A decision by Federal Court, Today, the 35th Federal Court of Rio de Janeiro ruled that the Municipality of Rio de Janeiro a series of immediate measures for the effective implementation of public policy aimed at the homeless population. A injunctive relief was granted in the context of a public civil action filed by the Federal Public Prosecutor's Office, the Federal Public Defender's Office and the Public Defender's Office of the State of Rio de Janeiro, in the face of repeated non-compliance with the guidelines set by the Federal Supreme Court in the ADPF 976.
According to the ruling, the municipality must establish, within 30 days, The committee is the Intersectoral Committee for Accompanying and Monitoring the Policy for the Homeless Population (CIAMP-Rua) at municipal level. The committee is a body provided for in the National Policy for Homeless People and is considered central to democratic governance, social control and intersectoral coordination of this agenda.
In addition, the City Council will have 60 days to elaborate, in prior dialogue with civil society and with the participation of social movements working to defend homeless people, In addition, a plan of action will have to be drawn up to comply with the STF's injunction. Finally, the municipal administration must agree with the Union within 30 days, the full implementation of the actions set out in the Visible Streets Plan, This is a federal policy structured around axes such as social assistance, health, housing, labour and the fight against institutional violence.
In its reasoning, the Federal Court recognises the presence of the legal requirements for granting injunctive relief, highlighting the the structural nature of municipal government omissions and the risk of perpetuating the so-called “unconstitutional state of affairs”, The Court of Justice has already ruled on the living conditions of the country's homeless population. The decision reinforces that the ADPF 976 rulings have binding effect and erga omnes effectiveness, It also covers all federal entities, regardless of formal membership to federal programmes.
As this is a matter of urgent relief, the decision takes immediate effect and must be complied with by the Municipality of Rio de Janeiro regardless of the lodging of appeals, unless it is expressly suspended by the judiciary itself. In this sense, the judicial order is not to be confused with an administrative recommendation or political negotiation, but with a legal obligation directly derived from a decision by the Constitutional Court.
The process also explains the history of resistance from the municipal executive in implementing mechanisms for social control and intersectoral coordination. Although the CIAMP-Rua is provided for in both federal and municipal legislation, the committee has not yet been set up. was never actually instituted in Rio de Janeiro. This situation worsened with the mayor's full veto of Bill No. 3.639/2024, This was approved by the City Council, which sought to update and strengthen the composition of the committee, broadening the participation of civil society and strategic administration bodies.
For the Judiciary, the absence of CIAMP-Rua directly jeopardises the transparency, a social participation and effectiveness of public policies aimed at a group marked by extreme social vulnerability. The decision also draws attention to the need to federative alignment between the municipality and the Federal Government, especially with regard to the coordinated implementation of the Visible Streets Plan, otherwise public resources would be wasted and continued violation of fundamental rights.
The court order was received by civil society organisations, social movements and members of the justice system as a institutional and political victory, This is because it puts the policy for the homeless back on the axis of human rights, social participation and co-operation between federal entities. These actors also associate the decision with the judiciary's recognition of a long-standing pattern of administrative omission at municipal level.
At the same time, the process makes explicit institutional isolation of Rio de Janeiro City Hall in this agenda, often attributed to the history of legislative vetoes, the non-implementation of CIAMP-Rua and the low level of dialogue with social control bodies and the street population movements themselves.
The municipality was summoned by bailiff to comply with the decision immediately. O Public Prosecutor's Office of the State of Rio de Janeiro was also summoned to express his opinion on his possible participation in the case. The fulfilment - or not - of the deadlines set by the Federal Court should serve as a reference. litmus test of the municipal executive's willingness to abandon the logic of unilateral management and effectively adhere to a public policy model based on rights, social participation and federal co-operation.