Network of Communities Threatened with Removal (Ceará)

Objectives and target population:

The project’s goal is to strengthen the process of networking and resistance by the population threatened with removal due to preparations for games to be held in Fortaleza during the 2014 World Cup. The mobilizations hope to reach 10,000 residents at risk. They make up communities fighting to implement Social Interest Zones (Zeis in Portuguese)—areas destined for housing projects—such as Serviluz, Lagamar, Poço da Draga and Boa Vista.

With the initiative, the group hopes to increase residents’ understanding of the urban project being implemented in the capital of Ceará. From there, it hopes to create a solidarity network among the affected communities and popular organizations, thus making it possible to unite their campaigns and achieve greater visibility in order to guarantee the rights of the population at risk.

Main activities:

– Offer workshops in the communities threatened with removal, with the objective of debating the local reality and the reconfiguration of the city due to the World Cup. Groups from Architecture and Social Sciences at the Federal University of Ceará will participate, and have already conducted research on the issue, contributing to the construction of a diagnosis;

– Conduct technical research on the latest changes proposed to the Fortaleza Master Plan, made because of the World Cup, such as the declassification of some Zones of Social Interest (Zeis) that open up the possibility of real estate speculation;

– Forward legal and administrative evidence to relevant government officials, such as the Federal and State Prosecutors; Public Defenders; City Councils, Environmental Councils and Human Rights Councils; the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing, etc;

– Campaign with and mobilize communities against the removals and changes proposed to the Master Plan, with production and distribution of stickers, pamphlets and t-shirts.

Context:

As witnessed in other parts of the country, low-income populations in Fortaleza are being systematically “squeezed” out into peripheral and less urbanized areas, while areas with greater infrastructure are appropriated for enterprises directed by the upper classes. This results from the sum of forces between the mechanisms of real estate valuation and the absence of public power (government) in promoting a permanent policy of guaranteeing the right to adequate housing in central areas. Currently, this segregationist model is strengthened by the machinations of the 2014 World Cup and the re-initiation of stalled mega-projects now given a tag of urgency due to the sporting event.

With the approval of the 2009 Master Plan of the city, all legislation regarding the use, occupation and parceling of land and buildings was revised and upheld for another two years. But this hasn’t happened. On the contrary, modifications that change the nature of the Plan’s concessions to communities have been steadily approved over the years. One example is the declassification of Social Interest Zones (Zeis) in several areas, causing them to lose their special status, which prioritized social housing.

About the organization:

The Network of communities threatened by removal in Fortaleza aims to strengthen the popular movement, thus generating resistance to the risk of expulsion of residents due to real estate speculation and World Cup projects. The group has held meetings in affected communities in around ten neighborhoods throughout the city.

Partnerships:

The network includes the Popular World Cup Committee of Fortaleza, formed in 2010, and is a partner of the Friar Tito de Alencar Human Rights Office. To enact the project, with the Friar Tito office as intermediary, the group will involve other communities in the activities, such as Che Guevara and Parque Santana, among others. Activists will also be invited from organizations such as the Popular Councils Movement, Urban Resistance, Federation of Neighborhoods and Favelas of Fortaleza, Struggle in the Vilas, Neighborhoods and Favelas, MLB, Cearah Periferia, university centers for legal assistance and other research groups interested in the topic.