Councilor in Bahia asks for posthumous tribute to feminicide

A councilor from the Bahian city of Feira de Santana, a city 115km away from Salvador, asked the Chamber for a posthumous tribute to a man suspected of having murdered his wife. The case, classified as femicide by the Civil Police of Bahia, occurred on March 21. The alleged killer — a civil guard from a town neighboring Feira — killed himself.

The request was denied by the Chamber and repudiated by colleagues in the House. The tribute proposed by councilor José Carneiro (MDB) would be a minute of silence for the feminicide. According to the politician, the man was a good person and killed the woman because she was in a moment of “weakness”.

The councilor’s attitude was promptly questioned by colleagues from the Feira de Santana Chamber. Councilor Jhonatas Monteiro (PSol) was one of the politicians to repudiate the action. He stated that, if he had to have “a minute of silence” in the House, it would have to be for the victim of feminicide, not the perpetrator.

“I don’t believe it is appropriate, especially in the month of March, marked by the International Day of Women’s Struggle, for the City Council to grant a minute of silence in relation to this. If there is a minute of silence, it should be in honor of Geisa de Assunção Santiago, 42 years old, savagely murdered”, countered Jhonatas.

Councilor apologized

The proposal to pay homage to a feminicide suspect went down badly in Feira de Santana. The councilor recanted on social media. “Every human being is capable of mistakes and successes and today, upon arriving at the City Council, I was quite unhappy when I wanted to honor a citizen who took the life of his wife and then took his own life”, stated the politician.