The president of Brazil has pledged nearly $2 billion to improve basic services and infrastructure in the slums of Rio de Janeiro. He hopes that providing running water, schools, and better roads will counteract the high crime rate in the slums.
"More than one million people live in Rio's sprawling slums."
"'If the state doesn't fulfil its role and does not provide (adequate) services for the people, drug traffickers and organised crime will,' President Lula said."
"Such investment, the president said, was the only way to win against organised crime."
"Groups working with people in the shanty towns welcomed the news of the investment but cautioned that much more needs to be done."
"'People have been neglected for so long. Police only go there to intervene and that often turns violent,' Ilona Szabo from Viva Rio, an anti-crime organisation working in the favelas, told the BBC."
"'Residents don't have any relationship with the police to build trust and prevent violence.'"
FULL STORY: Brazil launches slum reform drive
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