May 15, 2006

• “So what is going on with all the violence down there?”

  In response to Christopher´s  question and the amount of e-mails I have been getting on the violence here in Sao Paulo.

  
  

  A series of overnight attacks on Sao Paulo police stations left 30 people dead and 29 injured, in apparent reprisal for the transfer of gangsters to a high-security prison, officials said Saturday.

  
  

  The onslaught began at 7 am and ended early Saturday after 23 police officers, five assailants and two civilians were killed in 55 attacks on installations and individual police officers, authorities said.

  
  

  Five assailants were killed in the attacks believed to have been organized by the First Capital Commando, Sao Paulo’s biggest mafia organization, sources said. At least 16 suspects were arrested.

  
  

  President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, attending a summit of European and Latin American leaders in Vienna, said he asked Justice Minister Marcio Thomaz Bastos “to do everything necessary not only to end the rebellion in Sao Paulo but, moreover, to avoid additional crimes and deaths.”

  
  

  The gangs were thought to be angered with the transfer of 765 inmates to higher-security prisons. The attacks were carried out against police barracks, militarized police stations and officers on patrol in Sao Paulo and other cities in Sao Paulo state, including Mogi Mirim, Ribeirao Preto, Osasco, Cubatao and Guaruja.

  
  

  Meanwhile, inmates in at least 22 prisons staged uprisings and took 150 hostages, authorities said. Later, police took control of some prisons, but 98 hostages remained in 16 jails. Brazil’s prisons are notoriously overcrowded and often rocked by violent unrest.

  
  

  The 55 attacks hit police, firefighters, police vehicles, patrolmen and prison officers. All police vacations and weekend leaves were canceled in Sao Paulo state.

  
  

  Today in the capital, people left their work earlier fearing the outburst of violence. It caused many miles of traffic jams throughout the whole city.

  
  

  

  
  

  

  
  

  On the most popular commerce centers, store doors were close early afternoon.

  
  

  

  
  

  On Sunday and today several buses were burned in by the gangsters. Fortunately no citizen was hurt.

  
  

  

  
  

  That lead bus companies to hold their buses in parking lots. More than 2 million people didn’t get to their jobs in the largest city in the country.

  
  

  

  
  

  As I´m writing here, I am listening to the news. Reporters tell of a meeting with our Ministries and Security chiefs to discuss what to do and also to find out how they let convicts carry cell phones into jail and have the chance to organize such a thing even from within prisons.  The numbers of victims and attacs have unfortunately increased since I last read or heard of it.

  
  

  Now, the Justice Minister is deciding whether to send the Army on the streets or not. Things have happened too  fast. I hope next time I write a  blog on that, I hope all this situation has come to an end.

  
  

  
  

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  • 8:20 pm
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