Residents of the Brazilian favelas being "pacified" by police officers and the Brazilian Marines complain about heavy-handed police tactics not beneficial to the community, according to Reuters.
A mix of officers and marines comprised the more than 1,400 officers who rolled into a massive complex of slums near Rio de Janeiro's international airport before dawn Sunday in the latest security push ahead of this year's World Cup, Reuters reported.
No shots were fired in the Mare complex which is comprised of 15 slums during the entry of the officers who plan to set up posts in the favela until the the start of the World Cup to cut down on gang violence and drug trafficking, according to Reuters.
The Army soldiers will begin patrolling the flat area of about 2 square miles in northern Rio that hugs the main road to the airport and is home to about 130,000 people, Reuters reported. Police have installed 37 such posts in recent years in an area covering 1.5 million people.
Most Mare residents expressed mixed feelings about the pacification program which is set to make the are more secure ahead of the World Cup and 2016 Summer Olympics, according to Reuters. Most residents refused to comment, or give their names when they did comment, in fear of gang retribution.
Many residents complain of heavy-handed police tactics which occur when a pacification of a favela occurs, Reuters reported.
Most recently, more than 20 police who patrolled in Rio's largest slum, Roçinha, are facing charges for the torture, disappearance and presumed death of a slum resident there, whom they were questioning in an effort to find caches of drugs and guns in the community, according to Reuters.
Additionally, residents say that after police set up permanent posts in slums, the state is not following up with strong social programs that would improve their lives, Reuters reported.
