Rocinha, the most populated favela in Brazil, tries to show its best face to tourism

A local guide warns in one section of the route: “here turn off the phones, do not record or take photographs.” A few steps away, a man walks with a long gun in plain sight of everyone down a steep alley in the Rocinha favela, the most populated in Brazil, controlled by drug trafficking.

Some tourists take photos with an influencer who has more than a million followers on Instagram. Everything happens in the middle of a guided tour.

“The reality of the favela is not what they often want to show us; That is dangerous, no. There are good people, kind people, children with dreams, that is why this type of tourism occurs, to show people that it is calm here, that it is not dangerous here,” he explains to the Voice of America Juan Gabriel Velázquez, a Colombian who has made a living from tourism and excursions to Rocinha since 2019.

Rocinha is a famous neighborhood that grew up nestled on a hill located between São Conrado and Gávea, – two of the wealthiest areas of Rio de Janeiro -, with a privileged view of the famous beaches of Ipanema and Copacabana.

The infrastructure there is precarious. The electricity cables resemble cobwebs that extend through alleys, where the smell of humidity does not let up. Access to basic services such as water is limited. The walls have graffiti with messages and rules that must be followed.

The testimonies collected by the VOA For this report they were supervised by guides. For one of the films, it was requested not to point to a specific street. People have very rehearsed speeches and do not dare to criticize, mention violence or refer to the armed group that controls the neighborhood with an iron fist.

Order

A process for the “pacification” of the favelas began in 2008 promoted by the regional government of Rio de Janeiro, which sought to prepare the city for the major sporting events that would take place years later: the World Cup (2014) and the Olympic Games (2016). But the plan, which allowed the installation of the so-called Peacekeeping Police Units (UPP), lost strength after the Games.

The police are only seen at the entrance or exit of the main road. Order is in charge of the Red Command (CV), one of the largest criminal factions in Rio de Janeiro, according to local media.

The Fogo Cruzado institute and the Fluminense Federal University, in the Historical Map of the Armed Groups of Rio de Janeiro, documented in 2023 that the CV controlled 51.9% of the territories of Rio de Janeiro and the metropolitan region that were under the control of some armed group.

In any case, in Rocinha today there is a kind of truce of peace for visitors, with sales of local art, a cultural exhibition and samba, where children participate.

The walking tour is run by tour operators for about 170 reais, about $35. The four-hour tour is sold as an attraction of Rio de Janeiro, like the famous Sugarloaf Mountain or the statue of Christ the Redeemer.

Data

According to the census of the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), released on November 8, some 16.3 million people live in favelas, which represents 8.1% of the country’s inhabitants.

In total, there are 12,348 favelas in Brazil, almost double the number registered in 2010. With 72,021 residents, Rocinha is the largest in Brazil.

Many of its inhabitants are migrants from the northeast of the country, who began to arrive in the 1950s seeking to improve their economies.

“The safest place in Rio”

No killing, no stealing, no rape is the law everywhere, but here its residents repeat it like a mantra.

“La Rocinha is the safest place in Rio de Janeiro (…) it is based on respect; Here women and children are respected, you can’t fight, the idea is that everyone gets along as a family, as a community, there are codes,” continues Velázquez, who stops from time to time to guide the group.

Bruno Thierry, 36 years old, originally from the state of Paraíba, has lived in Rocinha for 24 years.

On his Instagram, with 1.5 million followers, he shares the daily life of the community in an attempt to highlight “the positive,” because “the media sells a lot of negative things.”

“I want to show the reality that it is not only the negative,” Thierry insists to VOAby highlighting opportunities for work.

“Nowadays there are many prejudices about the favela and my role is that: to be able to show everyday life in a different and relaxed way. There are several ways to work, transport material. For example, a way to earn money, 300 reais per day for transporting material.”

“So that is my role, to be able to present Rocinha, even so that you can be here, feeling safe, because the media sells a lot of negative things.”

For reference, the minimum wage in Brazil is 1,412 reais, about 242 dollars per month.

“Live here forever”

Gustavo, 36 years old, has lived in Rocinha all his life, now he works as a motorcycle taxi driver. “There is nothing to complain about, because the favela is perfect and wonderful (…) that violence that they say does not exist,” he points out.

“For me, Rocinha is more protected, calmer than many places out there,” he maintains.

“I like (foreigners to come) to know the reality, to know the reality of what it is like and also to spread it. “There are many things that are unpleasant, but there are also many good things that can be taken into account and that can be shown to other people.”

“And if you ask me if one day I want to leave Rocinha, I don’t want to. “I want to live here, raise my son here too, grow up here like I already did and grow up, grow old, live here forever.”

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