15/11/2011 GMT with George Alagiah


15/11/2011

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New York police cleared the first anti- capitalist camp that inspired

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a worldwide protest movement. More than 70 protesters were arrested

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for defying orders to leave. But most of those Diddley voluntary.

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Based around of the park in riot gear. They are trying to block off

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every street right now. They are Welcome to GMT. In the programme,

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heading for victory. Spanish polls put the right-wing candidate in the

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lead, but winning the election will beat the easy part. I'll be

:00:52.:00:55.

reporting from Spain, where the Socialist government is bracing

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itself for defeat as the economy heads into even deeper crisis.

:00:59.:01:03.

Syria's opposition leaders meet Russian officials. Can Moscow

:01:03.:01:13.
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really played honest broker? It is 1230 in London, 8:30pm in Hong Kong

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and 7:30am in New York, where police have closed down the

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original occupy Wall Street encampment. It saw several arrests

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and accusations of heavy hand it must from the protesters. They'd

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been in the city's parks since September, spawning a protest

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movement that spread across the Atlantic to Europe. The Europe --

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the New York authorities said the encampments became a health hazard

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and say the protesters can return I am sorry, we've got a problem

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with that report. It just came in a few minutes ago. Let's go to a

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report we've also got from Humphrey Hawksley, on the events of that

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night-time operation, clearing Zuccotti Park. Stay calm, do not

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give up! It is 1am and police start to evicted protesters from there it

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two a month old encampment in the shadow of Wall Street. Those who

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came here to demonstrate against corporate greed and the gap between

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rich and poor are being ordered out. The whole world is watching!

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police say they are clearing the park to clean it. The owners have

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complained about the dirty conditions. Some chained themselves

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together in protest. Others go. They're angry confrontations

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between the police and the protesters. At about 3:25am they

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started with arrests. It immediately escalated into punching.

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The police pushed a big group of us. The woman in front of me had a

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whole bunch of people behind her and couldn't back up. The police

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started beating her with batons. I went to helper but we got sprayed

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with pepper spray. What is going on in this city that you think this is

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necessary? The one so from the rows of riot police lining the streets,

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blocking off access to the park as the protesters were removed. The

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protesters are angry about being evicted. They've been told they can

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go back but they've got to go back without any tents, so they know

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this is the end of their encampment. Already they are planning to move

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somewhere else in the city. This was the scene in the middle of the

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night. Those who came here to make their voices heard against what

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they see as corporate excess left without a place to protest. What do

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you think about the fact you've been evicted? I think it's sad but

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maybe it's what we needed. I think it will just make us stronger.

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protesters are roaming the streets of trying to regroup. Some want to

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retake the park once it's been cleaned. Others say their powerful

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anti- capitalist message has been heard and it doesn't matter where

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Staying with the US but turning to political rather than financial

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leadership, we can see that trying to prove you can run the country is

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no easy task. The Republican Party are holding a series of debates

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between the party members hoping to be nominated as a candidate for

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next year's elections. Last week, Texas Governor Rick Perry had an

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absent-minded moment and forgot which government department he

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would cut if he got into power. Yesterday it was White House

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hopeful Herman Cain's turned to go a little bit blank, when a reporter

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from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel asked him about one of the biggest

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foreign policy stories of the year. So you agreed with President Obama

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:05:18.:05:30.

on Libya? OK, Libya. President Obama supported the uprising -

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correct? President Obama called for the removal of Gaddafi, I want to

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make sure we are talking about the same thing before I say yes, I

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agree, or no, I didn't agree. I do not agree with the way he handled

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I've got to go back... I've got all this stuff twirling around in my

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head. Herman Cain there. We will have more on that, on the

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Republican nomination race, later in the programme. Let's take a look

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at some of the other stories making headlines around the world. Syrian

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opposition activists say at least 80 people were killed on Monday by

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government forces. The opposition is responding to the latest

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violence with a multi- pronged a diplomatic offensive. Their

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representatives have held talks in Moscow with the Russian Foreign

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Minister, Sergei Lavrov. The head of the Syrian National Council has

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been speaking to reporters in Moscow after that meeting with the

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Russian Foreign Minister. He is part of what he had to say.

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wanted to explain to our Russian Bent -- friends about our point of

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view. About the need to adopt these decisions by the Arab League,

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Russia and the international community, so that we can form a

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force that will put pressure on the regime, that would prevent it from

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:07:26.:07:27.

getting away, from stopping the killings. Let's go now to Daniel

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Sandford, our correspondent in Moscow. What exactly is Moscow up

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to? On the one hand, they seem to veto any suggestion of taking

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action at the UN, but here they are talking to the opposition. Russia's

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position is they don't believe that further sanctions on necessary or

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useful. They don't want to see any kind of unnecessary pressure

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towards regime change in Syria. But what they do want to see is some

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kind of negotiated solution. They recognise there are some legitimate

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complaints by the opposition in Syria, and what they want to see is

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the Syrian government and opposition talking together. What

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is at the meeting today for Russia is to try and persuade the Russian

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-- the opposition groups to get around the table to negotiate this.

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But the opposition group's view is, we want to see pressure from

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countries like Russia on President Al-Assad to resign before we will

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get into that process. They want to see Assad making clear commitments

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towards democracy before they will get round the table with him.

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there is a challenge on the ground for the Russian position. We are

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hearing that dozens of people, possibly as many as 70 or 80 shot

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yesterday and today in Syria. How does that help Russia when asking

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the Syrian opposition to get into a dialogue? It doesn't help at all.

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Russia is finding itself, as it was over Libya, slightly isolated. At

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least a Bolivia, Russia had not vetoed these Council resolutions.

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On Syria, they are saying they would oppose any further sanctions.

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They are getting themselves in a position where they are starting to

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see the opposition interior as a supporter of President Assad.

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That's causing big problems. The opposition groups are saying that

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Russia is having the wool pulled over its eyes by the Syrian regime

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and that Russia should start listening to the views of the

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Syrian people. That is what they've been saying, what was described as

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very Sybil talks today. I have to say, listening to the press

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conference after the meeting, it doesn't sound like the two

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positions have changed very much. The opposition are still saying

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they want more pressure from Russia on President Assad to stand down,

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or at the very least make very concrete moves towards

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democratisation. Do you get the impression that the opposition

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movement is there simply because it feels it has did, rather than it

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really does think that Moscow can be some kind of honest broker able

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to have influence over the Damascus government? I got the impression as

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they went into these talks that they came here genuinely hoping

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they could persuade the Russian government, to convince them of

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their credentials and what they were trying to achieve. It didn't

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sound from the press conference afterwards that they felt they'd

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manage to do much persuading. They said it was a perfectly decent

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discussion and that both sides have listened to each other, but they

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didn't sound as though they felt that they'd managed to change

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Russia's position. A British minister has called for the release

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of political prisoners in Burma. A number of prisoners were due to be

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released this week but this appears to have been delayed. The

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international development secretary, Andrew Mitchell, is visiting Burma.

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It's the first such visit by a British minister for a generation.

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He told me that the reforms being introduced by the government are

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grounds for cautious optimism, as he put it, but that more needed to

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be done. Australia's Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, is pushing to

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overturn a ban on sales of uranium to India. The move would remove a

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diplomatic thorn between the two countries and comes ahead of a

:11:13.:11:17.

visit by US President Barack Obama. The ban was introduced four years

:11:17.:11:20.

ago because India had not signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation

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treaty. Julia Gillard said a change in policy would strengthen

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Australia's connection with what she called dynamic, democratic

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India. As India rises and brings hundreds of millions of people out

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of poverty, it will need more energy, it is looking to supply 40

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% of that energy need through nuclear energy. We are a very big

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supplier of uranium. So having access to this new and growing

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market is good for Australian jobs. Italy's new appointed Prime

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Minister is holding talks with representatives of the two largest

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political parties today, as he seeks to form a new government

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which can steer Italy through its debt crisis. Their votes will be

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crucial in a confidence vote likely this week, which would seal the

:12:08.:12:18.
:12:18.:12:20.

Back to US politics, the Republican Party are holding a series of

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debates between the members hoping to be nominated as a candidate for

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next year's elections. Last week, Texas Governor Rick Perry had what

:12:27.:12:30.

can only be described as an absent- minded moment and forgot which

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government department he would cad if he got into power. Yesterday, it

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was White House hope for Herman Cain's turn to go a bit blank when

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a reporter from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel asked him about

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one of the biggest foreign policy stories of the year. Joining me now

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from Virginia is Dr Larry Sabato, from the University of Virginia.

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The hopefuls seem to be making a habit of this. Yes, we've learnt

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two important scientific developments from the Republicans.

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Brain freeze is real and apparently it's communicable. I don't know if

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would -- if it will spread between the two we've seen so far.

:13:12.:13:16.

President Obama with a huge smile on his face. They are doing his

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work for him. They are. Of course, the White House believes in the end

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that the most credible candidate who will be nominated his former

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Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney. They are preparing for a very close

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competitive battle with him. But obviously, to the extent that the

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other republicans can embarrass me to rob me, it helps a lot. --

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embarrassed Mitt Romney. What is it about American politics that throws

:13:45.:13:49.

up this kind of thing? Sitting here on the other side of the pond, it

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is laughable that men who aspire to the highest office some would say

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in the world could be like this. Well, I have to be honest with you,

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Ivor followed politics for 40 or 50 years and I can tell you honestly

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this is one of the weakest of fields that I've ever seen in

:14:10.:14:15.

either party. That just enhances Mitt Romney's standing, because he

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is a major player. But most of the other Republican candidates are not

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really major players, even in their own estates. Texas Governor Rick

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Perry would be but a number of the others don't even have a home base.

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This is not an impressive group of opponents. In the end, one would

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assume that this would mean that the one who is impressive would be

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nominated. Does it make a difference in the end, because one

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remembers George W Bush and his brain freeze moments in his

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campaign. There he was, he was there for eight years. It depends

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on the opposition. In the case of Texas Governor Rick Perry, I think

:14:57.:15:02.

the brain freeze has heard him. That was just a devastating moment.

:15:03.:15:08.

It has been played and replayed on almost every television channel. It

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makes him look quite foolish and unprepared. As far as Herman Cain

:15:12.:15:16.

is concerned, this is just the latest in a long series of

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incidents that suggest to most reasonable people that he is not

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prepared to be President. I think the sexual harassment charges are

:15:23.:15:33.
:15:33.:15:35.

more serious for him and are indeed Still to come on GMT: Could this

:15:35.:15:45.
:15:45.:15:47.

man put the Spanish economy back on First, let's get all the business

:15:48.:15:55.

news. This big debate in Europe, some people say we need to go for

:15:55.:15:59.

growth, others say we have to have austerity and cut. In a way, we're

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getting some of the answer to that. The new eurozone growth figures are

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out today. Yes, it is a tough balance.

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Spending cuts and tax increases are killing of potential growth. For

:16:12.:16:22.
:16:22.:16:28.

the last three months, eurozone GDP came in and at 0.2%. Germany came

:16:28.:16:38.
:16:38.:16:40.

in at 0.5%, France at 0.4%. France was better than expected. Greece is

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Bock down in recession, down by 5.2%. It is better than previous

:16:44.:16:47.

quarters but still a horrible number. This highlights the tough

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dilemma facing eurozone leaders. We have to make a choice - either

:16:55.:17:01.

belt-tightening or growth. When we look at the Hyde debt numbers in

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most European countries, it means belt-tightening. You have to accept

:17:05.:17:10.

it will cost growth, but if you do it together with measures that can

:17:10.:17:13.

stimulate and increase growth in the medium term, I think it is the

:17:13.:17:17.

right way to go. It is the right way to go, but the

:17:17.:17:20.

markets want to see what measures are going to be put in place to

:17:20.:17:25.

drive growth. You have to grow yourself out of debt.

:17:25.:17:31.

Tough times or road, including four companies. Richard Branson has been

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saying, do not let go of some of your more ethical thought.

:17:39.:17:42.

-- thoughts. Absolutely. We will focus on that

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later if we have more time. I want to focus on the credit rating

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agencies. The EU has never for given the three big ratings

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agencies for not giving enough warning about the crisis that hit

:17:57.:18:01.

in 2008, for not revealing some of the uncomfortable truths about the

:18:01.:18:05.

debt that some European countries were sitting on, as well as not

:18:05.:18:12.

giving Europe the credit for post crisis reforms. There is some

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discussion for an alternative to these three.

:18:16.:18:22.

TRANSLATION: I believe this will start the discussion again that an

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independent European ratings agency should be founded. That would give

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an alternative to the American -- the American agencies which are

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quite dependent on private enterprise.

:18:35.:18:40.

More business later on. For more on the Occupy a Wall

:18:40.:18:50.
:18:50.:19:02.

Street movement, have a look at our the headlines: Police in New York

:19:02.:19:06.

have carried out an operation to clear and the Wall Street

:19:06.:19:09.

campaigners from their protest camp. In a meeting with Syrian opposition

:19:09.:19:15.

leaders, Russia's Foreign Minister has restated the position that they

:19:15.:19:20.

should engage in dialogue with President Assad.

:19:20.:19:29.

The Chinese artist Ai Weiwei says he has paid the first instalment of

:19:29.:19:39.
:19:39.:19:40.

a tax bill. The down payment would allow his company to lodge an

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appeal against his tax demand. He called the payment the price of

:19:45.:19:54.

freedom of speech. Our correspondent joins us. Bring us up

:19:54.:19:57.

to date. He has described his recent life as

:19:57.:20:01.

being like a Hollywood movie. It began earlier this year when the

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artist was detained for three months without access to a lawyer.

:20:05.:20:10.

He was then released. The authorities said he had not paid

:20:10.:20:16.

his tax. It is something denied by the artist. He says he has paid

:20:16.:20:19.

this bond in order to allow him to fight his case. Much of the money

:20:19.:20:24.

for that Bond has come from his supporters, thousands of supporters

:20:24.:20:31.

who have made online donations. In some cases they have literally

:20:31.:20:37.

throw it over the wall of his studio. Here is what he had to save.

:20:37.:20:41.

Only by doing is do we have a chance to make an appeal. I do not

:20:42.:20:48.

think we can win the case. The whole thing is politically

:20:48.:20:55.

motivated. You will never get a fair trial in China. I see this as

:20:55.:21:05.

a ransom. A few months ago I was kidnapped. This is a payment for

:21:05.:21:10.

the price of freedom of speech. This is not just for me. If you see

:21:10.:21:15.

the report from the young -- the support from the young people,

:21:15.:21:24.

everybody expecting me to fight, to make sure that this kind of action

:21:25.:21:31.

never happens to anyone else. These are the true lives of many people.

:21:31.:21:35.

In my case it is more public. I have a chance to talk about it

:21:36.:21:40.

openly. How this case now precedes really

:21:40.:21:43.

is not clear. We have seen so many developments throughout the past

:21:43.:21:48.

few months. When I met the artist last week he simply said that he

:21:48.:21:53.

did not know what to expect. He added that the authorities simply

:21:53.:22:02.

make up the rules as they go along. Another eurozone country that is

:22:03.:22:07.

suffering is Spain. The country's governing Socialist Party seems to

:22:07.:22:10.

be heading for his worst ever defeat in this week's general

:22:10.:22:14.

election. The opposition Popular Party is promising economic

:22:14.:22:18.

recovery and new jobs. Under pressure from the EU to continue

:22:18.:22:21.

with austerity measures, can be really turn Spain's fortunes

:22:21.:22:28.

around? This report contains flash photography.

:22:28.:22:33.

This was once a Spanish-born town. Today it is a symbol of the

:22:33.:22:43.
:22:43.:22:43.

country's crisis. Manuel took me to see why. This is

:22:43.:22:48.

their factory he worked out before Spain's economy crashed, wiping a

:22:48.:22:54.

business. TRANSLATION: There are no opportunities here today, nothing.

:22:54.:23:00.

This place was dependent on doors, and that is all gone.

:23:00.:23:04.

Spain's deep economic crisis is a major burden for the Socialist

:23:04.:23:11.

government and the campaign trail. Wide by Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba,

:23:11.:23:16.

the Socialists are still fighting this election. Using scare tactics

:23:16.:23:21.

to rally support, they warned that the conservative Popular Party

:23:21.:23:27.

plans to decimate the welfare state with spending cuts. TRANSLATION:

:23:27.:23:30.

The people who are suffering most in this crisis are traditional

:23:30.:23:35.

voters, the Socialist electorate, so it is hard to convince them.

:23:35.:23:38.

What we're saying is, yes, things are tough now but they will be much

:23:39.:23:47.

worse under the Popular Party. proof they point to Castile-La

:23:47.:23:51.

Mancha. Pharmacists here have not been paid for dispensing

:23:51.:23:56.

prescription medicines for six months. The Popular Party insists

:23:56.:24:00.

it is tending to a sick economy after years of reckless spending

:24:00.:24:04.

under the Socialists. Above all, the opposition is framing itself as

:24:04.:24:11.

the party of change. A policy plans are deliberately vague. We need a

:24:11.:24:20.

new policy and a new government. That is the way to make things

:24:20.:24:24.

change and to start building the confidence and trust that we need.

:24:24.:24:28.

With the entire eurozone in crisis, voters you know that whoever wins

:24:28.:24:31.

this election will have to take tough decisions. There will be

:24:31.:24:35.

bigger spending cuts. Both of the main parties are planning to --

:24:36.:24:39.

promising to create jobs. There is deep scepticism here that anyone

:24:40.:24:44.

can actually deliver on that. Most people know that the fate of Spain

:24:44.:24:51.

is linked to outside forces. Eurozone leaders and investors are

:24:51.:24:55.

watching closely to see if the government can turn his economy

:24:55.:25:01.

around and avert a bail-out. -- turned this economy around.

:25:01.:25:04.

You might be wondering what to get your nearest and dearest for

:25:04.:25:09.

Christmas. Nothing says I Love You Like a diamond. If you have $15

:25:09.:25:13.

million burning a hole in your pocket our correspondent has the

:25:13.:25:18.

perfect suggestion for that very special gift.

:25:19.:25:23.

It is called the Sun drop, one of the rarest coloured diamonds in the

:25:23.:25:29.

world. At 110 carats it is probably a little large Ford you ring finger.

:25:29.:25:33.

It is also the biggest diamond of its kind ever to be put up for

:25:33.:25:39.

auction, but will it sell in these times of global financial crisis?

:25:39.:25:43.

$15 million is a very correct estimate, I think, for this diamond.

:25:43.:25:52.

This time last year in Geneva we sold a diamond for $46 million.

:25:52.:25:57.

There are buyers for important, rare coloured diamonds. Ever since

:25:57.:26:02.

the economic downturn began in 2008, Business in gemstones has been

:26:02.:26:08.

burning. Some people clearly still have money. What is more, jewels

:26:08.:26:15.

like these will not lose their value as quickly as the euro or the

:26:15.:26:24.

dollar. Auctioneers are expecting a storm of bids.

:26:24.:26:28.

We are coming to the end of GMT. Before we go, a reminder of our

:26:28.:26:35.

main story. Police in New York's City have closed down the original

:26:36.:26:40.

calcite occupy encampment. There were accusations of heavy

:26:40.:26:45.

handedness from the protesters. They have been in Zuccotti Park

:26:45.:26:49.

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