The Rio de Janeiro Court (TJRJ) ordered students to vacate the premises of the State University of Rio de Janeiro (Uerj). The deadline to comply with the decision is 24 hours from the date of notification. Failure to comply may result in a fine.
Students have occupied the rectory since July 26 as a form of protest against changes in the rules for providing scholarships and student assistance grants to undergraduate students.
Throughout the movement, the student occupation also spread to the Pavilhão João Lyra Filho, the main building of the Maracanã Campus. Classes at the university were suspended.
Last Thursday (12), Uerj filed a request for re-confiscation with the Rio de Janeiro Court. The university also filed a request for an order so that the recovery could be carried out without the involvement of the Military Police. This Tuesday (17), a conciliation hearing was held at TJRJ which was attended by representatives of the Uerj Pastorate and students from the occupation movement.
After a hearing, Judge Luciana Losada Albuquerque Lopes granted the injunction requested by the university and ordered it to immediately vacate the space and unblock all access.
But the judge in his ruling stated that the right to sue must be maintained. “The right to sue must be maintained, but students must use their rights hall on the floor of the building between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., without any interference with the regular functioning of the university. Any other space that students wish to occupy must be approved in advance by the rectory.”
Server Gabriel Menezes was named as one of the defendants in the action. He participated in the trial and later released audio in which he said he supported the students, but was not part of the occupation or sleeping there. “There is no university, my work is meaningless if it is not with them. And if they have to leave the university en masse because they lose their scholarships, because the poorest have to leave, then my work makes no sense,” he said.
“I find it very bad that the rectory, less than six months after being elected, has used this kind of instrument, just as I find it very bad that they have issued an executive law changing the provisions of scholarships for students in the middle of the holidays, without talking to the students,” he added.
The student movement said it would appeal the decision.
Claims
Students are asking for the revocation of the State Administrative Executive Law 038/2024 which among other things stipulates that food assistance will only be given to students whose courses are based in field who do not yet have a university restaurant. The value of food assistance is R$300 paid in monthly installments, according to budget availability.
Furthermore, the Uerj Law sets the threshold for receiving assistance and the Social Vulnerability Support Grant as having a gross family income per person equal to or less than half the minimum wage in force at the time of the grant. Currently, this amount is equivalent to R$706. To receive assistance, income must be proven through the Socioeconomic Assessment System.
The new rule, according to Uerj itself, excludes 1,200 students who do not qualify for scholarships.
Uerj also informed that the vulnerability grant was created under the exceptional pandemic regime and its payment is conditioned on the existence of resources. According to the university, assistance continues to be provided to 9,500 students, out of a total of 28,000 Uerj students, and all those in vulnerable situations continue to be supported.
Transition
Throughout the movement, there were clashes between students and the university. Both priests and students accused the lack of room for negotiation. The Uerj finally issued a new executive law that established a transitional regime for the criteria for granting student aid.
Among the changes, the university established transitional measures, such as the payment of a transitional scholarship of R$500 to students, a transport allowance of R$300, and no charges in university restaurants or a meal allowance of R$300 in 2017. field no restaurants. These measures are aimed at socially vulnerable and low-income students. per capita families above 0.5 to 1.5 minimum wages.
*With information from Agencia Brasil
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