Riot police in Brazil
have fired tear gas to disperse thousands of protesters in Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro who marched against the cost of
hosting the football World Cup.
Some demonstrators hurled stones while other burned tyres
and blocked roads. They say they are angry that billions of dollars are being
spent on next month's football tournament, rather than social projects and
housing.
Protests also took place in many other cities, including the
capital Brasilia. Teachers and civil servants, among others, were also on
strike across Brazil.
In Rio, aerial images showed hundreds of people marching in
rush-hour traffic on a main thoroughfare. The city will host the final match of
the World Cup on 13 July.
Protesters there demanded housing, and not stadiums, be
built in accordance with Fifa standards, in reference to world football's
governing body.
"Our goal is
symbolic," said Guilherme Boulos, the head of Homeless Workers Movement.
"We don't want to
destroy or damage the stadium. What we want is more rights for workers to have
access to housing and to show the effects the Cup has brought to the
poor."
Last June, more than a million people took to the street
over poor public services, corruption and the high cost of hosting the World
Cup.
Photo Credit: BBC News
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