“A problem from hell.”That’s how one Brazilian researcher described the rash of gang violence that has swept through prisons in South America’s most populous country in recent weeks. Authorities say the violence is largely the work of Brazil’s largest and most powerful gang, the Primeiro Comando da Capital, or First Capital Command. That means Brazil’s prisons are some 60 percent over capacity, the organization found. The situation has become especially volatile since October, when the First Capital Command broke a 23-year alliance with the Comando Vermelho, or CV, another major gang active in Brazil’s prisons. Related“With so much at stake, recent prison killings may prove only the opening skirmishes of a prolonged, devastating conflict,” Lessig wrote.

Source: National Post January 18, 2017 16:21 UTC