Suplicy goes to court to prevent the eviction of 540

State deputy Eduardo Suplicy (PT) asked the São Paulo Court for a longer period of time for the 540 people, including 120 children, to be transferred from an occupied building on Avenida Santa Inês, in Mandaqui, in the North Zone of the capital of São Paulo, to another local.

The reintegration has been taking place since the morning of this Tuesday (16) “with an obvious police force”, as the parliamentarian informed in the letter, and without the knowledge of Regional Social Assistance and the deputy mayor of Mandaqui.

The building has been occupied by families through the Movimento Frente de Luta Por Moradia (FLM) since November 2022. The movement states that the space, which belongs to the company Samira Participações e Investimentos Ltda, was occupied because it did not fulfill the social function of the property .

“The Public Defender’s Office already constituted in the case is asked to issue an order and request suspension of the order so that there is time for social assistance to direct the 500 people to housing or assistance that is their right,” wrote Suplicy in the letter sent to judge Daniela Cláudia Herrera Ximenes, from the 2nd Civil Court of the Santana Forum, who authorized the reinstatement.

Police officers arrived at the occupation early this Tuesday morning (16) / Lucas Porto/@lucasport01

Residents claim that they only received the reinstatement notice last Friday (12), without enough time to find another place to transfer the families. In his decision, Ximenes wrote that residents were informed of the eviction deadline in March last year.

“The injunction was granted in November/2022 and the occupants were notified of the voluntary eviction deadline in March/2023, that is, more than a year ago, enough time for them to have organized themselves and sought out the responsible bodies for inclusion in programs of home.”

In a note, the Public Security Secretariat of the state of São Paulo reported that the “Military Police were called, as per court order, to provide support for a repossession, on the morning of this Tuesday (16), in the Mandaqui region, north of the Capital. The action is ongoing. Further questions must be requested from the Judiciary”.

O Brazil in fact also contacted São Paulo City Hall to find out where the families will be taken. The space will be updated as soon as there is a return.

Editing: Matheus Alves de Almeida