DCE Livre states that 4 students were detained during police action carried out in the early hours of this Sunday
The Free DCE (Central Student Directory) of the University of São Paulo declared this Sunday (May 10, 2026) that the Military Police carried out an operation to evacuate the USP rectory during the early hours of the morning and that 4 students were detained. According to the student organization, the action began at around 4:15 am and involved the use of stun bombs, tear gas and batons against the protesters who had occupied the building since Thursday (May 7, 2026).
In a note, the DCE stated that “dozens of military police invaded the occupation” and accused the management of the USP dean, Aluísio Insuredand the chief of staff, Edmilson Dias de Freitas, to choose “by the force and violence of the Military Police” instead of dialogue with students.
The rectory’s decision began after students demanded the resumption of negotiations on student permanence policies, such as housing and food. In recent days, institutes and university boards have released notes on the movement and declared support for the rectory.
According to the DCE, the operation left students injured and resulted in the destruction of materials and personal belongings. The entity also stated that police officers had searched backpacks and tents without forensic assistance.
The student directory questioned the legality of the operation and said that there was no judicial decision on repossession authorizing the eviction. The entity also stated that the occupation had already lasted more than 60 hours and that there were no records of violence or threats during the act.
“Why did the military police wait until dawn, while students were sleeping, to carry out the operation? Why was there no mediation? Why now? Why were the students detained and there is no transparency?”declared the DCE in the note.
The group also associated the action with the public security policy of the governor of São Paulo, Tarcísio de Freitas. According to the students, the police action represented “one of the most violent episodes in the recent history” of the university.
Read the full note from USP’s DCE Livre:
“In the early hours of this Sunday (10/05), at around 4:15 am, dozens of military police invaded the occupation of the USP Rectory built by students since Thursday. This action resulted in dozens of students being injured by stun bombs, tear gas and batons, the formation of a Polish corridor for beatings and four students being detained.
The action, which is the responsibility of rector Aluísio Segurado and his chief of staff Edmilson Dias de Freitas, must be deeply repudiated by the entire university community. USP has already been taken over by dark periods of authoritarianism, and the USP Rectory, today, chose to remember these periods in the worst possible way, refusing dialogue and opting for the force and violence of the Military Police. Aluísio, Edmilson and the entire Rectory chose to ignore demands for better permanence policies for tens of thousands of students and repress students who support teaching, research and extension within the university on a daily basis, all this in the middle of Mother’s Day.
Furthermore, this action occurs in an abusive manner riddled with illegality, as it occurs without any judicial determination that could support the police action. It is necessary to point out that, even in situations where there is a determination of repossession (which is not the case), there is a set of rules that guide the eviction procedure, including the illegality of carrying out operations between 9pm and 5am, something that is settled in the courts.
According to what was determined, what motivated the police operation that beat, detained students and destroyed materials, was the act of embezzlement. This is a spurious motivation, since the legal system provides that for such a situation to cease, the appropriate measure is legal action, which, it is reiterated, did not occur, being yet another element of illegality.
It is important to highlight: the occupation had already lasted more than 60 hours, there was no sign of violence or serious threat to anyone, the operation took place outside administrative opening hours, and there was police monitoring at all times.
Still on the list of illegalities, there is no information about the real motivation for the detention of four students, or even what conducts were attributed to them that led to these students being sent to the 7th DP, without mentioning the records of police officers searching personal items, backpacks and tents without the presence of a forensic agent or any monitoring.
Thus, the question arises: why did the military police wait until dawn, while students were sleeping, to carry out the operation? Why was there no mediation? Why now? Why were the students detained and there is no transparency? Why are personal effects being searched arbitrarily?
In practice, Aluísio and Edmílson allied themselves with Tarcísio de Freitas’ police brutality and illegality, bringing to light an astonishing brand of repression and intransigence, something already denounced by students throughout the strike, and which motivated the occupation.
In recent days, several units of our university have published statements rejecting the occupation, characterizing it as “violent” and declaring “unrestricted support” for the Rectory. We ask ourselves: did any action by the students come close to the violence carried out by the Military Police in the early hours of today? Is there greater violence to the “university’s heritage” than attacking its own students? Will USP’s boards and faculty collude with a Rectory that chose, even after multiple calls for dialogue, to stage one of the most violent episodes in recent history within our university, precisely in the year in which USP’s DCE Livre, founded in the fight against the military dictatorship, turns 50?
Students want to know: Aluísio and Edmilson, why did they choose to threaten the physical and emotional integrity of students? Why did they choose to ignore students’ demands for basics like decent food and decent housing? What will they say to the mothers of the hundreds of students who will need to console their children today after this brutal action?
The current Rector of USP shames our history and the entire academic community. In the face of everything, the students, represented by DCE Livre from USP Alexandre Vannucchi Leme, reaffirm: our steps come from afar, our history is one of struggles and we will not stop here.”
