Battle for Rio

Rio de Janeiro, famous for its beauty as much for its violence, has initiated a unique experiment: A "pacification process" in the favelas was launched in 2008 to improve city security in preparation for the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Olympic Games. For more than 40 years, Rio was a divided city – the poor lived in favelas on the hillsides and the rich near the beaches. The authorities considered the favelas the source of the problems, citing them for crime, violence, and the creation of a culture of poverty. The first goal of the program was to regain control over the poor. In general favelas welcomed the police presence and the reduction in drug violence. However, as the promised deluge of public goods and services failed to materialize, many residents have become skeptical of the program's true intention. The pacification process has created another problem that so far does not seem to worry its strategists: the division between the pacified favelas and those that remained unoccupied by police because they locate far from the wealthy districts. These areas are uncontrollable by the authorities and thus the responsibility to get rid of the daily violence lies in the hands of the residents...as they fight a true Battle for Rio. (official distributor synopsis)