Brazil leader Dilma Rousseff promises reform referendum

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff has proposed a referendum on political reforms in an effort to tackle protests that have swept the country. She also promised to boostspending on public transport and focus on health and education as part of what she called "five pacts" with the people. She later met regional mayors and governors, who agreed to her plans. But some activists promised to carry on with the largest protests Brazil has seen for at least two decades. Ms Rousseff said the reforms would be broad and focus on five areas: *.Fiscal responsibility: guaranteeing economic stability and curbing inflation *.Education: investing 100% of Brazil's oil royalties in education *.Health: hiring foreign doctors to provide medical services in remote and under-developed areas *.Constituent Assembly: establishing an assembly to eventually amend Brazil's constitutionto ensure reforms make it "from paper to practice" *.Public transport: investing more than 50 billion reias ($25bn, £16bn) for new investments in urban mobility projects and to improve public transport Mayara Longo Vivian, a leader of the Free Fare Movement, said there had been "concrete measures" among the president's proposals and that the "fight would continue". Analysis ByGary Duffy Executive editor, BBC Brasil, Sao Paulo The most headline-catching part of her proposals was to suggest a referendum to establish a constitutional assemblyto consider political reform. It has the advantage of handing a decision back to the people, but is also a commitment to what will be a long drawn out process that will allow the government time todraw breath. It is either a bold moveor a very clever one. Some are already arguing it could be unconstitutional - others are complaining that political reform didn't need such an elaborate proposal andcould have been done more effectively and with greater speed. In a country plagued by dodgy deals few are going to argue with theidea of making corruption a more serious offence. However Brazilians aremore likely to be impressed when the corrupt are actually convicted and jailed. Brazil leader plays hand over protests On Monday evening, there were fresh demonstrationsin several cities, although they appeared to be smaller than those that ledto clashes with police last week. The BBC's Julia Carneiro inRio de Janeiro says exactly a week ago 100,000 people marched down the city's Rio Branco Avenue, but on Monday just a few dozen were chanting in front of the Candelaria church. More people joined in as they marched, and soon a few thousand demonstrators had poppedup and were occupying thecity centre's main avenue. Street vendors were selling Brazilian flags and Anonymous masks for those who came unprepared, she says. In other protests, hundreds of people blocked the main road to Brazil's busiest port, Santos, and hundreds more came out to protest against corruption in the capital, Brasilia. Two women were killed at a protest in the central state of Goias, not far fromBrasilia. Police said they were killed by a driver who sped through a roadblock they had set up with other protesters. The deaths bring to four the total number of lives lost in the unrest.