“Letter from Vila Autódromo’s Heloisa Helena to the UN Human Rights Commission-‘The Rio de Janeiro city government has left me on the street.’ ”, 23 March 2016

This is a letter from Heloisa Helena Costa Berto/Luizinha de Nanã of Vila Autódromo to Mr. Ulrik Halsteen, member of the Business and Human Rights working group of the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights.”...I write again to this Human Rights Commission. I am a resident who was removed from Vila Autódromo, the locale where the Olympic Park is being built. In my last report I implored the UN to intervene in the cases of abuse, threats and violence that are taking place in Vila Autódromo. I...[have]...suffered death threats and...had my Afro-Brazilian religious house, of which I was a guardian, demolished less than a month ago...I had my morale destroyed by slander and I was publicly humiliated by municipal employees during the demolition when my belongings were called trash. Today I live from charity with my possessions scattered between my friends’ homes. I am being forced to give away my animals. The Rio de Janeiro city government has left me on the street. The Brazilian courts say they have no idea when I will receive compensation and an agreement hasn’t even been negotiated...I had requested...to be resettled and to receive a small amount of compensation that was stipulated for the improvements, having been evaluated by the City’s specialists so I could rebuild my home. I have physical problems...I face profound depression and panic attacks. This is the third time I am writing the UN. I have already sent two reports. I appeal to the UN since my country has international agreements that should ensure my protection, and that of many others who unfortunately go through the same situation in Vila Autódromo... The evictions and displacements that have occurred and are occurring today in the city of Rio de Janeiro are serious human rights violations, in particular the right to adequate housing...