US officials are also mounting pressure on Ecuador over its stance in the leaker debacle. Senator Robert Menendez, who heads the Foreign Relations Committee in the Senate, said such a move would hurt Ecuador’s international trade, which is highly dependent on export to the US. "Our government will not reward countries for bad behavior," the influential US lawmaker said, as he was warning that he would target two trade programs with Ecuador for accepting the NSA leaker. Menendez said he would lead the effort to prevent the renewal of Ecuador's duty-free access to US markets under the Generalized System of Preferences program. He also said he would block renewal of the Andean Trade Promotion and Drug Eradication Act (ATPDEA). Both programs expire at the end of next month.

   The major commodities of Ecuador’s export to the US are crude oil, cut flowers, fruits and vegetables, shrimp and prawns. Duty-free access to US markets is supporting roughly 400,000 jobs in the country of 14 million people.

Ecuador is the last remaining recipient of the ATPDEA, which used to include Bolivia, Colombia and Peru in the past and was not expected to be renewed for Ecuador even before Snowden came up with his revelations of the US phone and internet surveillance programs.

The country has been lobbying the Obama administration to include additional goods under the Generalized System of Preferences program to soften the blow from the cancellation.

Riot police clash with demonstrators during a protest near the Mineirao Stadium in Belo Horizonte, June 26, 2013 (Reuters / Hugo Cordeiro)

In the wake of ongoing nationwide protests that have left Brazil’s government scrambling to appease demonstrators’ demands, the country’s senate has fast tracked a new law that will increase the penalties for corruption.

The legislation, which will still need to be ratified by a second congressional chamber, is expected to sail through and become law. Once enacted, those individuals prosecuted for acts of corruption could face up to 12 years in jail. The bill had not made much headway since its introduction in 2011, but was approved within 48 hours following president Dilma Rousseff’s push for approval.

Additional measures to toughen the state’s punishment include the loss of amnesty for those convicted of corruption, and will make obtaining bail and parole more difficult.

The ongoing protests that have seen well over a million gather in cities across the country were triggered by proposed public transport fare hikes, but quickly grew to encompass a host of complaints, the majority of which revolved around corruption long ingrained in Brazil’s political life.

In addition to harsher treatment of corruption, Brazil’s congress has also voted to use all royalties from the country’s recent oil finds - which are expected to yield tens of billions of barrels of crude oil - directly into education and health services.

Anti-government demonstrators run during clashes with the police outside the Mineirao stadium in Belo Horizonte, on June 26, 2013 (AFP Photo / Christophe Simon)

President Rousseff, once a Marxist guerrilla who fought against the country’s former military dictatorship, now finds herself in the unenviable position of listening to protesters’ demands, while avoiding becoming a target herself.

On Monday, Rousseff met with state governors and mayors to agree on plans for additional public hospitals, as well as prioritizing public transportation projects. On the agenda was also the congressional action to use all royalties from new oil fields for public services.

The Brazilian leader also proposed on Monday a plan to hold a public referendum to directly enact political reforms. The move was lauded as a bold plan, and likely an attempt by a popular president to bypass the country's unpopular Congress with a direct appeal to the people. Brazil’s  legal experts, however, said that was unconstitutional.

According to Reuters, the president of Brazil's Supreme Court, Joaquim Barbosa, weighed into that issue after meeting with Rousseff.

Violent demonstrators clash with the police in Belo Horizonte, Brazil on June 26, 2013 (AFP Photo / Christophe Simon)

 "Proposals have been sitting for years in Congress, which has shown no interest in reforming the political system. And that lack of interest, in part, has led to the crisis of legitimacy we have now," said Barbosa.

Beyond the president’s initiatives, the president of Brazil’s senate, Renan Calheiros, has also proposed free transport for all students, in an apparent attempt to reach out to the Free Fare Movement, a key organizer in the mass protests that erupted several weeks ago.

Despite political moves to appease public unrest some 40,000 protesters gathered in a march to a stadium in the city of Belo Horizonte during a Brazil-Uruguay Confederations Cup match on Wednesday. Police responded by firing tear gas as demonstrators attempted to break through barricades. About 2,000 people also marched through the northeastern city of Recife.

In Brasilia, demonstrators were seen kicking soccer balls over a police blockade towards congress, in a statement against the billions that have been spent by Brazil in preparation for the Confederations Cup and the 2014 World Cup.

Brazil’s legislative body has thrown out a proposed constitutional amendment, which was a key grievance of protesters across the country. The government is also planning to introduce a range of political reforms to appease demonstrators.

In what in being seen as a victory for people power, the measure was defeated on Tuesday by Congress by 430 votes to nine; with the Rio Times saying the protests were “largely fueled by social media and citizen journalists.”

The amendment, known as PEC 37, would have limited the power of state prosecutors to investigate crimes.

The protesters had argued that PEC 37 might have opened the way to more corruption; a problem which is endemic in Brazil.

Brazil ranks 69 out of 174 countries on the 2012 Transparency International index, a score that indicates significant problems with corruption.

The defeat of PEC 37 will keep public prosecutors at the forefront of the fight against corruption. If the amendment had become law, it would have granted power to carry out criminal investigations exclusively to the police.

Critics to the bill argued that it would have prevented prosecutors from conducting fair, impartial and effective criminal investigations, particularly into organized crime and corruption, in which the police themselves have been embroiled. In December last year 63 police officers were arrested after a yearlong bribery investigation.

The police in Brazil are amongst the most corrupt in the world and have been mired in recent years in a number of corruption scandals.

Congress also voted Tuesday to funnel all revenue and royalties from newly-discovered oil fields off the Brazilian coast into education and health.

The new fields are among the largest finds in recent years and, once fully operational, are expected to produce tens of billions of barrels of oil; although they are located deep on the ocean floor and extracting the oil will require expensive new technology and carries huge risks.

Protestors also voiced their anger at other issues, which they say the government is mishandling, including soaring levels of corruption, poor public services and the huge cost of staging the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Summer Olympics, both to be held in Brazil.

The government, though, has promised a range of initiatives, which they say will combat corruption and improve public services.

A referendum proposing political reform is meant to address campaign financing and political representation, and the government says a vote may take place as soon as September 7.

A controversial plan to bring in foreign doctors to reverse a shortfall in the country is being pushed through despite the objections of Brazilian medical practitioners and an increase in public transport fares in many cities has also been scrapped. The President of the Senate, Renan Calheiros, has even proposed free transport for students.

Yet it is still unclear whether or not these hasty political concessions are having an impact. Protests are due to continue in the city of Belo Horizonte Wednesday, with tens of thousands of people expected to take part.

In a security nightmare for police, the demonstration will take place at the same time as the semifinal of the Confederation Cup between Brazil and Uruguay. One protest group has said it plans to protest outside the national team’s hotel.

Last Saturday there were violent clashes in Belo Horizonte during another protest and President Rousseff has warned against a repeat of violence.