Brasilia, November 17 (RHC)-- A group of approximately 60 anti-austerity protesters entered the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies causing chaos and bringing an abrupt end to the session. 

The protesters -- denouncing a proposed 20-year freeze on all social spending -- managed to sneak past security guards and occupy the chamber for three hours chanting “Free the country from corruption” before being removed by legislative police. 

Wednesday´s protests were just the latest in a wave of protests against Brazilian President Michal Temer's government, which came to power in August after a parliamentary coup and immediately embarked on a harsh austerity agenda.  President Temer is facing ongoing accusations of corruption in the massive Petrobras scandal. 

In Rio, thousands of public sector employees, among them police and prison guards, demonstrated against a packet of proposals which includes a 30 percent reduction in salary for public servants. 

The governor of Rio, Luiz Fernando Pezao, defended his proposals saying that “the crisis isn't Rio, it's Brazil” and that the economic crisis required hard measures. 

One of the protest organizers, Nara Gonzalves, told reporters: “It's not a crisis.  It's robbery.  It's corruption.  They're cutting public sector salaries and funding other sectors."  

In Rio de Janeiro, riot police used teargas, water cannons and rubber bullets to disperse the more than 2,000 people who had taken to the streets protesting austerity measures, including budget reforms, planned by the right-wing government of President Michel Temer.