MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Unmanned aircraft patrol Bolivia/Brazil border to control drugs and smuggling

Drones should help in preventing drugs and arms reaching the gangs in favelas

Four Brazilian unmanned aircraft guided by remote control, Drones, will begin operating in August along the Bolivian border announced Felipe Caceres, Bolivian Social Defence Deputy Minister.

“By the end of August four Drones will be over-flying Bolivian air space”, said Cáceres who is responsible for drugs trafficking in the country.

“The operation follows on an agreement between La Paz and Brasilia signed last March”, added Cáceres.

The border stretches to be air surveyed are Bolebra (a geographical point shared by Brazil, Bolivia and Peru) and the common geographical area of Bolivia, Paraguay and Brazil.

Cáceres pointed out that the Drone operations “should provide Bolivian authorities precise data on those aircraft crossing or flying Bolivian air space and which could be involved in illicit operations related to drugs, contraband or other crimes”.

Chimoré in the heart of Bolivia and an area famous for its coke plantations will be hub of the air surveying operations and will be responsible for the processing of all the technological information to be shared with Brazil.

The drones’ operation is part of a major Brazilian effort in anticipation of several global events: the World Cup (2014) and the Olympics (2016) that will be hosted by Latin America’s largest economy and the country wants to provide a reasonable degree of security.

Most of the drugs and arms smuggled into Brazil come across borders with Bolivia and Paraguay and end in the favelas (slums) surrounding most major cities.

Drugs and arms are readily available in Brazil’s major cities such as Rio and Sao Paulo, and authorities have begun military cleansing saturation operation in the favelas (slums), followed by plans to promote education, health, security and other services.

Precisely on Thursday Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff inaugurated the first cable car of the notoriously crime-ridden Complexo do Alemao in Rio do Janeiro. Since 2008, Brazil's second-largest city has been racing against the clock to improve security and infrastructure.