Special Collection: Working To End Violence Against Women in Brazil

This Special Collection highlights and celebrates the tremendous work being done in Brazil to end violence against women. The selected materials and resources provide a snapshot of the magnitude of the problem and highlight various recommendations for public policy as well as opportunities for community involvement and action.

Note: Many of the documents listed below are available in Portuguese only. Although not 100% accurate, there are free language translation tools available on the Web that can provide readers with a sense of the content. English-only readers may find it beneficial to use the following tools: AltaVista Babel Fish Translation can accomodate web pages and blocks of text, and WorldLingo can translate text, documents (including PDFs), and websites.

Brief Introduction to the Special Collection | Back to top

This special collection highlights and celebrates the tremendous work being done in Brazil to end violence against women. The selected materials and resources not only provide a snapshot of the magnitude of the problem and its connections to other forms of oppression, but they also highlight the role played by feminist and women’s organizations as a major force propelling significant changes in societal attitudes and legislation as well as the adoption of public policies that aim to eradicate violence against women. Most importantly, analyses are included that emphasize the less glaring – yet equally crucial – efforts of ordinary women and men who continually survive violence and build peace in their daily lives. Materials within this collection provide various recommendations for public policy in addition to shedding light on opportunities available for community involvement and action.

Mulheres em luta por uma vida sem violência | PDF (30 p.)
by SOF Sempreviva Organização Feminista, [Portuguese] (November 2005)
This handbook on violence against women highlights emerging public policies and legislative changes enacted in Brazil to help protect women’s rights and promote gender equality.
+ View Summary

Prevalence of Intimate Partner Violence Against Women in Regions of Brazil | HTML (10 p.) PDF (10 p.)
by Schraiber, D'Oliveira, Diniz, Portella, Ludermir, Valença, & Couto, Revista de Saúde Pública [English] (October 2007)
This article analyzes the results from the "WHO Multi-country Study on Women’s Health and Domestic Violence," on the prevalence of intimate partner violence against women in Brazil.
+ View Summary

WHO Multi-country Study on Women's Health and Domestic Violence – Country Findings: Brazil | HTML (2 p.) PDF (2 p.)
by World Health Organization (WHO), [English, French & Spanish] (2005) This fact sheet provides information on the methods and main findings of the study, with regard to the phenomenon of intimate partner violence against women in Brazil. Data on sexual abuse and non-partner physical and sexual violence is also included.
+ View Summary

Bahia Análise e Dados: Violência | HTML (146 p.)
by Superintendência de Estudos Econômicos e Sociais da Bahia (SEI), [Portuguese] (June 2001)
This issue of Bahia Análise & Dados focuses on several dimensions and manifestations of the phenomenon of violence in the northeastern Brazilian state of Bahia.
+ View Summary

Lei Maria da Penha | Back to top

The “Lei Maria da Penha” (Lei 11.340/2006) was signed into law by the Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on August 7, 2006. The law was named after Maria da Penha Maia Fernandes, as a symbolic reparation and recognition for this woman’s twenty-year battle to bring her case to justice. In 1983, Maria da Penha almost lost her life twice at the hands of her husband, Marco Antonio Heredia Viveiros. Maria da Penha became paraplegic as a result of the abuse, and her story gained international attention. The feminist and women’s movement in Brazil had, of course, a crucial role in the process of elaboration and passing of the Lei Maria da Penha. While it is perhaps too soon to measure the real impact of this legislation in reducing domestic violence in Brazil, its passage and formulation as an instrument of social, political, judicial and cultural change is deserving of notice. The Lei Maria da Penha shares the perspective that domestic violence is a violation of the human rights of women and stipulates a national, integrated set of public policies to eradicate this grave problem. In this sense, the provisions of the law include the adoption and enhancement of preventive, punitive, protective as well as assistance-related policies. The following documents provide information on the provisions of this law and shed light on the existing challenges to its successful implementation. They also equip advocates and activists with tools to better monitor and evaluate the public policies designed to eradicate domestic violence in Brazil.

Lei Maria da Penha: do papel para a vida – Comentários à Lei 11.340/2006 e sua inclusão no ciclo orçamentário | PDF (72 p.)
by CFEMEA Centro Feminista de Estudos e Assessoria, [Portuguese] (2007)
This handbook provides an overview of the Lei Maria da Penha (Lei 11.340/2006), the national domestic violence law signed in Brazil in 2006. The publication provides the full text as well as detailed commentary on the law.
+ View Summary

Em 6 meses da Lei Maria da Penha, o número de denúncias cai 18,8% | HTML (2 p.)
by Sérgio Duran, O Estado de São Paulo [Portuguese] (May 28, 2007)
News article highlighting a decrease in the number of domestic violence cases reported in the state of São Paulo during the six-month period following the passage of the Lei Maria da Penha.
+ View Summary

Delegacias da Mulher (DDMs) | Back to top

“Delegacias da Mulher” (DDMs) are specialized police stations, usually all-female staffed, designed to assist women who are victims of violence. The first DDMs were created in Brazil in 1985 under the influence of feminists and women’s groups, working then to bring the issue of violence against women to public attention. The DDMs were envisioned as unique, humane settings where women would feel less isolated and more empowered to report violent incidents committed against them. Perhaps the most ample public policy ever implemented in that country to address violence against women, the DDMs have played a significant role in bringing visibility to the issue and assisting female victims of crime, being in many circumstances the very only resource available. The DDMs, however, have had limited impact in reducing violence against women in Brazil. The materials within this collection discusses many of the challenges the DDMs face, such as lack of resources, untrained staff, stereotypical and discriminatory representations of an all-female police environment, unequal distribution of stations throughout the Brazilian territory, etc. This collection also provides recommendations for improving the structure and functioning of the DDMs with the hope that these institutions can be potentially an innovative, successful model to other countries. Note that different terms (Delegacias da Mulher, DDMs, Delegacias Especializadas de Atendimento à Mulher, Deams, Delegacias de Defesa da Mulher, Delegacias de Proteção à Mulher, DPMs) are used throughout the collection to refer to the same institutions.

Delegacia de Defesa das Mulheres: Permanências e Desafios | HTML (4 p.)
by Giane Boselli, Centro Feminista de Estudos e Assessoria (CFEMEA) [Portuguese] (July 2004)
This article provides a brief overview of the context surrounding the creation of the DDMs in Brazil and highlights the main successes and challenges associated with this public policy.
+ View Summary

Delegacia de Proteção à Mulher: Cenário de Conquistas Cotidianas | PDF (5 p.)
by Bahia Análise & Dados, Superintendência de Estudos Econômicos e Sociais da Bahia (SEI) [Portuguese] (June 2001)
Interview with the chief police officer of an all female-staffed police station in Brazil about the institution’s role in the intervention and prevention of violence against women.
+ View Summary

Pesquisa Nacional sobre as Condições de Funcionamento das Delegacias Especializadas no Atendimento às Mulheres | PDF (57 p.)
by Kelly Cristiane da Silva, Conselho Nacional dos Direitos da Mulher (CNDM) [Portuguese] (2000)
This report presents the findings from a national survey of the conditions of operations of the Delegacias Especializadas no Atendimento às Mulheres (DEAMs), the all female-staffed police stations in Brazil.
+ View Summary

Organizations and Initiatives | Back to top

This list features Brazilian organizations working in different arenas, and with different approaches, to promote gender equality and women's rights and to end violence against women. This list is provided as a starting point and is not comprehensive or exhaustive. There are many grassroots organizations doing tremendous social change work in Brazil, but not represented here because of limitations in our knowledge about efforts to combat violence against women in other countries as well as the reality that many of these projects and initiatives are operating with extremely scant resources and are not accessible via the Internet.

Ações em Gênero Cidadania e Desenvolvimento (AGENDE) [Portuguese]
AGENDE is a feminist, non-profit organization based in Brasília, the capital of Brazil. AGENDE's mission is to strengthen democracy by bringing a feminist perspective to the political and social agendas. It works on a national and international level (especially in Latin America) to ensure the implementation of public policies that aim at gender and racial equality and the valorization of human rights.

CFEMEA Centro Feminista de Estudos e Assessoria [Portuguese]
CFEMEA is a non-governmental, non-profit organization that works for the citizenship of women and gender equality. It fights for a just and democratic society and State in an autonomous and non-partisan way. Founded on feminist thought, CFEMEA actively participates in the national women's movement, and integrates with international feminist networks, especially in Latin America. It also participates in different initiatives against racism.

Comitê Latino-americano e do Caribe para a Defesa dos Direitos da Mulher (CLADEM Brasil) [English, Portuguese & Spanish]
CLADEM, The Latin American and Caribbean Committee for the Defense of Women's Rights, is a women's and women's organizations network that in all Latin America and the Caribbean are committed in unite efforts to achieve an effective defense of women's rights in the region.

Conselho Nacional dos Direitos da Mulher (CNDM) [Portuguese]
CNDM's mission is to promote policies that aim at eliminating discrimination against women and ensuring their participation in political, economic, and cultural activities. CNDM is a component of the Special Secretariat of Policies for Women, body which advises the federal government in the formulation, promotion and coordination of public policies impacting women.

Forum Comunitário de Combate à Violência (FCCV) [Portuguese]
The Forum is composed of a group of private organizations, ONGs, and governmental institutions that work, directly or indirectly, to combat violence in the city of Salvador, capital of the state of Bahia. Based on the recognition that violence is a major public health problem, the Forum's objective is to advise, monitor and provide recommendations for public policies and initiatives that aim at reducing and ending diverse forms of violence.

Instituto Promundo [English, Portuguese & Spanish]
Promundo's Gender and Health Program encourages young people to question traditional gender norms, aiming to promote gender equitable behaviors and attitudes among youth. It seeks to contribute to their sexual and reproductive health, to prevent gender violence and to reduce the violent behaviors, particularly among young men.

Portal Violência Contra a Mulher/Instituto Patrícia Galvão [Portuguese]
The Portal provides updated information on violence against women in Brazil, serving as a resource for media professionals in finding research data and other information about the magnitude and impacts of the problem. The portal also provides journalists with suggestions of issues to cover as well as recommendations of credible sources to contact in order to develop reliable and thorough news stories on the topic of violence against women.

SOF Sempreviva Organização Feminista [Portuguese]
SOF is a non-governmental, national organization based in the city of São Paulo. Founded on a feminist philosophy, the organization strives to bring public attention to historical and emerging issues affecting women's lives. SOF's objectives include advising and monitoring public policies, information dissemination, and organizational development.

Other Resources and Publications | Back to top

This section highlights feminist periodicals addressing a variety of topics of relevance to women such as gender-based violence, women’s legal rights, reproductive health, economic development, etc.

Folha Feminista | HTML (1 p.)
by SOF Sempreviva Organização Feminista, [Portuguese]
Monthly publication envisioned as an avenue for the debate of feminism and women’s movement.
+ View Summary

Jornal Fêmea | HTML (1 p.)
by CFEMEA Centro Feminista de Estudos e Assessoria, [Portuguese]
Monthly publication addressing issues related to women’s rights and the main themes in the agenda of the women’s movement in Brazil. Available on the CFEMEA’s website under the "Jornal Fêmea" tab.
+ View Summary

Revista Mátria | HTML (1 p.)
by Confederação Nacional dos Trabalhadores em Educação (CNTE), [Portuguese]
Annual publication with the objective to inform and educate about gender equality and women’s rights.
+ View Summary