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One World with Zain Asher
Spanish Football Federation Luis Rubiales Faces Domestic And International Criticism; The Red Cross Says More Than 4200 People Arrived On The Italian Island Of Lampedusa Over The Weekend; Wartime Elections Next Year Possible In Ukraine; Russia Confirms Death Of Wagner Boss Yevgeny Prigozhin; India Authorities Investigate Teacher Asking At Least Three Students To Slap A Fellow Classmate Who Was Muslim. Aired 12-12:45p ET
Aired August 28, 2023 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[12:00:38]
LYNDA KINKADE, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: Hello, I'm Lynda Kinkade in Atlanta and this is One World. Welcome to the show. At this hour, the Spanish
Football Federation is meeting to discuss its president, Luis Rubiales. FIFA has slapped him with a three-month suspension for kissing star player
Jennifer Hermoso during the World Cup medal ceremony, an act she says she didn't consent to. Now, Spanish prosecutors have opened an investigation
into Rubiales, waiting to see what comes of that meeting. But for now, they seem to be backing their president and accusing Hermoso of lying.
The world champion women's football team want him fired. They're refusing to play until Rubiales is gone. Most of the coaching staff have resigned.
And there are some reports citing other inappropriate behavior by the Federation president during the World Cup final. Atika Schubert is covering
this story from Valencia, Spain and filed this report.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ATIKA SCHUBERT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's been a dramatic weekend off the pitch here in Spain with accusations and counter accusations about that
controversial kiss that took place after the Women's World Cup. Euphoric celebrations for a historic Women's World Cup quickly turned into a moment
of reckoning. When Luis Rubiales, president of the Spanish Football Federation, planted a forceful kiss on player Jennifer Hermoso during the
medal ceremony in Sydney. A kiss she later said she had not consented to.
Facing domestic and international criticism, Rubiales was pressured to resign, but he defiantly refused. He doubled down, saying the kiss was
consensual to the applause of men in the room.
LUIS RUBIALES, PRESIDENT, SPANISH FOOTBALL FEDERATION (through translator): You think I have to resign? Well, I'm going to tell you something. I will
not resign.
SCHUBERT (voice-over): Hermoso issued her own lengthy response which said the kiss was not consensual at all. "I felt vulnerable and a victim of an
impulse-driven, sexist, out of place act without any consent on my part, she wrote. Since then, FIFA, the world's governing football body,
provisionally suspended Rubiales for 90 days and the Spanish government has submitted a complaint to its sports tribunal, a step towards suspending
him. What was first a national embarrassment now threatens international repercussions but could well become a turning point for women athletes in
Spain.
TANIA VERGE MESTRE, MINISTER OF EQUALITY AND FEMINISM, CATALONIA REGIONAL GOVERNMENT: Clearly, his attitude has been a demonstration of what female
players have to endure in professional sports, but not only, also in their daily lives. We have all been subject to these different forms of
harassment in our workplace, these forced kisses, the grabbing, the touching, the demeaning. So, this is why women from all fields are sending
their support.
SCHUBERT (voice-over): Hermoso and her teammates said they will not play for the national team until Rubiales is removed in a statement signed by
nearly 50 athletes. Spanish football clubs unfurled their support in games over the weekend. We are with you, banners red. We are all Jenny. Spain's
women players are proving that they are winning hearts and minds both on and off the pitch.
We are now waiting to hear what will happen to Luis Rubiales after an emergency meeting of Spain's Royal Football Federation. In the meantime,
the family of Rubiales has rallied around him. His mother, according to Spanish media, has gone into a church and is now on a hunger strike until
justice is served to her son, she said. Atika Schubert for CNN in Valencia, Spain.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Well, for more on the investigation, we're joined by CNS Spaniel reporter Pau Mosquera. Good to have you with us. So, it seems increasingly
difficult to see how this president can retain his position, giving the widespread cause for him to stand down. Talk to us about the investigation
from the prosecutor's office. What are they looking into, and what sort of reaction are we seeing from his cause for him to stand down?
[12:05:00]
Talk to us about the investigation from the prosecutor's office. What are they looking into and what sort of reaction are we seeing from his family?
PAU MOSQUERA, CNN EN ESPANOL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Lynda, the Spanish national court, the prosecutor has confirmed this morning that they have
opened a preliminary investigation, asked to see if what happened at the final of the Women's World Cup was sexual aggression or not. In that sense,
in a statement published this morning, the prosecutor confirmed that they will contact Jennifer Hermoso in order to let her know her rights as a
victim of an alleged crime of sexual assault and to know if she wants to file a suit against Luis Rubiales or not.
So, as we see, the pressure is growing and growing against the Spanish football Chief Luis Rubiales, and his family seems to have had enough of
it. The Rubiales' cousin Vanessa Reif confirmed this morning that her mother had locked herself inside of a church in the town of Motril, south
of Spain, as to show some support to her son.
Nevertheless, the pressure seems that will continue to grow at least socially because as an example in a matter of hours at 8 P.M. local time,
the organizers of the International Women's Day March will be calling people to demonstrate here downtown Madrid in order to show some support to
the female national football team and also to protest against Rubiales. Lynda.
KINKADE: All right, Pau Mosquera, good to have you on the story for us. Thanks very much. Well, migrants are making the perilous sea journey to
Italy in record numbers. The Red Cross says more than 4200 people arrived on the Italian island of Lampedusa over the weekend and it's calling for
more international efforts to counter what it calls migration chaos.
The Italian military has started transferring the migrants to the mainland. One hundred and thirteen thousand migrants have arrived in Italy so far
this year. That's double the numbers compared to last year.
The government plans to meet this week to come up with an emergency plan to combat the rise. CNN's Barbie Nadeau was following the story from Rome and
joins us now. So, a record number of migrants are arriving in Italy this weekend -- more than 4000 people. Just explain why we're seeing this uptake
right now and how are authorities handling this surge.
BARBIE NADEAU, CNN REPORTER: Yeah, you know, so many of these boats that are reaching Lampedusa -- are coming from Tunisia. That's because the
Tunisian Coast Guard is not stopping them. But there's also another problem. A lot of the NGO rescue ships aren't out at sea. We took a closer
look at exactly what's going on.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NADEAU (voice-over): It's the height of the Mediterranean summer and this tiny island is overwhelmed with the arrival of thousands of migrants and
refugees. More than 4000 people arrived on the Italian island of Lampedusa in hundreds of small boats over the weekend. Among them pregnant women,
babies and unaccompanied minors.
It's the highest number of arrivals in a weekend this island has ever seen. More than 113,000 people have arrived in Italy by boat this year. That's
more than the total number that arrived in all of 2022. There may be more migrant and refugee boats at sea, but there are fewer NGOs to rescue them.
At the moment, the Italian government has sequestered three NGO ships for allegedly breaking a law set by Italy's right-wing government under Prime
Minister Giorgia Meloni that mandates how many rescues a charity ship can carry out. Each of the sequestered ships will be docked for 20 days and
fined up to 10,000 Euro.
Fifty-six organizations have signed a petition against the government, accusing them of obstructing civilian search and rescue and warning that it
will lead to more deaths. But the Italian government says without the rest of Europe helping, they cannot manage the influx.
UNKNOWN (through translator): Italy can't be left alone facing this extraordinary phenomenon. Italy is the gateway to Europe. Europe must
intervene with us.
NADEAU (voice-over): Meloni will lead crisis talks this week after the government reconvenes on the agenda, ways to help people migrate legally
and ways to deport them faster. In the meantime, the boats keep coming and coming and coming.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NADEAU (on-camera): And you know, Lynda, when you look at those numbers, those figures, that, you know, extraordinary year for migration. And what's
really important here is Georgia Meloni won on a promise to stop the boats, and she has been very unsuccessful at doing that, so far. Linda.
KINKADE: All right, Barbie Nadeau, we will continue to follow that story. Thanks so much.
[12:10:00]
Well, we want to turn to Ukraine now where President Zelenskyy isn't ruling out the possibility of wartime elections next year. During an interview
with the Ukrainian media, the President said voting could take place if Parliament is ready and if Western allies provide financial support. The
country's Deputy Defense Minister says Ukrainian forces are liberating more areas along the southern frontline, including another village in the
Zaporizhzhia region.
CNN's Melissa Bell joins me now live from Zaporizhzhia. Good to have you with us, Melissa. So, elections could happen next year in a country that is
currently under martial law. Is that feasible? And how much assistance would the country need to make that happen?
MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, essentially, President Zelenskyy's reply to what had been Senator Lindsey Graham's point last week on a visit
to Kyiv, that elections should be held in wartime if he wants to show to himself to be a leader worthy of a democracy, what he said was, sure, we
can do it, but it's going to have to be at someone else's cost.
Essentially, President Zelenskyy's point is that of course the martial law that we are now seeing renewed every 90 days here in Ukraine prevents
political activity, but that the parliamentary elections due this year, the presidential elections due next year, can go ahead as long as allies help
foot the bill for that. What he was trying to show was that despite all the major difficulties that will have to be tackled.
And you're talking about, Lynda, not just the Ukrainian men and women currently fighting. You're talking about the many millions who fled.
Organizing all that will be substantially difficult, a huge logistical task, but it can be done, he said. He was also saying in that same
interview, by the way, that what he's going to be seeking with Washington is a bilateral agreement similar to the one with Israel that will allow
that agreement to take care of things like military aid, security agreements in the long term beyond, for instance, things that Ukraine is
seeking already like NATO membership.
Meanwhile, as you say, that counteroffensive cows on just to the south of here. There have been significant, if not substantial gains that have been
made these last few days around the town of a village, rather. It was several hundred strong before the war of Robotyne. Ukrainian authorities
confirmed this morning that it had been recaptured, but the going is extremely slow.
What we're hearing is that Ukrainian forces are beginning to make it towards those very heavy -- heavily fortified Russian defenses have made it
in parts to the first line of defense. It is the second and third they'll have to tackle as they try and make it beyond there. Their aim is the
logistical hub of Tokmak. They have several more villages to get through before they get there and get their artillery within reach of that. That
will be a significant gain if they can get there.
But again, every single inch of ground that is taken is a substantial gain. What you're talking about is not just the heavy minefields, but what we've
been hearing from the soldiers carrying it out, extremely difficult open terrain where everyone is visible, every single movement is watched.
There is substantial air fire from the Russian side, making any advance towards what is a system of incredibly entrenched positions, trenches that
have been dug out and built over such a long time. Russians had the time they needed to prepare these defenses. They are bombing them regularly. The
going is extremely slow. But Ukrainian forces say they will carry on as they seek to make it to Tokmak, Lynda.
KINKADE: All right, Melissa Bell for us following all those developments from Zaporizhzhia Ukraine, we appreciate it. Thank you. The death of
Yevgeny Prigozhin reconfirms that Russia is a country that does not have justice. Those words from Moldova's leader, whose country borders Ukraine
and has also experienced serious tension with Moscow. President Sandu spoke with our Christiane Amanpour on Sunday, which was Moldova's 32nd
Independence Day.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN ANCHOR: Do you believe that the West is doing enough? Do you think it really gets it? I mean, do you think it's yet done
enough for Ukraine? And is it doing enough for you?
MAIA SANDU, PRESIDENT OF MOLDOVA: We're grateful to all the countries and to all the international organizations which support Ukraine. We believe
that Ukraine needs to get more support. Ukraine is fighting the right cause. Ukraine is fighting for its independence, but also for democracy.
And everybody should understand that if Ukraine is not helped, then Russia will not stop in Ukraine or Moldova. So, this is also about the security,
first of all, the security of the continent, and also about the international rules-based system.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: And you can see more of that interview on Amanpour Next Hour. That is 1 p.m. Eastern, live from Ukraine in the southern port city of Odessa.
Christiane anchors from Ukraine all week. So be sure to tune in for her special reporting and coverage.
And Russia has officially confirmed the death of Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin.
[12:15:00]
Investigators claim genetic tests prove that he was one of the 10 people on board that plane that crashed just outside the Russian capital last week.
The crash site has since been covered with sand with a small makeshift memorial in the center. The crash came two months after the Wagner chief
and his mercenaries staged a short-lived mutiny in Russia.
An incident at a school in India is sparking shock and outrage. Video has emerged showing a teacher telling students to slap a seven-year-old
classmate who's Muslim. CNN's Vedika Sud has the story. But we must warn you, you may find it disturbing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VEDIKA SUD, CNN REPORTER: Police in India's northern state of Uttar Pradesh are investigating a deeply disturbing video that shows a teacher asking at
least three students to slap a fellow classmate who was Muslim. The incident, which took place on Thursday, according to CNN affiliate CNN News
18, has gone viral on social media, sparking widespread outrage and condemnation.
In the 39-second video which CNN has viewed, shows classmates take turns to slap the boy on the face, forehead, and his waist. The teacher, who can be
seen in the frame, asks for the students to slap the boy harder for allegedly forgetting his time stable. The boy can be seen crying through
the video. According to a statement released by the police, the teacher made some objectionable comments in class. She said, quote, mothers of
Mohammedan students don't pay attention to their child's studies, which impacts their performance.
On Friday, the police issued a statement saying that a case has been opened against the teacher and that legal action will be taken. However, the
teacher, Tripti Tyagi, speaking to CNN News 18 on Friday said the video that has been circulated online was edited. She claims to have been under
pressure from the students' parents to be strict with him. She said she is disabled and unable to get up. She instructed the other students to
discipline him. Tyagi has issued an apology. Speaking to CNN, the father of the student denied the teacher's claims and said his son has been moved to
another school but feels restless and scared.
Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi has blamed the Modi government for inciting religious violence in the country. In a post on ex-formerly known as
Twitter, Gandhi said, quote, "Sowing the poison of discrimination in the minds of innocent children, turning a holy place like school into a
marketplace of hatred. There is nothing worse than this that a teacher can do for the country. This is the same kerosene spread by the BJP, which has
set every corner of India on fire."
The state of Uttar Pradesh is governed by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu Nationalist Party, Janta Party. Its controversial Chief
Minister, Yogi Adityanath, has often been criticized for his anti-Muslim rhetoric. CNN has reached out to Uttar Pradesh police officials for more
details. Vedika Sud, CNN, New Delhi.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Still to come on One World, major decisions are being made to name two of Donald Trump's criminal cases. Ahead, what those decisions will mean
for the U.S. president. We'll have a live report when we come back.
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[12:20:57]
KINKADE: Welcome back, I'm Linda Kinkade. Good to have you with us. It is an important day in both election subversion cases against Donald Trump. A
judge in Washington, D.C. has just set March 4th, 2024 as the date when the former U.S. President will go to trial on charges alleging that he tried to
overturn the 2020 election. That's one day before the Super Tuesday primary.
And here in Atlanta, the judge has decided Trump and his 18 co-defendants will be arraigned next week. One of those alleged co-conspirators, former
White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows took to the stands earlier today in an attempt to get his charge moved to a federal court.
CNN's Jessica Schneider joins us now live in Washington. Good to have you with us Jessica. So, Trump is meant to be arraigned next Wednesday. Explain
what that means and what's the latest on Mark Meadows' case today in court trying to get his charge moved to the federal court.
JESSICA SCHNEIDER, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, so first of all that arraignment date like you said, Lynda, will be September 6th next week. All
19 defendants are scheduled to appear in court for their arraignments. Now, these appearances will start beginning at 9:30 in the morning. That's
actually when Donald Trump is scheduled. They'll go at 15-minute increments throughout the morning, so, all 19 defendants can get their arraignments
in.
Notably, though, some of these defendants, including the former president, they might be able to waive their appearance, meaning they don't need to
appear. That's actually up to the judge. Or they could potentially appear, you know, via video video conferencing, like Zoom, that's all to be
determined in the next few days. But yes, that Fulton County case is moving forward here.
At the same time, we've got a hearing going on in federal court that started at 10 o'clock this morning, so just about two and a half hours ago,
and it's all revolving around Mark Meadows and whether he can actually move his case from the state level to the federal level and potentially get his
charges dismissed, although that's not a sure thing.
So, as this hearing is going on, we're getting the minute by minute updates from our team actually inside the federal courthouse because of course
federal court has no cameras in the court and we're seeing that Mark Meadows in this hearing, he's actually on the stand. He's testifying about
his role as chief of staff and talking about why his role encompassed a lot of the things that this indictment alleges. He says that it was his role as
chief of staff to be in touch with state level officials and to be involved in the wake of the 2020 election.
So, this is all playing out, this is adding a lot of insight to his role as chief of staff. Lynda, he talked about just how difficult this role was. He
said he was basically consumed by the job, you know, 24 hours a day. So, we're going to see how the judge, the federal judge, actually responds to
these, this hearing, this testimony to see if there's any willingness to move this case to federal court, where Mark Meadows at least believes he'll
have a better chance of getting this case dismissed.
KINKADE: Wow, a lot of moving parts. Jessica Schneider, good to have you on the story for us. Thank you.
SCHNEIDER: Thanks. Well, the U.S. is marking a pivotal moment in its civil rights history today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: Sixty years ago today, more than 250,000 Americans marched to Washington calling for equality. On that day, Martin Luther King Jr. made
his galvanizing "I Have A Dream" speech. The march was pivotal in helping push new laws, including the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which outlawed race
discrimination. On Saturday, thousands rallied in the Lincoln Memorial, U.S.-- Jr. and the organizers of this historic march at the White House
this afternoon.
And while the march on Washington shows us how far the U.S. has come, the weekend shows us how far America still has to go. Police in Jacksonville,
Florida say a man went to a Dollar General store and gunned down three African Americans.
[12:25:00]
One was in her car, another an employee, and the third a customer. The sheriff says as officers approached, the gunman turned the gun on himself.
Well, now authorities have launched a federal hate crimes investigation. CNN's Isabel Rosales has the details from Jacksonville.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SABRINA RAZER, VICTIM'S FAMILY MEMBER: I thought racism was behind us, but evidently it's not. You was a coward. You went in and shot these innocent
people for nothing that you didn't even know.
ISABEL ROSALES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Family members of victims reacting to the racially motivated mass shooting in Jacksonville Saturday
that took the lives of three black people.
UNKNOWN: Angela Michelle Carr, 52 years old. Anolt Joseph, or AJ Lagare, Jr., 19 years old, and Gerald Deshawn Gallion, 29 years old.
ROSALES: Sunday, authorities revealed new details about the events leading up to the shooting. Investigators say before the gunman opened fire at a
Dollar General store, he showed up in the parking lot of a historically black university nearby and was turned away by security for refusing to
identify himself.
A. ZACHARY FAISON, JR., PRESIDENT AND CEO, EDWARD WATERS UNIVERSITY: So, our campus security officer did confront the perpetrator, and the
perpetrator immediately got in his vehicle and started to drive away.
ROSALES (voice-over): Minutes later, the gunman arrived at the Dollar General. Deputies released this edited surveillance video showing the
shooter opening fire on the first victim in her car in the parking lot. The edited clip then shows the gunman entering the store where he shot the
second and third victims. Shortly after investigators say the gunman texted his dad.
T.K. WATERS, JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA SHERIFF: The suspect texts his father and says, "Use a screwdriver to get into my room." The father enters the
room and finds a last will and testament of the suspect along with a suicide note on his laptop.
ROSALES (voice-over): Eleven minutes after the shooting started, officers entered the store and heard a gunshot, presumably when the gunman shot and
killed himself, according to deputies. Investigators are now combing through his writings.
WATERS: The manifesto is quite frankly the diary of a madman. He was just completely irrational. But was he rational in his thoughts? He knew what he
was doing.
ROSALES (voice-over): Authorities say the shooter, who lived with his parents in Orange Park, had no criminal arrest history. He legally
purchased and owned the two guns used in the mass shooting. The Justice Department is now taking part in the investigation, calling it a hate crime
and an act of racially motivated violent extremism.
UNKNOWN: Father, today we pray for healing. Healing for the families. Healing for generational curses.
ROSALES (voice-over): Sunday, friends, family and community members gathered at a vigil for the victims.
UNKNOWN: We just thought it would be appropriate to bring AJ a little something.
UNKNOWN: Gerald was a fun, loving young man. He was very active in my granddaughter's life.
SABRINA RAZER, VICTIM'S FAMILY MEMBER: She loved her daddy and her daddy loved her. He didn't miss a beat in her life.
ROSALES (voice-over): One state lawmaker says she's having a hard time processing the senselessness of it.
TRACIE DAVIS, FLORIDA STATE SENATE: That was someone planning and executed three people. So, from years ago to listening to people say, you know, as a
black people we've come a long way. After what happened yesterday, I questioned that and say, have we really?
ROSALES (on-camera): Now, I spoke with the president of Edward Waters University, that historically black school, who feels strongly that his
institution was targeted by that shooter. However, we heard from the Jacksonville sheriff this morning that there is no indication that they
have found that the shooter intended to attack that school. We also learned this morning from Governor Ron DeSantis that he plans to award a million
dollars to the school to bolster security. Lynda.
KINKADE: All right, Isabel Rosales, thanks so much for that report. Still to come, the vote counting is done, but the controversy over Zimbabwe's
presidential election is only just beginning. What international observers are saying about the ballot, when we come back.
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[12:32:57]
KINKADE: Hello and welcome back to One World. I'm Lynda Kinkade. The United Nations Secretary-General is joining the chorus of people raising concerns
about Zimbabwe's presidential election. In a statement released by his spokesperson, Antonio Guterres cited reports of election observers being
arrested as well as voter intimidation and violence. It was announced over the weekend that incumbent Emmerson Mngagagwa won a second term in last
week's vote, but his main challenger, Nelson Chamisa called the result a gigantic fraud. The president says concerns about the vote are misguided.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
EMMERSON MNGAGAGWA, ZIMBABWEAN PRESIDENT: I'm sure that very few people in this country will say that the elections were marked by any violence
because there was no violence at all. And I think this is what we should, as Zimbabweans, cherish and continue to maintain. This is now -- shows how
mature our democracy is.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: CNN's David McKenzie has been tracking this story for us and joins us live. David, Emmerson Mngagagwa has declared victory. This is despite
widespread claims of voter intimidation, of fraud. What is the opposition saying?
DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think many would dispute what the president is saying there, that many in the country
would not buy into the claims of fraud or at least of issues within the election, the run-up to the election, the election itself and into the
counting. That has been really the main theme of multiple independent observers, including the European Union and the regional body, that this
has had severe issues and potentially problems with result itself. We'll have to see what the final assumption is by those independent groups are
when they have done the assessment of this election.
[12:35:00]
But for its part, the opposition is planning on disputing these elections. I'm sure they will take it to the courts. I don't believe they feel they'll
get an independent hearing at courts. One of the main things they are saying is that they believe that the results from individual polling
stations and from constituencies don't necessarily add up to what they tabulated with their election agents, as well as outside observers.
You've also had at least up to 40 people arrested for what the government says is illegal actions at polling stations. Those are observers mostly
coming from charity and NGO groups. So, it's yet another election in Zimbabwe that has been questioned by independent observers. Here's the
leader of the opposition party, the main opposition party.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NELSON CHAMISA, CITIZENS COALITION FOR CHANGE LEADER: It is clear that we are rejecting the election as a sham, the result. The process itself we
disregarded and it's in line with what the Sadiq observers have said. We reject this sham result and flawed process based on the disputed figures.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MCKENZIE: Now, interestingly, Mngagagwa has on some level reached out to the opposition saying he might be willing to work with them. I think,
depending on how the dispute goes in the courts, there could be a scenario that he welcomes opposition members to try and ease the pressure on the
government when it comes to sanctions and easing the debt burden because there are many parts of the world that aren't really willing to do business
with the Zimbabwean government. And so, maybe that could lead to some kind of breakthrough. But at this stage, there is this dispute that we're going
to have to follow very closely. Lynda?
KINKADE: All right, David McKenzie for us in Johannesburg, thanks so much. And we are going to stay on this story right now. It's time now for the
exchange. And joining me now is award-winning Zimbabwean journalist Hopewell Chin'ono. And last time we spoke to him, he was talking about how
critical he was of the election even before the results were announced. Good to have you with us.
HOPEWELL CHIN'ONO, ZIMBABWEAN JOURNALIST/FILMMAKER: Thank you.
KINKADE: So, the list of problems with this election is long. The big question, of course, is what, if anything, will really be done about it?
CHIN'ONO: Unfortunately, very little will be done about it if we look back at the history of elections in Zimbabwe for the past 23 years. Elections
come and they take place, there are disputes, you go to court and the court rules in favor of the ruling party. In 2018, the same gentleman, President
Emmerson Mngagagwa and the main opposition leader, Nelson Chamisa, again faced each other in an election. And there was a dispute.
Nelson Chamisa went to court, and the court ruled in favor of Emmerson Mngagagwa. The courts in Zimbabwe are not known for their impartiality.
They have always been ruling in favor of the ruling party in regards to issues that are political -- in regards to issues that involve elections.
So, everybody knows that going to court is a futile exercise. The opposition has got seven days to make up its mind, whether it will go to
court or not or take the fight to a political arena. At the moment, they haven't pronounced, they just disputed the elections.
KINKADE: So, basically if the opposition goes to the constitutional court and challenges this then the opposition leader is clearly just going before
judges appointed by the ruling party, right?
CHIN'ONO: Indeed, most of the judges were appointed by the current president. Some of them were not appointed by him, were appointed by Robert
Mugabe when he was the justice minister which oversees the courts in Zimbabwe. So, he's very familiar with all of them. Recently, he gave all of
them $400,000 U.S. dollar checks and said it's for them to buy houses. A lot of Zimbabweans have been questioning why these judges are being given
so much money at a time when the country has got its economy on its knees.
Right now, Zimbabwe's hospitals do not have medication. Zimbabwe's hospitals do not have basic machinery. Like, the whole country doesn't have
a working radiotherapy cancer treatment machine. And yet, these judges were paid handsomely. So, everybody supposes that when these cases come to
court, the judges will rule in favor of the president.
KINKADE: Wow. Well, I want to get some more perspective from you on exactly how Zimbabweans are just dealing with so many challenges right now. You
mentioned a few of them in terms of healthcare, access to food, but also soaring inflation at 100 percent, unemployment very high, economic
mismanagement is a huge issue.
[12:40:00]
Just explain how a fraud election could set back the country further. A disputed election is going to be -- it's a terrible nightmare for ordinary
Zimbabwe. Ninety-five percent of our potential job workforce is out of work. Zimbabwe has got the highest inflation in the world. Right now, we
all do not have clean drinking water in our homes. We have to drill boreholes on our properties. But those who do not have the resources to do
so are suffering.
Schools do not have books. Roads are port-holed. And foreign direct investment is not coming because of the corrupt rule that has been taking
place in Zimbabwe for years. There's so much plundering of the country's natural resources. Recently, a news channel broadcast, four-part
documentary series, showing how gold has been smuggled out of the country. One hundred and fifty million U.S. dollars-worth of gold is smuggled out of
the country every month. That is enough to run all of Zimbabwe's central hospitals for three years.
So, the dire economic situation will simply get worse. Zimbabwe's currency has already started to run after the election result. So. everybody's
worried about what this means for themselves and their families going into the future.
KINKADE: And you spoke a while briefly about historically having fraud elections throughout the country. How does this one compare to elections
gone by?
CHIN'ONO: This has been a scam. It's one of the worst elections that Zimbabwe has ever had in post-colonial history since 1980. I mean, you've
had in the past, citizens, especially on the countryside of Zimbabwe, being intimidated. But this time, it was done in front of international
television cameras. They had desks that were set next to the polling stations where they were taking down the names and I.D. numbers of the
rural folk that were going to the polling stations to vote.
And they were told that if you vote for anyone else, except the ruling party and the president, we will know because we've taken down your
documents, we've taken down your name and we've taken down your ID numbers and we will deal with you after the election. And you know, that's a very
ominous kind of statement in Zimbabwe because dealing with you can be anything from violence to being killed.
In 2008, over 300 Zimbabweans were killed. Some were injured badly through the violence that was pushed by ZANU-PF when Robert Mugabe lost the
election by 73 percent to Morgan Tsvangirai who was then the opposition leader.
KINKADE: Hopewell Chin'ono, we really appreciate your perspective on all of this. Thank you so much for joining us. And thank you for watching One
World. I'm Lynda Kinkade. We are awaiting news from Spain, the National Sports Tribunal, due to give an update on that unwelcome kiss at the
Women's World Cup. We will bring you that when it happens. Right now, Marketplace Africa is up next. And at the top of the hour, Amanpour from
Ukraine.
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