Rome, Italy, Jan 25, 2013 / 12:12 pm
After meeting with the Vatican, an organizer for World Youth Day 2013 said that fear for safety should not keep visitors from traveling to Rio de Janeiro this summer.
"I feel the city has changed a lot and there are no reasons people should have any fear in Rio," said Fr. Leandro Lenin Tavares, the catechesis director for this year's World Youth Day.
The priest and 15 Brazilian authorities – including military, federal, state and city authorities – spoke with the Pontifical Council for the Laity on security concerns of the event during a Jan. 9 to Jan. 25 Rome visit.
Authorities launched a security plan in the city four years ago, called "the pacifying plan," ahead of the 2016 Olympic Games and the 2014 FIFA World Cup.