Disappearing Rio Homeless People

Factual Questions
1
      • Did it ever come out what happened to all the homeless people in Rio during the Olympic festival in 1998?
        …I remember at the time, the police statement was that they had been rounded up and taken away from the area, so as not to pose any threats to international visitors–the street people there were famous for begging, pickpocketing and muggings. I saw at least two print-magazine articles by two different writers visiting at the time of the festival and both were familiar with Rio–having visited before. And both were rather stunned that all the homeless people were gone. When they ask around to locals what had been done with them, all anyone seemed to say was that they had been “taken away”. The middle-class and upper-class people did not seem at all concerned what had happened to them.
  • Much later I read that the government eventually “officially” said that they had all been taken out to the far countryside and “given jobs on farms”. Did any ever get back to Rio and say what had happened?
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2

This doesn’t sound good :eek:

Do you have a link that gives some background info? I’ve never heard of this incident before. (Then again, I don’t follow the Olympics very closely.)

3

I sense a whoosh.

When were the Olympics ever in Rio? And the Winter olympics yet.

4

Though, not specifically about the time period the OP speaks of, I found this link.

[Snip…]
After dark on a couple of nights each week, the police and a few city officials set out to round up as many of Rio’s homeless people as can be squeezed into a city bus. Once the bus — with seats for 45, and a “capacity” of 90 — is full, the mendigos are taken to an enormous rural shelter where they are bathed, fed, and given a place to sleep out of sight of tourists and the rest of the population. City crews load dump trucks with the meager belongings of those pulled from the streets. Once at the shelter, though, the new residents can receive skills training and substance abuse assistance.
[/Snip]

5
      • It was not the Olympic games, it was the Olympic festival–a run-up to the actual games, usually held a few years after. I think Rio is scheduled to host the actual games in 2008 or 2012.
        Here’s one link (note the top of the page):
        http://www.usa-gymnastics.org/results/1998/brazil.html
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