(Image: Telegraph)
BY STEFANIE REDDING

ANCHOR CHRISTY LEWIS

Brazil’s government is cracking down on drugs and cleaning up the slums.
CNN has more...


“Brazilian Troops took over one of the countries biggest slums in an effort to rid the neighborhood of drug gangs. Officials in Rio de Janiero say areas in and around Rocinha are now secure following an assault early Sunday.”


The Wall Street Journal reports that the raid is hailed as a “liberation”, for those living in the slums which were recently at the mercy of the drug trade.


“...the drug lord known as Nem who was arrested in the runup to the incursion, ran an organization with sales of as much as $57 million each year.”

Shutting down the drug trade isn’t the only thing on the agenda. Authorities have instituted what they call “pacification” program to help aid the slum liberation.
The New York Times reports...


"Under a so-called “pacification” program, Rio authorities are following up invasions by handing slums over to specially trained community police and providing services like health centers and formal electricity and TV supply. The aim is to foster social inclusion and give the city’s one million or more slum residents a bigger stake in Brazil’s economy."



According to Reuters most of the raids and occupation occurred in slums close to Rio’s upscale areas. Critics say the program is really only about real estate, the  2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympics.



However, an Al Jazeera reporter says that the recent occupation is not just for the upcoming sporting events.


“While the Olympics and the World Cup are coming up Rio officials are very quick to point out that this is very much an operation not necessarily to make the city safer for tourist, two or four years down the road, but for Brazilians right now.”



So how do the residents of the Rocinha slums feel about the programs? The BBC reports...

“Pacification has been generally welcomed in favelas, where residents have seen a drop in crime. But there have been complaints about the behaviour of some of the troops and police involved, with local people reporting excessive violence or abuse of authority.”