KMack
02-16-2018, 01:18 PM
Brazil’s military will take control of public security in the state of Rio de Janeiro as a wave of violence rattles the population and dominates media coverage ahead of this year’s presidential election.
President Michel Temer will issue a decree on Friday putting the military in charge of Rio’s security forces, his press office said in an e-mailed statement. An army general would be in charge even of the state’s civilian police, according to two sources with direct knowledge fo the order. The intervention, which requires congressional approval, will last until the end of the year, said the people who requested not to be named because the decree isn’t public yet. Temer will address the situation in a nationally-televised speech Friday night.
The move, the first of its kind since Brazil returned to democracy in 1985, is a response to growing demands ahead of the October general elections for a crack down on crime and violence. It may also provide an excuse not to vote an unpopular pension bill, because by law changes to the Constitution can’t be made while a military intervention is in effect.
Indeed, Lower house speaker Rodrigo Maia said the decree that would be put to a vote in both houses of Congress over the next few days would make a vote on the pension reform more difficult. The government still lacks the votes needed for the bill investors had hoped would put public finances back on track, Maia said.
“It’s an extreme moment and this is a very serious decision,” Maia told reporters in Brasilia on Friday morning. “Under those circumstances, that’s the way to reestablish order,” he said in reference to a growing sense of insecurity.
Security Failure
Rio de Janeiro state's homicides have returned to 2009 levels
Source: Rio's Public Security Institute, ISP
Violence and crime have been soaring in Rio de Janeiro in the aftermath of a deep recession that has left the state lacking funds to invest in its police, and to pay salaries. Public opinion surveys show security to be among Brazilians’ main concerns ahead of the October presidential elections. Jair Bolsonaro, a Rio de Janeiro legislator and former army captain with a hard line against crime, polls second.
Shootings and mass robberies plagued Rio during the recent Carnival celebrations, when scores of tourists visit the city. Rio de Janeiro Governor Luiz Fernando Pezao admitted the state’s security has failed and asked for federal help, according to local media. The rate of violent deaths in the state jumped to 40 per 100,000 residents, the highest since 2009.
Brazil returned to democracy in 1985, after 21 years of military dictatorship, and intervention remains a sensitive topic in the country.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-02-16/brazil-military-takes-control-of-rio-de-janeiro-public-security
President Michel Temer will issue a decree on Friday putting the military in charge of Rio’s security forces, his press office said in an e-mailed statement. An army general would be in charge even of the state’s civilian police, according to two sources with direct knowledge fo the order. The intervention, which requires congressional approval, will last until the end of the year, said the people who requested not to be named because the decree isn’t public yet. Temer will address the situation in a nationally-televised speech Friday night.
The move, the first of its kind since Brazil returned to democracy in 1985, is a response to growing demands ahead of the October general elections for a crack down on crime and violence. It may also provide an excuse not to vote an unpopular pension bill, because by law changes to the Constitution can’t be made while a military intervention is in effect.
Indeed, Lower house speaker Rodrigo Maia said the decree that would be put to a vote in both houses of Congress over the next few days would make a vote on the pension reform more difficult. The government still lacks the votes needed for the bill investors had hoped would put public finances back on track, Maia said.
“It’s an extreme moment and this is a very serious decision,” Maia told reporters in Brasilia on Friday morning. “Under those circumstances, that’s the way to reestablish order,” he said in reference to a growing sense of insecurity.
Security Failure
Rio de Janeiro state's homicides have returned to 2009 levels
Source: Rio's Public Security Institute, ISP
Violence and crime have been soaring in Rio de Janeiro in the aftermath of a deep recession that has left the state lacking funds to invest in its police, and to pay salaries. Public opinion surveys show security to be among Brazilians’ main concerns ahead of the October presidential elections. Jair Bolsonaro, a Rio de Janeiro legislator and former army captain with a hard line against crime, polls second.
Shootings and mass robberies plagued Rio during the recent Carnival celebrations, when scores of tourists visit the city. Rio de Janeiro Governor Luiz Fernando Pezao admitted the state’s security has failed and asked for federal help, according to local media. The rate of violent deaths in the state jumped to 40 per 100,000 residents, the highest since 2009.
Brazil returned to democracy in 1985, after 21 years of military dictatorship, and intervention remains a sensitive topic in the country.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-02-16/brazil-military-takes-control-of-rio-de-janeiro-public-security