Brazil: It’s not better and it’s not the same

‘Largo do Camphinho, the favela where I used to live,’ says Antonieta Rodrigues. In the background you can see that the houses have been replaced by a building site.  

In 2014 the Brazilian capital Rio de Janeiro hosts the FIFA World Cup and in 2016 the Olympic Games will come to the city. This is why the government has a lot of building projects planned. As a result, hundreds of families living in Largo do Camphinho have to leave.  

It is mainly poor families who are affected by the evictions. They receive a small amount as compensation to move to a new location far away from their old life. It barely makes up for the distress they are suffering.  

When Antonieta Rodrigues gives us a guided tour of her new home, it becomes clear that her situation is much worse now. ‘I’m furious! If they had discussed this with us in a different way, we would not have been affected this badly. Everything is small. A small house, a small amount of compensation en no improvement whatsoever. It could have been different, with a better house. This house is not better, but neither is it the same as my old house.’