Within the
next three years, Brazil will host two major events: the FIFA World Cup in 2014
and the Rio Olympic Games in 2016. This shows that Brazil has truly become an emerging nation. It now has
the strongest economy in Latin America, and the
world’s seventh. It will probably become one of the five largest in
the world in the decades to come. Its current GDP per inhabitant is $10,200 which puts Brazil in 64th position according to World Bank data.
However, since 2010, according to the United Nations, more
than 10,000 slum-dwelling families
have been displaced because of the upcoming events.
The slums are
simply razed to
the ground to make room for parking
lots, the Olympic village, media centers, etc. Some people have been relocated, but only in cities dozens of kilometers from their place of work. The political leaders of Rio believe that
"these slums devalue the
city, causing esthetic and
environmental damage". Since Eduardo Paes, the mayor of
Rio, brought back the Olympic flag from London, Brazil
has become the focus of the world’s attention. Paes is hoping
the Olympics will help get him reelected. None of the evicted residents
of the favelas, none of whom can even afford the ticket prices for the
Olympics, is likely to vote for him…
Article by Pierre Laubry and Maxence Houdelot
Article by Pierre Laubry and Maxence Houdelot
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