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U.N. Chief Warns of "Generational Catastrophe" on Education; Germany Reopening Some Schools; Mexico Announces Plan for School; Israel Dealing with Outbreaks after Schools Reopen; Former Spanish King Leaves Country amid Financial Scandal; Victoria Premier Warns Those Ignoring Lockdown Will Be Fined; Most Brazilians Not Using Unproven Drug Sent from U.S.; Los Angeles Lakers Claim West's Top Seed; Tech Entrepreneur Discusses Sports' World Impact. Aired 10-11a ET
Aired August 04, 2020 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[10:00:00]
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BECKY ANDERSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST (voice-over): This hour, are the kids going to be all right?
COVID has forced them out of school in almost every country on Earth and the impact could be devastating.
Plus --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): The Spanish people are witnessing some unsettling news. It disturbs all of us, including me. I'm thankful the
royal household is distancing itself from this unsettling and disturbing news.
ANDERSON (voice-over): Just where is Spain's former king?
No one seems to know after he left the country following a scandal.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON (voice-over): Then --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's just (INAUDIBLE). It's just something for people to believe, more like a placebo, something for people to take and
(INAUDIBLE).
ANDERSON (voice-over): Return to sender. Why the U.S. donation to Brazil has been pretty much untouched.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
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ANDERSON: Tonight, to reopen or not to reopen. A billion kids are out of school because of the pandemic in what is being billed as an educational
catastrophe.
We are connecting the world, struggling to learn. I'm Becky Anderson. Hello and welcome to CONNECT THE WORLD.
It's well known that education changes everything and it is the great equalizer. But the top voice at the U.N. says the world is now facing a
generational catastrophe because COVID-19 has entered the world's classrooms.
Even secretary-general Antonio Guterres said more than a billion children are missing out on education because schools in more than 160 countries are
closed. He also stresses remote learning, even for those lucky enough to access it, sometimes just isn't good enough.
Well, now, after months of bleak pandemic news, you may be suffering from numbers fatigue. I get it. So does the U.N. chief. So he's quick to point
out a billion children not learning means global inequality will be even worse. He says that the students have got to get back into the classroom
safely.
America's top expert on infectious diseases is saying much the same thing to the U.S.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: The default position should be to try as best as you possibly can to open
up the schools for in-person learning. Having said that, there's a big however there. And the however is, the primary consideration should be the
safety, the health and the welfare of the children.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Well, the United Nations is calling this a defining moment. Antonio Guterres said the decisions that governments take now will have
lasting impact, not just on the kids but on the development prospects of countries for decades to come.
We have a global team of coverage of the COVID classroom crisis, with Fred Pleitgen in Berlin, Matt Rivers in Mexico City and Elliott Gotkine is in
Jerusalem, David McKenzie for you this hour in Johannesburg.
Let's start in Germany, where schools have started to reopen in the northeast region in the state with the lowest number of infections. CNN's
Frederik Pleitgen is standing by for us in Berlin.
Fred, what is the situation and how does that state plan to reopen?
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Becky, it's still a bit of a state of uncertainty here as Germany starts to reopen
some of the schools. I'm standing in front of one of the main schools in central Berlin, where, a week from now, they are going to start having in-
classroom lessons once again.
As you noted, right now it's the northeastern part of Germany that started reopening and it really is something that shows just how uncertain the
times are right now here in Germany, where the classes started yesterday.
And just a couple of hours after the classes started, the education minister of the state came out and said, look, we have changed our minds.
We now believe that children should wear masks when they're in the classroom.
So they're going to put out a new law to mandate masks there. That's also something that's mandated here in Berlin.
One of the things that's interesting about Germany, is it's the federal system.
[10:05:00]
PLEITGEN: So every state decides for itself how it wants to deal with the pandemic and how it wants to bring schools back. The foundation for that,
however, is the fundamentals of the pandemic control that are in place here in Germany.
Distancing first and foremost, very important; and then where distancing is not possible, for instance, in a setting inside the school, masks are very
important. There's variations of that and then, of course, sanitizing as well.
The masks have really become something that's become a debate here in Germany because a lot of states are saying, look, we want the children to
wear masks when they come to school.
However, the vast majority of states are saying that the masks should only be worn in communal areas, in the hallways, when the children go to the
bathroom, when they're in the public hall outside of the school. There's only one state which is Germany's largest state that also says that older
children need to wear them when they're in class as well.
So as you can see, here in Germany, there's a variety of different ways of trying to go about this. Most of them have the mask wearing but it's also
very much still a work in progress and a learning curve here in progress.
Of course that's something where the German government has said they realize that this is a very difficult undertaking for the states to do.
They do believe however they're in a very good position. First and foremost, they want to keep the children safe coming to the schools here,
coming to the some of the schools in Germany already. They do believe, Becky, that it's something they can do.
ANDERSON: Yes.
We are considering this hour, what is at stake for the children?
What's at stake for parents?
And the bigger issue and question here is what is at stake for governments as they try to balance this delicate strategy between, you know, health
crisis, economic crisis, a crisis for the children of a country?
(CROSSTALK)
PLEITGEN: Yes, absolutely. And a lot is at stake for the German government, for other governments as well. And essentially what they're
saying is that, right now, it's a very difficult situation for Germany, just like it is for many of the other countries that are involved here as
well.
They're trying to start up the schools as the pandemic is on the rise here again. In this country, they have had increasing number of cases. They also
have a lot of travelers coming back to Germany who have been abroad and some have brought COVID-19 with them.
So it's a very difficult situation for them and they know right now that, if they don't do this the right way, they could have a very large spike in
cases once again here in Germany.
And it's certainly something that's of concern to parents. It's of concern to the government. It's of concern to the general public as well. This is
something very, very closely monitored here in Germany.
ANDERSON: To reopen or not to reopen, that is the story in Germany.
CNN caught up with a few parents in the United Kingdom, who think it's time to get the kids back into the classroom. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'd like them to go back as soon as possible. So get back to work.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think it would be nice to like see friends again. I guess and be taught by teachers and not just be taught on screen.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Obviously it's a concern but they'll put as much safety in place as they can, whether it's masks, washing, sanitizing,
smaller courtrooms, outdoor lessons. I think we have to just adapt and evolve and make the best we can.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Each school has a log, is keeping a log voluntary of all the children and parents who have had anything to do with the
coronavirus, the antibody testing or the other tests. And so I'm fine with where he's going. Contact tracing as a whole in the greater society, I
don't think is up to scratch at all at the moment.
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ANDERSON: OK. That's a snapshot of the story in Europe for you.
Let's get to Latin America now, one of the pandemic's epicenters. While most countries in the region have closed schools to prevent further spread
of the virus, Mexico's education minister has announced a new plan for remote learning. Matt Rivers is in Mexico City.
What's the plan there, Matt?
MATT RIVERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, for Mexico's more than 30 million students, Becky, they will be going back to school in a remote way in a few
weeks from now starting on August 21st.
The ideal scenario would be that students here go back to online learning. But when you consider what's happening in Mexico, in terms of the ability
of different families across this country, where poverty levels are extremely high, a lot of families simply don't have access to online
learning.
What the government is doing here is they're -- they have signed agreements with the major TV carriers to produce 24 hours a day, seven days a week,
educational programming that students would be expected to watch. They say that, depending on the hour, it will apply to different grades.
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RIVERS: But Mexico's government is saying, look, we are aware of the fact that not all of our students have access to broadband connection that would
allow them to interact with teachers on Zoom or some other platform.
So they'll provide the television service because they say 94 percent of all households in Mexico have access to a TV. As for the remaining 6
percent, they're going to do radio programs. There's a lot of remote indigenous communities in Mexico that don't have TVs. So they're going to
produce radio programs there.
What you're seeing here is the Mexican government saying, look, we are not ready to reopen. And that makes sense, when you consider that it was on
Saturday, Becky, that Mexico set its most recent daily newly confirmed case record, with nearly 10,000 cases recorded, if you look at the seven-day
average in terms of newly confirmed cases.
It's as high as it has ever been. So this is an admission from Mexico's government that they don't have the outbreak under control, at least well
enough to allow students to go back because they say the science is not settled as to whether children are potential spreaders. They don't want to
put teachers at risk. They don't want to put families at risk.
But they also recognize that this is not the best case scenario, this is just what they can do in a country where broadband Internet is not widely
available.
ANDERSON: Matt's on the story in Mexico. Thank you.
South African schools are in the middle of a month-long break as it suffers the fifth largest COVID-19 outbreak in the world but the continent has seen
firsthand how shutting schools affects its children, in West Africa during the Ebola outbreak. CNN's David McKenzie has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Here in South Africa, schools are closed for at least a month. The president said it would be because they don't
want schools like this to be a transmission site for COVID-19. So there is nobody in this school right now.
The problem is the U.N. says this could have a massive impact on education on the continent. They predict this. But we have already seen proof in West
Africa during the 2014 Ebola outbreak. Many, many millions of students were out of school for months. Studies showed it led to a rise in teenage
pregnancy.
And it meant that many students couldn't go back to school when it was all over. The harsh reality is that pandemics like this really affect the
poorest and the most vulnerable, say the U.N.
Here in South Africa, it's no different. Students, more than 9 million of them, depend on school feeding programs. Those programs were stopped when
schools closed down. The government had to be taken to court by a charity just to keep the feeding programs going -- David McKenzie, CNN,
Johannesburg.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: So politicians, governments, school leaders making some tough decisions at present. Israel, a prime example but perhaps for all of the
wrong reasons. It was one of the first places to go back to school in May.
But even though the virus seemed under control, new cases of coronavirus began to cropping up in the schools. Soon more than 22,000 children and
teachers were under quarantine and it's estimated that about half the cases in Israel in June could be traced to a school outbreak.
Journalist Elliott Gotkine is joining us from Jerusalem. He's outside the Israeli high school that had one of the worst COVID outbreaks.
So Elliott, one medical advisor said other countries should not do what we have done.
What went wrong?
ELLIOTT GOTKINE, JOURNALIST: Yes, pretty sobering advice from an adviser there. I think Israel has gone from teacher's pet to near bottom of the
class in terms of the handling of the coronavirus pandemic.
It's widely believed to be the rapid reopening of the economy and, of course, the reopening of schools. We were under a lockdown for two months.
No schools and the economy was locked down.
And then at the beginning of May, the schools began to reopen, the smaller children were going back. They had to wear masks, I speak from experience
with my own kids going to school. The parents had to sign forms confirming that children were not suffering from any symptoms. They had to have
windows open for ventilation.
They reduced the class sizes. It's not abnormal to find 30-35 children in a class so they kind of reduced the numbers. And that's how things went for a
couple of weeks.
And then when the new government was signed in the middle of May, schools reopened for real. Older grades came back. And although there was still
hand washing and making sure that people were wearing the masks and the like, for example, there was a heat wave when the children went back.
[10:15:00]
GOTKINE: So the government, under pressure from parents, enacted a mask holiday for four days. And it's believed that led to some of the spread.
As far as the school behind me goes, it's quite well known because the president, Reuven Rivlin, went there; Benjamin Netanyahu's son went there.
And this school alone had something like 150 students come down with coronavirus and something like 25 members of staff.
And they, of course, went back to their homes, to their neighborhoods, to communities and it spread further there. So this school after being
reopened after the lockdown was then closed again. Then it reopened.
And when I spoke to the head of the parents' committee, I said, look, what happened?
His response was simply, we got unlucky.
ANDERSON: Fascinating response. And certainly what school authorities around the world at present will be considering what to do to ensure that
they are not unlucky as that school was going forward.
Will kids be going back to school in Israel after the summer?
GOTKINE: That's certainly the plan. September the 1st is the date and that seems, as far as the government is saying, to be set in stone. There will,
of course, be a number of precautions. It won't be business as usual.
So the youngest grades, one and two, will go back as normal. Grades three and four will be split. As I said before, class sizes are quite large so it
will be ensure there's 18 per class. Grades five and above will only go to school around two days a week and the rest will be done online.
But when again, when I'm speaking to parents of students, they're very keen to see kids go back because Israelis on average have more children than any
other developed country. And both parents tend to work. So more than three children on average per couple. Both parents tend to work.
So if the schools don't reopen, you can't have the economy reopen, either, because the parents can't go back to work. If you ask the parents, they
feel the potential damage to the children is greater than the potential damage to their health if they come down with coronavirus.
ANDERSON: Elliott's in Jerusalem. Thank you.
Two new studies suggest COVID-19 testing and contact tracing might be key to getting schools opened. Researchers in Britain found that if enough
people were tested, the positive cases were isolated and their contacts were identified and tested, a second wave of the outbreak would be
prevented.
But that would mean at least 59 percent to 87 percent of people showing symptoms would need to get tested. And in Australia researchers followed
schools and day cares that stayed open between late January and early April.
Some of the students and staff did catch the coronavirus but there was no significant spread of thorough -- because of thorough contact tracing. Both
studies were published Monday in "The Lancet: Child and Adolescent Health" issue.
We have connected you with around the world coverage of what's going on in the classroom crisis, from Berlin to Mexico City, Jerusalem to Johannesburg
and more as we move through the next couple of hours.
Well, now, Spain's former king, Juan Carlos, has suddenly left his own country, leaving only a note. No one is officially saying where he has
gone. The latest from Madrid up next.
Plus, the army comes in and finally ramps up. Australia's state of Victoria cracks down after numerous lockdown breaches.
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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JUAN CARLOS I, FORMER KING OF SPAIN (through translator): I want the best for Spain to which I have devoted my entire life and in whose service I
have put all my skills, my enthusiasm and my work.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Well, that was the former Spanish king, Juan Carlos I, abdicating the throne six years ago under a cloud of financial scandal. But
he ruled for nearly 40 years and is credited with steering Spain from a dictatorship to a democracy.
His reign has been mired with criticism and controversy and now he's picked up and left the country after delivering a note to his son, the current
king, Felipe VI, explaining his reasons. A royal spokesperson would not say where Juan Carlos has gone. And Al Goodman following this story from
Madrid.
What is going on?
AL GOODMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Becky, it's widely interpreted that what is going on is with the former king, his departure from Spain, it's an
effort by the current king, his son, to put more distance between himself and his father and to put more distance between the former king and the
institution of the royal household.
The monarchy itself, which the current king has vowed to make more transparent to make it a model for the entire country. The Spanish prime
minister making his first public comments about this, saying that it is individuals who are judged, not institutions, an apparent reference to the
monarchy.
I'm standing outside the royal palace, it's not where they live, it's where so many state events take place. Juan Carlos won't be coming here by all
accounts.
Here is a look at what's happened in the dramatic events in Spain. Let's listen in.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GOODMAN (voice-over): The departure of former king Juan Carlos I from Spain was sudden and secretive, coming six years after he abdicated the
throne under a cloud of financial scandal, a scandal that now includes investigations in Switzerland and in Spain into his alleged dealings,
according to a senior Spanish official with knowledge of the proceedings.
Spain's prime minister addressed the situation, speaking on national television.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Spain needs stability and robust institutions and those institutions need to be exemplar, transparent and
regenerative. In that sense, I think the line followed by the royal household is, in my view, the right one.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GOODMAN (voice-over): The royal household late Monday published a letter Juan Carlos wrote to his son, Spain's current king, Felipe VI, announcing
he was leaving Spain due to the public repercussion that certain past events of my private life are generating.
His son had vowed more transparency for the royal household when he became king in 2014. Earlier this year, he renounced any personal inheritance from
his father and cut off the annual public stipend to Juan Carlos.
A senior Spanish official tells CNN that Swiss prosecutors are examining documents that allege Juan Carlos may have received $100 million from Saudi
Arabia's king in 2008. Investigators want to know if that was related to a contract for a Spanish group's construction of a high speed train in Saudi
Arabia, the official said.
Prosecutors at Spain's supreme court are investigating. But no formal charges have been filed against Juan Carlos in any court, his lawyer told
CNN. And Juan Carlos, even out of Spain, will still be available as needed to the courts, the lawyer said.
In the past, CNN has contacted the embassies of Saudi Arabia in London and Madrid but received no immediate reply.
Juan Carlos is widely credited with helping to guide Spain to democracy after the dictatorship of Francisco Franco. Juan Carlos ruled for nearly 39
years.
GOODMAN: And for all that time, even after he abdicated, he lived here at this palace on the western outskirts of Madrid. It's a sprawling compound
in a forest with deer roaming around. All of that changes now for Juan Carlos.
GOODMAN (voice-over): Reaction was swift to his departure from Spain.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He must leave the country now because here in Spain, we don't want these kind of people.
[10:25:00]
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): I think he should return the money and remain in Spain to be judged.
GOODMAN (voice-over): Some in Spain have talked about a firewall between King Felipe and his father. And now their own country's border will keep
them apart.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GOODMAN: That same senior Spanish official with knowledge of the proceedings mentioned in our story told CNN that, come this autumn,
September, October, there may well be some decisions by the prosecutors on this case to make it go one way or the other.
ANDERSON: Thank you for that.
You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD with me, Becky Anderson. Still to come, the Australian city of Melbourne now in a stage 4 lockdown. Many argue,
though, it is too late. After the break, I ask a leading Australian epidemiologist if Sydney is making the same mistakes.
And the U.S. and Brazil leads the world in coronavirus cases.
So why are their leaders touting what researchers call an ineffective drug?
Ahead, why millions of doses of it are still sitting in Brazil.
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ANDERSON: You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD. I'm Becky Anderson. It's just half past 6:00 in the UAE. This is from the Middle East broadcasting hub.
Generational catastrophe: that's the warning echoing off empty classroom walls this hour. The United Nations emphasizing the need to get kids back
into school around the world. U.N. secretary-general Antonio Guterres says more than 1 billion students are missing out on education because of the
coronavirus pandemic and he stressed that remote learning, even for those lucky enough to access it, just isn't good enough.
Well, Australia's state of Victoria has also referred back to online study after its premier declared a state of disaster on Saturday. Melbourne
currently in its third night of the stage 4 coronavirus lockdown, already seeing severe breaches of the new COVID-19 restrictions, along with other
parts of the state.
More than a quarter of people who were supposed to be self-isolating in Victoria were not at home during door to door checks. Victoria's premier
has called that unacceptable and will be bringing in additional armed forces and tough fines to help efforts.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DANIEL ANDREWS, VICTORIA PREMIER: You will be door knocked, you will be visited. If you're not at home, then you will be fined. And the fine, $652
but beyond that, the opportunity for police to on the spot fine you up to $5,000.
[10:30:00]
ANDREWS: And for particularly selfish behavior, the opportunity to take you to court where the maximum penalty is in fact $20,000.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Professor Tony Blakely is an leading epidemiologist from the University of Melbourne. I asked him why people who have tested positive or
are waiting for results are breaching self-isolation rules.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TONY BLAKELY, PROFESSOR OF EPIDEMIOLOGY, UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE: We don't know but I can tell you that I suspect (INAUDIBLE) we all feel a bit
invincible. So for example, somebody (INAUDIBLE) and they're out and moving around the community, despite having been told to stay at home for 14 days.
So we haven't managed to communicate that well. So we have moved to stage 4 now with these severe fines. The military out, (INAUDIBLE) doing home
checking. We're moving pretty much into a stiff approach and away from (INAUDIBLE) now.
ANDERSON: Was Australia's stage 4 lockdown implemented too late?
BLAKELY: In retrospect, yes. Myself and others, when we first when Melbourne at least first went into a stage 3 lockdown three week ago, we
were saying, go hard, go stage 4, let's go for elimination.
(INAUDIBLE) we're now going to stage 4 and the virus has gotten (INAUDIBLE) away from us. It is easy to say that in retrospect. But our prime minister
said very clearly just about two weeks ago that Australia is going for elimination of community transmission as per New Zealand. So if we're going
to do that, we have to go hard.
ANDERSON: That certainly isn't the situation at present, of course. Victorian premier Daniel Andrews says there is no stage 5.
Fast forward six weeks then down the track. If cases are not contained, what happens next?
BLAKELY: Well, first of all, the numbers will definitely fall. We know that the stage 4 lockdown, like you with U.K. and Spain and other
countries, would definitely drive the numbers down.
But the question is what will that number be in six weeks' time. I don't know. In about two weeks' time we'll have an idea of how steep it is coming
down and be able to start predicting out and working out whether or not it's (INAUDIBLE) elimination in the community transmission or we're going
to need to learn to live with the virus (INAUDIBLE) at low levels. Time will tell.
ANDERSON: You're calling for Sydney to go into a stage 3 lockdown and make masks mandatory. Victoria recorded 134 coronavirus cases the day before it
went into a stage 3 lockdown. New South Wales broke its record last week, recording over 150 new cases in a single day.
New South Wales has recorded fewer than 20 cases per day for several days now.
Is your call to put Sydney into a lockdown a matter of avoiding too little, too late, at this point?
BLAKELY: Well, it's more than getting ahead of the virus. This virus gets ahead of you the whole time. Now if we're serious about the elimination
goal, which is what the prime minister has said we are to do, then if Sydney falls to having these rates going up like Victoria, it will be so
much harder to get that transmission down.
So for example, up until that -- the late July, about 25th of July, New South Wales had only had three of these mystery cases, three of the cases -
-
(CROSSTALK)
BLAKELY: -- contact of 28 days. They nearly eliminated them. So if New South Wales and Sydney here in particular wants to get ahead of us the
surprise, they may well need to do something like stage 3 but before that will be making masks mandatory. (INAUDIBLE). The masks will make a big
difference and then (INAUDIBLE).
It's not my job to decide but I'm certainly suggesting that New South Wales seriously considers getting ahead of this surprise --
(CROSSTALK)
ANDERSON: Is Sydney -- is Sydney making the same mistakes that Melbourne did?
BLAKELY: It's different. So in Melbourne, our contact tracing, they tried hard but they just could not keep up with the virus. It get kept getting
away and away and away from them.
In Sydney, the contact tracing was done brilliantly for the last 10 days, keeping the numbers flat, as you say. But over time, more and more of those
cases have become a community transmission case, where you don't know where they got it from and the contact tracing hasn't turned it down.
So I think they've done really well but they're managing not to get that (INAUDIBLE) down and keeping ahead of the virus. So it's going to need
mandatory masks in my view and possibly going into a stage 3 lockdown to take the edge off this now.
ANDERSON: Australia was deemed a success story. Have a listen to what former prime minister Kevin Rudd told me.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KEVIN RUDD, FORMER AUSTRALIAN PRIME MINISTER: The situation in the state of Victoria, in the city of Melbourne in particular, demonstrates what as
we see in so many countries around the world, which is the ease with which a second wave effect can be made manifest.
[10:35:00]
RUDD: It's not just, of course, in Australia. We see evidence of this in Hong Kong. We see it in other countries where, in fact, the initial
management of the crisis was pretty effective.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Australia's second wave is worst than the first.
Did Australia become too complacent?
BLAKELY: Yes, to some extent. People were becoming a bit easier about it. And (INAUDIBLE) from the stage 3 lockdown three weeks ago, because it was
nowhere near as well done as (INAUDIBLE). There were far more people out. There was a much more relaxed energy (ph) so we became complacent at that
point.
But the key thing here was the quarantine breach. So we had a breach out of quarantine (INAUDIBLE) security guards into (INAUDIBLE) of Melbourne, which
had large families and quite a high density and it just took off.
So actually it was a quarantine breach that brought us to this particular situation. And (INAUDIBLE) the complacency of the population but the two of
them worked together to mean that we're not in very good shape now.
ANDERSON: The big picture this hour, sir, is education. Victoria has moved back to online study. Australia's school year ends in December, so seniors
are due to sit their final exams in the coming months.
Is there a way to safely bring back seniors if Melbourne's lockdown needs to be extended?
BLAKELY: OK, well it all comes back to your goal. So if your goal was to limit the community transmission (INAUDIBLE) in New Zealand, then we
(INAUDIBLE) because the students are coming to school and they're bringing it from their family to the other children and it goes back out to other
families.
That's not the way you eliminate the virus. However, if (INAUDIBLE) simply we can't achieve it after four or five weeks this lockdown, then sending
the kids back to school is perfectly fine because you can accept the low level of community transmission.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Well, that was a leading epidemiologist from the University of Melbourne, professor Tony Blakely, speaking to me live from Australia.
Let's get you up to speed on some of the other stories that are on our radar right now. Phase 3 human trials begin in India for the AstraZeneca
COVID-19 vaccine developed with Oxford University.
The Serum Institute (ph) of (INAUDIBLE) told CNN the trials are beginning this month. If they're successful, the institute intends to get a license
to distribute the vaccine in November.
Well, Israel says it's launched airstrikes on several Syrian military targets. The Israeli military says it was in retaliation for a failed bomb
attack along a disputed border. Israelis says four militants were killed Sunday evening as they tried to plant IEDs there.
Connecting you next to thanks but no thanks. Brazil has to figure out what to do with millions of doses of a drug sent by the U.S. to help fight
COVID. The trouble is, researchers say it doesn't help. That's ahead.
Plus -- well, the coronavirus is no longer a laughing matter for this couple, who once refused to wear masks. Hear what they are saying now after
they contracted the disease.
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ANDERSON: In study after study, the effectiveness of the drug hydroxychloroquine is fighting COVID-19 has been proven ineffective. But
that hasn't stopped U.S. president Trump from touting the anti malaria drug. His Brazilian counterpart, president Jair Bolsonaro, said it helped
him to get over the virus and the U.S. has gifted Brazil with millions of doses of it and now the country has to do decide what to do with it.
Let's bring in Nick Paton Walsh in Brazil, in Sao Paulo.
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL SECURITY EDITOR: Becky, in no doubt that hydroxychloroquine, when it comes to coronavirus, study after study
has shown is ineffective if not possibly harmful.
Yet, president Donald Trump in the U.S. and president Jair Bolsonaro here in Brazil persist in saying it might have an impact. And Donald Trump gave
to a man who many describe as the Trump of the tropics 2 million doses of the drug. Even when it was already clear that it was not that effective
against coronavirus in late May.
Brazil still prescribing it for mild cases or pregnant women. Now the 2 million doses, a high profile donation, well, they arrived here and it
really isn't clear what is going to happen to them next, if anything.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WALSH: So much of the rhetoric, the noise around this disease focused on one drug, hydroxychloroquine, despite the fact that study after study show
it is simply not effective, possibly harmful in fighting the virus.
And here in a country, Brazil, it is still part of government policy, recommended even for mild cases, even for pregnant women. And also a large
part of the aid given by a key ally, the United States, to a country whose government often considers a similar mindset to it, that of President Jair
Bolsonaro.
Two million pills were given at the end of May, of hydroxychloroquine from the Trump administration to that of the Bolsonaro government here. Here's
what happened to them.
WALSH (voice-over): It's a pandemic gift nobody should want. Brazil's president touting the drug he says saved him from the disease,
hydroxychloroquine. Unproven, say studies, even dangerous, as his fellow disbelievers in COVID-19 chant, he's a living myth.
In May, the Trump administration sent 2 million doses of it to Brazil to help their ally.
So what happened to the expensive yet useless gift?
Well, CNN can reveal it did get to Brazil but, according to the health ministry, it's still near the airport, probably in this secure logistics
center close by, which we weren't allowed into.
WALSH: It's a cold dose of reality that a high-profile gift like this from the American people did not get far from the airport. Perhaps that's good,
because study after study has shown it's ineffective in the pandemic and may even be harmful.
Brazilian doctors, many of them, no longer following their government's advice to prescribe it. But Brazil is now overflowing with the drug, having
also bought a large amount of ingredients for it from India.
WALSH (voice-over): Former health minister Luiz Mandetta was fired partly over the drug in April.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's just false hope. It's just something for people to believe. More like a placebo. Something for people to take and give credit
to him. I don't know where they're going to keep so many pills, one years, they're going to have to throw it away. They are just going to have to burn
it.
WALSH (voice-over): One problem is the pills came in packets of 100. They'll have to be broken down to be distributed which, in part, would
eventually happen here, we were told, at an army laboratory in Rio de Janeiro. It's unclear why that has not happened yet.
WALSH: The real problem is the focus on hydroxychloroquine. It doesn't work, says study after study against coronavirus. But that has not stopped
the Brazilian government spending huge amounts of money on it. Yet doctors here in Brazil's iconic city say they are lacking in other drugs that could
really help in the pandemic.
WALSH (voice-over): One ICU doctor and union rep tells us what they need.
"Midazolam, fentanyl, more adrenaline," he says. "Public health is always running out of these so we have to make do with others. If the U.S. wants
to help Brazil, send these, not hydroxychloroquine."
That urgent plea as the numbers rise, perhaps drowned out by the positive glow these two men seek to sell.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WALSH: Now Becky, all the time wasted discussing hydroxychloroquine, should it be used, president Bolsonaro waving it to his crowds, is an
enormous distraction from the urgent need to find and give to people that need them the real drugs that do impact this awful disease.
Now remember too that Brazil's doctors have in a survey carried out here, half said they feel pressured to prescribe the drug even though studies in
Brazil again confirm that it does not work. It is ineffective.
And, of course, all of this is down to the continued government posture that this should be being used in mild cases or in pregnant women. Jair
Bolsonaro, he waves it regularly. He moderated his language a couple of weeks ago, saying it's between the doctor and the patient if they use it or
not.
But you can't underestimate the power of the most powerful man in the country, walking out day after day almost.
[10:45:00]
WALSH: Waving that drug at people as though it is some magical way out of that. You heard his former health minister saying this about giving people
hope. False hope indeed. And the cases continue to be absolutely devastating. We had a lull post weekend over the past few weeks. We have
seen 40,000-50,000 new cases a day, often 500-1,000 deaths every day as well, on their way to 100,000 deaths here in Brazil, with 2.7 million cases
in total.
Those are the ones that we know about because testing is not as prevalent as it could be in this 200 million strong nation. But they're in no mind
here at all, a key ally like the United States, giving a donation like that, which has essentially sat in storage, it's an extraordinary waste of
U.S. taxpayers' money and possibly too embellishing that false hope amongst many Brazilians here and I'm sure studies will work out how many lives
potentially that false hope cost. Becky?
ANDERSON: Nick Paton Walsh in Sao Paulo for you, thank you.
Well, you simply can't put a positive spin on the virus. It doesn't abide it. It doesn't care. It will still come after you. My colleague Miguel
Marquez spoke to one couple who tried to ignore it until they themselves got sick.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DEBI PATTERSON, HOSPITALIZED WITH COVID-19: We were totally lax and easy about it.
MICHAEL PATTERSON, HOSPITALIZED WITH COVID-19: Yes.
MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Debi and Michael Patterson didn't think the coronavirus would ever affect them.
D. PATTERSON: It was sort of almost like a joke in our group of
friends.
MARQUEZ: Did you wear masks?
D. PATTERSON: No.
MARQUEZ: Did you hang out with your friends as normal?
D. PATTERSON: Yes.
MARQUEZ: So all the things you are told you should back off of, you did.
D. PATTERSON: We did.
M. PATTERSON: We did.
D. PATTERSON: We did.
M. PATTERSON: We did.
D. PATTERSON: And we still --
M. PATTERSON: And we paid the price for it.
D. PATTERSON: Yes.
MARQUEZ: From Lake Havasu City on Arizona's border with California, the Pattersons didn't give the virus much thought, even once developing
symptoms in late June.
D. PATTERSON: We just kind of carried on. We went to the pool, we did stuff, you know, over the rest of the weekend. And that Monday morning is
when we both woke up and we are just -- felt like a train had gone over both of us.
MARQUEZ: Michael got sick, Debi had to be hospitalized, put on oxygen but did not need a ventilator.
Over a month later, how are you now?
D. PATTERSON: Obviously, still short of breath, coughing, just the fatigue and dizziness, headaches daily. It's almost like somebody hit you in the
head.
MARQUEZ: They once laughed about the virus. Now they say it's no joke.
What is your message to people now?
D. PATTERSON: Be more careful.
M. PATTERSON: Keep your distance and wear a freaking mask.
MARQUEZ: In this ultraconservative corner of the state, masks are still highly controversial.
PATRICK BAUGHMAN, GUB SHOP OWNER: If we make any member or any customer that's walking through our door remove their face mask, again, that's our
pride, that's also the understanding that you're --
MARQUEZ: So you make people remove the mask when they come in?
BAUGHMAN: Absolutely. You do not shop my store with a mask on, period.
MARQUEZ: For gun shop owners, Patrick Baughman, the coronavirus itself doesn't add up.
But a 150,000 people are dead. Over 150,000 people.
BAUGHMAN: I definitely don't agree with that number that you just threw out there. I think --
MARQUEZ: What do you not agree with?
BAUGHMAN: There's so many cases of fraudulent claims as far as how they are reporting numbers.
MARQUEZ: Public health officials believe the number of dead from COVID-19 is probably higher than the official count, not lower.
When the president comes out and says wears a mask, do you think he's just playing politics?
BAUGHMAN: Unfortunately, I do, at that point, think that he's playing politics because originally he did come out calling this entire thing a
hoax.
MARQUEZ: For the Pattersons, the coronavirus is no hoax and speaking out is not a political act. It's a friendly warning.
D. PATTERSON: It's ridiculous not to take this seriously. I mean, I could have died just like the next person. I mean, anybody can. It could've been
either one of us or both of us.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: The report filed by Miguel Marquez.
You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD, I'm Becky Anderson.
He's one of the most successful men in the tech world married to one of the tennis greats and hear what he says about setting his daughter up for
success.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:50:00]
(MUSIC PLAYING)
ANDERSON: Professional sport looks very different these days, doesn't it, and a big win can feel very different in the era of COVID-19. But the L.A.
Lakers making the best of it in the NBA.
LeBron James wants to help the Lakers to an elusive championship. If they can pull it off, it will be an achievement like no other. Don Riddell
explains why the latest win on Monday was such a big deal.
DON RIDDELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Thanks very much. It has been 10 years since the L.A. Lakers last clinched the top seed in the NBA's Western
Conference. Coincidentally that was the last time they won the championship. So there's considerable excitement now that they have done it
again.
The Lakers clinched the West with victory against the Utah Jazz on Monday. Anthony Davis doing much of the damage, scoring 42 points and grabbing 12
rebounds. He was supported by 22 points from LeBron James, who added in nine assists.
Now, of course, that the games are played without fans in the NBA bubble at Disney World in Florida, the top seed doesn't come with the benefit of home
court advantage anymore. But it's as good as it can be for the Lakers heading into the playoffs.
Now then, as the cofounder of Reddit, Alexis Ohanian is one of the most successful entrepreneurs in the tech world. But since marrying the female
tennis icon, Serena Williams, he's increasingly finding himself as an odd man out in a women's world.
Following his investment in the L.A. women's soccer team, known as Angel City, Ohanian spoke to me about how he's trying to make the world a more
accepting place for his African American daughter, Olympia, and he hinted at a safer place for everyone.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALEXIS OHANIAN, CO-FOUNDER, REDDIT: I would love for my daughter to be a CEO and a startup founder. I would love for her to be a professional
athlete. And I agree -- look, as a fan of sport for all of my life and then someone who's got a front seat to what it really takes, do I have a new
appreciation for just how intense it is.
And it's a -- I thought we worked hard in tech. I really did. I naively thought, oh, we're the hardest working industry, which is a total farce.
But what pro athletes do mentally and physically day in and day out is just another level compared to us tech workers.
And so I think the best advantage Olympia will have is that no matter what, she's going to get honest and very real advice from someone who knows what
it takes to be the absolute best.
And so if she wants to do it, God bless. We'll support her. You know. But I will be teaching her how to code. So she'll have that option, too.
RIDDELL: Would you consider yourself a feminist?
OHANIAN: Yes, I wonder why it's such a contentious word. I mean, I guess I know why. But right, do I believe that women deserve the same rights as
men?
Yes. I want to sit at that dinner table, when Olympia is a little older, and feel like I have done my part, too. Knowing Olympia's not going to
question everything Serena has done to make this world better for Olympia and I want to make sure -- I'm a very competitive person -- I want to make
sure that I have got a good argument myself.
RIDDELL: How big sports fans are you and your wife, Serena?
How much sport do you watch and which sports do you like watching?
OHANIAN: I grew up playing and loving American football and basketball. Those are the two primary sports, especially NFL. NFL is number one in the
house. I hated tennis until I started dating my wife.
So I -- I'm a quick learner and just like I freely admit, I never watched a (INAUDIBLE) match. I got right after last year. But you know it's still, I
think --
(LAUGHTER)
OHANIAN: -- tennis is always going to be, I think, on some level, number one in the household. And even Serena admits that when she sees Olympia
running around with a soccer ball, having a great time and playing with me, she gets a little jealous. But don't worry, Olympia is really great with a
racket, too. So.
RIDDELL: A lot of Black football players are standing up for themselves. They're sick and tired of the abuse they caught in the stadiums from the
fans. They're getting it in social media, too.
How can we better protect them?
[10:55:00]
OHANIAN: It's going to hearten you or dishearten you. But the good news is this is a relatively small number of people relative to the population. The
vast majority of people actually do have better things to do and are better humans than that.
The downside is, because of this technology, it's very, very possible for a small number of people to have an outsized impact. In the next five years
these platforms are either going to be forced to get better or the market is going to just shift in a totally different direction.
RIDDELL: What kind of respect do you have for the athletes who have had to take this abuse and have been able to rise above it and set a better
example?
OHANIAN: I live with one and I don't know how she does it. In sport, there's actually winners and losers and it's objective as long as no one is
cheating. It's all honest. And so this is where we would hope as a -- as humanity to see the very best of us shine and then celebrate it.
And so it's incredibly disheartening and discouraging to then see the ills and the worst of this still make the experience so bad for people who have
demonstrably excelled.
The flip side of it -- and this is the thing that I have come to really appreciate now because I'm so tied to it and I get to see -- I get to see
the impact that Serena and we have on so many people all over the world. Like -- and it's humbling.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
RIDDELL: Alexis Ohanian, a really fascinating character. I thoroughly enjoyed our conversation. You can read more at cnn.com/worldsport.
That really was fascinating and what a remarkable confession from him there. He hated tennis until he met Serena Williams. I guess she won him
over in more ways than one.
ANDERSON: I wonder how well he plays these days?
I'm sure he was better than he was.
RIDDELL: Yes.
ANDERSON: I wonder if his daughter actually plays better than he does. She's got a nifty little forehand I saw the other day. Thank you.
To a remarkable story now. Three sailors from Micronesia, who went missing in the Pacific Ocean, are safe after a movie star rescue. Australian and
U.S. forces found the sailors after they wrote SOS in the sand on a tiny beach, it was a tiny island beach. They were rescued Sunday. All three are
in good condition.
OK. We're wrapping up the first hour of our two-hour show. Next, I speak live to the director of communications for Donald Trump's 2020 re-election
campaign. Do stay with us for that.
[11:00:00]
END
