In a statement released this Friday, UN rapporteurs called on Brazil’s new government of Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to cancel some of the initiatives taken by the Jair Bolsonaro administration regarding women’s rights.

The document calls on the next president to “repeal the parental alienation law and restore effective access for women and girls to their sexual and reproductive rights.” Experts also urge the government to “provide effective legal ways to terminate a pregnancy”.

Experts also urge the Lula government to “reverse Federal State budget cuts for activities and programs aimed at ending violence against women and amplifying efforts to prevent violence against women and girls, particularly those who are exposed to violence for reasons such as being politically active”. defending human rights, being indigenous, Afro-Brazilian, immigrant or transgender women and girls.”

The text came during the UN’s criticism of the Bolsonaro government’s human rights policies. The Human Rights portfolio, led by Damares Alves for years, has taken measures to prevent access to abortion, which, according to experts on women’s rights, is legally provided by the Brazilian Constitution.

Deep cuts in various protection areas for women also drew attention.

The document was signed by Reem Alsalem, the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, its causes and consequences; Dr. Tlaleng Mofokeng, UN Special Rapporteur on the right to the highest standard of physical and mental health; Dr. Dorothy Estrada-Tanck, Coordinator-Reporter of the Working Group on Discrimination against Women and Girls; Dr. Victor Madrigal, UN Independent Expert on protection against violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

“Brazil has one of the highest rates of femicide in the world. In a 2017 national survey, nearly a third of Brazilian girls and women said they had experienced violence in the previous year, from threats and beatings to attempted murder. More than half are current or former partners of the perpetrators.”

“Furthermore, a study of crime statistics in 2021 reveals that a woman is raped every 10 minutes in Brazil, and a femicide occurs every seven hours,” he said.

“High levels of violence against women are also perpetrated by other non-state actors, including private companies and state-affiliated agencies such as law enforcement. It is crucial that the Brazilian Government spares no effort to contain the tide of violence against women and girls. and to end widespread impunity for crimes against them,” they insist.

parental alienation

Another request by rapporteurs is that Brazil’s new government repeal the “parental alienation” law, which could discriminate against women and girls, particularly in family court disputes over custody issues.

“Today we call on the newly elected Brazilian Government to step up its efforts to end violence against women and girls, and we call for an end to the continued application of the concept of parental alienation and other similar concepts in cases of domestic violence and abuse. In Brazil, it punishes mothers and children,” said the rapporteurs. .

According to them, Brazil’s 2010 law on parental alienation defines the concept as “interference in the psychological formation of the child or adolescent, which is fostered or encouraged by one of the parents, grandparents, or those who have a child or adolescent, rejecting the parent or harming the establishment or maintenance of ties with him/her. under custody or custody.

“The law has led to widespread application of the parental alienation theory by family courts – although there is no clinical or scientific justification for doing so. The law has also largely allowed parents accused of domestic violence and abuse to successfully do so, i.e. to mothers they find in a custody fight. baseless accusations against him”.

According to them, family courts regularly deny mothers allegations of child sexual abuse against their father or stepfather, discredit mothers and punish them, including forfeiting custody rights for their children.

“When the court decision is about custody or guardianship rights, we are seriously concerned about the underlying gender stereotypes that contribute to the legitimization of the concept of parental alienation and its use mostly against women,” she said.

“Such gender stereotypes are deeply discriminatory, as the testimonies of women who claim their children are being abused are denied or seen as lower value and credibility. These deeply discriminatory approaches essentially result in failure of justice and continued abuse of mother and child, life-threatening. situations and other violations of their fundamental freedoms.

“We note with concern the troubling consequences for mothers who, in the face of fear of being accused of parental alienation and losing their custody rights, have no choice but to remain silent about the abuse of their children by their spouses or ex-partners,” the reporters stress.

“The use of parental alienation and similar concepts contributes to the trivialization of violence against women and girls that has taken place over the past decade,” they added.