public opinion to the change is. a lovely country and you think everything has been done is right i think it is not. needed because the current constitution is out of date to topple or protect rages all over the future of statues linked to historical racism on our streets we look at germany's claim to have a solution. seattle police. following deadly shootings and repeated violence.

with the top stories from the past 7 days and right up to the moment of elements as well this is the weekly r t international law and well. overhaul constitution came into effect on saturday following a previous week long vote a hefty majority of the public indorse the changes with over 3 quarters in favor from a turnout of around 68 percent saskia taylor kept tabs on the final day of polling for us. now this really was a vote of us the fos time people were in mosques and gloves that they were using disposable pans wilson threw temperature sconce focusing on law and for some as for the voting process itself while there was a situation where security footage allegedly caught a woman stuffing the ballots now that counting in that area of moscow has been

suspended pending an investigation otherwise the central editorial commission says that it found no irregularities that was so many amendments on the table $147.00 in total that it's difficult to decide what it was that ultimately secured public backing but undoubtedly it's the package of social amendments that house particularly white appeal i'm talking about things like adjusting pensions and laws with inflation and showing that the minimum wage never ever fools below the cost of living as well as giving additional financial support to low income families these proof because they have such a tangible impact on people's day to day lives but that is not to say that this was an easy decision for anyone old that it was without control to see a few amendments proved to be particularly polarizing and one that paints a lot of media traction was conceding the so-called zeroing out of president putin's previous tubs paving the way for him potentially if he wanted to do so run

again twice as president on top of the some of the more conservative amendments proved to be divisive such as defining marriage so many as a union between a man and a woman reiterating traditional family values as well as mentioning goal despite the fact that russia is officially a sector of the nation but that's him the people themselves and what they have to say will be a push why have i come here to vote because i'm a c. just russia and. all of them men women and i am not ok with them and about as you are now the presidential term i absolutely do not agree with. the can from it. with all of the amendments in the constitution of. the most important amaze the prevalence of russia you know over international the head of the central election commission of said something about voting being like a meal deal you either take everything or you do not take it at all and i already do not like one dish in this meal deal so i will not take everything else i think

it is nonsense according to all legal logical and ethical norms i love my country and you think everything that is being done is right i think that it's needed because the current constitution is out of date it is in modern time and even the view is that as far as new the bit of a mixed bag in terms of reaction and people decide to show that disapproval not just at the polls but also protests peaceful ones in the capital and also in the us and petersburg but true to 2024 it was safety fast. not. because. ultimately the so many who put a tick in the yes box would argue that the russia of $9293.00 when this current constitution was born was full of political and economic instability it was still finding its feet after the collapse of the soviet union and that russia is not the same as the russia of 2020 that almost entirely different countries so i think this

is just to the changes was born from a desire for the country's top document to move with the times to set russia on a new course and shape its future as envisaged by russians now today and not as envisaged by russians almost 30 years ago. so it gets here with one of our reports on the day of the final vote while there was a long list of amendments in the package i'll offer but it was one element in particular that got much of the foreign media fired off. russia's parliament basically paving the way for vladimir putin to potentially stay on as russian president he's the longest serving russian leader since joseph stalin but a lot of your putin wants to stay in power even longer addressing lawmakers abdu words putin said he backed the amendment allowing him to seek another term in office but there are dozens of interesting lucian's that also be discussed and the one that caught my eye was on children the role of children and not all fronts i

explicitly mentioned in one of the constitutional a mark which i think is worse while reflecting the russian federation of the year 2020 is in many regards i would say in a different situation than was the country in 1903 when we compare. international circumstances but also of course the national economic and political situation the early ninety's were marked by the implosion of the soviet union marked by the down brutal communists and. it was more about being a fax s. of the then the russian federation that we have today i think there is a need for. meeting this new circumstances because a constitution is almost a reflection of a society and also of the circumstances of the country it is in so the u.g.

of the legislature the parliament in order to respond to these new with egypt is. the campaign to topple statues linked to historical racism saw groups a turk and others attempt to defend monuments through the week and while some of the links may be clear the vandalism of denmark's little mermaid was a little harder to comprehend it was daubed with the words of racist fish but academics a very can see what could be racially insensitive about the christian understand for retail so what is the best way to remember history the good the contentious peter all over explores what germany thinks is the answer. when it comes to assessing and dealing with difficult periods of history germany has more experience than most but we haven't seen the type of scenes here that have played out in the united states britain belgium i i.

i. i i. i. but germany isn't without its own controversial statues otto von bismarck has been dogged with red paint in hamburg while as an ongoing campaign to block the renovation of another monument to the eye and chancellor in the port city bismarck wasn't just crucial in german unification he was also a driving force in colonialism and by today's standards and anti semite here in berlin selland of district anime is 1920 s.

depiction of a needling black woman was decapitated last week castleman remains controversial in germany he was a committed nazi and despite that fact his works continue to be displayed across the german capital this particular monument had been slated for removal by city authorities who already deemed it earlier this year on suitable for display in the city of berlin and it shifted to a diverse society cannot exist with this kind of bigotry and prejudice you cannot live together if you do not treat each other equally people shouldn't be discriminated against based on the color of their skin so what happens to statues in germany that no longer justify. exhibition well here in berlin they've got just the place for them the spandau citadel although the 16th century fortress has its own troubled past it was used as a chemical weapon storage by the nazis but the proposal was to bring news that you

to a museum to show it was an example of racism these mistakes are not repeated this racial stereotypes should not be demonstrated on the streets but in a museum where we could demonstrate it to people within context as we move through the exhibition we see hundreds of years of prussian military strongman into monuments of naziism the 3rd reich didn't really do sculpture but they stick casually to his one a few described by hitler as irreplaceable the nazis preferred buildings as their monuments to time and there's plenty of those still visible in modern belin. one of the most i can change in this collection of discarded start to see is this gigantic granite head of blood to me l.n. it's all that remains of a 19 meet monument that was built in 1970 to mark the 100th anniversary

of his birth. in the united states and also in great britain there are discussions at the moment about what to do with dismantle memorials but here we have already found a possible solutions for memorials that are so to speak toxic if you put them in a museum that doesn't mean it's over we put them here so that people can continue to pay attention to them but in a different context germany is often cited as the example to follow when it comes to assessing periods of history troubling to modern sensibilities even if there are 2 named after nazi field marshall erwin rommel that the german military calls home to this day they glossed over as they don't fit the particular narrative because history has a tendency not to be as neat as we might like it when it's really examined peter oliver r.t. berlin. but it is the us which is being ground 0 for revising the past these last few months even the country's national is in question

a tuneful dummy hawkins picks up the story. 2020 is a year of change and i'm not talking about coronavirus popular t.v. shows axed statues torn down even food brands updated to meet 21st century criteria of inclusive u.-t. equality justice and tolerance but is it enough can more be done well in the united states protests during the national anthem have been a bone of contention for quite a few years but what about the national anthem itself well now some people are saying enough is enough. i. i well that's that's you that just came off the plinth was francis scott key the man behind the lyrics that the star-spangled banner and former slave owner and anti abolitionist so what's the deal with the anthem itself.

andrew shows warmth these walls. what you can sing the earth all right of course the rarely performed that 3rd verse was directed by key black slaves who'd been freed or escaped and fought alongside the british in the war of 1812 his message to them was clear your fight for freedom will bring you nothing but death and downfall little wonder then the anthems attracted increasing scandal across the united states with both soccer teams and high school students refusing to play or sing at keys that only profited from slavery he apparently also harbored some pretty backward views on race and nationality and this widely attributed quote certainly has no place in this day and age. with a lot of you don't want to hear me sing in french. that was the last 3 years familiar to all around the world for centuries truly

a symbol of french national identity both in times of joy and tragedy and. did you said. you knew that you know that is the who or who. 'd you so well some of those lyrics furious soldiers coming to cut throats grabbing weapons impure blood may seem to some at least to be appropriated by the far right and certainly having no place in the modern republic calls for change remain there's even a movement for a new master yes and while they're still far off their goal they're not alone various french figures throughout history have had issues with them from the right of victor hugo to socialist leaders. even seeing a surge gains baulk who wrote his own reggae version back in 1979 have called for a mossie you make over. and seeing all not to see that is the

question well former u.k. labor leader jeremy corbyn found himself at the center of a media storm when he seemed really got the wrong answer you saying that you will sing the national anthem i'm going to be many of the i'll take part fully in those events so i don't see a problem but this is the issue surely is that we had a memorial for the battle of britain i was there and despite his explanation the press was merciless branding him all but a traitor but what would they say in 2020 beyond the 1st verse which we all know the lyrics do get a little strange especially in a secular society talk of a day theorizing to scatter enemies and punish those rebellious scots hardly makes any friends up north and whatever his reasons corbin isn't alone for example indigenous members of parliament in on tar you recently announced they won't be taking part in any of them singing. god save the queen is now ok tribute to the

british colonial period and the centuries of violence oppression and discrimination the british empire carried out against nations and peoples are considered inferior indigenous peoples in canada a glaring example among them perhaps kuhlman was just ahead of his time as well as canada they officially passed the motion back in 2018 making their national anthem gender neutral true ok. i debates around symbols such as them statues o'briens don't seem to be going anywhere anytime soon but as the calls for transformation grows louder many may question what fundamentals they really change beyond just up symbolism more news from the week that was 90 seconds and counting stay with us.

please. join me every thursday on the alex simon chill and i'll be speaking to guest of the olympics. i'm show business i'll see you then.

minutes into the program welcome back police finally moved in to clear out the self declared to thomas protests. although pockets of protests are ongoing in neighboring districts activists occupy the city's capitol hill which became known as chill but a month ago after police moved their precinct the campaigners had said they hope to create a peaceful police free utopia but the peace didn't last too long in the 3 weeks of protests the zone saw all 4 shootings 2 of them fatal there are also reports of assaults burglaries rate the protesters some armed where warned they would face

arrest if they didn't believe in the end of the 30 were detained seattle police released footage of some of the violence. first the murder wanted to leave the activists to take over hoping for a quote summer of love but she made her voice to take up this issue of coming after protesters marched on her home the police chief of that and the activists up the side watched us officers move protesters he was in support all but this is. outside of the pie. and street entrance of chop right now where a bunch of police have set up a barricade and the protesters are now beginning to gather you know just. you know

they're blocking the street and trying to cause a little bit more awareness and the officers took that as an opportunity to fully enforce their version of law oh yeah. they let you. come back the police came and chopped and ousted the remaining people who were staying there there's been a brown 32 arrests sprayed people pepper spray them in the aggressive from your perspective what exactly happened basically i was that far and. far and and it all started with that bang bang bang screams and then my. back there were a couple individuals who were speaking loudly resumé go fo those who are doing the crowd energized to actually bringing people in off the streets and the cops in a little bike brigade actually charging targeted those people arresting them individually and throwing them into the back of a cop cars far end of chop. not too long ago there were

a bunch of tents in these areas there were people hanging out just living but in 5 hours everyone has been evacuated you know like you had a morning like. today when you talk i still can't help. my matches right now and her friend you know i don't think anybody in seattle did not see this coming ever since the string of 4 to 5 shootings that have been. recently found out that the last shooting it was a 14 of a 16 year old kid who were killed so i think that it was. the cops decided that it was time to put an end to it there's a lot of the moralization right now especially in the crowd of protesters because i think a lot of people are taking this is a bit of a loss because. i. know. this entire idea. seems to have. come to when

i. was staying stateside over $100.00 heavily are members of the black panther party gathered in the us state of georgia today they approached a stone mountain confederate memorial with demands to have it removed the monument which is carved into a rock face is deemed one of the most infamous tributes to the site slavery legacy the march by the far left militant group was mostly peaceful on july 4th but it's believed the black panthers tried to taunt right wing protesters to and from. let's say delve a little deeper into the story we cross live to christopher horace christer is a conservative commentator on executive director of on hyphenated america dot org christopher good to have you with us with both secretary gates of these militias how dangerous could this become will police step in. well there's always

a possibility for violence when you have one or 2 people who are fully armed where you know as an american i am very thankful that we have the 2nd amendment as a comedian dave chappelle said that the 2nd amendment is there just in to us the 1st amendment does not work out so my question to these protesters or what you play into a kind of us where you're armed or not what are you hoping to see. it seems that things are very much on age right now is u.s. society christopher so divided right now at this stage that we could see conflicts pictures that we're looking at now erupting more and more as the weeks go on. so it's really interesting i'm talking to russian television right and so there's 2 things that you have to understand whenever analyzing american politics is that hardly anyone who isn't or in and raise an america basically essentially having american d.n.a. hardly anyone fully understand what's taking place and united states of america yet

understand of the people who are causing most of this ruckus are mainly being pumped up through the media and through social media you know and so people like yourselves what you're hearing is what people want you to hear they want you to believe that this is what most of america is like when really 95 percent of america is peaceful we get along with each other we love each other the same spirit that existed the day after $911.00 is what still exists throughout most of america but what you're seeing here on your screen is a squeaky meal that. that's getting a lot of attention having a media spotlight put on it and it's going out to the world and around people there believing that this is what everything is really like and it's not but it was quite a partial statement just saying that the black panthers pressed for it with with weapons so many of them in public on the street going a role and a monument you had kuntar protesters as well all it would have taken was for something to kick off and then god knows what would have happened at that stage.

where you know the same thing could have been said that happened earlier this year in charlotte me in richmond virginia when you had approval of 2 armed divisions 2 armed intrusion infantry divisions of american citizens who showed up simply to make a statement and that was they did not like the idea that the governor of virginia was trying to suppress our 2nd amendment rights so and here's the thing it was peaceful it wasn't in a lot of people media like to say all this protest is largely peaceful no what happened when patriots showed up in virginia was peaceful the only arrest. it took place in charlotte soon in richmond virginia earlier this year was someone who was known to be of the left who was walking around with their face covered granted this was before colvin but one person was violating the law by walking around armed with their face so the question i have once again to the black panther people what are you hoping to accomplish and if you're going to march against. a monument against

a stone carving you know what do we not have the question i want to ask everybody who has the paint job but i have the one and content that i have what are you not able to do in the united states of america. what can washington or states themselves the authorities do for damage control right now is there a clear way to end what does look to pain civil war of sorts. well it's not the role of the federal government that's one of the beautiful things about the way our country was formed is that we have a federal system of government so the president doesn't really have to get involved in something at the state and local level and what you're seeing is exactly what happened in the importance to me and seattle is the adults are starting to take charge we've allowed a bunch of unruly children to destroy things i mean look at look at what they did in the the chance. i mean they want to have an autonomous zone but they were not

acting like civilized basically these are the children from the lord of flies they took over and all they did was destroy they didn't create they didn't build anything and this is you know here's the thing this is the big difference between those of us on the right versus those on the left the people who are left are solely focused on the redistribution of products goods and services the means of production those of us on the right or center going to say we should just grow we should create more and that's the main issue is that if you begin with this faulty premise that there's only so much out there and there's only one pie is only so large then that leads you down this ridiculous rule of believing that we need to go out there in force we redistribute things and that's what's at the root of what these young people are marching about they believe that there's only so much the high is only so big there's only one pot so if that were true then they probably would be right just in what they're doing but they're not the economy can continue to grow and as an american born and raised almost 16 or. wackier says in my family

there's nothing that i cannot do today that somebody who's white can do i have so many more rights introduced than my grandfather or great grandfather were ever had and so when you have kanye west is running for president now how serious of a candidate is he i i don't know right now i'm going to get my support you know but there's nothing that we cannot do in the united states of america you want to be president you can be president if you want to become a billionaire you can become a billionaire you want to go to any bathroom you can go and use any ban from any war the question is what can you not do and i will say this one last thing ok we've got to go with the crossfire with our just right at a time here but appreciate you come to the program enjoyed speaking to christopher horace conservative commentator executive director of on hyphenated america dot org thank you i from moscow this is art international just approaching half past 1 this monday morning here in the russian capital shawl it will be here at the top to keep

the news rolling if he's coming hope you'll join him to buy from. before. all of trump became a household baby now states and other world over. washington ceased to be a city that. gender corridor compromised by what is a sure national interest people talk about gridlock in congress years people talk about. the right self. radicals in both parties. this rapidly. body is solid bipartisan

centrist approach to politics both domestic and foreign pre-dates thought just. time after time corporations repeat the same mantra sustainability it's very important to accelerate transitions to sustainable transport sustainability stay number may not be more equitable and sustainable while. they claim their production is completely harmless followed this new tally have. nothing. to tempest number. it into something companies want us to feel good about buying their products while the damage is being done far away this is something else this must keep going to an even and i need much. system moves in this new medium to even and strengthen them in the face of an undisputed superman in.