. >> school kids in south africa will soon be speaking chinese, pilot program is being launched to teach the chinese language in some schools and critics are questioning why the children are not learning african languages instead and harry reports from pretoria. >> reporter: welcome to an mandarian chinese class in south africa and the children are learning one of china's popular languages. ♪ what is the song about? >> it's about three little kittens that are singing together and they are working together. >> reporter: but the seven-year-old admits it's not as easy as it seems. >> if you say this for instance you can't just say this because it's not the right word. >> reporter: the government is piloting the project in at least 30 schools in the province. >> the children are like sponges and they can just absorb and the thing and the best part is they can remember for a long time. >> reporter: children here have to learn two south african languages in school and any foreign language is a third additional option. south africa has 11 official languages and most people speak at least two, peo

, joining us from dallas. >>> thank you. >>> some college students who won a scholarship in south africa must meet a new requirement. they have to be virgins, we'll learn the reason behind this. >>> plus, what is stopping iran from expanding its biggest gas field. we'll take a stroll through the big complex. more details after this of the t. >>> welcome back to viewers watching in the states and all around the world, this is "cnn news room." i'm errol barnett, it's my last half hour with you today so let's check the headlines. donald trump says he will skip fox news presidential debate, just the latest in the feud between the republican frontrunner between donald trump and fox host megyn kelly. trump says that kelly is biassed against him. >>> and denmark is reviewing the policies with migrants, denmark can confiscate their valuables and more protests against the measures are expected. >>> u.s. secretary of state john kerry is in china at the moment. earlier he held a news conference with the chinese foreign minister, kerry said that their nuclear ambitions topped their talks, and they agree

daughter back in 2007 says that his fight will continue >>> south africa's currency plunged to a record low on monday. investors are worried over economic constraints and the economy. it has struggled with the change of finance ministers within the period of one week. >> reporter: this woman needs to buy a new pair of schools for her daughter. she cannot afford them after paying school fees for her children. she earns $150 a month. $30 goes to school fees, $50 to school uniforms and books. what is left over goes to food and transport. she said prices have doubled in south africa since last year. >> here in south africa, we are suffering now, really suffering. where has this come from? >> reporter: on monday the currency fell to the lowest in 11 years. people are told that they will have to limit spending as items increase. the rand lost 25% against the u.s. dollar last year. specialists say things will get harder the currency slide as well as increasing the cost of basic imports reflects facilitiering confidence in how well the economy is being managed. >> it is the rest of the w

rights, and his support for nelson mandela and the anti-apartheid struggle in south africa. if the united kingdom and the united states decided tomorrow morning not to buy south african goods, not to buy south african gold, to put an embargo on oil, if our investors and capitalists would withdraw their support for that racial tyranny that we find there, then apartheid would be brought to an end. today, dr. king's city temple address, december 7th, 1964, in london. all that and more, coming up. welcome to democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. and those are some of the headlines this is democracy now, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy odman. amy goodman: today is the federal holiday honoring dr. martin luther king. he was born january 15th, 1929. he was assassinated april 4th, 1968, at the lorraine motel in memphis, tennessee. he was just 39 years old. while dr. king is primarily remembered as a civil rights leader, he also championed the cause of the poor, organizing the poor people's campaign to address issues of economic justice. d

from starvation. in sports, the win in south africa. details in sport. to burkina faso where security forces have rescued at least 150 people who were taken hostage in the capital. at least 28 people were killed including many foreigners. it began late on friday night when al-qaeda-linked fighters stormed the building and a nearby cafÉ. >> reporter: the splendid hotel where gunfire ran out throughout the night as explosions were heard from inside. masked gunmen stormed the upscale hotel popular with foreigners and diplomats. they also attacked a cafÉ across the street. >> translation: it was horrible because everyone was panicking. people were lying on the ground and there was blood everywhere. they were shooting people at point blank range. the noise of the explosion was really loud. i think these people are wicked. >> reporter: french troops were called in to help security forces retake the hotel. they rescued dozens of people. many were shot and are receiving treatment at hospital. >> translation: we did our best to try and get out. they shot me in the arm and i have an open frac

. do things. and i did. we shot this series in london.h-hmm. we went to south africa for part of it. they shot it in malta. we did stunts. there were car chases. i loot a store.ostage. i would -- there were days when megan and i would look at each other, and we would say, "i think this is what tom cruise feels like." [ laughter ]work. >> seth: you were living the tom cruise life. >> we're tom cruise. >> jimmy: and you know tom cruise's new movie is just him in an office. [ laughter ]l circle. >> seth: it's so full. it's called "accounting" and it does not look good. >> it doesn't? >> seth: no. >> it's not. oh, shoot.tioned south africa. i have seen these. these are fantastic. >> yeah. >> seth: but you -- there was some culture shock, based on signs. >> yes. in south africa, i was so taken with the funny signs. so i kept taking photos and i sent them -- would send them home to my husband.series, "signs of south africa." >> seth: "signs of south africa." >> okay. >> seth: the first is from an airport. do you want to explain it first and i'll show it? >> yeah. okay.ape town, south afri

in south africa want the government to speed up legislation providing poor patients access to affordable drugs. we have this report on the struggles faced by cancer patients >>> this woman has breast cancer and says doctors at a public hospital can't hepar. -- can't help her. >> medication - sometimes they give it to me or just put me in oxygen. according to the cancer association of south africa, more than thousands are diagnosed every year. private facilities managed the numbers. this is the nearest hospital. it doesn't have an oncology department. patients have to go to johannesburg. not every hospital has them. drugs in south africa are expensive and state-run hospitals have no or limited supplies. >> how many men and women decide. they can't it was the only drug to raise their children. >> countries like india and argentina used to outline law to limit drug patents. south africa is yet to do that. >> they are granted to international drug companies that want to the protect their patent. it means south african based companies are - can't come to the market on the drugs for

students in south africa are protesting the high cost of education. they say tuition is too expensive and they're demanding that fees be scrapped. although the government provides financial assistance to some, protesters say that is not good enough. the slide of the u.s. dollar has developed. as well as the president's decision to change finance ministers twice within a week. >> reporter: what has happened to these shoes? >> reporter: she needs to buy a new pair of school shoes for her daughter, but she can barely afford them after paying school fees for her children. she earns $150 a month. 35 goes to school fees, 50 to school uniforms and books. what left over goes to too food and transport. she says prices have doubled in south africa since last year >> here in south africa there is real suffering now. i don't know what this come from really. >> reporter: on monday the rand fell to the lowest levels against the dollar in more than seven years. households were told they will have to limit spending as the prices of items increase. the south african currency, the rand, lost 25% of its

trivial by critics. plus... >> i'm in south africa. we're going to show you how they are saving lives. against mosquitos. >> they'd kill one person every 12 seconds. >> just like that, i might have genetically modified a mosquito. >> it's like a video game with genes. >> this is what innovation looks like. >> i feel like we're making an impact. >> let's do it. >> techknow, where technology meets humanity. >> the only live national news show at 11:00 eastern. >> we start with breaking news. >> let's take a closer look. ed. >> secretary of state john kerry says he's confident that talks will go ahead tunisia's. >> a major success after google offered to bay $185 million in back dated catches and change how it accounts for tax in the u.k. >> okay, google, how much tax are you going to pay here in the u.k.? well, that's something that google can answer in a heartbeat. the firm is going to shell out 130 million pounds. that's $185 million, money many people feel is long overdue. the question is, okay, google, is it enough? >> well, google thinks so. it has reached an agreement with the tax

south africa where inflation accelerating to inne-year high of 5% december adding pressure to the central bank to raise rates next week despite the slowdown in growth. a lot of that is due to what we see with oil prices. davos.ead over to do whether it's china or the commodities or the federal reserve, the eye of the storm is plenty of countries like south africa. the reserve bank governor joins us now and it's great to have you with us. your forecast is been downgraded to below 1%. a growthtill expecting of 1.5%. some expect recession in south africa. we expect one in 5% from 2015 good next week, we will present our new forecast and it will come out quickly. south africa is facing a dilemma. growth and weg have rising inflation. this is not something we did not expect. we started adjusting policy in january of 2014. we started our tightening in january of last year. the tightening steps we have taken have been very measured on like previous tightening cycles we have had. a limited them recently to 25 basis points but the market wants more conviction. are you willing to go the ext

buttons for south africa. the only way to get better is to challenge yourself, and that's what we're doing at xfinity. we are challenging ourselves to improve every aspect of your experience. and this includes our commitment to being on time. every time. that's why if we're ever late for an appointment, we'll credit your account $20. it's our promise to you. we're doing everything we can to give you the best experience possible. because we should fit into your life. not the other way around. ♪ >>> and a reminder of the top stories on al jazeera. the u.n. has sent out invitations to friday's planned talks in geneva, aimed attending the war in syria. it follows weeksover dispute about which opposition groups should be asked to take part. >>> malaysia's prime minister has been cleared of wrongdoing in a long-running corruption scandal. >>> and denmark's parliament has adopted measures, allowing police to cease valuables from refugees allowing them to stay. >>> many children are waiting to find out if they can travel to britain to be with their families. it follows a legal test last we

country, dry conditions could continue to at least march. nhk world, free state, south africa. meteorologist robert speta joins us with dramatic images. any relief in sight? >> no relief won't be coming until spring and maybe next summer. we have el nino going on out here. that not only affects the pacific ocean but throws off the global circulation out here even into the southern hemisphere. across australia looking at wildfires. also into south africa. if we go back six months in july and august, that is the winter time down here in the southern hemisphere. you get these low pressure areas that push through with the polar front jet. this past winter due to the jet pushing farther to the south, we didn't see nearly as much rain as we typically get in the southern areas of south africa. now as we head into the summer time, this is the typically wettest time of the year. you're already in a deficit. you have this area to the north, this banding of rain showers. that often sets down farther south. you can see a few thunderstorms blowing up. high pressure is continuing to dominate. that will be

that will likely have echos in other countries around the world >>> high unemployment in south africa has provoked the latest mass march by people demanding jobs. >> reporter: every day unemployed men and women wait in line hoping to get work. >> it's very painful. it's too much, very painful because you've got families to feed and there's no money. >> reporter: most here are trained security guards. some haven't worked in years. >> there are a lot of people here who don't work. i think i'm one of the statistics. >> reporter: south africa's official unemployment rate is more than 25%. around the corner from the government job center in down town johannasburg, they marched to demand work. the main opposition party, the democratic alliance, say nearly 2 million south africans last their jobs in the past several years. >> our biggest fight is a job for fight, to for work opportunity. the first phase of our freedom was to get people the right to vote. the next one is that they make opportunities for south africa. >> reporter: the democratic alliance is seen to represent white interests. racis

are pushing all the wrong buttons for south africa's telecom providers. >>> plus finding out what happens when that's inmates decide to break out of prison. the only way to get better is to challenge yourself, and that's what we're doing at xfinity. we are challenging ourselves to improve every aspect of your experience. and this includes our commitment to being on time. every time. that's why if we're ever late for an appointment, we'll credit your account $20. it's our promise to you. we're doing everything we can to give you the best experience possible. because we should fit into your life. not the other way around. >> welcome back. a reminder of our top stories here on al jazeera. humanitarian agencies are calling for all sides to end the suffering of civilians, especially children. denmark's parliament has agreed to seize valuables from refugees to help fund their stay. >>> and 83 confirmed deaths from the hsns swine flew. the government has publicly destroyed the biggest ever hall of illegal ivory, more than 250 tusks were displayed in the capital colombo being fed into a 1

weather's update starting with how farmers in south africa are struggling with severe drought. >>> drought in south aica is at therisis lel. 2015 was the driest year on record so farmers are struggling with the situation. we have footage coming out of the country. much of south africa remains in the grips of a drought after experiencing the driest year on record in 2015. the hardest hit area is part of the country's maze -- maize belt. corn is the staple food in south africa, especially for lower income families. usually a net exporter of the grain, as much as 5 million tons of maize may have to be imported this year. the ongoing el nino weather pattern is being blamed for the drought. good news. january is the wettest month of the year and on tuesday and wednesday south africa had heavy rainfall so this is definitely beneficial and then daytime thunderstorms are expected, so hopefully the situation will improve. el nino has been bringing wet weather to the western part of the u.s., especially california and then two more systems are expected to move into the west coast of the

belt of south africa. here is a farming land, but due to the drought, the soil has completely dried up. if the extreme drought continues, the farmer says he will not be able to harvest anything this year. >> it will not be a successful crop if we try to do everything. just not enough water. >> reporter: this climate is also taking a toll on livestock. these cows have become weak and thin. with the price of animal feed hitting record highs, local farmers are struggling to find water and food for them. >> translator: all my cows will die if the drought continues. >> reporter: more than 40,000 cattle died of hunger. one of the five states declared drought emergency area. people are feeling the pinch, too. the drought pushed its price up by 30% to a record high. >> food is too high and nobody is able to buy maize flour because the price is too high. >> reporter: the government has been providing relief farms to save the animals and farms. the severe weather is putting pressure on people's lives. in the country, dry conditions could continue to at least march. nhk world, free state, sout

hits the country's east coast. >> i'm harry in south africa and i'm going to show you what it looks like and how the concept is helping save lives. ♪ tunisia prime minister held an emergency cabinet meeting to discuss this week's wave of protest by unemployed and cut short france on thursday following four days of violence and nightly curfew has been in place across the country since friday and ministry says more than 400 people arrested in the last few days. let's go live to tunis with our correspondent and hashem is anything emerging of what they might do to take control of the situatio situation? >> reporter: basically the government says that it faces two major issues, one the need to maintain stability and stem the rise of processes that have been threatening to spin out of control. and the number two issue is to address the issues of poverty and unemployment but the government says that it does not have quick fixes. it's going to take some time before it can tackle the whole social development project programs that people have been asking for. it's quite a delicate situation

stormed by police. >>> leadership crisis, increasing criticism of south africa's relying african national congress. many say it hasn't delivered on its promise he especially to the poor. >>> and pleas for help. protests in and around syria calling attention to those trapped by war, as the u.n. mobilizes to help 400,000 people cut off from food and medicine. >> good evening, i'm antonio mora. this is al jazeera america's international news hour. tonight we begin in mexico where the infamous drug lord known as el chapo is once again behind bars. joaquin guzman loera, was captured by police in the town of lost noches. the sinaloa drug lord had escaped from prison, an embarrassment of enrique pena nieto's government. is in a mil military base in meo city. given that wasn't the first time he had broken out of prison the u.s. is expected to once again seek to put him on trial here. al jazeera's courtney kealy reports. >> reporter: mexico's president celebrated the capture of joaquin el chapo guzman. >> translator: this morning in the municipality of a town in sinaloa the capture of joa

. >> seth: you mentioned south africa. i have seen these. these are fantastic. >> yeah. >> seth: but you -- there was ck, based on signs. explain real quick. >> yes. when i was in south africa, i was so taken with the funny signs. photos and i sent them -- would send them home to my husband. and i call this series, "signs of south africa." >> seth: "signs of south >> okay. >> seth: the first is from an airport. do you want to explain it first and i'll show it? >> yeah. okay. so i landed in cape town, south africa, i'm looking for the restroom.ave the signs, it's like bathroom straight ahead, customs to the left. one of the items on the sign says firearms/weapons.ou go. >> that's a real airport sign. [ laughter ] >> seth: yeah. there's the toilet. there is your fithere's the exit. >> yeah. [ laughter ] >> seth: and i will note that i would have thought exit would have been the opposite way of firearms/weapons. same way. dropping off my weapons, am i picking them up? >> seth: right. >> what do i do? i thought it was crazy. >> seth: i think this is my >> yeah.o what was -- explain. and

back to december 27th, 1794, camps bay off of south africa in the final hours of the sal jose. >> on december 27th, in 1794, a ship that was heading from mozambique island in mozambique around the cape of good hope heading toward brazil, northeast brazil, came close to cape town, south africa. cape town was often a landing point for ships before they made their way across the long atlantic voyage. and this ship came too close to shore, got caught in swells in a storm and struck rocks about 100 yard s 350 feet or so from shor. the captain was captaining the ship called the "san jose." tried to salvage what he could from the crew. they attempted a rescue from ship to shore. he rescued himself. he rescued along with the crew, he rescued about half of the 400 enslaved mozambiquens aboard. the other half who had been captured from the interior of africa and brought on board the sal jose in early december perished in those waves that night. >> recently the image of a young syrian boy who died, who drowned, became the image of a migrant crisis taking place right now in europe. it hum

bavarians will take issue to the constitutional court. brent: south africa's president is facing all-time low popularity numbers amid accusations of mismanagement and corruption. his decision to fire to finance ministers within four days yesterday sent the rand currency to historic international lows. the country's largest opposition party, the democratic alliance, is calling for him to step down. he's calling for a huge rally on wednesday. we follow to activists who are taking the cause to the stronghold of soweto. >> they are marking on -- marching on the streets. they are members of the main opposition party, the democratic alliance. they are going door to door to convince people there's an urgent need for change in south africa. >> it's a mess. >> south africa is on the brink of a recession. 40% unemployed. to blame they say is their president. >> people are sick and tired of summa -- zumma. >> these are slogans in south africa mainly about the urban young generation. resentment has been brewing against zuma, who has been in forcing corruption scandals and recently fired at finance ma

: according to the cancer association of south africa, more than 100,000 south africans are diagnosed with cancer every year. facilities across the country can't manage the numbers >> reporter: this is the nearest hospital in the area, but it doesn't have an onological department. cancer patients have to go to johannesburg to get the drugs. >> reporter: drugs in south africa are expense ich and state-run hospitals have no or limited supplies >> now, how many women and men throughout that died mean while they could have got help and they couldn't, it was the only drug and prolonged their life so they may raise their children for god's sake >> reporter: countries like india and argentina apply to a law that limit the number of drug patents are granted but south africa has yet to do that >> the patents are mainly being granted to international drug companies who want to protect their patents in this country. it means that south african-based companies which are mainly generic companies, can't come to the market on those drugs for a longer period of time because they're waiting for those paten

is preparing an aramco ipo. and a manic monday for the rant. south africa's currency plunges as much as 9% in a volatile hitting 17 against the dollar for the first time ever. it is it is a morning. you need to be up to speed. caroline hyde has your bloomberg news. : chinese stocks have extended last week's plunge after concern about the slowdown deepening. the producer price index slumped 5.9% in december, sending declines to a record 46 months. the cost of borrowing the yuan has jumped by the most on record. tightened supply of the currency following intervention by the chinese national bank. ubs will double its staff in china over five years. their chief executive says that a time of volatile markets is as good a time as any for wrapping up operations. china is not on its own with those challenges. we have to expect some adjustments for 2016. those are also good times to plan for the future. that is the reason why we are starting to implement our strategy plan in the next five years. we think we are going to double our account in this region. crude has extended its slide from an 1