Late last year, high school students in Goias, Brazil, have been occupying buildings and in the last week, reports have stated that police violence in these schools has increased.

The student occupation movement is trying to say what's on their mind: on January 14, a local court ordered the repossession of three schools in the state of Goiaia and in the city of Anapolis, where the police violently ejected them from the property. To protest such acts, the students opted for an occupation demonstration -- and fighting for their rights are children between the ages 13 and 16.

These students were protesting the government's plan to transfer up to 30 percent of the school's administration to private organizations and the military police. The latter is not highly unusual: Global Voices noted that in Brazil, some secondary schools are actually run by the armed forces or the police.

However, the presence of private and military sectors in basic educational institutions has concerned the UN's Committee of the Children's Rights.

To stop the police controlling their schools, the youth in Goias began to occupy their schools late last year, a move inspired by the student movement of Sao Paulo, where a government measure to close an estimated 90 schools in the area was stopped. According to TeleSur TV, the government measure, if not stopped, would have caused overcrowded classrooms, salary reduction, and mass firing of teachers.

Unlike the Sao Paulo movement, however, national news failed to cover the crisis in Goias, which meant that their cries for their cause was limited to social networks and local media.

By January 25, students in Goiania reported that police officers had become violent, attacking the occupiers as they climbed over school fences. According to a Facebook page, students were injured, and those residing at the Ismael Silva de Jesus school gate were suffering from violence from the community members, one of whom was bowled over at the door. Another was hit and had to be sent to the hospital sporting an exposed fracture.

A supporter of the movement, Mariana Barbosa, confirmed that students have been attacked by the local police. Barbosa, who works at the Federal University of Goias, said that the police officers who attacked did not come in marked cars, nor were they wearing their official badges. She shared, "They approached us, left their cars with guns in their hands, and told us to pull over and put our hand on our heads. So we did. They treated us with great brutality."

She added, "They shouted at the children, wouldn't let us use our phones to call a lawyer, they searched the cars, searched our bags, and tossed the kids' stuff in the road."

Teachers from the Federal University of Goias rebuked all violence against students. However, will this be enough to make a difference?