After days of protests in the city of São Paulo, Brazil the government handpicked elite police officers as well as firefighters to ensure crowd control and proper dispersion of rallies. Riots have already begun to subside when additional security and militant forces were deployed to make sure that there is no escalation of protest activities. An estimated 200,000 people participated in the rallies.
Protests were not entirely isolated in São Paulo. They also occurred in almost every major city in Brazil. Reports revealed that the primary cause of civil unrest was the sudden fare hike that the government imposed on bus transports. Enraged civilians marched on the streets of Brazil in order to express their disappointment regarding the fare hike.
Points of view
According to São Paulo Mayor, Fernando Haddad, cancelling the fare hike would in turn lessen investment opportunities in certain areas. This decision was eventually reversed on Wednesday when the city council together with Mayor Haddad finally budged to the pressure coming from the crowd.
Unlike any other protests before it, the recent massive movement in Brazil acquired sympathy and understating amongst their fellow Brazilians. Brazilian football players said that the current wave of protests in their country has gotten their sympathy and understanding. The Confederation Cup is being held this year in Brazil. The event is considered a warm up exercise for the upcoming World Cup in 2014.
Chaos
Even though the main goal of the protest was to voice out complaints with regard to the absurd bus fare hikes and other relevant economic and social problems, some took advantage of the situation to engage in criminal acts especially since the police were busy managing most of the crowd. The riots in São Paolo resulted to acts of violence and much damage to property. Witnesses reported that the protest left a path of unsightly wreckage. There were looted shops, torn down doors, busted windows and cars that were tipped over.
In a statement given by Amandeep Gill, an American who lives in Rio de Janeiro, the aftermath of the protest left broken windows and torn down ATM machines. Gill added that he also witnessed a car that was set on fire in front of the building where he was staying.
Putting oil into the fire
According to political analysts, there are several things that need to be looked closely in order to control the protests in Brazil and return the situation to status quo. Violent incidents would greatly affect how things will turn out. More than 100 people already sustained injuries in the clash between protestors and police officers. Any confrontation that might result to fatalities could ignite more protests.
The economic situation of Brazil is also not very optimistic at this time. The stock market has dropped 20% this year directly affecting investors. This could cause a chain reaction leading to unemployment putting more fuel to the unrest that is currently engulfing the country.
Photo Credit: Sao Paulo, Brazil
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