Riot police cracked down and fired tear gas on thousands of protesters in central Rio de Janeiro on October 17 as marches flooded the streets to reject unelected President Michel Temer鈥檚聽, which聽critics say will spell disaster in the cash-strapped country.
The protests, which also rocked other cities, are the latest in a wave of huge demonstrations led by social movements and unions against聽the聽聽and the austerity policies Temer鈥檚 government is swiftly rolling out without a popular mandate.
The 5000-strong march in Rio聽took aim at the hotly controversial economic reforms Brazilian economists have dubbed聽聽The聽Proposed Constitutional Amendment (PEC 241)聽would cap public expenditures in line with inflation until 2037.
Video:聽Brazil Announces Massive Privatization Plan.聽.
鈥淲ithout this money for 20 years, we are not going to be able to survive,鈥 a protester at the march, Ian dos Santos, told AFP. 鈥淪chools and public universities aren鈥檛 going to have resources.聽We鈥檙e fighting today for our rights as students.鈥澛
The march comes as聽, occupying dozens of high schools across the country in peaceful protests against the plan that they criticise as an attack on public education.
Video:聽Students Fight Austerity and Occupy Schools Across Brazil.聽.
Riot police responded to the protests with tear gas to disperse demonstrators clogging a main road in central Rio de Janeiro. Several protesters and at least one police officer were reportedly injured in the clashes. Other smaller standoffs between marchers and police reportedly continued over the next hour in nearby streets and squares.
Protests also聽shook Sao Paulo, where Brasil de Fato reported that 20,000 demonstrators joined the march.聽
Temer鈥檚 administration has billed PEC 241 as a surefire solution to boost the ailing economy and close the budget deficit. But critics fear the聽聽and ravage public education, health care, criminal investigations into corruption聽and other social programs.
The PEC 241 is expected to be passed in Congress imminently after already securing a first-round vote in the lower house.
[Reposted from .]