Deputy is the 1st convicted of gender-based political violence in Brazil

The councilor celebrated the decision on social media. She classified the Electoral Court’s decision as “historic” and took advantage of the moment to call for the strengthening of laws to combat gender-based political violence.

This victory is a milestone in the struggle of women in Brazil. With it, the need to build the Gender Political Violence Law is strengthened, which guarantees the safety of women, especially black women and LBTs, when entering and remaining in politics. Excerpt from Benny Briolly’s statement

Amorim promised to appeal the decision. In a note sent to UOL, he said that the result of the trial was “satisfactory”, since the three votes for acquittal, according to the parliamentarian, made it clear that there was no crime. The politician stated that he will appeal the sentence.

The result of the trial is satisfactory, as the three votes for acquittal made it clear that there are opinions contrary to the thesis that there was a crime. The process is not over and I will use my right, guaranteed by law, to appeal the decision. I continue to defend freedom of expression, especially that of a parliamentarian in plenary. I reaffirm that the conduct that gave rise to the process took place in the heat of intense ideological debates in the Legislative Assembly, in which there was no way to impede the parliamentary mandate of someone who is not even from the same legislative house. Note sent by Rodrigo Amorim

According to the law sanctioned in August 2021 —and which amended the Electoral Code, the Political Parties Law and the Elections Law—, this type of violence is a crime and can result in a sentence of one to four years in prison and a fine. In addition to political violence against women having changed the electoral law, there is also the crime of political violence included in the National Security Law, which defines crimes against the democratic rule of law.

This crime consists of restricting, preventing or hindering “the exercise of political rights by any person based on their sex, race, color, ethnicity, religion or national origin”, with the use of physical, sexual or psychological violence. The penalty is three to six years in prison and a fine.