People shouldn’t be afraid of their government.
Governments should be afraid of their people.
Manifestation and Confederations Cup
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 30-06-2013
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 30-06-2013
In a few hours starts the final match of the confederation cup, Brazil-Spain, it will be played in Rio de Janeiro, at the Maracanà Stadium.
The subway is plenty of people with the T-shirt of Brazil and any other kind of decoration that looks yellow-green.
Seba and Harrys, 2 argentinian guys, and I are going to the Maracanà too, but we are not colorfull, we are not going for the match.
We are going to the manifestation of Indignados, against the waste of money of the government and of the politicians corruption, the one that was presented to people as the manifestation against the rise of the price of the bus tickets, but it was just the straw that breaks the camel’s back.
While the train approaches the stadium, a man warns us that if we don’t have the tcket for the match, the police won’t let us leaving the station, measure taken to stem the event.
The subway is plenty of people with the T-shirt of Brazil and any other kind of decoration that looks yellow-green.
Seba and Harrys, 2 argentinian guys, and I are going to the Maracanà too, but we are not colorfull, we are not going for the match.
We are going to the manifestation of Indignados, against the waste of money of the government and of the politicians corruption, the one that was presented to people as the manifestation against the rise of the price of the bus tickets, but it was just the straw that breaks the camel’s back.
While the train approaches the stadium, a man warns us that if we don’t have the tcket for the match, the police won’t let us leaving the station, measure taken to stem the event.
So we leave the train in Uruguaiana and we take a taxi that brings us close to the manifestation, but not at the event itself, cause the taxi-driver is worried for his car. He lets us in a very quiet area, where families in yellow-green t-shirts eat, drink and laugh, sitting at the table of a bar, waiting the start of the match.
We reach the police block, that is just between us and the protesters. We have to go now, or we’ll get cut off from the parade.
And it’s while we are between police and protesters that the military begin to pull tear gas, exactly between our feet!
We reach the police block, that is just between us and the protesters. We have to go now, or we’ll get cut off from the parade.
And it’s while we are between police and protesters that the military begin to pull tear gas, exactly between our feet!
Weeping, with red burning eyes, we reach the procession and we join it.
People wraps his shirt around his face to protect themselves from the gas.
Moving away a guy explain us that he is a teacher and has to work in 3 different places to raise 1000 Reales per month (350 € about). When we say we are italian and argentinian he thanks us for being there and embraces us. (read more after the pics)
People wraps his shirt around his face to protect themselves from the gas.
Moving away a guy explain us that he is a teacher and has to work in 3 different places to raise 1000 Reales per month (350 € about). When we say we are italian and argentinian he thanks us for being there and embraces us. (read more after the pics)
Meanwhile the shirts back to cover the sweaty chests of demonstrators, the guerrilla has subsided, but the police menaged to disperse the procession loosely organized, that often doesn’t seems to know where to go. People walks on the street, singing “Sin violencia!” o “Saude, Educação, menos corrupção!”, till when, from the windows of the houses, the hinabitants warn us that Brazil scored , and choirs from the event leave for a while the place to those from the stadium. All this happens under the watchful eyes of a helicopter that follows us from above, illuminating with its headlights the unfriendly waved that the Brazilians reserve it.
The event goes on quiet till when we arrive on a main street and we stop, blocking the traffic.
The police arrive in a few minutes, advised by the helicopters and restart to pull tear gas.
The people run away and desperses again, the t-shirts come back to cover the faces. Our group is quiet small, and it’s walking with the hands to the sky as sign of peace, when from the windows we know that Brazil scored the second goal. Once again the spirit of sport has the upper hand and the Brazilians restart to sing, supporting their national team. (read more after the pics)
The police arrive in a few minutes, advised by the helicopters and restart to pull tear gas.
The people run away and desperses again, the t-shirts come back to cover the faces. Our group is quiet small, and it’s walking with the hands to the sky as sign of peace, when from the windows we know that Brazil scored the second goal. Once again the spirit of sport has the upper hand and the Brazilians restart to sing, supporting their national team. (read more after the pics)
The situation is stabilized, the pro-revolutionaries choirs come back, and passing on a street where access roads are blocked by peaceful groups of policemen watching us parading in front of them listening to our songs, we arrive in a square, meeting up with the other part of the parade.
Here the people sits on the floor, wrapped in their Brazilian flags, with their Sid Vinicious masks behind the head, in front of the police blocks, singing their songs and displaying banners.
Slowly the atmosphere relaxes, the blocks of the police become more sparse, leaving space for those who want to go away and those who arrive. The people chat with each other or with the policemen, who leave their lines to buy water at the banquets held by the protesters. I talk with a policeman that tells me that Brazil needed this, that the people showed to the government to be there, who is attentive to the political situation of the country and that they are not interested just in football. He also says me that, however, as policeman he has to keep the situation under control to prevent degenerate. We stay in this square about half an hour and when anything seems to be over we prepare to leave. The whole procession starts to move singing and from the windows of the houses we get the news of the third goal, and when the Brazilian get this news they start to sing “España! España!” to support the weaker opponent. (read more after the pics)
Here the people sits on the floor, wrapped in their Brazilian flags, with their Sid Vinicious masks behind the head, in front of the police blocks, singing their songs and displaying banners.
Slowly the atmosphere relaxes, the blocks of the police become more sparse, leaving space for those who want to go away and those who arrive. The people chat with each other or with the policemen, who leave their lines to buy water at the banquets held by the protesters. I talk with a policeman that tells me that Brazil needed this, that the people showed to the government to be there, who is attentive to the political situation of the country and that they are not interested just in football. He also says me that, however, as policeman he has to keep the situation under control to prevent degenerate. We stay in this square about half an hour and when anything seems to be over we prepare to leave. The whole procession starts to move singing and from the windows of the houses we get the news of the third goal, and when the Brazilian get this news they start to sing “España! España!” to support the weaker opponent. (read more after the pics)
But when everything seems to end up in celebration, the most delicate part of the parade begins. The police continue to close all the way, prevent us to go away, and after trying to take different directions without success, someone gets nervouse and start to throw stones and objects. The police react firing at very close range with rubber bullets and tear gas, sparking panic and scareing away the people.
When everybody back where they come from, followed by shots and gas, they come to face with another group of policemen. There is a moment of disorientation in wich people feel trapped and doesn’t know where to go. Seeing this, the police officers who was blocking the escape of the procession followed by the bullets opens, encouraging the people to pass, and with a van they stop the cops who were shooting.
The procession stops to aid those who have been hit by bullets and to refresh up the watery eyes, and from the back somebody tell us that the police are leaving open the way. All the people back to the place where the guerrilla began and where the police deployed blocking again the access to the street. (read more after the pics)
When everybody back where they come from, followed by shots and gas, they come to face with another group of policemen. There is a moment of disorientation in wich people feel trapped and doesn’t know where to go. Seeing this, the police officers who was blocking the escape of the procession followed by the bullets opens, encouraging the people to pass, and with a van they stop the cops who were shooting.
The procession stops to aid those who have been hit by bullets and to refresh up the watery eyes, and from the back somebody tell us that the police are leaving open the way. All the people back to the place where the guerrilla began and where the police deployed blocking again the access to the street. (read more after the pics)
A guy lays a flag of Brazil on the floor and everybody sit in silence, behind the flag.
After a few minutes the silence is interrupted by the voice of a protester who asked for an explanation, why they don’t let us leaving, why such an attitude when the event is clearing over? From behind the shields of the police, again with hardened faces, we don’t get any answer, and the demonstrators, sitting on the ground, begin to sing a popular song.
Slowly the police draw back, and opens chinks in its rank to drain off the people.
People who gets up and walks away in the opposit direction. From the windows the people tells us that the match is over, and the Brazilians start to sing for the cup again.
