Communities in the West Zone (Zona Oeste) of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil have been earmarked for eviction and removal by the City Hall in preparation for the 2016 Olympics. Recently, at least two of them, ‘Vila Harmonia’ and ‘Vila Autódromo’, have witnessed the presence of tractors, government staff and police. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, prepares for to host the 2016 Olympics, but at what cost to local communities? Image by Flickr user JorgeBRAZIL (CC BY 2.0). According to Brazilian citizen media, the removals are taking place forcibly and in many cases are illegal. Small businesses affected have not received any compensation and home owners are likely to get paid less money than their houses are worth. On the top of that, the authorities have not complied with the Lei Orgânica do Município [pt] (municipal law) regulations, which state that communities should only be removed if people's lives are at risk. A video on Youtube uploaded by RioOnWatch.org , a communal blog created by the non-government organization Catalytic Communities, explains the case: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDEPEOErtpI&feature=autoplay&list=ULvnRra-NpS18&index=2&playnext=1 Consciência.net [pt] live-reported the eviction that took place in ‘Vila Harmonia” on February 24, 2011: Neste momento, a guarda municipal impede que moradores saiam e entrem na comunidade, já que colocou um cordão de isolamento em frente a casa de um moradora, que fica no meio da localidade. Há notícias de que duas pessoas foram ilegalmente presas e não se sabe para onde foram levadas. ‘Burden’ Communities People have also complained about the violence on social microblogging site Twitter: @Branquela_nago …Ontem moradores da #VILAHARMONIA no RECREIO estavam apreensivos, devido a ordem de despejo com direito a tropa de choque e tudo!… @ddornellas A SMH do @bittarpt vai se responsabilizar pelos danos causados a moradora removida que acaba de sofrer um AVC? #vilaharmonia The issue has made the blog Movimento dos Trabalhadores Desempregados (Unemployed Workers Movement) [pt] wonder about the benefits of the 2016 Olympics: Estranho que as comunidades mais antigas e mais pobres das regiões afetadas (como a área do Recreio, Barra e Jacarepaguá), ao invés de serem vistas como o alvo principal de possíveis benefícios desses projetos, são vistas apenas como “estorvo”, como obstáculos à especulação imobiliárias e à segregação urbana que tais projetos estimulam! Neste momento mesmo, um imenso aparato da Prefeitura (guarda municipal e funcionários das secretarias de obras e habitação), do Estado (polícia militar e bombeiros) e da construtora Odebrecht (contratante da Transoeste e uma das principais beneficiárias dos contratos relacionados aos jogos) acabou de demolir uma casa na comunidade Vila Harmonia e avança agora sobre um terreiro de candomblé que ali existe há décadas. It is weird that instead of being seen as a major target for the benefits [of the Olympic Game] the most traditional and poorest communities in those affected areas, such as Recreio, Barra and Jacarepaguá regions, are seen only as a ‘burden’, as an obstacle to the real estate speculation and urban segregation that such projects encourage! At this very moment, massive force applied by the City Hall (municipal police and staff of the departments of engineering work and of housing), by the state government (military police and firefighters) and by the construction company Odebrecht (contractors of the ‘Transoeste’ road project and a major beneficiary of the 2016 Olympics contracts), has just resulted in the demolition of a house in the community of ‘Vila Harmonia’ and they are now heading towards a candomblé [Afro-Brazilian religious] temple which has been there for decades. Shaping the Olympic Legacy Injunctions against the evictions in ‘Vila Harmonia’ were suspended last week and so was the injunction protecting the ‘Vila Autódromo’ community. As a consequence, a formal letter of complaint was sent to the Organization of the American States (OAS). The communities have been relying on public legal aid to avoid the eviction, but it seems that the legal battles have been lost. The city planner and United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Right to Adequate Housing, Raquel Ronik [pt], suggests that rather than being removed, the ‘Vilas’ concerned should be urbanized: (…) a Justiça autoriza as remoções, sem compromisso com uma solução habitacional que respeite o direito à moradia adequada da população que será atingida. Desde os Jogos Panamericanos a comunidade da Vila Autódromo vem resistindo às ameaças de remoção. O fato é que ela está localizada na área onde será implantado o projeto olímpico, assim como ações de urbanização e reestruturação imobiliária.