:00:00. > :00:11.Hello. This is BBC World News. Our top stories: President Obama signs
:00:12. > :00:19.an agreement lifting the threat of a default and allowing government to
:00:20. > :00:23.get back to business. We will begin reopening our
:00:24. > :00:28.government. We can begin to lift this cloud of Hunter -- uncertainty
:00:29. > :00:31.and our knees from our businesses and the American people.
:00:32. > :00:35.The search for answers after the plane crash in Laos that killed all
:00:36. > :00:37.49 people on board - most of them foreign tourists.
:00:38. > :00:39.We're in Australia where firefighters battle fierce
:00:40. > :00:41.wildfires. Dozens of homes are destroyed on the outskirts of
:00:42. > :00:45.Sydney. And the hunt for the abominable
:00:46. > :01:06.snowman - new research suggests the yeti might actually exist.
:01:07. > :01:12.Hello everyone. Hundreds of thousands of US government staff
:01:13. > :01:16.have been told to report for work today. That is because there is now
:01:17. > :01:20.money to pay them. It will be the first time for almost three weeks. A
:01:21. > :01:22.last-minute deal broke the budget deadlock between Democrats and
:01:23. > :01:26.Republicans in Washington. President Obama has already signed the bill
:01:27. > :01:29.into law. But he said there must now be an end to what he called
:01:30. > :01:33."governing by crisis". But the deal is only valid until early next year.
:01:34. > :01:36.That raises the prospect that the process could start all over again.
:01:37. > :01:45.Katy Watson has more from Washington.
:01:46. > :01:58.On this vote, there are 81 in favour, 18 against, and the bill is
:01:59. > :02:01.reported as past. Government workers have now been told to return to work
:02:02. > :02:05.and the financial markets can breathe a sigh of relief. America is
:02:06. > :02:11.back from the brink and back in business. No doubt a relieved
:02:12. > :02:16.president, although he said this wasn't the end of the story. There
:02:17. > :02:21.is a lot of work ahead of us, including the need to work to earn
:02:22. > :02:25.back the trust of the American people, and we can begin to do that
:02:26. > :02:31.by addressing the real issues that they care about. The deal will fund
:02:32. > :02:39.the government until 15th January, and extend the debt deadline until
:02:40. > :02:48.Fabbri. They hope to draw up a longer term debt deal. After
:02:49. > :02:55.attempts by the Republicans to include restrictions on the health
:02:56. > :02:58.care law, they have had to climb down. One of the most vocal critics
:02:59. > :03:04.of this debate remains deeply opposed to the new bill. This deal
:03:05. > :03:11.kicks the can down the road. It allows yet more debt, more
:03:12. > :03:15.deficits, more spending, and it does absolutely nothing to provide relief
:03:16. > :03:25.for the millions of Americans who are hurting because of Obama care.
:03:26. > :03:28.This comes as a relief not just to the politicians here in Congress,
:03:29. > :03:32.but all those worried about the political stalemate. But it doesn't
:03:33. > :03:35.resolve the spending issues that have divided politicians here, and
:03:36. > :03:45.we could see the same debate all over again in three months time.
:03:46. > :03:49.Well, the market here in Europe have been open for about four hours. How
:03:50. > :03:58.is the deal being seen in Europe? Steve Evans joins me from Berlin.
:03:59. > :04:02.The Dax is down .85%. And that is because of two things, really. They
:04:03. > :04:07.expected the deal to happen, but in the cold light of day, they think,
:04:08. > :04:11.the traders think, that the awful cliche is, the Cannes has been
:04:12. > :04:17.kicked down the road, and the thing has not been resolved, and we will
:04:18. > :04:22.get the same thing again in January. One of the traders in Frankfurt is
:04:23. > :04:27.being quoted as saying, the circus still goes on. So there is Disney
:04:28. > :04:35.about that. In terms of a political reaction, there is a bit of scorn
:04:36. > :04:38.coming in with the commentators sharpening their quills and
:04:39. > :04:44.comparing it to customers last stand and Rambo and all those kinds of
:04:45. > :04:49.things. So there is clearly relieved that the immediate threat has gone,
:04:50. > :04:53.but also a bit of wonderment at the way in which the thing was dealt
:04:54. > :04:56.with. Steve, thank you very much. The chemical weapons inspectors
:04:57. > :05:02.working in Syria say they've completed nearly half of their work
:05:03. > :05:05.to verify the extent of the arsenal. But despite this progress, they say
:05:06. > :05:08.security remains a concern, with mortar and car bomb attacks
:05:09. > :05:13.continuing around the inspectors' hotel in Damascus. They have until
:05:14. > :05:14.June next year to oversee the destruction of Syria's chemical
:05:15. > :05:23.weapons arsenal. A passenger plane has crashed into
:05:24. > :05:27.the Mekong river in southern Laos. Officials say that all 49 people on
:05:28. > :05:30.board were killed. The Laos Airlines plane was on an internal flight from
:05:31. > :05:35.the capital, Vientiane, when it crashed in bad weather. Most of its
:05:36. > :05:43.passengers were foreign tourists. Jonathan Head reports from Bangkok
:05:44. > :05:50.In other news: along the banks of the River, authorities are running a
:05:51. > :05:53.difficult operation, to retrieve the bodies of the victims and what is
:05:54. > :05:56.left of the aircraft. The aircraft said it struck the bank
:05:57. > :05:59.while approaching the airport in stormy weather and plunged into the
:06:00. > :06:06.river, which is swollen by heavy rain. Divers struggled against the
:06:07. > :06:12.powerful current. Bodies and wreckage have been found far from
:06:13. > :06:18.the crash site. The broken pieces of aircraft testified to the impact of
:06:19. > :06:22.the crash. It was turning back to approach the airport, said this
:06:23. > :06:26.witness. Then it just fell out of the sky. They found suitcases,
:06:27. > :06:32.passports and other personal effects. It will take time to
:06:33. > :06:38.recover all of the bodies. The aircraft, a French Italian made
:06:39. > :06:42.craft, was brand-new, delivered in March this year. The model is widely
:06:43. > :06:48.used in this region, and has a proven safety record. It is Laos
:06:49. > :06:55.Airlines' first fatal crash for 18 years. A nearby temple is serving as
:06:56. > :06:59.a makeshift morgue. The victims came from all over the world, attracted
:07:00. > :07:01.by the unspoiled beauty of a country that was for many years largely
:07:02. > :07:11.closed to outsiders. At least 30 homes have been
:07:12. > :07:16.destroyed by wildfires on the outskirts of Sydney. They have been
:07:17. > :07:28.fanned by high erotic wins an unseasonably warm weather. So what
:07:29. > :07:36.is the extent of the fire threat? Jon Donnison is live for us in
:07:37. > :07:41.Sydney. Barely any rain in New South Wales in the last few will stop we
:07:42. > :07:46.had the hottest September on record, and we are only in the spring. We
:07:47. > :07:52.have had temperatures in the high 30s. They are the very worst
:07:53. > :07:57.conditions for firefighters, hot and windy. And as those conditions over
:07:58. > :08:04.the past few months would suggest, very dry. At various stages today, I
:08:05. > :08:09.think we have still almost 100 fires and earning across the state. 34 of
:08:10. > :08:12.them are out of control. Thankfully the temperatures are dropping this
:08:13. > :08:16.evening, and they are forecast to drop tomorrow, but it has been a
:08:17. > :08:21.difficult day, and it will be a difficult night. If it has been very
:08:22. > :08:30.dry, that means there is less vegetation to burn. That is right.
:08:31. > :08:34.Sometimes when you have wet weather, you get a lot of growth, and there
:08:35. > :08:37.is more stuff to burn. That it has been so dry, they have not been able
:08:38. > :08:42.to do the back burning they sometimes do to try to burn off some
:08:43. > :08:46.of the vegetation in order to make there be less fuel so that even when
:08:47. > :08:49.there are fires they can't spread. But they have been scared of
:08:50. > :08:57.starting fires during that back burning process. I think the real
:08:58. > :09:02.worry is that we are only in spring. We had the first bushfires
:09:03. > :09:06.this year really in winter. Very unusual, people were saying it was
:09:07. > :09:10.the earliest they could remember. Australians are well used to dealing
:09:11. > :09:16.with bushfires. But there is a lot of worry as we approach the summer
:09:17. > :09:22.months. Jon, thank you for joining me.
:09:23. > :09:27.The recent migrants tragedy near Lampedusa has highlighted just how
:09:28. > :09:35.many refugees are risking their lives in non-seaworthy boats in the
:09:36. > :09:41.hope of gaining asylum in Europe. A few days have passed since the
:09:42. > :09:46.disastrous sinkings near Lampedusa, but here you will find survivors
:09:47. > :09:52.from those tragedies. People are held here for the first days and
:09:53. > :09:56.weeks when they land on Lampedusa, the first days and weeks of their
:09:57. > :10:00.new lives, they hope, in what they see as the promised land of Europe.
:10:01. > :10:07.This place could comfortably hold about 250 people, but there are
:10:08. > :10:11.something like 700 in there right now, many of them living out in the
:10:12. > :10:17.open in the most uncomfortable imaginable conditions. And
:10:18. > :10:22.Lampedusa, lying where it does on the front line of the migration from
:10:23. > :10:27.North Africa, everybody here knows that at almost any moment, another
:10:28. > :10:32.boat packed with migrants could be brought into the port, and more
:10:33. > :10:38.migrants seeking that better life could be brought in here, weary and
:10:39. > :10:48.exhausted from the sea at almost any moment. That was Alan Johnston there
:10:49. > :10:51.on Lampedusa. In other news: Norwegian musician Kristian "Varg"
:10:52. > :10:55.Vikernes is due to go on trial in Paris. He is a self-proclaimed
:10:56. > :10:57.neo-Nazi. He was once in touch with his compatriot Anders Breivik, the
:10:58. > :11:01.far-right militant who killed 77 people in attacks in Norway in 2011.
:11:02. > :11:04.Mr Vikernes is being tried for inciting racial hatred and
:11:05. > :11:11.glorifying war crimes in some of his writings on the internet.
:11:12. > :11:16.The number of people known to have died in the Philippines earthquake
:11:17. > :11:21.has risen to 158. The quake caused many buildings to collapse,
:11:22. > :11:26.including historic churches. Rescue crews have started salvage work.
:11:27. > :11:29.The United Nations has appealed for more troops and equipment for its
:11:30. > :11:32.peacekeeping force in Mali. The UN force has less than half of its
:11:33. > :11:35.mandated strength of more than 12,000 military personnel. Mali held
:11:36. > :11:38.presidential elections in July, but militant attacks have resumed in the
:11:39. > :11:46.north where Islamic militants are based.
:11:47. > :11:54.An estimated 30 million people worldwide are living in conditions
:11:55. > :11:59.of slavery. That is according to a new survey released by an Australian
:12:00. > :12:02.campaign group. The latest The Global Slavery Index says the
:12:03. > :12:05.greatest number, 14 million, are in India. The organisation says slavery
:12:06. > :12:10.can also encompass debt bondage or forced labour. It can also include
:12:11. > :12:14.forced marriage. Victims of modern slavery have their freedom denied.
:12:15. > :12:19.Victims from many countries suggest that the African state of Mauritania
:12:20. > :12:26.has the highest proportion. An estimated 4% of the population their
:12:27. > :12:32.lives in slavery. Haiti, where child slavery is widespread, second. The
:12:33. > :12:37.greatest number of slaves, 14 million, is in India, followed by
:12:38. > :12:42.China, at almost 3 million, and Pakistan and Nigeria. Together with
:12:43. > :12:45.five other countries, they account for three quarters of the total
:12:46. > :12:52.estimated number of people in modern slavery. I am joined by the BBC's
:12:53. > :12:56.Africa online editor, Joseph Winter. You know Mauritania well. 4% of the
:12:57. > :13:05.country in slavery. How does not manifest itself? According to the
:13:06. > :13:09.law, slavery has been abolished in Mauritania, several times. The fact
:13:10. > :13:12.that it has been abolished several times tells you that what happens on
:13:13. > :13:17.a piece of paper in the capital doesn't necessarily translate
:13:18. > :13:22.through to the camps in the Sahara desert where people live in many
:13:23. > :13:27.ways much as they traditionally have 400s and hundreds years. But are you
:13:28. > :13:32.saying that there is almost complicity or a blind eye being
:13:33. > :13:38.turned by the political class? Not necessarily. That is what some
:13:39. > :13:43.people stay. It is very difficult to get out into the middle of Sahara
:13:44. > :13:46.desert, where people are uneducated. The slaves would not be able to read
:13:47. > :13:52.about the fact that they have been freed. And even if they are freed,
:13:53. > :13:57.then what would happen to them? They would have no money, no education.
:13:58. > :14:02.It is difficult for them to find, to start a new life. That is the
:14:03. > :14:07.problem, but many of them are living in difficult conditions. Some are
:14:08. > :14:12.chained up at night. They are subjected to sexual abuse, all kinds
:14:13. > :14:18.of problems. But changing it in reality, in these poor, remote
:14:19. > :14:22.areas, is a big challenge. How do you see it changing, particularly in
:14:23. > :14:25.a country and a nation and region, and more broadly on all these
:14:26. > :14:30.countries, where many more people now have mobile phones and are
:14:31. > :14:33.talking to each other. Even if you are a slave, there are people who
:14:34. > :14:39.are becoming connected. Is that likely to make a difference, do you
:14:40. > :14:45.think? There are campaign groups in Mauritania who are campaigning, so
:14:46. > :14:48.people who have come to the relatively big cities in Mauritania,
:14:49. > :14:56.they might have more access to help and education, but it is a poor
:14:57. > :15:02.country, so educated the whole country will not be straightforward.
:15:03. > :15:06.These are pictures of China, and they are a video which has been
:15:07. > :15:11.taken secretly of the scale of slave labour. When you look at the extent
:15:12. > :15:14.of the problem, far more broadly, in Mauritania, what is the potential
:15:15. > :15:21.for these horrific numbers to be reduced at some point? That is a
:15:22. > :15:24.difficult question to answer. Obviously it is a question of
:15:25. > :15:29.getting out into the areas worst affected, having campaigners for the
:15:30. > :15:35.governments on board is going to be a key thing. Having governments
:15:36. > :15:40.going out into all these areas where these problems do still exist. Thank
:15:41. > :15:50.you very much indeed for that update.
:15:51. > :15:59.Still to come: A couple in Paraguay finally married. They have had been
:16:00. > :16:06.together for 80 years. We will tell you what happened. The world's
:16:07. > :16:12.population is getting older. While that is having a profound social
:16:13. > :16:16.effect, it can also be seen as a business opportunity. That is the
:16:17. > :16:20.case in Taiwan where universities are actively targeting senior
:16:21. > :16:26.citizens. Playing ping-pong for the first
:16:27. > :16:31.time in 40 years. This 62 year-old slowly gets used to the feel of the
:16:32. > :16:37.ball game. But this is not for fun. He has to take this class in order
:16:38. > :16:42.to graduate from college. The owner of an IT services company, he has
:16:43. > :16:46.been a boss for 32 years, but he has now retired and was to fulfil a
:16:47. > :16:50.dream he could not afford to when he was young. He enrolled in
:16:51. > :16:59.college to get a degree in enterprise management. TRANSLATION:
:17:00. > :17:05.I started working, and eventually I started a business. But I still
:17:06. > :17:10.want to learn. Lifelong learning is important. The student population
:17:11. > :17:16.dropped by several hundred this year. It is a crisis shared by big
:17:17. > :17:21.institutions of higher learning and some will have to shut down if the
:17:22. > :17:26.trend continues. Taiwan has one of the lowest birth rates in the world.
:17:27. > :17:30.As a result many universities like this one are facing declining
:17:31. > :17:36.student enrolment and they are trying to encourage elderly people
:17:37. > :17:40.to get a college education. There is a new wave of senior citizens
:17:41. > :17:45.going to college for short-term courses or degrees. In 2008, the
:17:46. > :17:50.Government began offering subsidised classes for the elderly
:17:51. > :17:56.as a way of helping them live more active lives. Elderly people had to
:17:57. > :18:00.be persuaded to attend college at first. Now they bring their friends
:18:01. > :18:06.to take the subsidised classes, like this one which teaches them
:18:07. > :18:11.how to make lotions. This year, 100 universities offer courses
:18:12. > :18:18.especially by the elderly. The numbers have increased from a few
:18:19. > :18:23.hundred to several thousand. Enrolment has risen by about 25%
:18:24. > :18:28.each year in the past couple of years. That will have to continue
:18:29. > :18:39.if the empty chairs in the lecture halls across Taiwan are to be
:18:40. > :18:45.filled. You are with BBC World and years.
:18:46. > :18:50.The headlines: President Obama signs a bill extending the US
:18:51. > :18:55.Treasury's borrowing limit. It marks the end of almost three weeks
:18:56. > :18:59.of partial Government shutdown. A passenger plane belonging to Lao
:19:00. > :19:05.Airlines has crashed in a river in Laos. All of the passengers and
:19:06. > :19:08.crew were killed. Throughout October we are running a
:19:09. > :19:14.special series on the challenges faced by women in the 21st century.
:19:15. > :19:18.Next Friday, 100 inspiring women will gather for a unique, global
:19:19. > :19:26.event at the BBC's London headquarters. In our report today
:19:27. > :19:30.we will look at education in China. This year the country welcomed its
:19:31. > :19:35.first female astronaut, but many women in China have to keep their
:19:36. > :19:42.aspirations firmly on the ground. There are many jobs and university
:19:43. > :19:49.courses that are for men only. Child's play with an eye on the
:19:50. > :19:55.future. At this theme-park in Beijing these little visitors can
:19:56. > :20:01.test out possible Koreas. The girls at dressed up as flight attendants
:20:02. > :20:07.and learn to serve meals. Young boys choose to work as security
:20:08. > :20:10.guards. Even in this imaginary world the children and their
:20:11. > :20:14.parents stick to reduce gender stereotypes. In China the idea that
:20:15. > :20:20.girls cannot and should not do the same jobs as men is passed on early
:20:21. > :20:27.and it extends into university and beyond. Students fight to get into
:20:28. > :20:33.this prestigious mining engineering course. They are almost guaranteed
:20:34. > :20:38.well-paid jobs after Darren -- graduation. This programme has one
:20:39. > :20:44.clear entrance Requirement, men- only. TRANSLATION: China's labour
:20:45. > :20:50.law suggests mining work is unsuitable for women, so we ask
:20:51. > :20:57.women to refrain from applying. This school is not alone. Out of
:20:58. > :21:00.respect for women's safety, it says, the Education Ministry has banned
:21:01. > :21:04.girls from studying a variety of subjects across China from
:21:05. > :21:10.engineering to geology. TRANSLATION: Some jobs are really
:21:11. > :21:13.unsuitable for women. If they force their way into these jobs, they
:21:14. > :21:19.will waste energy that can be better used elsewhere. A small but
:21:20. > :21:22.first the network of students and lawyers is biting the restrictions,
:21:23. > :21:29.shaving their heads in a rare public protest last year.
:21:30. > :21:34.TRANSLATION: It was blatant discrimination. No-one has stood up
:21:35. > :21:40.to these universities before and told them their policies were wrong.
:21:41. > :21:45.The activists are also banning unofficial gender quotas at many
:21:46. > :21:50.universities that favour boys. Females usually top college
:21:51. > :21:54.entrance exams, but schools do not want their courses to be dominated
:21:55. > :21:58.by girls, so they lower the admissions standards for boys,
:21:59. > :22:04.leaving girls with higher marks out of luck. Back at the theme park
:22:05. > :22:09.these little girls in theory can move beyond the beauty salon to
:22:10. > :22:14.tried dozens of jobs. If some in China have their way, these girls
:22:15. > :22:27.might soon have the support and the drive to do it. Let me remind you
:22:28. > :22:31.of the address. Scientists may finally have solved the mystery of
:22:32. > :22:36.the yeti, the mythical creature which is believed by some to wonder
:22:37. > :22:40.in the Himalayan mountains. Researchers at Oxford University
:22:41. > :22:47.said they have conducted DNA tests on hair samples. Professor Bryan
:22:48. > :22:53.Sykes is professor of human genetics at Oxford University. He
:22:54. > :23:00.led the tests. I asked him if it confirmed that the yeti exists. Yes.
:23:01. > :23:07.Describe it to me. Why have we not got a picture? You did not ask me
:23:08. > :23:14.to bring one. Have you got one on your telephone? There are a few
:23:15. > :23:18.around. This is of a mummy and from a couple of pairs that have proved
:23:19. > :23:24.to be of interest from the Himalayas. I have been testing
:23:25. > :23:29.hairs from all over the world. In this case, the DNA analysis shows
:23:30. > :23:40.that they match exactly with an ancient polar bear that was found
:23:41. > :23:48.in Svalbard in the Arctic Ocean. It is a 40,000 year-old bone and it
:23:49. > :24:02.matches the DNA that I found in a yeti money, shot by a local hunter,
:24:03. > :24:06.described as a yeti. Their hair was identified by the King of Bhutan's
:24:07. > :24:10.yeti supremo. So now you know, it does exist.
:24:11. > :24:16.A couple in Paraguay have finally tied the knot, or got married,
:24:17. > :24:21.after spending 18 years together. Their relationship has survived
:24:22. > :24:27.more than a dozen US presence, One World War and the Rise and Fall of
:24:28. > :24:31.the Berlin Wall. They say it is the bride's
:24:32. > :24:36.prerogative to be late for her wedding, but this is getting
:24:37. > :24:43.ridiculous. 80 years after first falling in love, they finally said
:24:44. > :24:51.I do in the eyes of God. The groom, 103, the brushing blight Eimear
:24:52. > :24:55.sapling at 99. A ceremony held in their back garden passed off
:24:56. > :25:00.without a hitch, even if they need a little help with the ring.
:25:01. > :25:06.TRANSLATION: It is the first time I am marrying someone of this age and
:25:07. > :25:11.I am happy to be marrying these two. There is no denying this has been a
:25:12. > :25:16.long engagement. They met and fell in love in 1933. It was the same
:25:17. > :25:20.year Adolf Hitler became Chancellor of Germany and Franklin Roosevelt
:25:21. > :25:24.took office as President of the United States. They had a civil
:25:25. > :25:28.wedding half-a-century ago around the time President Kennedy was
:25:29. > :25:34.assassinated, but they never bothered with a religious ceremony
:25:35. > :25:38.and some now. TRANSLATION: My children wanted us to get married,
:25:39. > :25:45.they told me it was what they wanted. All but two of my children
:25:46. > :25:52.are here. And not just the children. There are 50 grand children, 35
:25:53. > :25:59.great-grandchildren and 20 great- great grandchildren. No doubt the
:26:00. > :26:07.reception was a little crowded. Ne to a violin that was played to help
:26:08. > :26:12.calm passengers as the Titanic sank. The instrument belonged to the
:26:13. > :26:17.leader of the band, Wallace Hartley. He died along with the others when
:26:18. > :26:21.the ship went down in 1912. The Auctioneers says the violin
:26:22. > :26:27.represents everything good about human nature. It is expected to
:26:28. > :26:33.fetch about half a million dollars and has attracted attention from
:26:34. > :26:38.all over the world. In France, pupils have been protesting against
:26:39. > :26:43.the deportation to Kosovo of a 15- year-old girl. She was taken off a
:26:44. > :26:48.school bus before being forced to leave France. Her family had
:26:49. > :26:53.entered France illegally in 2009 and had exhausted all appeals to
:26:54. > :26:58.stave. Pupils blockaded several schools in Paris and they boycotted
:26:59. > :27:02.lessons. This has been BBC World News.