:00:08. > :00:10.This is BBC World News Today with me, Kirsty Lang.
:00:10. > :00:18.Riots in Athens as the Greek parliament approves another
:00:18. > :00:22.austerity plan. But how will they implement it in the teeth of such
:00:22. > :00:24.opposition? But Greece's prime minister says
:00:25. > :00:29.the only other option is bankruptcy. Without the austerity plan there
:00:29. > :00:32.will be no EU bail-out. They're protesting and that is
:00:32. > :00:37.their democratic right. But the crucial thing is that no-one, not
:00:37. > :00:40.one of us, lives through the consequences of collapse.
:00:40. > :00:42.Austerity unrest is set to hit the UK. Hundreds of thousands of
:00:42. > :00:47.teachers and civil servants are threatening to strike tomorrow
:00:47. > :00:50.against pension reforms. A warning to the Burmese democracy
:00:50. > :01:00.leader to keep quiet, just a day after the BBC broadcasts her views
:01:00. > :01:05.
:01:05. > :01:15.And a classical repertoire with pop star showmanship. We hear how Lang
:01:15. > :01:24.
:01:24. > :01:27.Lang strikes the right note between Hello and welcome.
:01:27. > :01:30.It wasn't unexpected, but there has been huge anger, nonetheless, over
:01:30. > :01:34.the Greek parliament's approval of a controversial austerity plan to
:01:34. > :01:40.save the country from bankruptcy. It includes pay cuts of up to 30%
:01:40. > :01:43.for some public sector workers and tax hikes for everyone. 155 MPs out
:01:43. > :01:47.of 300 voted for the plan which aims to slash 28 billion Euros from
:01:47. > :01:57.the country's budget. But, outside, protestors made their feelings
:01:57. > :02:01.known, as our Europe editor, Gavin Hewitt, reports.
:02:01. > :02:07.Greek MPs debated and voted behind shattered windows well outside
:02:07. > :02:12.there were fierce clashes on the streets. In Parliament Square,
:02:12. > :02:15.protesters had arrived early, hoping to interrupt a vote which
:02:15. > :02:20.would bring in a hard line austerity measures. Clashes with
:02:20. > :02:25.police quickly broke out as thousands of protesters lined up
:02:25. > :02:29.outside parliament. Even before the vote has started, there are volleys
:02:29. > :02:33.of tear gas been aimed at the crowd and the crowd here certainly has a
:02:34. > :02:39.sense of tension, knowing that within an hour, the MPs are so
:02:39. > :02:44.close to vote. The violence was far more serious than yesterday. Dozens
:02:44. > :02:51.of police and protesters were injured. There were running battles
:02:51. > :02:55.with the protesters charging police lines. The police used tear gas and
:02:55. > :03:02.stun grenades. Some of the protesters flu blast bombs and the
:03:02. > :03:07.fighting spread to nearby neighbourhoods. Inside, the Prime
:03:07. > :03:10.Minister said it was time to face up to a challenge. He said that
:03:10. > :03:17.they did not want their government to fail, because if the measures
:03:17. > :03:24.fail, Greece will fail. In the event, the austerity measures
:03:24. > :03:30.passed by just a handful of votes. The way is now clear for �10
:03:30. > :03:39.billion of emergency loans. The response on the streets was one of
:03:39. > :03:49.fury. This woman said, "Let the Prime Minister come down here and
:03:49. > :03:49.
:03:49. > :03:54.see if he can live on it 300 euros a month.". These budget cuts have
:03:54. > :04:01.very little popular support and there is real but and this here.
:04:01. > :04:04.Tonight, crowds were herded into a Metro station. Yes, the government
:04:04. > :04:08.won, but there are serious doubts were that the austerity measures
:04:08. > :04:16.can be fully implemented. We can speak on the phone now from
:04:16. > :04:23.the centre of Athens to the Greek journalist, Matina Stevis.
:04:23. > :04:28.What has the atmosphere been like? It has been so tense. I was born
:04:28. > :04:35.and raised in the city, I was here for the 2008 riots and I have never
:04:35. > :04:39.felt so at peril. I have never seen this kind of intensity on the
:04:39. > :04:45.streets and the violence erupting what right and centre.
:04:45. > :04:50.I understand that there was even an MP attacked outside the parliament.
:04:50. > :04:57.The EU know anything about that? am afraid I do not know what about
:04:57. > :05:01.that. I had been in transit all day. I have only been informed by
:05:01. > :05:06.Twitter and what I have seen on the ground. How representative D think
:05:06. > :05:16.these people are of the Greek public? The peaceful demonstrators,
:05:16. > :05:19.
:05:19. > :05:24.not the small agitated and groups - - agitating groups, they had been
:05:24. > :05:32.protesting for weeks now and they are quite a representative of the
:05:32. > :05:38.majority of the Greek population. 70 to 80% of Greeks reject the
:05:38. > :05:45.austerity measures. What is their response when the Prime Minister
:05:45. > :05:53.says that bankruptcy would be a lot worse? I am not saying that these
:05:53. > :05:56.people are accusing in favour of bankruptcy, what I am saying is
:05:56. > :06:00.that these cuts are hitting the working and middle classes hardest
:06:00. > :06:06.in a way that is unsustainable. They are not convinced and nobody
:06:06. > :06:16.has bothered to convince them that this is the mid- way forward.
:06:16. > :06:16.
:06:16. > :06:25.you think these demonstrations will carry on? To be honest, I have been
:06:25. > :06:31.shocked and I believe they protests will carry on. I think there will
:06:31. > :06:40.all in all this will see these picking up again. -- I think in
:06:40. > :06:43.August, this poppycock again. -- this will pick up again.
:06:43. > :06:44.Joining me now is Vicky Pryce, senior managing director and chief
:06:44. > :06:47.macro-economic commentator at FTI Consulting.
:06:47. > :06:51.Isn't this austerity programme going to be hard to implement when
:06:51. > :06:56.the Greek people are not behind it? Yes, I think there has been a real
:06:56. > :07:01.problem in terms of explaining, or rather not explaining to the
:07:01. > :07:05.population what it is all about. There were only really a handful of
:07:05. > :07:10.anarchists involved and the vast majority of the protests have been
:07:10. > :07:14.peaceful. I think where someone to explain why the situation was, they
:07:14. > :07:19.would look at it slightly differently. There has been a huge
:07:19. > :07:27.gap in the political development over the last few months. Greeks
:07:27. > :07:31.are basically do not know why they have to suffer. We'd just heard
:07:31. > :07:36.that something like 70% of them opposed the austerity plan. One of
:07:36. > :07:41.the reasons is that they have already had 18 months of austerity
:07:41. > :07:45.and things have only got worse. The economy has shrunk and there is a
:07:45. > :07:52.fear that - going to depression, they will be even less able to pay
:07:52. > :08:01.off their debts. I think what Greece needs is something of a path
:08:01. > :08:05.to growth. We need to have the vault of today and the vote --
:08:05. > :08:15.tomorrow's College at lot of the vault to release the funds. -- like
:08:15. > :08:22.it was lit -- legislative of fault. The need to make sure they can get
:08:22. > :08:26.the next package, the bail-out package which has been set at 100
:08:26. > :08:31.billion euros. That is absolutely essential, so they can look at what
:08:31. > :08:35.has to be done to get back to some kind of sustainable growth path.
:08:35. > :08:42.The need the money to do that and with a bit of luck, the banks will
:08:42. > :08:46.agree to roll over some of the debt. Some kind of debt repayment will
:08:47. > :08:51.make the situation easier. They might start to see light at the end
:08:51. > :08:56.of the tunnel, but it will need to be explained to the population,
:08:57. > :09:01.which has already suffered quite a lot. The needs to be explained to
:09:01. > :09:07.them that the alternative is much worse. The pain that Greece would
:09:07. > :09:12.have to go through if it left the D Udal, or if it was a lot to default,
:09:12. > :09:17.probably has not been contemplated by anybody or understood by their
:09:17. > :09:21.population. In fairness to the Prime Minister, I think he has been
:09:21. > :09:30.tried to lay out what the alternative would be. When you look
:09:30. > :09:35.at the austerity plan, the range of tax hikes, combined with cuts in
:09:35. > :09:39.pay of up to 30%, people are feeling the pain and it is
:09:39. > :09:46.difficult to see how there can be any growth in that situation,
:09:46. > :09:51.because people are not going to spend. If income tax is not paid,
:09:51. > :10:01.taxes need to be collected in a certain way. The tea or property
:10:01. > :10:03.
:10:04. > :10:12.taxes might be the best way of doing it. - -- V A T. The real
:10:12. > :10:21.problem is that if you tax people and cut spending is, any you might
:10:21. > :10:26.get in a visual -- a vicious cycle of not being able to tax properly.
:10:26. > :10:33.Basically, you would be in a worse situation. That is why it think
:10:33. > :10:39.that there needs to be a voluntary restructuring that takes place. If
:10:39. > :10:42.it is not done, down this government will fall.
:10:42. > :10:45.Greek public sector workers are not the only ones on strike. Travellers
:10:45. > :10:47.arriving at British ports and airports tomorrow have been warned
:10:47. > :10:50.to expect delays as immigration and customs officers take industrial
:10:50. > :10:55.action. They will join about 600,000 teachers and civil servants
:10:55. > :10:58.due to walk out, over planned pension changes. Prime Minister
:10:58. > :11:01.David Cameron has said the changes are fair and appealed for the
:11:01. > :11:08.strike to be called off. Our business correspondent, John Moylan,
:11:08. > :11:13.reports. Thousands of schools will be closed
:11:13. > :11:18.and many Jobcentres will be shut. Air travellers will face long
:11:18. > :11:22.queues at airports. That is to some of the likely impact tomorrow as
:11:22. > :11:25.hundreds of thousands of public sector workers go on strike over
:11:25. > :11:30.changes to their pensions. On the eve of the biggest industrial
:11:30. > :11:33.action to be seen in years, the Prime Minister at again attacked
:11:33. > :11:37.the planned walkout. I do not believe there is any case for
:11:37. > :11:42.industrial action tomorrow, not least because talks are still
:11:42. > :11:46.ongoing. It is only a minority of unions that have taken the decision
:11:46. > :11:51.to goal lead and strike, but what I want to see tomorrow is as many
:11:51. > :11:55.parents as possible being able to take their children to school.
:11:55. > :12:01.the same time in London and elsewhere, unions were rallying the
:12:01. > :12:04.troops. The reject the government claimed that the changes are affair.
:12:04. > :12:10.We are striking because the government has been made it clear
:12:10. > :12:14.that the intent to make or members work eight years longer and get
:12:14. > :12:24.have the pension be sued. It is unfair and we're treating to try
:12:24. > :12:25.
:12:25. > :12:31.and stop it. -- striking. There is a �9.7 billion funding black hole.
:12:31. > :12:37.It wants walkers to contribute around 3% more, to work longer,
:12:37. > :12:42.taking their pension at 66, and to move to less generous career
:12:42. > :12:45.average schemes. It means that millions of public sector workers,
:12:45. > :12:50.including these three in Birmingham, will have to rethink their
:12:50. > :12:53.retirement plans. I am going on strike tomorrow because I care
:12:53. > :12:58.about education and my pension and I feel it is the only way that we
:12:58. > :13:01.will get her voices heard. Been to take a stand and say it is not
:13:01. > :13:06.acceptable to keep on living in fear and wondering if you will keep
:13:06. > :13:11.your job or be able to pay your mortgage. How much so that the is
:13:11. > :13:16.there for the strike? Business groups warned that tomorrow's
:13:16. > :13:21.action could damage hour already fragile recovery. It could have an
:13:21. > :13:24.enormous destructive effect on our businesses. The fact that thousands
:13:24. > :13:29.of schools will be closed means that parents will have to take time
:13:29. > :13:33.off work to look after their children. It will hit businesses
:13:33. > :13:38.and their pockets as well. In the coming hours, the walkouts will
:13:39. > :13:48.begin. In a dispute that has so far been played out behind the scenes
:13:49. > :13:54.
:13:54. > :13:57.France has confirmed its military has been dropping weapons to the
:13:57. > :14:00.rebels fighting in Libya. The Defence Ministry says light arms
:14:00. > :14:03.and ammunition were airdropped to the Berber, who are fighting in the
:14:03. > :14:07.Western Mountains. France says food and medicine was also sent to the
:14:07. > :14:09.rebels to help them resist Colonel Gaddafi's forces.
:14:09. > :14:11.Egyptian authorities have ordered a probe into clashes between police
:14:11. > :14:13.and protesters in Cairo's Tahrir Square.
:14:13. > :14:15.Running battles raged overnight between riot police and
:14:15. > :14:18.demonstrators who pelted officers with stones and firebombs. Hundreds
:14:18. > :14:25.of people were injured. The riots are the most serious violence in
:14:25. > :14:27.Egypt in weeks. A BBC reporter being held in
:14:27. > :14:29.Tajikistan is both physically and psychologically frail, according to
:14:29. > :14:32.a colleague who was allowed to visit him in prison.
:14:32. > :14:34.The Tajik authorities have charged Urunboy Usmonov with association
:14:34. > :14:43.with the banned Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir. The BBC says the
:14:43. > :14:46.allegations against him are unfounded.
:14:46. > :14:49.It took a five-hour gun fight and some help from NATO helicopters,
:14:49. > :14:52.but Afghan security forces are now back in control at the
:14:52. > :14:55.Intercontinental Hotel in Kabul. The hotel was the target of a
:14:55. > :14:58.surprise raid by militants, which began with a suicide bombing at the
:14:58. > :15:00.main entrance. At least 21 people are now reported to have been
:15:00. > :15:02.killed, including nine militants and two policemen. Bilal Sarwary
:15:03. > :15:06.reports from Kabul.The authorities in Burma have warned the pro-
:15:06. > :15:10.democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi to stop all political activities.
:15:10. > :15:14.Almost five ours after Afghan security forces fault and a vicious
:15:15. > :15:20.attack launched by a group of suicide attackers, smoke was still
:15:20. > :15:25.billowing from the 4th and 5th floors of the hotel. Thick attack
:15:25. > :15:31.on the hotel took place throughout the 9th as several Afghan governors
:15:32. > :15:36.and politicians had gathered in the hotel. There are enough Afghan
:15:36. > :15:43.security forces on the scene, fighting the attackers floor by
:15:43. > :15:49.floor. Support from the NATO forces blues decisive. Among those killed
:15:49. > :15:54.where musicians playing at the hotel and waiters. The Kabul police
:15:54. > :15:58.chief concern - - confirmed this morning the one attacker was still
:15:58. > :16:02.under hotel after it had supposed to be cleared. He killed two police
:16:02. > :16:08.officers and the Spanish civilian. The question people are asking now
:16:08. > :16:12.is how did the insurgent managed to get themselves and their weapons
:16:12. > :16:17.into one of the most heavily guarded international hotels.
:16:17. > :16:23.believe there was a little and the security. The insurgents are using
:16:23. > :16:27.every means to infiltrate into tight security areas. This attack
:16:27. > :16:30.will draw attention to the capability of Afghan forces to
:16:30. > :16:34.handle security once their international allies had over to
:16:34. > :16:43.them. Afghan officials said that attacks can happen at any time and
:16:43. > :16:46.they have shown that they can deal with them.
:16:46. > :16:48.The Burmese government has warned the pro-democracy leader Aung San
:16:48. > :16:51.Suu Kyi to stop all political activities. The military-backed
:16:51. > :16:54.government has said her National League for Democracy party is
:16:54. > :16:57.breaking the law and has no right to maintain offices or issue
:16:57. > :17:04.statements. This report from our Southeast Asia correspondent,
:17:04. > :17:09.Rachel Harvey. This was the moment hope return to
:17:09. > :17:14.Burma. Aung San Suu Kyi, free at last. Still a symbol of the
:17:14. > :17:20.struggle for democracy, still a powerful voice of challenge to the
:17:20. > :17:25.leaders in Burma. At first she was given the way, seen here shortly
:17:25. > :17:29.after her release a dressing adoring crowds outside the
:17:29. > :17:32.headquarters of her party, the National League for Democracy. That
:17:32. > :17:38.Hardy, officially banned after failing to register for last year's
:17:38. > :17:42.elections, and now told firmly to stop all political activity. Burma
:17:43. > :17:47.is no longer under military rule. There is a new parliament and a new
:17:47. > :17:52.civilian led government, a chance perhaps, some say, for tentative
:17:52. > :17:57.steps towards change, but the old reflexes of suppression have not
:17:57. > :18:02.been lost. Aung San Suu Kyi has been issued an official warning.
:18:02. > :18:06.This may be partly to blame. The pro democracy leader is this year
:18:06. > :18:11.delivering it that Reith lectures for the BBC, recorded secretly
:18:11. > :18:15.inside Burma. The parallels she draws between her homeland and the
:18:15. > :18:21.recent a people's in Egypt and Tunisia are perhaps uncomfortable
:18:21. > :18:26.for the Burmese a parties. similarities between Tunisia and
:18:26. > :18:31.Burma are the same as those all over the world who long for freedom.
:18:31. > :18:36.There would be similarities, too, and it is because of these that the
:18:36. > :18:41.outcome of the two revolutions have been so different. The first
:18:41. > :18:47.dissimilarity is what the Tunisian army did not fire on their people,
:18:47. > :18:51.the Burmese army did. Aung San Suu Kyi has said she plans to travel so
:18:52. > :19:00.into the countryside to meet supporters outside her Rangoon home,
:19:00. > :19:10.those close to her feel for her safety issue tries. The Burmese ad
:19:10. > :19:14.
:19:14. > :19:17.authorities, it seems, have decided to clip Aung San Suu Kyi's wings.
:19:17. > :19:20.Now to Spain, which hasn't had a lot of good news on the economic
:19:20. > :19:22.front recently. However, the Spanish film industry is doing well,
:19:22. > :19:24.particularly overseas. In fact, last year Spanish films performed
:19:24. > :19:28.better outside Spain than inside. One example is Daniel Monzon's
:19:28. > :19:32.prison thriller Cell 211. This is about a guard who on his first day
:19:32. > :19:42.of work finds himself caught up in a prison riot and on the wrong side
:19:42. > :20:11.
:20:11. > :20:20.The Spanish film CELL 211. I'm now joined in the studio by its
:20:20. > :20:28.director, Daniel Monzon. Do you think... what do you think
:20:28. > :20:38.it is about your film that has made a successful outside Spain as well?
:20:38. > :20:40.
:20:40. > :20:44.This movie talks about human beings. When I was in a theatre with an
:20:45. > :20:54.audience in Italy, Canada, America, here in England, the audience react
:20:55. > :20:56.
:20:56. > :21:01.in the same way. Somehow the movie grabs the audience by the neck and
:21:01. > :21:07.it doesn't let them free until the end. It is talking about human
:21:07. > :21:12.beings. So what is a universal theme? Somehow. When I wrote it I
:21:12. > :21:20.never thought it was going to be such a success. In Spain it was a
:21:20. > :21:25.huge success, but now it has been released in the whole world's. On
:21:25. > :21:35.15th July it is coming out in the UK. I love England and British
:21:35. > :21:35.
:21:36. > :21:40.cinema, so to be here for me is a good, good, good prize. Why do you
:21:40. > :21:45.think we're seeing this resurgence of Spanish cinema and the export of
:21:45. > :21:55.Spanish films abroad? Where does that come from? Now in Spain we
:21:55. > :21:56.
:21:56. > :22:06.have a lot of different visions. There is not I unique genre of
:22:06. > :22:10.
:22:10. > :22:16.Spanish cinema. There are a lot of options and books. Spain has a
:22:16. > :22:22.strong young generation doing new things, but working at the same
:22:22. > :22:29.time as old people who are proposing interesting things.
:22:29. > :22:38.American cinema is giving up a lot of directors as well. Your film
:22:38. > :22:47.might be remade by Hollywood. Does that upset you? It is a compliment.
:22:47. > :22:54.I really admire the director who is going to do it. He loved the film.
:22:54. > :23:01.He is probably in his room now writing his adaptation! I will go
:23:01. > :23:04.to the cinema, buy a ticket and see his version. Thank you very much.
:23:04. > :23:06.Classical music can be a pretty conservative world where it's not
:23:06. > :23:09.easy to attract young audiences. But 29-year-old Chinese pianist
:23:09. > :23:12.Lang Lang has broken that mould with his pop-star showmanship. The
:23:12. > :23:15.Chinese prodigy trained in the US as a teenager and now lives in New
:23:15. > :23:18.York, but maintains close ties with his home country. He has been
:23:18. > :23:28.telling BBC World News about the role music can play in connecting
:23:28. > :23:41.
:23:41. > :23:48.people from different backgrounds MUSIC.
:23:48. > :23:52.As a pianist, I really don't feel nervous or feel that there are so
:23:53. > :24:02.much intensity. For me it is a great thing to do and I love to do
:24:03. > :24:05.
:24:05. > :24:11.it, it is natural. The important thing is that I want to be bomb
:24:11. > :24:21.macro to keep doing the things I always wanted to do, making music.
:24:21. > :24:28.
:24:29. > :24:36.I want to connect as many people as possible. I think the music should
:24:36. > :24:40.help to smooth things. It should build bridges between cultures.
:24:40. > :24:49.Sometimes people don't understand cultures, but through music they
:24:49. > :24:57.could find a beautiful connection. One of my mentors, Daniel Beragh
:24:58. > :25:05.Bohm, so bomb macro took orchestras from Arabic countries and then at
:25:05. > :25:14.least they got them to play together. Music should have the
:25:14. > :25:24.ability to do that. I really don't think music should be used to
:25:24. > :25:33.
:25:33. > :25:42.destroy world peace or separate I grew up there, and then went to
:25:42. > :25:49.America. Coming back I can see that China is already much closer to the
:25:49. > :25:53.Western world than it was before. Of course, China will never become
:25:53. > :25:59.the United States or United Kingdom. It will not happen because the
:25:59. > :26:09.culture is quite different in the end. But the globalisation will
:26:09. > :26:10.
:26:10. > :26:20.help that to bomb macro will help to open us more and more. When I
:26:20. > :26:25.
:26:26. > :26:28.A reminder of our main news: There have been violent clashes on the
:26:28. > :26:31.streets of the Greek capital, Athens, after the parliament voted
:26:31. > :26:33.in favour of a drastic package of austerity measures. The measures