Loading ...Rio Proposal: Tax Tourists to Help Them When They Are Mugged
RIO DE JANEIRO — The mayor-elect of Rio de Janeiro is promoting a new idea to bolster tourism in his crime-plagued city: levying a new tax on tourists, then using the proceeds to reimburse visitors who are mugged.
The mayor-elect, Marcelo Crivella, a right-wing evangelical Christian gospel singer who was elected in October, floated his call for action this week at a luncheon with business leaders. Mr. Crivella, who will take office on Jan. 1, said his “bold proposal” could be funded by assessing a new tax on airplane tickets bought by tourists.
“Rio de Janeiro cannot continue treating its tourists as if they were an afterthought,” Mr. Crivella, 59, told the audience, emphasizing the need to “shatter” Rio’s “negative image.”
cont. http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/07/world/americas/brazil-rio-de-janeiro-tourism-crime.html?_r=0