Brazil: Protests against killing by supermarket security staff continue in Porto Alegre November 23 /update 1

Event

Protesters clashed with police in the southern city of Porto Alegre on Monday night, November 23, as demonstrations against the killing of a man by supermarket security staff in the city continue. Demonstrators gathered outside the Carrefour supermarket on Avenue Plinio Brasil Milano on Monday evening to protest the killing at the store on Thursday, November 19, but were dispersed by police using tear gas and rubber bullets after some activists blocked traffic on the road and threw stones and fireworks at officers. The supermarket had reopened earlier on Monday for the first time since the killing.

Activist groups have held multiple protests in Porto Alegre and towns and cities across Brazil since João Alberto Silveira Freitas, a black man, was beaten and suffocated to death by security guards at the city's Carrefour supermarket branch on Thursday. Many protests have remained largely peaceful, but several have seen clashes between demonstrators and police and vandalism of Carrefour supermarkets, including in Sao Paulo.

A heightened police presence and further demonstrations are likely in the vicinity of the Carrefour supermarket in Porto Alegre in the near term, with a realistic possibility of clashes between protesters and police. 

Advice

Those in Porto Alegre are advised to monitor developments, avoid all protests and demonstrations as a precaution, and adhere to all instructions issued by local authorities. Continued disruptions are likely in the vicinity of the Carrefour supermarket on Avenue Plinio Brasil Milano and travelers should use alternative routes where possible.