Slow expansion of peace and stability in Brazilian

RIO DE JANEIRO: Just over a year ago, Brazilian police stormed one of the shanty towns dotted around Rio, wrested control from violent drug trafficking gangs and installed peace and stability.

And residents are happy to put up with the 24-hour police presence as part of a "pacification" program, as they enjoy the resulting seeds of an economic up-tick.

"Last year my business grew by 30 percent, and in the next two years I expect it to grow 50 percent more," said Jose Luiz Mineiro, 53, who owns a small store in the favela that sells soda and food.

Before, when the drug gangs ruled, "there was no respect for work," added another worker, who identified himself as Luiz. It was difficult to walk in the neighborhood "because the streets were blocked by armed men," he said.

"They repressed us, they exploited us. We had to do what they told us otherwise they closed down our stores and threatened to kill us," agreed Mineiro, adding they used to hear gunfire all the time.

Police stormed the Pavao-Pavaozinho-Cantagalo shanty town, which enjoys spectacular views of the Copacabana and Ipanema beaches, in late 2009.

And the experience in this favela, just south of Rio de Janeiro, is a lesson in how Brazilian authorities aim to bring law and order to such lawless areas.

Up a steep hill at the entrance to the favela, teenager Quezia Agins says more people are now coming to visit the small bakery run by her "Now people are less afraid and now that it is safe to come to the mother, calculating that business is up 50 percent.

bakery," she said.

Trouble with the slums and organized crime is nothing new in Rio, but there is a new sense of urgency as Brazil seeks to wield its growing clout as a global economic and political player.