Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff launched an anti-corruption offensive on 18 March to counter rising discontent over a kickback scandal engulfing state-run oil company Petrobras that has implicated her allies and undermined her popularity.

Her anti-corruption proposals, contained in bills submitted to Congress, include the criminalisation of slush funds - known in Portuguese as Caixa 2 - that are widely used by Brazil's political parties to finance their campaigns.

Other steps would hasten the seizure of assets from people convicted of corruption and from government officials who accumulate wealth out of proportion with their income.

As part of the anti-corruption drive, Rousseff also signed a decree implementing an anti-bribery law passed more than a year ago that stiffens fines for companies but has not been applied for a lack of finalised rules.

Rousseff said she would not brush the latest corruption scandal under the carpet and promised to be on the offensive in seeking it out.

The year-old investigation has so far led to the indictment of 103 people on racketeering, bribery and money laundering charges, including three former Petrobras senior managers and executives from six leading builders.

Forty-seven politicians, mostly from Rousseff's coalition, are also under investigation.

Rousseff was chairwoman of Petrobras during the years when most of the corruption took place. Despite her denials of involvement, many Brazilians, hold Rousseff responsible.

On Sunday, about 1m people took to the streets of Brazil's largest cities in anti-government protests triggered by the Petrobras scandal and discontent over economic stagnation.

Some demonstrators called for her impeachment.

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