Protest Against Evictions in Loures
The protest action was organized by the Vida Justa movement and gathered residents from the Marinhas do Tejo neighborhood, located in Santa Iria da Azóia, as well as from the Talude Militar area in Unhos. The situation revolves around the eviction of 99 people living in 15 self-built houses and nine apartments in an informal settlement in the parish of Santa Iria da Azóia, Loures, within the Lisbon district.
Meeting with the Ambassador
Just hours before the vigil, residents met with the ambassador of São Tomé and Príncipe, who is mediating the process with the Loures City Hall. He informed them that the municipality had agreed to extend the eviction deadline to February 28 and had committed to assisting families in finding housing solutions. Despite these assurances, about twenty residents who participated in the vigil expressed their desire for “a solution that is compatible” with their income.
Concerns Over Affordability
Odair Barros, one of the protesters and a resident of Marinhas do Tejo, voiced concerns about the affordability of housing options. “The salary we receive is not enough to pay rent. If the City Hall or the embassy are looking at houses, they aren’t affordable for our wages. We have been trying for a long time to find a place that matches our salary to leave that area,” he told reporters.
Irundino da Costa, a resident of Talude Militar whose precarious housing was demolished in September, echoed these sentiments, lamenting the challenges of finding a home with “affordable rent.” He stated, “It’s very painful; no one wants to live under those conditions. We cannot afford the rent; we simply don’t have the means. We don’t want to live in shacks.”
Calls for Official Guarantees
Luís Batista from the Vida Justa movement acknowledged the ambassador’s mediation as a positive step but demanded an official guarantee from Loures City Hall that demolitions would not proceed immediately. “It should be clear and in writing to the residents; it must be the City Hall that communicates this to the residents. The only official information at the moment is an eviction notice posted on the door with a date of January 31,” he criticized.
He also expressed disappointment that no representatives from Loures City Hall were willing to meet with the delegation of residents who went to the entrance of the building.
Extension of Eviction Deadline
Today, Loures City Hall announced that it had extended the eviction deadline for the 15 families living in precarious and illegal housing in Santa Iria da Azóia for an additional month. The families were originally set to be evicted at the beginning of December last year, but the deadline had already been pushed back to the end of this month before the latest extension to February 28.
In statements to the Lusa news agency on Tuesday, the Vice President of Loures City Hall, Sónia Paixão (PS), who oversees housing, stated that it would be impossible to provide a municipal house to these families due to a “long waiting list” of people in situations of “greater social vulnerability.”
The Vida Justa association, which has been monitoring the case, indicated that among the residents facing eviction are 21 children, four sick individuals, and a pregnant woman.
