Loading ...Article - The Olympic Games – Great for Brazil
As you may know, Brazil won the bid for the Olympic games over Japan and The United States. After police raids on multiple favelas surrounding the Rio area, President da Silva announced that the Brazilian government will devoted sixty million dollars to the local and governmental law enforcement.
Over the weekend, during a turf war between two rival gangs, Police were forced to employ the air support of a helicopter. During the skirmish, the helicopter was shot out of the sky by high caliber machine gun fire. Three policemen died in the crash. Other casualties included 21 gang members/civilians. Violence is rampant in Rio where the high murder rate makes it one of the most dangerous cities in the world. After a third police officer died in a helicopter crash, President da Silva announced his decision to “up the ante” on the corruption facing Brazil.
Although there are no favelas where the games will be held in Rio, over 100 of these shanty towns overlook the developed areas of the city. A constant threat of violence will be present.
The Olympic games are going to force the Brazilian government to clean up the corruption on the streets of Rio. Many critics of the da Silva regime state that policemen are under armed. Organized crime has brought massive quantities of money into the favelas through the drug trafficking business which has in turn, funded the Slumlords and their loyal gang members. During the police raids, high caliber automatic weaponry, capable of taking down further air support was confiscated.
Violence and corruption are the biggest sources of aversion towards Brazil, locals even state that there is no use in fighting with car jackers or thieves. Wearing a nice watch or flashing money can easily get you robbed in Rio. Going out on the street at night is risky, and highly avoided.
The effort to increase stability will create an environment that is more attractive for tourism and business. This will in turn, increase the economic output of Brazil. It is possible that Brazil will see more business endeavors as the games bring in many individuals who would not otherwise visit the country.
A friend of mine who is a citizen of Brazil and visits his family there on a regular basis states, “I was there (in Rio) for the Pan-American games, you could walk out on the street at 2am and not run into any trouble, that is completely unheard of at any other time of the year.”
Brazilians are hoping that the games will clean up the streets for good.
As a side note, Brazil is also hosting the 2014 World Cup. If there is any one event that can unify the people of Brazil and promote harmony, it will be the game of Futbol.
Source: World Market Media.
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