Olympic exclusion zone: the gentrification of a Rio favela

 Residents of Babilônia complain they are being callously pushed out as the favela undergoes a rapid ‘upgrade’ ahead of this summer’s Olympics. Jo Griffin, who has been working there, hears the inside story of Rio’s gentrification project
 

"Constantine is angry that the city has not kept its initial pledge to rehouse all the residents in those categories into three eco-friendly new apartment blocks in Babilônia and the adjacent favela, Chapeau-Mangueira. The Morar Carioca plan, which has been criticised for not delivering on its original promises, led to a partial extension of the main road and improvements to the drainage system, but the money ran out before all three apartment buildings could be completed. Meanwhile, some residents still lack basic sewerage facilities, he points out.

Constantine is in no doubt that the ultimate goal of the UPP pacification project begun in 2009 – whereby armed police seize control of and then occupy favelas controlled by drug gangs – is gentrification. “What people have to understand is that the UPP police are the protagonists for this process,” he says, referring to the tide of property speculation, that has led to inevitable “social cleansing”. "
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Olympic exclusion zone: the gentrification of a Rio favela | Cities | The Guardian:

photo Mario Tama