RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (AFP) — Rio de Janeiro on Wednesday launched the 100 day countdown to hosting South America’s first Olympic Games with government and global sports leaders insisting they can overcome Brazil’s political meltdown and troubled preparations.

Countdown events were held around the world and Rio organizers were to take the Olympic flame in Athens for the start of its long journey, involving some 12,000 torchbearers, through Latin America’s biggest country to the Maracana stadium in Rio.

New Zealand athletes staged a sunrise traditional haka dance on an Auckland beach to mark the day. Britain unveiled its Olympic uniform designed by Stella McCartney.

Despite the insistence of the Brazilian government and International Olympic Committee that the Games will be ready, storm clouds are gathering.

President Dilma Rousseff appears likely to be suspended from office through impeachment in the next few weeks. Even her vice president, Michel Temer, who would normally take over — and whom she accuses of mounting a coup — could face action.

The economy is in deep decline for the second straight year, unemployment has shot up to 10.2 percent and Olympic organizers have had to slash budgets. Despite this, they say that the stadiums are 98 percent ready.

– Deadly city –

Crime remains out of control and Brazil’s human rights record came under fire Wednesday with a demand by Amnesty International for action over rising police killings, particularly in Rio’s favela shanty towns.

The rights group said 11 people were killed in police shootings in Rio in just the past month and at least 307 people were killed by police in the city last year — amounting to 20 percent of all homicides.

“Despite the promised legacy of a safe city for hosting the Olympic Games, killings by the police have been steadily increasing over the past few years in Rio,” said Atila Roque, head of Amnesty International Brazil.

Murders and violent muggings in even the most heavily policed, well-off parts of Rio in the last few weeks have fed growing concern is for the safety of the estimated half to one million tourists expected to flood the city. Terrorism is another worry, although Brazilian officials say a high-tech center to coordinate international security teams will be up to the task.

Rio authorities also admitted that 11 people have died over the past three years on Rio Olympics construction projects.

“It’s a frightening number,” said Robson Leite, inspector for the labor office in the Rio de Janeiro state, who said only eight workers were killed during construction of sites for the whole 2014 World Cup