Brazil

Brazil: Air Traffic Delays Continue

Date: December 13th, 2006 |

Brazil’s troubled air traffic system suffered another setback Dec. 5 when a communications system failed, forcing authorities to halt virtually all takeoffs from Brasilia, Belo Horizonte, and Sao Paulo’s domestic airport. Chaos ruled as hundreds of flights were delayed and many passengers had to spend the night at airports. It took a day to clear [read more]

Brazil: Flight Delays to Last Until 2007

Date: November 20th, 2006 |

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Following the Sept. 29 mid-air collision of two planes that killed 154 people, Brazil’s air traffic controllers began a campaign Nov. 1 to protest working conditions. The increase in air traffic in recent years has outstripped the hiring of new controllers, so the system is running at only half capacity. Since Nov. 1, controllers have [read more]

Brazil: Crime against Tourists Increasing in Rio de Janeiro

Date: August 22nd, 2006 |

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Crime against tourists is increasing in Rio de Janeiro. At least 22 tourists were robbed the week of Aug. 14-19 despite an increase in police patrols following the daylight murder of a 19-year-old Portuguese student on Copacabana beach Aug. 14. The robber killed him for his knapsack. Two days later, six robbers took over a [read more]

Brazil: Tourist Police Try to Rip Off Foreign Tourists

Date: May 2nd, 2006 |

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An American and a Czech tourist on Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro escaped a scam when two police officers from a special unit designed to help tourists tried to extort money from them. The men were sitting at a beach kiosk bar when a passer-by gave them a pack of leaflets. Two policemen immediately [read more]

Brazil: Police Protest in Rio de Janeiro

Date: February 14th, 2006 |

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Just two weeks before Carnival opens in Rio de Janeiro, Rio police officers protested low pay by handing out leaflets at the international airport warning tourists that they might not be safe in the city because the police have little incentive to combat crime. Rio has a reputation as a violent city and the protest [read more]

Brazil: Bandits Rob Busload of British Tourists in Rio

Date: November 28th, 2006 |

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Another high profile armed robbery of a busload of British tourists in Rio de Janeiro occurred just before dawn Nov. 26 when bandits with automatic weapons and grenades robbed 18 new arrivals near Ipanema beach. The robbers posed as police to stop the bus, then took cash, valuables and passports from all aboard. The crime [read more]

Brazil: Bandits Attack Taxis on Road to Sao Paulo’s Airport

Date: August 29th, 2006 |

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Taxis carrying passengers to Sao Paulo-Guarulhos International Airport via Airton Road have become targets for thieves seeking luggage to steal. Several recent incidents suggest that thieves are now targeting taxis because of the likelihood that they are carrying lots of luggage. Earlier this year several incidents occurred where bandits drove past vehicles looking for signs [read more]

Brazil: Organized Crime Gangs Terrorize Sao Paulo

Date: May 16th, 2006 |

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Rampaging criminal gangs attacked police posts, banks and city buses in a four-day spree in Sao Paulo state that produced 81 deaths, including 39 police or security officers, 38 gang members, and four civilians caught in the crossfire. Many buses were burned, but passengers were allowed to get off before the vehicles were torched. The [read more]

Brazil: Rio Women Get Their Own Subway and Train Cars; Varig Airlines in Financial Trouble, Cancels Flights

Date: April 25th, 2006 |

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Rio de Janeiro now has “women only” cars on all subway and above-ground trains thanks to a new law that went into effect April 24. The cars are marked with pink stripes and will be part of all trains during the weekday rush hours. Legislators passed the bill after receiving many complaints from women commuters [read more]

Brazil: Increased Jail Terms for Crimes Against Tourists

Date: January 31st, 2006 |

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A few days after a bandit gang robbed a busload of British seniors in Rio de Janeiro, the state legislature proposed lengthening jail terms for crimes against foreign tourists. The move has been praised by tourism officials who hope it will help deter such crimes that damage Rio�s reputation as a tourist draw. Authorities have [read more]