Mission unclear in Brazilian army takeover of Rio security

– Favelas in firing line –

In the favelas, where most of the violence is concentrated, many unanswered questions also remain over what military control of security will mean on the ground.

Shootouts between rival gangs or between gangs and police are daily events in these neighborhoods. In some cases, the police are themselves accused of working with the criminals.

Can residents trust in the generals more?

“People are afraid. The decree may be nothing more than politics, but people there are in the firing line,” said Anderson Franca, author of the book “Rio in Flames” and a frequent poster on social media about the situation in the favelas.

“Military intervention in Rio’s security has always been violent, aggressive, repressive. I don’t think the army will come to promote dialogue,” he said.

“The army is not answerable to anyone and soldiers can only be tried before military tribunals, which weakens the ability to denounce police abuses.”

Defense Minister Raul Jungmann raised new questions by suggesting that authority should be given for “collective arrest warrants,” which would apparently allow searches for suspects to extend far beyond a single address.

At the Supreme Court, Justice Marco Aurelio Mello aired “serious doubts” in an interview with Estado de Sao Paulo newspaper about Temer’s plan.