BRAZIL: BRAZILIAN AUTHORITIES HAND OUT CONDOMS AND COMBAT PROSTITUTION AHEAD OF THE RIO CARNIVAL

Record ID: 862968

  • Title: BRAZIL: BRAZILIAN AUTHORITIES HAND OUT CONDOMS AND COMBAT PROSTITUTION AHEAD OF THE RIO CARNIVAL
  • Date: 2nd February 2005
  • Summary: (L!1) RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL (FILE - FEBRUARY 2004) (REUTERS) PEOPLE ATTENDING CARNIVAL WOMAN DANCING SAMBA ON FLOAT DURING CARNIVAL
  • Embargoed: 17th February 2005 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL
  • City:
  • Country: Brazil
  • Topics: Crime,Entertainment,Health,Domestic Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVABHSXXS2368B4N02YE4GEXZZQH
  • Aspect Ratio:
  • Story Text: Brazilian authorities hand out condoms and combat prostitution ahead of Carnival.
    As Rio de Janeiro geared up for Carnival with its extravagant display of flesh and fantasy, Brazilian authorities handed out condoms and cleaned up prostitution ahead of the biggest party on Earth.
    At a ceremony with the king and queen of the parade, Brazil's Health Minister kicked off the annual distribution of free condoms on Thursday (February 3) in the Marvelous City.
    Donning a t-shirt that read to "Get dressed," Brazilian Health Minister Humberto Costa urged residents and tourists to wear condoms during sex.
    During the week leading up to Carnival and the festivities itself, officials expect to distribute millions of condoms as part of Brazil's highly successful anti-AIDS program. In previous years, the effort has drawn fire from the Roman Catholic church, saying it promotes promiscuity.
    Officials, however, have continued the campaign and concurrently intensified efforts to discourage prostitution, focusing on eradicating underage sex tourism.
    A recent survey published by the Brazilian government and the United Nations found widespread, well-organized underage prostitution rings in nearly one fifth of Brazilian cities, including Rio de Janeiro.
    Combating the image of Brazil as a sex-tourism destination, Tourism Minister Walfrido dos Mares met with hotel owners to urge them to refuse prostitutes entry into their establishments during Carnival.
    "We (the government) want to put in the work contract between the hotel owners and the employees, the union contracts, the obligation not to permit access (to the hotels) to adults accompanied by children or adolescents,"
    he said.
    In a country where it's common to see teenagers peddling sex on street corners in full view of police, government officials have welcomed the crack-down saying the problem was largely ignored by authorities until recently.
    The pre-Lenten festival will officially open on Friday (February 4) and runs through Tuesday (February 8). Rio authorities estimate as many as 700,000 tourists will travel to the tourist hotspot for Carnival.
  • Copyright Holder: FILE REUTERS (CAN SELL)
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2013. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: Video restrictions: parts of this video may require additional clearances. Please see ‘Business Notes’ for more information.
Register