In Brazil...
With just three days remaining before the World Cup... mass protests and strikes are rocking the host country.
Public workers have stormed off the job... and citizens have been protesting about the vast sums of public money spent on the tournament.
Meanwhile-- the five-day strike by metro workers have been called off for now, but seems like it could continue.
Connie Lee has more. In Brazil's biggest city of Sao Paulo...
Metro workers entered their fifth day of protests on Monday, even after a court ruled their strike illegal.
Riot police, armed with tear gas, had to confront the striking workers... who have reduced their demands to a 12-percent pay raise... lower than the previous 35-percent.
Major subway lines have been closed since last Thursday--- causing chaos and uncertainty..., just days before the World Cup.
"I think it's wrong. This shows how Brazil is. We do not have organization, we don't have anything, no patience. This is a country that will host the World Cup. Congratulations "
The city's mayor says officials are making every effort to end the strike--
"We are seeking this solution not just for the upcoming big event coming up, but as a right of the workers of Sao Paulo to have a judicial decision fulfilled so that normalcy can return to the city."
Leading up to the World Cup, the metro strike is just the latest... in a string of protests by public workers.
In Rio de Janeiro... outside a World Cup media center, teachers protested and rallied.
Using the backdrop of international attention, and the tens of billions of dollars spent by Brazil's government on the tournament, public workers have been demanding large pay raises.
Thousands of other city employees... including police, and bus drivers.. in different host cities have also gone on strike in the weeks leading up to global sporting event.
Connie Lee, Arirang News.
