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Connect the World
Child Labor at Commonwealth Games?; Interviews with Afghan, Pakistani Foreign Ministers
Aired September 24, 2010 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN ANCHOR, CONNECT THE WORLD: Well the pictures tell the story. Allegations that children are being employed as workers at New Delhi's Commonwealth Games site. Despite our repeated attempts, the Indian government won't directly address these concerns focusing instead on security and infrastructure.
For tonight as teams start arriving, countries are telling us how disappointed they'll be if those claims are true. Going beyond the borders on the stories that matter on CNN, this is the hour we CONNECT THE WORLD.
Well India's government has sent in to thwart out problems their capitol's biggest sporting event countries until days ago. Sat on the fence about going do now seem willing to take part. But after we provided expert evidence the workers to help build these games are children.
Many participants tell us they feel uneasy. I'm Becky Anderson in London. Do you feel uneasy? Well tell us. I'm on twitter @beckycnn. Also tonight.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SHAH MAHMOOD QURESHI: If the international community fails to realize the enormity of the challenge, fails to stand with Pakistan at this critical juncture then obviously the insurgents can take advantage of the situation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: A warning to the world from Pakistan's man to at the UN Summit in New York. His thoughts and my interview with his counterpart from Afghanistan. Also tonight. It's been the year that I've been looking for. It kind of put me as the player I always wanted to be.
I always wanted to be the guy that was constantly finding his name on top of the leaderboard and this has been that year. Well chances are you've never heard of that man. Come Sunday he maybe the man who wins the Fed Ex Cup.
His name and how he just might win a $10 million bonus. Those stories coming up in the next 60 minutes here on CNN. First up though this hour the global spotlight is on India as it prepares to host the Commonwealth Games in just nine day's time.
Seventy-one countries and more than 7000 athletes and officials. But amidst the glare we're working to expose an ugly side of the preparations. That it's something the Indian Government is reluctant to address.
I'm talking about allegations of child labor claims made by one of the world most prominent experts on modern slavery. Siddharth Kara I want to bring you a quick reminder of the evidence Siddharth said he's gathered. (inaudible) Delhi Games site and that he put to the government in late July.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SIDDHARTH KARA, AUTHOR, SEX TRAFFICKING: In some cases the children were just living in the construction area. Maybe they were playing in the dirt et cetera. The photos that I sent and the 14 cases out of the hundreds and hundreds of children I say.
These are ones where I felt I had reliable documented child labor. Meaning children were working. Picking up hammers and banding stones. Laying planks and marble in front of stadiums for the entry ways. Planting grass and little flowers along the roads to beautify them hours and hours at a time.
So these cases are ones where I reliable documented children, seven, eight, nine, 10 years old were working alongside their families. Again, in this mad rush to get the construction completed.
ANDERSON: Did you talk to these children? And if you did what did they say?
KARA: Yes, I talked to the children and their families and they basically said yes we're here, we're doing this work. We're trying to get it done. The contractors told us this amount of work has to get done by this amount of time.
So we have no choice but to get everyone involved.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Well the Indian government has repeatedly avoided directly addressing these allegations. We've also reached out to the organizing committees of other countries preparing to send athletes to the games.
Now in a statement, Northern Ireland Games (inaudible) writes we wouldn't have direct information on that obviously we would condemn the use of child labor anywhere. We're not aware of any specific information regarding the construction.
We would be incredibly disappointed. Well Secretary General of Jamaica's Olympic Association said this is something I'm totally unaware of and hearing for the first time. And from team Wales this statement.
We have not witnessed any instances of child labor since being in Delhi. Clearly any instances of exploitation of this kind will be deplorable and a matter for the Indian authorities. The biggest reaction we've been getting to this story is from you.
We've had hundreds of comments posted on our webpage with a wide range of views from around the world. Roger Blatto writes, "These kids are not being used as slaves they are sitting around the job site while their parents work."
Likely because that is what they do when one cannot afford nannies, daycare or babysitters. Well Chadden67 has been to India three times and he makes this point. "I had a paper route in the 5th grade and a chore as well I think it was great."
"However, children in India do not have that option. I have witnessed it firsthand." AlexKNYC argues, "There's enough blame to go around the caste system, religion and greed at the expense of basic human rights." "India is far from a democracy."
Mario99 has this comment. "The U.N. should put some serious sanctions on this so called biggest democracy. RT8758 says, "In India, many people think it is ok to have child servants. They think they are helping them out by employing them."
"In fact, many are helping them out but they are also perpetuating the situation." Tbear2520 writes, "Child forced labor is the lowest of the low. Is this not a humanitarian violation?" And finally, I want to read you this quote from Save the Children India. "The Games have attracted media attention to the issue of child labor but we must not allow this issue to be forgotten after the momentary media glare subsides.
Well athletes are starting to arrive in Delhi. Among them team England which just two days ago was uncertain whether it would compete. The big question for India now is can it repair the damage to its reputation. Mallika Kapur has more.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MALLIKA KAPUR, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This was the master plan a foot stepping welcome song, world class facilities, a chance for a developing nation to show it's a modern global powerhouse. Things did not go as plan.
MIKE HOOPER, COMMONWEALTH GAMES FEDERATON: The standard of cleanliness throughout the majority of the residential zone. The current condition it's in is not habitable.
KAPUR: Despite spending billions of dollars to host the 19th Commonwealth Games in New Delhi most of the facilities aren't ready. Infrastructure remains a concern. A bridge leading to the main stadium collapse this week.
The athletes village littered with rubbish and spray dogs. Some top athletes have pulled out because of concerns about their health and safety.
AMITABH KUNDU, PROFESSOR, JAWAHARIAL NEHRU UNIVERSITY: But the question that strikes me is that a country which is capable of growing at nine percent plus for five consecutive years. A country with can have the shortest turn around period from the worst global economic crisis. Why can't it manage a game in a successful manner?
KAPUR: Analyst blames a late start. Though India was allotted the games in 2003 building was - didn't really get underway until three years ago. Analyst say the rush likely led to serious problems.
KUNDU: Always there's the pressure that games are coming you have to do it and can't perhaps fulfill all the formalities. They have to be cutting short of some of the building things. That gives this hope for corruption.
KAPUR: Corruption scandals and building delays have been an embarrassment. But perhaps the most calling to India is comparisons with another Asian economic giant that managed to pull off a mega sporting event successfully.
In Beijing top notched facilities were ready ahead of schedule for the 2008 Olympics. Its stadiums and pool boosted cutting edge technology. The world was impressed. Here in New Delhi the clock is ticking.
With just days to go more than 1000 cleaners are sweeping up the mess at the games village. And Indian officials including the Prime Minister say the games will be a success.
AYAZ MEMON, SPORTS ANALYST: It's been a rollercoaster ride (inaudible) of concern. In that since the infrastructure and you know whatever the requirements for holding such a mega event has been a little doggy. But as they say in the single a great Indian manage (inaudible) finally.
KAPUR: Whether the Commonwealth Games are a success or not economist say it won't affect India's growth. Its economic fundamentals are strong, its stock market is booming. What may take a beating is India's pride. Mallika Kapur, CNN, New Delhi.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: You're (inaudible) joining the (inaudible) from the day's biggest stories for you. I'm Becky Anderson in London. Up next, two neighbors pledge new efforts to fight a common threat. We're going to talk with the Foreign Ministers of Afghanistan and Pakistan about the fight against the Taliban and concerns for the current strategy may have been flawed from the start.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: Well let's turn now too two countries facing very different challengers sharing a common threat. And that is a Taliban insurgency. Afghanistan and Pakistan try to find some consensus last week from fighting extremism.
When Afghan President Hamid Karzai met with officials in Islamabad. Now they discussed new was of tackling the terror networks stretching across that common border, promising to fight "hand in hand" to make both countries safe.
Well that search for new strategies could reflect widespread skepticism about the policies that's used so far that have failed to weaken the Taliban. It's clearly a region in crisis. Well we put those concerns to the Afghan and Pakistani Foreign Ministers earlier today.
Both are at the United Nations this week's General Assembly Debate. I want to speak first with the Afghan Minister Zalmai Rassoul. We began by talking about the countries recent elections. I asked him whether the Democratic process going forward will include Taliban?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ZALMAI RASSOUL, AFGHAN FOREIGN MINISTER: I think the Taliban government is not questioned (ph) because (inaudible) integration and reconciliation. And anybody who reconciles, according to the redlines that we have put, accepting our constitution, the human rights, the woman rights, the freedom of the press, and within the constitution framework anybody who wants to come active politically in Afghanistan can be done.
But it's not anything to do with power sharing. We are not giving power to anybody in exchange of reconciliation.
ANDERSON: Let me just read you a recently declassified document from Washington. It's from 2001, you'll be aware of it. Right after 9/11 Pakistan Chief of Intelligence at the time writing of invading Afghanistan said and I quote " we will not flinch from a military victory but a strike will produce thousands of frustrated young Muslim men, it will be an incubator of anger that will explode two or three years from now."
That man was General Mahmoud Ahmed. He advocated at the time talking to the Taliban and was soon removed. He had so been proven right, hasn't he?
RASSOUL: I think for us, for Afghans, that was not something new, the leakage of the document. We knew from day one that Taliban are going to be (inaudible) and prepared to attack Afghanistan. So that is nothing new for us. But we work and discuss with our allies since 2004, 2005. And I think now we are engaging Pakistan to move strategically to discuss to see how we can solve together. Because Pakistan is starting to suffer to by day, victim of terrorism and extremism.
ANDERSON: There are many frustrated Muslims men in Afghanistan today aren't there? With Washington now willing to talk to the Taliban which wasn't something they were willing to do nine years ago. Were they wrong back then do you think?
RASSOUL: No, I think the majority of the Afghan people are against the regime of Taliban. I think the war have been too long for 10 years now. I think we need to learn our lesson for what was positive, what was negative, and renew strategy and the arrival of General Petraeus. I think -- I have confidence that we can a progress of the new strategy of the war but also the reconciliation and reintegration and the regional corporation, including Pakistan, will make things much easier to achieve peace in Afghanistan, hopefully.
ANDERSON: Hamid Karzai met recently with General Ashraf Kayani in Islamabad, a meeting also attended by Richard Holbrooke. What was the topline out of that meeting? What is Afghan strategy to your mind now going forward? With 10 years in, some trillion dollars has been spent, where is the value for money going forward?
RASSOULS: I think the new thing in Islamabad, as I mentioned to you before, we are engaged with Pakistan as deeper strategy discussion about the security of Afghanistan and Pakistan and also the fight against terrorism and Islamic extremism which Pakistan is start to suffer.
I think it was the first step of engaging Pakistan. Because when I mention to you Pakistan is suffering also someday effect of an extremism and terrorism. So that was the beginning of the new engagement with Pakistan to work together to sort out this problem.
Because if you don't corporate together it's going to be very difficult to eliminate extremism and terrorism in the region and actually in the world.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: The beginning of a new engagement with Pakistan hopeful words there on fighting extremism from the Afghan Foreign Minister earlier today. But of course Pakistan has other pressing concerns to contend with as well, namely those catastrophic floods (inaudible) Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi whether the disaster has set back counter insurgency efforts perhaps by years.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SHAH MAHMOOD QURESHI, FOREIGN MINISTER PAKISTANI: My concern is that if the international community fails to realize the enormity of the challenge, fails to stand with Pakistan at this critical juncture then obviously the insurgence can take advantage of the situation.
But right now I think the international community has realized and I've had meetings here in the US and I've had meetings of my counterparts in Europe and there is a realization that we would not create that vacuum for the dissidents or the insurgents to take advantage of.
Now if we continue on this path and if he continues to get international support and attention then I'm not worried. But if an international attention and help does not come in the sufficient quantity and at the right time then yes I would be worried.
ANDERSON: We just interviewed your counterpart from Afghanistan. Let me put to you the same question that I put to him. Recently declassified documents showed your country intelligence sheet back in 2001 warned Washington that they would need to talk to the Taliban and not respond in anger post 9/11.
It seems like Washington is now doing that at nine years later. Do you think the Taliban should be included in Afghanistan's government?
QURESHI: What we will say was that there was too much focus on the military solution. We understand at times a use of force is essential and there is an element that would only understand the use of force they will not reconcile.
But there is an element that is willing to reconcile and they can be engaged with. Because there are different people supporting you know insurgency for different reasons. We have to distinguish between them. We have to distinguish between the reconcilables and the irreconcilables. And there is a sense in talking and weaning the moderates, all the so-called moderates away from the ideologues.
ANDERSON: You talked about the flooding and the crisis caused by that. The country already struggling of course with the consequences of the counter-insurgency campaign that you just discussed. This frankly is a regional (ph) crisis, isn't it, made worse by what seems to be an AfPak strategy that just isn't working?
QURESHI: Well, I think on our side, we had made reasonable progress vis-a-vis terrorism. And if you look at the progress we made in the last two years, we've launched some very successful operations against militants in Swat (ph) and Malakand and the tribal belt. And they were on the run.
We were clearing areas, we were holding areas, we were able to muster, you know, public support. And on our side of the border, I think we were making good progress. Obviously, you know, we need to have an equally good response across the border in Afghanistan. And there I'm afraid things have deteriorated and insurgency has spread over the last year and a half.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: The challenging faces, facing what many people say really are a region in crisis. You heard there from both the Pakistani and the Afghan Foreign Minister speaking to us here on CONNECT THE WORLD earlier from New York.
Well you're with CONNECT THE WORLD here on CNN coming up. A race against time in South Africa. Activist show us what is being done to fend the tide of toxic water threatening Johannesburg. Part of our special serious on what people are doing to change the environment.
And later you got India on the left and Germany on the right. We'll connect them. (inaudible) of the week coming up your answers after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: Well this has been a week when CONNECT THE WORLD has been growing greener. We've been spotlighting echo projects that are changing the planet like conservation efforts to save the Atlantic Forest one of Brazil's vanishing bio diversity jewels.
We've been up in the air in Paris where this giant tourist balloon is also keeping taps on pollution. And we've scaled some heights in New York, where a Manhattan chief it taking food from roof top to table top. Working with very little space no compost.
We saw how it's possible the home grown and organic from six very high floors up. We're also (inaudible) take an endangered species off the menu. The Vietnamese (inaudible) a delicacies in Asia is headed for extinction. We met a team of rescuers taking on the challenge of keeping the species live.
Well tonight a looming friend from South Africa's biggest cities. As we wrap up our week long going green report. Diana Magnay is in Johannesburg for you. She's looking at what's being done to avert a potential agricultural catastrophe.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DIANA MAGNAY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Johannesburg is a city built on the gold that was discovered here in 1886. Fortunes were made a settlement became a city. In the lire of the minds filled the townships with people hungry for work. Gold industry is in decline now. Many of the mining companies have left.
Left behind of a towering mind dumps thousands of abandon mine shafts and a very toxic legacy.
MARIETTE LIEFFERINK, ENVIRONMENTAL ACTIVIST: You notice there are no birds, there's nothing. There is absolutely dead.
MAGNAY: Mariette Liefferink is an environmental activist. She shows me what happens when rain water mixes with the iron pyrite exposed by the mining process and spills out onto the surface. The process called acid mine drainage.
LIEFFERINK: As you can see over here the soil has been heavily contaminated not only with heavy metals but also with toxic and (inaudible).
MAGNAY: She says these sulfate crust contain between 100 and one million times more uranium than normal. They develop from the rain water running off this mine dump. We're just a few miles from the city center on the crest of the hill is a low cost housing development.
According to Liefferink residents are unaware they live beside a toxic wasteland.
LIEFFERINK: Especially the poorest communities those that are dependent on the other waters, pristine waters and (inaudible) for drinking purposes, for irrigation and also for the watering of the cattle.
MAGNAY: Eight years ago this lake was dry. Then in 2002 the Western Mining Basin flooded. Toxic water begins to stream through this game reserve. And downstream toward the site known as the cradles of human kind were the earliest human fossils were found.
ANDREW TURTON, FORMER GOVERNMENT SCIENTIST: So in a space of four generations, in one century of unregulated mining driven by human greed and nothing more than that. We've transformed what use to be the cradle of human kind it's now become nothing more than an open toxic spell away.
MAGNAY: Mining companies are required by law to pump and treat the water that they use but there are thousands of abandon shafts that are filling up with rain water. The companies that are left don't want to carry the cost of pumping that water out when they only inherited the problem.
This water is actually acid mine drainage that the mining company who owns this land is pumping as they should be out of the mind shaft below. And the reason why it's green is because they added lime to make the heavy metals drop and separate from the water and its really foul spelling.
Give you a sense of quite how toxic that stuff is. The government says it recognizes it must take action but it seems only to be at the very early stages of doing so.
MAVA SCOTT, DEPARTMENT OF WATER AFFAIRS: You're looking at something legislation to ensure that you bring those who are responsible to do. But that's not the only solution you need. You need to invest in technology. You need to (inaudible) in integrated and environmental plan with a (inaudible). To ensure that you finally nail the solution.
MAGNAY: No one knows what will happen with the central basin directly beneath Johannesburg floods. But scientists predict it will happen in January 2012. The water from here runs directly into two of Southern Africa's largest rivers.
Mariette Liefferink believes South Africa is starring an environmental catastrophe in the face. Diana Magnay CNN Johannesburg.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Well join us this weekend for a CNN going green special. Guest host Philippe Cousteau talks us to an undersea world of decaying coral reef how can they rebound. (inaudible) innovative ideas.
We got more Saturday 5:30 in London, 6:30 pm in central Europe. You're at work half the time in your own zone on the back of those. You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD. Africa's largest nation perhaps teetering on the brink.
High level meetings in the U.N. right now to discuss the situation of fears that are coming. A referendum could provoke new violence in Sudan. That is straight ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: A very warm welcome back. You're with CONNECT THE WORLD. I'm Becky Anderson in London this Friday evening. Coming up, oil rich and war-torn. Sudan is taking center stage at the United Nations, and we'll show you why world leaders are calling the northeast African nation a ticking time bomb.
Then, Global Connections gets personal, and it's your experiences that matter. Meet two families, one in Germany, the other in India. They got in touch with CNN to explain their special links.
And in about 15 minutes, we are teeing off with the latest from the world of golf. With $10 million on the line, we're going to hear from swing meister Matt Kuchar. He's seeming come from nowhere to have a shot at winning the big bonus in the FedEx Cup.
Those stories are forthcoming in the next 30 minutes. First, I want to get you a very quick check of the headlines this hour here on CNN.
Britain's security service is raising the terrorist threat level from moderate to substantial. Now, the service says an Irish-related attack is a strong possibility. Home Secretary said she published the threat to encourage vigilance.
The Chinese fishing captain who's been detained in Japan is now headed home. He was arrested after a collision between his boat and a Japanese coast guard ship in the East China Sea. Fellow crew members had already been let go.
US president Barack Obama warns the fate of millions of people hangs in the balance in Africa's largest nation. He and other world leaders are holding crisis talks on Sudan today at the United Nations. Sudan is scheduled to hold a referendum in January that could split the country in two.
Sudan is being described as everything from a powder keg to a ticking time bomb. Small wonder, then, that so many countries are coming together today to try to head off what could be another disastrous civil war. David McKenzie explains just what is at stake.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Musicians sounding off to a drum beat for peace. Using global rhythms to urge the world to remember Sudan. But many feel the drum beats of war, as the country faces a new challenge.
HILLARY CLINTON, US SECRETARY OF STATE: The situation north-south is a ticking time bomb of enormous consequence.
MCKENZIE (voice-over): Sudan has already suffered through two decades of civil war, pitting an Islamic north against a Christian and Animist south, leaving more than two million dead, mostly from disease and starvation.
That war ended in 2005 and, since then, the country has managed a tenuous peace, but now rapidly approaches a major test.
MCKENZIE (on camera): January 9th, 2011. Remember this date. This is the date that southern Sudanese are due to vote in a referendum that could form the world's newest country, and the stakes could not be higher.
MCKENZIE (voice-over): Sudan is Africa's largest country, with about five billion barrels of oil reserves, mostly found in the south. If southern vote to split, and many think they will, then the ruling National Congress Party of the north could lose significant revenue.
Critics say President Omar al-Bashir, who faces war crimes charges for atrocities in Darfur, charges he denies, is dragging his feet on referendum preparation. For his part, Bashir blames the south. Either way, analysts believe that the south may not be ready for a vote.
JOHN ASHWORTH, SUDAN ANALYST: There are still major stumbling blocks. We've got just over 100 days to the referendum, and virtually nothing is in place.
MCKENZIE (voice-over): There were widespread problems earlier this year with elections in the south. Registration and voter education hasn't even begun for the referendum.
The south's vast size and little infrastructure also presents logistical headaches for a timely ballot. There's concern that any delay could spark fresh conflict.
MCKENZIE: Could we be facing war again in Sudan?
ASHWORTH: The worst-case scenario is war. Nobody wants war, but both sides are preparing for war.
MCKENZIE (voice-over): Both sides deny this, and some southern leaders say they personally fought for this moment.
MICHAEL MAJOK AYOM, PRINCIPAL LIASON OFFICER, GOSS: We have been preparing for a referendum, and this is why we have been fighting for 21 years. So why would we prepare for war? We prepare for peace.
MCKENZIE (voice-over): President Obama will be part of high-level meetings on Sudan on the sidelines of the General Assembly in New York, a sign that the US administration takes the referendum very seriously.
The people of southern Sudan, who have known only war, can only hope that Sudan's leaders and world attention will allow them to make their choice. David McKenzie, CNN, Nairobi, Kenya.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: And as you can see on your screens, those meetings have kicked off. Speaking earlier today at a high-level meeting, President Obama said what happens in Sudan matters to all of sub-Saharan Africa and, indeed, to all the world. He says "the days ahead will decide whether Sudan moves towards peace or slips backwards into bloodshed."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Two paths lay ahead. One path, taken by those who flout their responsibilities and for whom there must be consequences, more pressure and deeper isolation.
The other path is taken by leaders who fulfill their obligations, and which would lead to improved relations between the United States and Sudan, including supporting agricultural development for all Sudanese, expanding trade and investment, and exchanging ambassadors, and eventually working to lift sanctions, if Sudanese leaders fulfill their obligations.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Well, President Obama also said the January the 9th referendum must be held on time, and the will of the people must be respected.
You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD here on CNN. Making the links for us between two very different countries. That is what we ask you to do. What is it that Germany, then, a country with this famous symbol of division, has in common with India, where the Taj Mahal stands as an iconic symbol of love. Find out next on the segment that we call Global Connections.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: Welcome back. Now, it is time to link two countries that at first glance appear worlds apart. This is our Global Connections segment, where you help us join the dots between two nations and two very different cultures.
This week, Germany, the financial powerhouse of Europe, is our first country. And the second stop is India, which is one of the fastest-growing economies in the world. Your response on this one was overwhelming.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON (voice-over): Let's take a look at some of our favorite connections.
KURT HAMMEL, AMERICAN: My big connection between Germany and India is about spices. So, what bratwurst would be good without mace and nutmeg? And what strudel would be worth anything without sugar and cinnamon? Those are spices that came from India originally.
ANDERSON (voice-over): But it appears the Germans have gone a step further with this foodie connection.
LENA SCHIPPER, GERMAN: Hi, I'm Lena Schipper from Berlin in Germany, but I currently live in London. I think the big connection between Germany and India is the currywurst, which is a really famous German snack, which actually was invented in Berlin, I think. It's just a standard German bratwurst sausage, but it's covered in Indian spices.
ANDERSON (voice-over): And who could be surprised that Bollywood's fans span the globe.
DANIEL SANTOS, BRAZILIAN: There are a lot of German students who just love Indian-themed movies. There are, for example, here, Bollywood dance schools.
ANDERSON (voice-over): Some of you discussed the unique historical figures that brought the two countries together.
POUSHALI MAJUMDER, INDIAN: Hi, I'm Poushali Majumder. The famous German philologist and orientalist is Friedrich Max Muller, was a pro in Sanskrit language, and was also one of the founders of the western academic field of Indian studies.
It was also argued that a very critical role was played by Max Muller in initiating debate on on child marriage and widow remarriage, which were the two major social issues of India.
ANDERSON (voice-over): They might look very different, but it turns out these respected car giants have more in common than meets the eye.
SUMANTH VENKATESH, INDIAN: My name is Sumanth. I'm from Bangalore, India. Volkswagen, that means "the people's car," was made so that the average working German could afford it. Which is exactly what I feel Tata is trying to do. So that the average Indian, who has -- who cannot afford all these big cars that come from abroad or even from India, can go about having his own car at a subsidized rate. So, I guess it's also "the people's car" of India.
ANDERSON (voice-over): Chip from Toronto sought his own, special connection.
CHIP BARKELL, CANADIAN: My great-grandfather immigrated from Germany to the United States in the 19th century, and I often fly through Germany to get to India, where I have an amazing connection with an adopted family there.
My fisherman friend, who was in a motorcycle accident and needed an operation that cost about $300, which was way more than this family could afford. I figured I could earn $300 or $400 a lot faster than they could, so I paid for his operation. It saves his life and, as a result, his family has adopted me.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: One of the most interesting links you made between the two countries was alternative medicine. Germany is the birthplace of homeopathy, a treatment that has also proven very prop -- popular, sorry -- in India. The connection isn't debated, but the therapy is.
We brought together two men to argue their points. The critic Simon Singh, Indian author of "Trick or Treatment: Alternative Medicines on Trial," and the advocate, German doctor Karl W. Steuernagel. I began by asking the doctor why homeopathy is so big in Germany.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KARL WL. STEUERNAGEL, FORMER CHAIRMAN, GERMAN ASSOCIATION OF HOMEOPATHIC DOCTORS: It became more and more popular in the recent 15 years because more and more skilled doctors can offer it to the patient. I think that is the main reason. The increases in the number of patients, and it is mainly in that field.
ANDERSON: Sure, all right. Well, 20 percent of Germans can't be wrong, Simon, although I think that you're going to tell me that they are.
(LAUGHTER)
SIMON SINGH, AUTHOR, "TRICK OR TREATMENT": Well, you'll find that other 80 percent would be wrong if you just --
(LAUGHTER)
SINGH: No, unfortunately, there have been lots of medicines and treatments over the centuries that people have used. And in the end, it's turned out that they've been ineffective. And worse still, in some cases, downright dangerous.
And I'm very skeptical about homeopathy because, after 200 years, and after 200 clinical trials, there is still no good evidence that it works for any condition whatsoever.
ANDERSON: Defend homeopathy, then, Dr. Steuernagel.
STEUERNAGEL: The main thing is, you don't believe in homeopathy, you use it in cases where it is appropriate for your patients. You see, within my field, I'm not a scientist, but I'm a general practitioner. I have to use what I know to help the patient out of his situation, and homeopathy is one way, of course. And if you learn it correctly, you can use it in your clinic.
ANDERSON: Germany gave India homeopathy. Indian gave Germany Ayurvedic medicine, I guess is one way we can look at this. Do you think Germany and India are unusually close, doctor, when it comes to sharing and swapping medical practices?
STEUERNAGEL: You see, the relation between India and Germany as to homeopathy is that the cradle of homeopathy is standing in Germany, in Gottenheim (ph). And, of course, many Indians look for this place where all this has been found.
SINGH: Yes, I think the reasons the for the popularity are somewhat different. So, for example, in Germany, I think we may have celebrities who endorse it, we have a government that endorses it, we have very widespread internet marketing of homeopathy. It's in all the high street pharmacies, I guess. And so, it's natural for the public to assume that homeopathy works.
In India, I think if we go back 100 years or so, India was introduced to homeopathy in 1839. And at that state, people didn't really understand the science of anatomy or the science of chemistry. And so, homeopathy became very popular, particularly when young Indians couldn't become doctors. They were, maybe, restricted from entering medical schools during the British empire. So India very much adopted homeopathy. And it's become ingrained in society.
ANDERSON: Doctor, what is the future for homeopathy in Germany? Is it healthy?
STEUERNAGEL: The future for homeopathy in Germany is that it's on the level of patients, the number is increasing. On the level of education given to the allopathic doctors to understand, that is increasing very much. And on the level of policy, the acceptance of homeopathy is increasing strongly.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Dr. Steuernagel there, and Simon Singh, debating the merits of homeopathy.
One quick mention. We were really touched by two families who got to know each other through an exchange program, and who each contacted us independently of one another. We spoke with them yesterday. Have a listen to this.
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CHRISTIANE DIENEL, GERMAN: My family, we are actually very closely linked to India because our son, Amos, who is 14 years old, just has spent four months in an Indian family in Hyderabad.
He stayed there in this wonderful Indian family and lived a complete south Indian life, being the only European and only German in his school, and he went to the villages. And, of course, this makes us very close to his host family. And we really hope that we will also have their kids here in Berlin.
GLN REDDY, INDIAN: Hello, Christiane. We're very, very happy for hosting Amos. Amos is an excellent kid. We are very happy. We enjoyed his company for four months. Before he was leaving my house, my wife and my daughter cried like anything and said we are missing Amos. Amos is almost like -- just like a family member within our family fold.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Those are the stories that we really like to hear, the personal ones, the connections that come from your own experiences.
Now, for a sneak preview of the two countries that we've chosen for next week, do head to cnn.com/globalconnections. You can also see how you can take part in the discussion there. We're looking for historical ties, or cultural links, and definitely your own stories. The address again, cnn.com/globalconnections.
You're with me, Becky Anderson, on CONNECT THE WORLD here on a Friday evening in London. Coming up, driving to succeed. One golfer his eyes on the prize. The $10 million bonus at the tour championship showdown. He sat down with CNN to talk about what rocks his world.
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ANDERSON: Millions are at stake on the course. The second round of the tour championship is going on today in Atlanta, Georgia. It's the final leg of the enormously lucrative FedEx playoff series.
Right now, in today's play, Jim Furyk is in the lead for the tour championship. Paul Casey, Luke Donald, and Geoff Ogilvy right behind him. The tournament, of course, running through Sunday.
Rocketing to stardom, though, before the FedEx Cup, Matt Kuchar was largely unknown. Now, he's the overall leader, and he's one of those in the running for what is an enormous prize. Well, Patrick Snell sat down with him to track his rise.
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PATRICK SNELL, CNN INTERNATIONAL SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Matt, you're leading the FedEx Cup standings right now, you're leading the PGA tour in top ten finishes. How happy is Matt Kuchar the golfer right now?
MATT KUCHAR, GOLFER: It's been a great year for me. It really has been the year that I've been looking for. It kind of put me as the player I've always wanted to be. I always wanted to be the guy that was consistently finding his name on top of the leader board, and this has been that year.
I didn't want to be the guy who once or twice a year would throw his name on top of the leader board. I wanted to be good week in and week out.
SNELL: You burst onto the scene as an amateur at the Masters. You had phenomenal success, as well, as an amateur. Did you find, though, the transition to professional golf difficult? And if so, why?
KUCHAR: Maybe a little bit. When you leave college, you leave a team. And you're used to traveling with a team, you're used to traveling with four other teammates, a coach, and somebody to handle all your affairs.
When you turn professional, all the sudden, it's just you. You're traveling by yourself, you're having to pay your own bills. It's a completely different game. And it's an eye-opener to be sitting on the range hitting balls next to Ernie Els and Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson. And it takes a little bit of getting used to.
SNELL: You got your first PGA tour victory under your belt. You then went seven years before the next one arrived. What do you put that down to?
KUCHAR: The game of golf is hard. It is -- it's difficult to get wins. It's -- I think most people are spoiled seeing Tiger Woods win three, four, eight times a year. That's not the norm. The norm is, guys are grateful to win a tournament a year. Seven years is a long dry spell, but you're looking at teeing it up every week with 150 of the best players in the world. One guy wins each week. Your odds aren't great.
SNELL: Your life in recent months has changed immeasurably. It seems a lot of people want a piece of Matt Kuchar. This past weekend you were at an NFL game being paraded on the picture in Atlanta. Talk about the changes in your lifestyle.
KUCHAR: I think the biggest difficulty from last year to this year is time and managing your time and owning your time. It -- what I used to do for a routine with tournaments, it used to take me X amount of hours, and then I could go home. And now it's an extra hour. It's an extra hour to sign the extra autographs, to handle the extra media requests. It adds up. It's something that you really, I think, have to learn to budget.
SNELL: How tough over the years has it been balancing family life with trying to forge ahead in this ultra-competitive sport?
KUCHAR: The family travels almost every week. The PGA Tour does a great job of encouraging families to travel. I think it's one of the few sports where families are actually encouraged to come out on the road. And they provide a daycare service, which is fantastic. The same group of girls and guys travel every week and provide daycare services.
It's a wonderful thing for us as a family. It gives us a little bit of relaxation, lets my wife come out and watch some golf. And the kids have a great time with it as well.
SNELL: One of the spin-offs of playing great golf is you're a man this year on the US Ryder Cup team. How special is that for you?
KUCHAR: It's going to be a great event. I'm thrilled to be a part of the Ryder Cup team. It's something that, as a golfer, is one of the top goals. You want to win major championships, and you want to be on Ryder Cup teams, and you want be on winning Ryder Cup teams. And I'm thrilled to be able to play for the United States of America. To put on the golf shirt with the United States flag on it's going to be a real treat.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Good luck to him.
Well, it's all about you on CONNECT THE WORLD. Coming up, beware the worm. We've got your comments on a new kind of cyber threat that potentially -- just potentially -- has some very hard targets.
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ANDERSON: Welcome back now. A cyber weapon on a scale never seen before. The Stuxnet worm is the first of its kind. Its targets are in the real world. Power plants, industrial breaks and valves, for example. Take a look at this information from Symantec about the locations of infected machines. Nearly 60 percent of them are in Iran. The malicious software spreads through previously unknown holes in Microsoft Windows.
You've been telling us your thoughts on what is a fantastic story. DennisMac writes in, saying, "What's inconceivable is that any electronic control system at a utility would have any path to the internet to contract the virus."
Cydonius says "If this virus was created by the US and aimed at Iran's nuclear plant, wouldn't Microsoft release a fix" -- or "releasing a fix be considered treason?"
VTCitizen wonders if the target was Iran's nuclear power plant, then the US is not necessarily the most likely government behind the worm.
Lots of conspiracy theories out there. Get your voice heard on CNN. Head to the website, cnn.com/connect.
Now, before we go, of course, we want to leave you with our Parting Shots this evening. It's a thought of the day prompted by images that have really grabbed the team's attention here at CONNECT THE WORLD.
Tonight, elusive creatures from the animal kingdom. Now, it seems extraordinary that in the year 2010, scientists are still discovering new species. But we've got a new significant finds just in the past week or two, beginning with this tiny mammal spotted in Kenya. It's believed to be an entirely new species of elephant shrew. Believe it or not, despite its size, it's actually a closer relation to the elephant than the shrew.
And this miniature frog's got conservationists leaping with joy. It's among three rare amphibians that have been feared extinct for decades. The Omaniundu reed frog haven't been seen since 1979. But it has emerged again in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Also as rare as a hen's teeth, the twin-horned saola from Laos, often referred to as the Asian unicorn. And it is, in fact, one of the world's rarest animals. This one shown in the picture is the first to be sighted in a decade. The species was only discovered in 1992, and this fine specimen was recently caught by villagers. Unfortunately, though, it died just a few days into captivity.
And scientists are even discovering new dinosaurs. Can you believe it? This is just one of two horned species found in the desert south of Utah. They're believed to be related to the famous tricera -- is it triceratops? I think I've got that right. Our fellow went to the Natural History Museum. I think that's how they pronounced it. And was last alive around some 76 million years ago. Isn't that remarkable?
The animal kingdom, though vulnerable, is almost certainly vast across both time and space. And that is tonight's Parting Shots for you. I'm Becky Anderson, that's your show on the telly. Your world has been connected this Friday evening. Stay with us. "BackStory" is up next, right after a very quick check of the headlines for you.
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