'Is A U.S. Life More Precious Than The Life Of An Indian?'

MR. YAGO:I'm Gideon Yago of MTV News.

MR. NORRIS: AndI'm John Norris, and were are here in Washington, DC, and we want to welcome allof you to, "Be Heard: An MTVGlobal Discussion with a man who is America's chief ambassador to the world,U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell. Thatworld has, of course, grown even more complex in recent months, and now you aregoing to have the chance to question the Secretary on a whole range of issues,from the war on terror to the Middle East, to AIDS, to India and Pakistan, toeven a few more personal matters. It'sa lot of ground to cover and, in fact, we will be covering a whole lot ofground.

MR. YAGO:Exactly. Since today'sdiscussion is literally going to span the globe, our MTV colleagues in six othercountries join us, lending the forum a very welcome international perspective.Young people in Brazil, India, Russia, Italy, Egypt and the UnitedKingdom, along with our very own audience here in Washington, DC, will all havean opportunity to get some answers from Secretary Powell.

But before we hear what our global audience has to say,let's take a quick trip around the world to meet our fellow correspondents,starting with Edit Bowman in London.

MS. BOWMAN:Hi, Gideon. How do youdo? We have a [inaudible] peoplehere in London from all over Europe, from Ireland, from Sweden, from Norway.We've had a couple of people phone in from Asia today, all pensive withsome very great questions. But overto Caze in our own Sao Paolo in Brazil.

MR. CAZE:Welcome to Brazil. Here wereare in Sao Paolo with 35 young Brazilian guys, an Argentine and a Colombian onewhich are longing to ask a question to Secretary Colin Powell.But before, let's go to Russia and talk to our colleague, Mr. Vasily.

MR. VASILY:Thank you. Thank you,Caze, and previat from Moscow. Vasilyhere in Moscow, and it's an honor to be part of this worldwide forum.The studio audience is raring to go.We're all ready with the questions.We can't wait to start. Andit's over to Victoria in Italy right now.

MS. CABELLO:Thank you very much, Vasily. We'rehere in Milan and I have, you know, a studio full of people from all over thatare really anxious to ask quite great questions today.So I can't wait to join you later. First,it's over to Lara in Cairo.

MS. MATER:Thank you, Victoria. I amLara and I'm here in media production city in Cairo.Everyone here is very excited to be taking part in this unique event.It's a first for MTV and a first for Egypt.Let's go now to New Delhi. Areyou there, Cyrus?

MR. BROACHA:For you, Lara, for you I'm there 24 hours a day.I'm Cyrus, MTV India in New Delhi. Behindme, 35 people, and they've got 35,000 questions.Simple math will tell you that's more than two each, so I don't want towaste any more time. Let's have agreat time here and let's also find out some truths.Let's talk straight to Gideon. Gideon.

MR. YAGO:Thanks a lot, Cyrus. Well,now that we've all introduced ourselves to Secretary Powell, we thought it wouldbe a pretty good idea to introduce Secretary Powell to all of you.Here now is a quick look at what he does and who he is.

The following segment was shown:

WHO IS COLINPOWELL? FIVE THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOWABOUT COLIN POWELL:

One. He’s a first.The first African-American National Security Advisor; the firstAfrican-American chairman of the joint chiefs of staff; and now, the firstAfrican-American Secretary of State.

Two.He’s a general, retiring with four stars on his shoulder and 3-1/2decades of Army experience under his belt.

Three.He’s a role model. When heretired from the military he built one of America’s largest youth volunteerorganizations, helping more than 10 million children.

Four.He’s a fighter. BeforeSeptember 11, Powell was the lone voice for international cooperation in anadministration with an America-first attitude.The terrorist attacks hit the reset button on American foreign policy,but Powell’s calls for caution and global teamwork are stillat odds with the more aggressive Defense Department.

Five.He’s a star – popular all across the political spectrum, the subjectof 20 adoring biographies – he’s even got his own GI Joe doll.Polls showed Powell would’ve been a favorite for president in 1996 or2000, but he wouldn’t run. Why?You’ll have to ask him.

VO2: WHAT DOES THE SECRETARY OF STATEDO? THREE THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOWABOUT COLIN POWELL’S JOB.

One.He the boss’s right-hand-man – literally -- as the highest-ranking ofthe president’s 14-member cabinet. Eachcabinet member, chosen by the President and confirmed by Congress, advises thepresident on a single topic. SecretaryPowell’s in charge of foreign affairs.

Two.He makes the U.S. look good, directing more than 45,000 diplomats andforeign service workers all over the world.They have one basic mission – to represent U.S. interests abroad.

Three.He solves problems. Peopleclose to Powell say that’s what he does best -- managing big crises. What’s he gonna do? Well,you’ll have to ask him.

VO3: WHAT DOES THE WORLD WANT FROMCOLIN POWELL? FIVE BIG JOBS HE’SHAD TO TAKE ON SINCE SEPTEMBER 11.

One: Aiding Afghanistan.The UN says the country needs more than $1 billion in support, andPowell’s helping to find it.

Two:Eyeing the Axis. He’swatching Iraq, Iran and North Korea while telling armchair warriors who want toattack right now to just be patient.

Three:Healing the Holy Land. Hehas to help Israelis andPalestinians find a way they can go back to the peace table.

Four: Soothing theSubcontinent. He’s shuttledbetween India and Pakistan, trying to persuade them to pull back from the brinkof nuclear war.

Five:Keeping the coalition. FromEurope to Russia, from Saudi Arabia to Japan, he’s got to keep togetheranti-terror partners with an assortment of agendas.How? You’ll have to askhim.

[Applause.]

MR. NORRIS:And on that note, it is time to meet the man in person.Please welcome the Secretary of State of the United States, Colin Powell.

[Applause.]

SECRETARY POWELL:Thank you very much. Thankyou.

MR. YAGO:Thank you much, so much, for joining us today, Secretary Powell.Now, obviously no one topic has been more on the hearts and minds ofcitizens here in America than September 11 and its aftermath.On that note, let's begin our questions with Lila.

QUESTION:Hello. My name is Lila, andI'm 18. As a young Muslim Americanwoman, I was wondering how you felt you could deal with the issues of tolerance.Previous to September 11, I did not consider myself a Muslim; however,after witnessing all the misrepresentations and misconceptions, I decided toexplore my faith, and now I have a new sense of pride. My younger brother,however, and his peers seem lost. Theydo not know whether they should embrace their ethnicity and religion, or hide itin fear of discrimination or racism. Howdo you think we should deal with that?

SECRETARY POWELL:I think the answer is very simple. Iam glad that you have embraced your religion and you've gotten to know moreabout your religion since the 11th of September, and I hope your youngerbrothers do the same thing because Islam is a wonderful religion.It's a religion that teaches peace.It teaches taking care of those of our citizens who are less fortunate.It talks about finding a way that makes the world a better place.And so it is a wonderful religion. Itis not a religion of violence. Itis not a religion of taking innocent lives.And it should be embraced, and you should be proud of it.

We are proud of all the many Muslim Americans who are herein the United States. PresidentBush went out of his way to reach out to that community.And we also want to say to Muslims around the world our campaign againstterrorism is not against anybody who is of the Muslim faith; it's against thoseindividuals who are terrorists, who kill innocent people.

When you look at where the armed forces of the UnitedStates have fought in recent years, we went to Afghanistan to protect Muslims;we went to Kuwait to protect Muslims and give Kuwait back to the KuwaitiGovernment. And when you look atwhat we did in Kosovo, we went to Kosovo to protect Albanian Muslims.So I think the United States has demonstrated through its actions,through the openness that we have in our society, that we respect all faiths.That is what makes this country great.We are a respecter of all faiths.

So practice your faith and help your brother see the wisdomof embracing the faith of their fathers and mothers.

MR. NORRIS:Mr. Secretary, we're going to check in with our London studios forour first question from there from a young person standing by with Edith.Edith.

MS. BOWMAN:Thanks, John. Yeah, we haveEdith here who has our first question from the U.K.She is from Norway. Edith,what's your question?

QUESTION:Hi. Hello, Mr. Secretary.

SECRETARY POWELL:Hello, Edith.

QUESTION:I'm wondering, when I talk to my friends about the U.S., we think abouthow do you feel about representing a country commonly perceived as the Satan ofcontemporary politics?

SECRETARY POWELL:Seen as what?

QUESTION:As the Satan of contemporary politics.

SECRETARY POWELL:Satan? Oh.Well, I reject the characterization.Quite the contrary. I thinkthe American people, the United States of America, presents a value system tothe rest of the world that is based on democracy, based on economic freedom,based on the individual rights of men and women.That is what has fueled this country of ours for the last 225 years.

I think that's what makes us such as draw for nationsaround the world. People come tothe United States. They come to beeducated. They come to becomeAmericans. We are a country ofcountries, and we touch every country, and every country in the world touchesus.

So, far from being the Great Satan, I would say that we arethe Great Protector. We have sentmen and women from the armed forces of the United States to other parts of theworld throughout the past century to put down oppression.We defeated Fascism. Wedefeated Communism. We saved Europein World War I and World War II. Wewere willing to do it, glad to do it. Wewent to Korea. We went to Vietnam.All in the interest of preserving the rights of people. 

And when all those conflicts were over, what did we do?Did we stay and conquer? Didwe say" "Okay, wedefeated Germany. Now Germanybelongs to us? We defeated Japan,so Japan belongs to us"? No.What did we do? We builtthem up. We gave them democraticsystems which they have embraced totally to their soul.And did we ask for any land? No,the only land we ever asked for was enough land to bury our dead.And that is the kind of nation we are.So, far from being the Satan, I think we are the protector of a universalvalue system that more and more people are recognizing as the correct valuesystem: democracy, economicfreedom, the individual rights of men and women to pursue their own destiny.That's what we stand for, and that's what we try to help other countriesachieve as well. 

MR. NORRIS:Mr. Secretary, for our next question we'd like to go to Moscow withVasily, who is standing by. 

VASILY:In Moscow, a question from Dimitri Kuckov.Go ahead, please.  

QUESTION:Welcome, Mr. Powell. Hello,Mr. Powell. President Bush andPresident Putin have signed an agreement in which they pledged to supportfighting against terrorism. A lotof citizens of our country suffered from terrorists in Russia.Oftentimes, the world community calls these people fighters for freedom.In such case, what is terrorism and how can we classify it?What does it imply? 

SECRETARY POWELL:First of all, let me say how pleased we are that President Putin and theRussian people are aligned with us in this campaign against terrorism.It meant a lot to America for President Putin to be the first worldleader to call President Bush after the events of 11 September.  

Terrorism affects all nations.It's not just something that the United States has to worry about.Every civilized nation has to worry about it.What is terrorism? Terrorismis the taking of innocent lives for a false political purpose.And wherever we see that occur, no matter what the reasoning behind it,if it involves killing of innocent people for political purpose, I think we haveto view it as a terrorist act. Ifit means the overthrow of a legitimate form of government through terroristaction, a form of government that has been put in place by the people throughfree elections, that's terrorism. SoI think it's pretty clear to define what terrorism is and to identify it withthose individuals and those organizations who practice such activities. 

And that's why I think we have been so successful inpulling this whole campaign together with nations all across the world joiningwith the United States to say that terrorism is wrong; those nations thatpractice terrorism or give haven to terrorists are going down the wrong path.And to define evil as evil is: peoplewho will take the lives of other people, innocent people, in the name of areligion or a cause. This is afalse religion. These are falsecauses. And the world is comingtogether to fight this kind of action, this kind of terrorism.And President Bush has made it a major hallmark, a priority of hisadministration, and we are pleased that President Putin and the Russian peopleare aligned with us in this grand campaign.  

MR. NORRIS:Secretary Powell, we have another question related to the campaign onterror, and for that we'll go to Cairo and Lara, who is standing by there.Lara. 

MS. MATER:This is Abdul Kareem. He's21 years old and he's a student here in Egypt. 

QUESTION:Mr. Secretary, what are the evidence that

the U.S. Government hold against bin Laden and al-Qaida andthat makes bin Laden/al-Qaida as the first suspects after the September 11attacks?  

SECRETARY POWELL:Right after the attacks on the 11th of September, we began to assembleinformation which pointed directly toward Mr. bin Laden and al-Qaida.He had attacked us previously. Hehad attacked our embassies, two of our embassies in Africa in 1998, and wealready had an indictment. We werelooking for him for these crimes. 

And so we knew what his pattern was.We knew what his method of operation was.And as we began to develop our campaign, more information came in thatlinked the 19 young men who killed themselves in those attacks with al-Qaidaorganizations and al-Qaida cells around the world. 

And then as time went on, the case built up clearly, eventhough a number of people didn't believe our case, and then finally Mr. binLaden allowed tapes of his conversations to be broadcast throughout the worldand, in effect, he took credit for what had happened.He took credit with pride for killing almost 3,000, as we now see thefinal number, almost 3,000 innocent people who were going about their dailylives. Innocent people from 80different countries. It wasn't justAmericans who were killed in the attacks in Washington and the attacks in NewYork. There were people from 80different countries. Innocentpeople who meant no one any ill that day.

And he flew these planes, loaded with innocent people whowere just trying to go visit relatives or go on business or go on vacation, andthey all died because of this evil deed. Headmitted it. He acknowledged it.If he is not the person responsible, then why doesn't he step forward ifhe is still alive and defend his innocence?

But I think he has indicted himself as a result of thetapes that we have now seen, and we have a solid body of evidence that pointsdirectly to Usama bin Laden and to the al-Qaida organization that he heads, andwhich has cells throughout the world. Andthose cells are now slowly being identified and people are being brought tojustice so that they will not have the ability to kill innocent Americans,innocent Egyptians, innocent Russians, as a result of their terrorist activity.

MR. NORRIS:Thank you so much, Mr. Secretary. Wehave only just started to scratch the surface here in our conversation.We still have more questions coming from India, from Italy, from Brazil,from topics about AIDS in Africa to Afghanistan.So please stick around. We'llbe right back.

[Commercial break.]

MR. YAGO:Welcome back to Be Heard: AGlobal Discussion with Secretary of State Colin Powell.Once again, today we are joined by young global audiences around theworld.

MR. NORRIS:And when we say global, we do mean global.The questions are coming in for the Secretary, not only from a variety oflocations all over the world, but in a variety of languages.Right now you're looking at the translation booths that are set up in ourstudios here in Washington, D.C.. Theyhave been set up not only to communicate questions to the Secretary, but alsothen to translate the answers back into Russian, Arabic, Portuguese and Italian.