The print and earlier online versions of this story incorrectly referred to Rio de Janeiro as the capital of Brazil. The country's capital is Brasilia.
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To Rid Slums of Drug Gangs, Police in Rio Try War Tactics
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"The police have to do their work, but they can't stop our lives like this," said Cleber Pinto da Silva, 31, one of the unlicensed motorcycle-taxi drivers whom police barred from working, as he stood on the sidewalk near a police position. "Do they want us to become criminals? Do they not want us to work? The only thing they haven't done yet is beat us."
Nata Maravilha Nael, 48, a school security guard who grew up in City of God, said even the residents who want the officers in the neighborhood describe such police excesses as speeding through the narrow streets in armored vehicles, screaming at residents and demanding bribes.
"It's an abuse of power," he said. "They're like criminals themselves."
The police have shut down popular dance parties, and several residents said they do not feel comfortable being outside after dark anymore, because of the risk of being accused of criminal activity.
"It's going backward. They're acting aggressively against normal people," Nael said. "When the criminals were here, they didn't mess with normal people."
But others in the favela said anything is preferable to open-air cocaine markets, with young men blithely carrying automatic weapons, the violent struggles between rival gangs and militias, the shootouts.
"The conflict that was happening is not happening anymore," said Angelo Santos, a 36-year-old post office manager. "You don't need to come home from work now and see people carrying guns all the time."
Police report a decline in murders, robberies and other crimes in City of God and Santa Marta since the operations began. But many residents say they believe the respite is temporary or has simply encouraged gang members to take their operations to neighborhoods under less vigilance.
"This neighborhood is under the Red Command -- they protect people here so other factions don't come in. But they all left. They went over there," said Robson Augusto Barreto, a resident of Santa Marta, pointing across the city to another slum by a cemetery visible in the distance.
Barreto, 44, was lifting sacks of cement alongside several other construction workers employed by the state government to build some 50 sturdy houses to replace the decrepit wood shacks. "I think things are better now. People are feeling safer after the police occupation," he said.
The paths snaking among the houses were nearly deserted on a recent afternoon, unusual in such a densely packed community. As the search continues in the neighborhood and surrounding jungle for stashes of drugs or weapons, police regularly question residents about their activities. The neighbors don't like being outside for fear of getting hassled, said Alan Basilio, 27, a student on his way home.
"At this time of day, you'd normally see many more people outside, sitting around and talking," he said. "Daily life has changed a lot."
"Of course, since the police arrived there are no more gunfights, no more shooting," he said. "But the way it was before, we had freedom to go where we wanted, to do what we wanted, for as long as we wanted. I'm not sure how long it's going to be like this, but it seems like it could be a very long time."
