that is what william hague wants to change. he is here, in his own words, to encourage steps towards reform. many western governments say they're pleased with what they have seen so far, the changes that seem to be under way, but the want to see a lot more, not the least of which is the release of all political prisoners and the improvement of human rights and freedoms. the messages we are here to support you in trying to speed up this process of reform. it is a process the government describes as a move towards democratization. the question is, how far and how fast that process will go. >> apart from leading burmese leaders, is william had also set to meet the opposition leader? >> absolutely, this is becoming a familiar pattern for these diplomatic visits. william hague is currently on his way for a first meeting with his counterpart, the foreign minister of burma. then he will meet the speaker of parliament. after rent. after lunch, he will meet the president. then he jumps on the airplane, comes to rangoon for another round

that has been the clear message from william hague and from other visiting diplomats.he whole idea is to try to continue the pressure on the new government, to try to encourage and cajole them to continue on the path they appear to be going down. and at the same time, reassuring aung san suu kyi -- that ultimately there can be more investments and opportunity for burma. >> rachel harvey on the busy streets of rangoon. a turkish court ordered the former head of the armed forces to be remanded in custody pending trial for an alleged plot to overthrow the government. general ilker basbug is at the center of an investigation over allegations he ran 8 internet campaign to destabilize the government. turkey's -- turkish state-run media says it is the first time a former army chief has been referred to the court as a suspect. the husband of jailed with ukrainian politicians yulia tymoshenko has requested political asylum in the czech republic. alexander tymoshenko made the request at the end of last year. in october, his wife, the former prime minister, was sentenced to seven

william hague visits the country and is told change is irreversible. what does the opposition think? >> it is not as fast as a lot of us would like it to be. >> hello and welcome to gmt. i am george alagiah, with a world of news and opinion. also in the program -- several explosions leave dozens dead in iraq. the attacks lead to fears that the political crisis has turned into full-blown sectarian violence. the family of the indian student shot dead on boxing day are in london. a senior mp says foreign students are safe in britain. it is midday in london, 7:00 a.m. in washington, and 6:30 p.m. in b the briti 6 -- 30 p.m. in burma, where william hague is visiting. hillary clinton was there late last year. it marks a new phase in relations between burma and the outside world. after several meetings, he says he has been assured political reform is irreversible. there was some caution by burma's opposition leader, aung san suu kyi. rachel harvey sent this report from burma. >> arriving @ a brand new airport to mark an even newer departure. william hague is

. >>> the british foreign secretary william hague will visit burma, the first visit by a british foreign secretary to burma and more than 50 years. the aim is to help their budding reform process. >> in burma, independence day calls for foreign celebrations. there are marking 64 years since the end of british colonial rule. for much of that time, burma was tightly controlled by the military. any dissent was ultimately crushed. that is now beginning to change, as over a year ago there were democratic elections. the face of the democracy movement was released from house arrest six days later. the west sees this as a big opportunity. u.s. secretary of state visit burma in september, meeting with the former general, now the country's president. recently, after encouragement from the west, he ordered the release of a number of political prisoners. now and what is seen as a crucial visit, william hague hopes to encourage the burmese government to continue on the path of reform and hope to see the release of all remaining political prisoners, free and fair elections, and also humanitarian acces

foreign secretary william hague in response to iran's refusal to halt its nuclear program and continue to enrich uranium which he has mentioned labeled as increasingly dangerous so now it's just a threat. the u.k. says it will continue to pursue a diplomatic attack i.e. increasing sanctions with the hope of bringing iran to the negotiating table after talks over its nuclear program stalled a year ago but that tactic has been tried for the last year hasn't seemed to work tactics have actually seemed to encourage this dangerous game of brinkmanship each side countering the other's threat and what with one of its own the stakes getting higher and escalating each time so this mention of military action still being on the table is really the latest play in that game the u.k. important allies than one percent every branch total oil output what's in this for britain why such the strong rhetoric. well exactly. it's all imports just one percent from iran the rest of europe also similar levels italy is the most just seven percent of its oil imports come from iran so they've got that to play with

. >> at the international criminal court in the hague, the decision has major political repercussionsor kenya. the judges have ruled that four of the six suspects are to stand trial. they will stand trial for this. four years ago, kenya was shaken with communities set upon each other after a disputed election where over 1000 people were killed. half a million were displaced. among those now due to stand trial for crimes against humanity are two prominent politicians who have presidential ambitions. the former minister russo and the country's deputy prime minister. they both see nothing wrong with buying for the presidency while standing trial at the same time. >> there is nothing in the icc rules that bars me from continuing our political agenda. >> there has never been any justice for the atrocities that forced people to flee for their lives. rather than pursue justice, the politicians focused on entrenching themselves in power. there are calls for an end to this impunity. there are calls for those who picked up weapons to be brought to book. >> it does not make sense to have quadra

they will have to rethink and step aside and maybe try and prove their innocence in the hague and then fight another battle. for many kenyans, this is seen as a land of impunity, with a violent elections in the past but no justice. this is perhaps a turning point, a start to turn the corner away from the country's impunity, and they hope that the icc trials will he ensure that future elections are more peaceful. >> still to come, a host of surprises at the effort will to -- as the african out world cup gets underway. here in britain, the organization that represents plastic surgeons has called for all advertisements for cosmetic medical procedures to be banned. the move by the british association of plastic surgeons it comes up after it concerns over substandard breast implants. it like to see an end to tactics such as seasonal discounts. it says that crass and of the marketing has put lives in danger. >> they have been, additions to win breast implants. such marketing techniques should be dan, says the british association of aesthetic plastic surgeons for trivializing a plastic surger

. >> now the burmese government believes international sanctions -- william hague has been delivering a message during his visit to the country. thursday he met with pro democracy leader to gauge how britain can help support the reform process in burma i spoke to william hague on the line from burma, and his acknowledging the shortcoming of the release political prisoners. >> this is one of the areas in which the government here in burma have made some progress. they have released some 250 political prisoners so far and few more in the announcement they made earlier that there are still hundreds more. and that, i think is a very important task to be completed. we look to them to do that as we look at how we can lift what we call restrictive measures and sanctions the union has imposed. so i made it clear to those here from the president down from our international perspective, it remains a top priority, the freing of those political prisoners. >> if 12 political prisoners are released this week and also when 900 prisoners in all are being set free on independence day, it's hardly a dr

. >> it doesn't make sense to have four people standing trial at the hague and then every day you see your neighbor who killed your child, who evicted you from a land going about their business as though there is no law in this country. >> many kenyans are hoping the trials will help to ensure future elections are more peaceful. the upcoming election is already controversial because we have to of the men who want to be president are about to stand trial for crimes against manatee. -- crimes against humanity. >> five of the assailants who took part in a wave of attacks and a northern nigerian community were sources -- were suicide bombers, according to police. a statement was released saying that explosive devices had been found in the wake of the bombing that killed at least 178 people. they have stepped up security since the attacks on friday by the militant islamist group. rescuers have recovered to more bodies from a cruise ship off the italian coast. that brings the official death toll to 15. authorities say experts can begin pumping fuel from a capsized vessel. the top manager at

libya more time to consider whether it will send muammar gaddafi's son, saif al- islam gaddafi, to the hague to be tried for war crimes. the deadline has been extended to january 23rd. now to south africa where there have been deadly consequences. at least one person has been killed in a stampede of applicants to the university of johannesburg. a woman was trampled tong anytime soon. quick news from around the world, at least 30 people have been killed in northwest pakistan by a bomb explosion near a fuel station. more than 60 people are reported wounded by the blast. local officials say government militia appeared to be the target. most who died were passengers on a bus. the international criminal court has given libya more time to consider whether it will send muammar gaddafi's son, saif al- islam gaddafi, to the hague to be tried for war crimes. the deadline has been extended to january 23rd. now to south africa where there have been deadly consequences. at least one person has been killed in a stampede of applicants to the university of johannesburg. a woman was trampled to death when th

wants to know whether the lib ran authorities intend to hand him over to the hague for trial. unofficially, that question has already been answered. libya's new leaders have made it plain that they want him to stand trial at home. but so far, he's not been read any charges, nor has he had access to a lawyer. and while he remains in the custody of the fighters who captured him, libya will struggle to convince the court and the world that his trial will be a fair one. in theory, it's the people in this country who should be able to answer all of the i.c.c.'s questions. but in reality, libya's justice ministry is about as influential as its dilapidated building suggests. the fact is that, as is so much else in this country, it's the militias, the men with the guns, who now control the fate of muammar gaddafi's son. >> six prominent kenyan politicians are about to find out if they will face charges from the international criminal court of inciting ethnic violence in the wake of the 2007 general election. six men include presidential hopefuls uhuru kenyatta william ruto. they also

to kenya presidential candidates will stand trial at the hague on crimes against humanity the men are among four prominent kenyans accused of orchestrating a deadly wave of violence following the country's two thousand and seven election more than twelve hundred were killed during the country's post-election clashes with more than a half a million forced from their homes and the date at this point has been set for the trials all right as i said time for corrina now with the hourly r.t. business update. thanks. to pm here in alaska welcome to business the rally in oil prices has paused traders await the next move in the escalating dispute between iran and the west tehran has responded to the e.u.'s decision to impose an oil embargo by threatening to close the straits of hormuz twenty percent of the world's crude supply passes through it however hot here month to peg from plants believes that the warning and the embargo should or should be seen as bargaining points. the ward being also says that there would be a review in me so there are almost means that i am ready to do something in j

time to answer questions about the state of colonel gadhafi is most prominent son want to buy the hague but being held by former rebels also police like you it is because the people are typically look people come to the six issue that all the back rooms that stalls look very much like racial profiling. europe ruled it illegal but police in britain continue to stop and search people without cause beyond the color of their skin. america is filing the pressure on iran over its nuclear program and new uranium enrichment facility by seeking global support for it and iran sanctions u.s. treasury secretary timothy geithner wants china the largest consumer of iranian oil onside and is pushing it to buy less from tehran investment manager francis lui believes the u.s. should stop pressuring other countries to do their well. of course many things the . cause of cause. to. china's economy. for the u.s. to impose come. to. chinese school is because the u.s. and china. are trading partners so a lot of things that you can all over can do to and china to buy less from iran but. how do you measure that

more time to answer questions about the state of colonel gadhafi is most prominent son wanted by the hague by the held by former rebels also. police will argue it's because the people that typically look people competent so should get all the back rooms that look very much like racial profiling europe ruled it illegal by the police in britain continue to stop and search people without cause beyond the color of their skin. america is piling the pressure on iran over its nuclear program and a new iranian enrichment facility by seeking global support for its and i to iran sanctions u.s. treasury secretary timothy geithner wants china the largest consumer of any oil on side and is pushing it to buy less from tehran but political science professor joseph chang says beijing is unlikely to agree to that. i do not believe that the chinese authorities would like to be seen to be cooperating with the united states go exert pressure on iran iran after all remains a very important and it's the supplier. especially because you are on relations with the united states are not and you are on has it's a ci

to a kenyan presidential candidates will stand trial at the hague on charges of crimes against humanity and then a monk for prominent kenyans accused of orchestra. in a deadly wave of violence for the country's two thousand and seven election more than twelve hundred people were killed during the country's post-election trashes more than a million forced to flee no date has been set for the troubles. twin car bomb attacks have killed eight people and injured thirty two in iraq the first blast targeted an early morning gathering of workers in the main a shia area. minutes later a car blew up near a pastry shop in the same district or the hundred sixty people have been killed in summer attacks since the beginning. going on kareena brings us the latest business news. thank you carrie hello and welcome to our business update this hour or so is continuing monday's gains following the e.u.'s decision to adopt and then bargo against iran over its nuclear program all the imports from iran to europe should stop in july as a response to the sanctions terrorist threatening to quos the strait of ho

to kenya presidential candidates will stand trial at the hague on charges of crimes against humanity the men are buying up for prominent kenyans accused of orchestrating a deadly wave of violence following the country's two thousand and seven election more than twelve hundred people were killed during the country's post-election clashes with more than a half a million forced to flee their homes no date has been set for these trials. and to the philippines where fifteen people have been killed and three others wounded after a gunman opened fire on several boats in the southern philippines government officials believe the men may have been attacked by rival fisherman after they strayed into the fishing grounds or the region is a stronghold for islamist rebels although the authorities have ruled out militant involvement. firemen standing by while houses burn and police watching while people drown a spate of incidents in the united states has sparked concern over what kind of society it is becoming as artie's guy nature can reports sticking to the rules and fear of litigation appear to b

more time to answer questions about the state of colonel gadhafi is most prominent son wanted by the hague being held by former rebels also. police will argue it's because the people are typically look people to protect so she could only back rooms that stalls look very much like racial profiling. europe ruled it illegal but police in britain continue to stop and search people without cause beyond the color of their skin. america is piling the pressure on iran over its nuclear program and new uranium enrichment facility by seeking global support for its anti to run sanctions u.s. treasury secretary timothy geithner wants china the largest consumer of iranian oil onside and is pushing it to buy less from tehran let's now talk to those of you who is a professor of political science at city university of hong kong mr chang thanks very much indeed for being with us here in the program as we know china is the largest consumer of rain in oil do you believe that guider will be able to persuade beijing to limit its oil purchases from iran. i don't think this is the major issue or even sign america

failing to provide the hague with information regarding his status. as stories to overcome but first the u.s. is called iran's enrichment of uranium at an underground site a violation of u.n. resolutions however to iran insists it's for peaceful purposes russia has expressed concern about the launch of the enrichment facility and urge all parties to avoid any hasty moves president mahmoud ahmadinejad currently on a tour of south america said it was a joke to believe iran was making bombs and had received strong backing from the venezuelan leader who defended iran's nuclear program hugo chavez said there was no sound proof that iran was developing atomic weapons i mean that it will also visit cuba and it could all this plan talk comes after washington apply tough sanctions targeting iran central bank and its finance industry with the expected to follow suit and the weapons campaign or joel rubin says iran is trying to gain more support to prevent further penalties. i was looking for friends wherever he can find them he needs votes he needs votes at the

european human rights court right because they know that they're the ones that are heading to the hague in these human rights courts so the best defense is a good oftens because they're trying to deflect their prosecutions in these human rights courts they're trying to deflect this nuremberg trial for hedge funds and private equity groups like like romney's bain capital because they know that they'll be at the head at the end of a noose so they take the off and they say oh it's the greek people need to be the greeks oh we're going to sue greece because we raped and pillaged them for going to show them i mean this is an old strategy and the greek people i'm sorry that your country has been sold to fresh food franchises and cell phone networks but hey five thousand years of history you had a good run well i just mentioned the famine victims here is that the banker who's had too many munchies i guess you could say over his lifetime surely president obama is joking about this have larry summers run the world bank thing so larry summers apparently has been is being floated as a possible worl

a late leader colonel gadhafi is being held in the western town of his in turn he's charged by the hague with crimes against humanity the i.c.c. wants information about his health status and agreed to now wait until january twenty third they accept that saif gadhafi can be tried in libya if the country's rules can provide a fair trial but something is saif is unlikely to get in any case says. the president of the arab lawyers association. the government does not have control of a safe. he's in the hands of the. ins and i think the libyans are not really interested in handing him over to the international court i think because as far as they're concerned they think that they can they can satisfy the requirement of the people to try him one on the basis that they are getting the people are getting their own rights from him rather than the foreigners and secondly the government would want to show its people that is actually independent of the western powers and countries that they have taken action against libya don't forget it's the western powers that destroyed libya it's the western powe

unclear future libya raises fears over the fate of colonel gadhafi is jailed son failing to provide the hague with information regarding his status. all that still to come for you here in r.t. this in the meantime the u.s. has called iran's enrichment of uranium at an underground site a violation of u.n. resolutions however tehran insists its for peaceful purposes russia has expressed concern about the launch of the enrichment facility and all parties to avoid any hasty moves present mahmoud ahmadinejad currently on a tour of south america said it was a joke to believe iran was making bombs and windage out had received strong backing from the venezuelan leader who defended iran's nuclear program he said there was no sound proof that duran was developing atomic weapons and i didn't but also visit make a regular cuba and ecuador. this plan tool comes off to washington applied tough sanctions targeting iran the central bank and its finance industry with the e.u. expected to follow suit. weapons company joel rubin says iran is trying to gain more support to prevent the penalties. it is looking fo

but seven seats were made in under seven days, the first man was forgiven when he missed the hague, the branch was taken by a dove to a book that was built before a flood, if a rainbow sent out a sign, if someone was told to sacrifice his own son and told to hold up before he was done, then the fish and bread that i just said is all that i've got, is all that i need for me to get fed and for me to feed a whole lot of folks in need because they set me on fire. when they look back, i was chilling. i had to fight like 10 older brothers, and because i had this dream, so they sold me out to a band of bandits and one day was commanded to stop, drop, when i got this fish that i found while fishing around, under water with the daughter of the pharaoh, the child was chosen to force the pharaoh to free his folks from a foreign land, repair everywoman, prepare every man, prepare every child, all you've got is that right in your hand. all i've got is some fish and a few loaves of bread, and a whole lot of folks have got to get fed, but i believe. i believe i can part the sea now and then, and then

international criminal court has given libya more time to consider whether it will send his son to the hague. libyan officials were supposed to decide by today, but it has been extended to january 23. now the south africa where there are consequences. there is a stampede of applicants. a woman was trampled to death. students have been hoping to submit last-minute applications. >> still looking during the pile of rubble. thousands of potential applicants stood outside the campus for days. there are only 800. >> people who were pushing because they don't understand what is happening. >> there was a lot of pushing a, a lot of screaming. >> apparent that died it was on the front of the queue. when the crowd from behind pushed to the people in the front, that is when she fell and died. this is an indictment of the higher education system. that happened outside the camp but said the crowd was uncontrollable. >> for what is a national challenge, nevertheless, the university who assures that there will be an inquiry so we can see what needs to be done. >> of the unemployment rate is as high as 50%.

in amsterdam, the other modes of transport are so well-organized, it is just like in the hague, a car is more of a new sense that a create a car is more of a nuisance and liability. it is expensive. the other modes of transport are much more convenient. >> ok, mike, you have a question? use the microphone, please. >> separated bike paths in the united states are controversial, and they're slowly catching on. how important is it to have those facilities in place? is it maybe a quarter of importance, 50% of the attraction for people to take their bikes? i'm wondering how important it is. >> i think that you need a cycling infrastructure, both from a statistical point of view and the feeling that people have when they use it. otherwise, we do not think we would have more people cycling if we did not put in more cycling facilities. i think the cycling infrastructure

. >> it does not make sense to have four people standing trial at the hague and then every day you are seeing your neighbor who killed your child, who evicted you from your land, and they are going about their business. >> many are hoping the trials are going to help ensure that future elections are more peaceful. the upcoming election is already controversial because now we know that two of the man who want to be president are about to stand trial for crimes against humanity. >> you are watching news today. still to come, the search a continues. efforts to pump oil out of the ship may begin tuesday. >> of the country celebrates the lunar new year, we have a special report from china. the chairman of the bbc trust has said politicians in the past have been guilty of allowing newspaper owners and editors to have too much influence. we listened to the exchanges. been chairman of the bbc trust for nearly a year now. back in the 1980 costs, he was government minister and conservative party chairman. in the 1990's, he was britain's last governor of hong kong. in 2003 he was appointed chance

yes, there have been many positive signs, signs that william hague has described as encouraging. they believe that there are some figures, including the president, who are sincere about the reform process. it is well known that there are others within the establishment, within the military, that are very wary about what is happening. to the outside world, things moving slowly. inside, they are worried about where all of this may lead. that is one of two questions, where is this process going? is this limited in scope and ambition or is is moving towards freedom and democracy? what can the outside world and do to support and encourage that? there are still sanctions in place. another question, when might the time the right to begin lifting those sanctions? when will those rewards be offered to the reformers and the government? >> specifically between britain and burma, what did the two countries want from each other? >> this is a renewal of relations. there is a long history between the countries because britain was the former colonial power. for decades, there has been no direct

we heard william hague earlier on talking about the u.k. cost desire to stay within the terms of the resolution. staye uk's desire to within the terms of the resolution. lawyers were very skeptical it could be done. eventually, it was done. finally, these troops that went in, the two dozen or so, where armed, i am so. the earlier missions, they were mentoring and they went in plain clothes. >> how significant a contribution was it? >> it is easy to argue it both ways. a lot of people would say after the fall of tripoli, those gangs of men in their pickup trucks and heavy machine guns were a pretty wild, uncoordinated and undisciplined lot. they had achieved their objectives and i think it was important that if you like, they wanted to bank from the political influence that came from helping them achieve their objectives. they claim that hundreds of qatari troops were involved. the french wanted to be known that they aren't the -- armed the ntc at some point. they hoped to get influence in the new libya. >> dto what extent do you think that

libya more time to consider whether it will send muammar gaddafi's son, saif al- islam gaddafi, to the hague to be tried for war crimes. the deadline has been extended to january 23rd. now to south africa where there have been deadly consequences. at least one person has been killed in a stampede of applicants to the university of johannesburg. a woman was trampled to death when thousands surged forward when the gates opened. students have been gathering since monday, hoping to submit last-minute applications. >> survivors of this morning's stampede are still looking for belongings among the piles of rubble. students can doubt four days because there were only 800 spots at the university. the desperation among the students caused the fervency. >> people in the back were pushing because they did not really understand what was happening. they wanted to get in. >> i was with my son. i was trying to protect him. everyone was pushing. there was a lot of screaming. it was terrible, terrible. >> this is where the stampede took place today. the parent who died was at the front of the line. she was h

united states attorney melinda hague. [applause] >> sovereign lano county d.a., sonoma county d.a., supervisors mark farrell, malia cohen, charmen chu. judges, i understand they were all invited. i hope some are here. members of the council core and our fire chief, our wonderful fire chief joanne hayes-white. i met the person i'm going to introduce next way back in the 1960's and he had tried to buy a house in san francisco in forest noles. and he was refused because of race. and that was a long time ago, but this is a fact and so some of us went out, my daughter who is now a judge was in her stroller and we picketed the developer which was sun stream homes then on 19th avenue and finally that was put to rest. but it gives you and idea of how things change over time and how necessary it is to have people who care about these rights and who were willing to work for these rights. we became fast friends and we have for at least three decades now. i ran for the board of supervisors in 1969, no public official would support me

. >>> british foreign secretary, william hague, is visiting myanmar in an effort to improve bilateral ties. he is the first british foreign minister to visit the country in 57 years. he will meet president thein sein and prodemocracy leader aung san suu kyi during the two-day visit. britain is considering easing economic sanctions on myanmar if the country makes progress on democratization. the u.s. and japan is also trying to improve relations. u.s. secretary of state, hillary clinton, visited the country last november. the first u.s. secretary to do so in over 50 years. japanese foreign minister, koichiro gemba went there last month. >>> the european union is set to impose a ban on crude oil imports from iron. the eu has been considering the sanction since last year as a way to increase pressure on the country over its nuclear program. french foreign minister, allen jupay, told reporters on wednesday that eu foreign ministers will discuss a ban when they hold talks at the end of january. >> translator: i hope we will be able to adopt the measure on the embargo of oil and petrol from

effective trial in other words the libyan authorities should be ensuring safe is one hundred over to the hague in accordance with the arrest warrant could the fact that the whole investigation is taking so long be a red herring to make gadhafi is there to get away with us. the only person who has been seized of my request for an immediate investigation at this moment in time is the prosecutor. to question employees or even certain amount of bad faith on the part of the office the prosecutor who said that i didn't i can't repeat it on the evidence which i have available to me at the present moment in time. i have to assume that the prosecutor is. in the best interests of his office of his investigation. and his mandate the fact that i don't agree with that is another matter what really needs to be done to establish the truth and can it be established that only of course the truth can be established and if the office of the prosecutor were sufficiently serious he would have initiated an immediate investigation especially bearing in mind that the prosecutor has gone on the record and stated that