(Vatican Radio) The Brazilian crisis is far from over, in spite of a nationwide broadcast
from President Dilma Rousseff. Many Brazilians were impressed by the address by President
Dilma Rousseff. However, a magazine poll shows that three quarters of those asked,
support the strikes, which have not ended. Worryingly, but predictably the Confederations
Cup soccer matches were magnets for protest. In the city Belo Horizonte, where
Japan was playing Mexico, trouble flared when protesters tried to break a Police cordon
around the statium to be met with pepper spray, tear gas and rubber bullets. There
were also clashes in Salvador where Brazil was matched against Italy. This concentration
of protest against the backdrop of soccer, doesn't bode well for next year's World
Cup in Brazil. In the Capitol Sao Paulo, thousands marched against a new proposed
law which would drastically limit Federal prosecutors' powers investigating crime.
It's highly doubtful if the cash for votes scandal reaching up into Congress would
ever have seen the light of day, if this legislation had been in place back in 2005,
when the corruption was first discovered . The proposed innovations by the President
have been welcomed, but many argue it hasn't gone far enough. It also doesn't seem
to have quelled the unrest and deep disquiet. Listen to this report by James Blears.