Loures and Amadora. Vida Justa denounces the demolition of 80 homes

The Vida Justa movement said that in the coming days the municipalities of Loures and Amadora will demolish around 80 homes and leave families, including 70 children, without alternative housing.

In a statement, the movement considered that the actions of the two municipalities "disrespect the court orders already issued and known to the municipalities" within the scope of precautionary measures taken by several residents to suspend the demolitions. Vida Justa told Lusa that 70 children are among the affected families.

In Loures, the demolitions will take place in the Talude neighborhood, where demolitions already took place at the end of June. Now, Vida Justa reports that the City Council posted notices in the neighborhood on Friday, July 11th, announcing new demolitions and giving residents 48 hours to vacate. The demolitions, it added, involve "more than 60 homes."

Also in Amadora, he reported, notices were posted for the demolition of 16 homes on Estrada Militar (Mina de Água). There, too, families have two days to leave.

"Hundreds of people living in these two municipalities in the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, including children, the elderly, and the sick, will be thrown onto the streets, without any alternative housing," the movement denounces.

Contacted by Lusa, Loures City Council said that its actions are "always within the law and in absolute respect for judicial decisions and with priority given to safety, public health and human dignity."

The municipality considered that the Vida Justa movement continues to “instrumentalize people in vulnerable situations” but that it does not present “any concrete solution to the serious problem of the uncontrolled proliferation of illegal constructions”.

"The Loures City Council will continue to act responsibly, supporting those who demonstrate a willingness to comply and outright rejecting the disorderly construction of shacks in the municipality," reads Loures's position on the matter sent to Lusa.

Lusa also tried to contact Amadora City Council but so far without success.

For the Vida Justa movement, these demolitions violate the law (namely the legal framework for urbanization and construction and the Housing Framework Law and its regulations) and also the Portuguese State's commitments to human rights.

"These municipalities continue their policy of expelling the poorest, blaming the victims of the housing crisis and destroying homes in front of desperate children and parents," the movement stated.

Vida Justa accuses the Government (PSD/CDS-PP) and the Municipal Councils of Loures and Amadora (both led by the PS) of not intending to solve the housing problem – with measures such as market regulation and more public housing – “but to create a social collapse”.