President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said this Monday, 8th, that many women do not report men who attack them for “fear that the revenge will be greater”. He stated that protective measures that restrict freedoms, such as electronic ankle monitors, are not effective.
Lula cited the case of former president Jair Bolsonaro and how he tried to damage his electronic ankle bracelet at the end of November, which ended up taking him to jail.
“Women often don’t report it because they’re afraid that the revenge will be greater. ‘Oh, go put on the ankle bracelet, the guy can’t go near the house’. But the woman is the one alone at home, and the bastard appears. And when he appears more nervous. If even a president who tried to carry out a coup in the country tried to take his ankle bracelet, imagine (these attackers)”, he said, during the 14th National Social Assistance Conference, held in Brasília. Right after the speech, the audience chanted “no amnesty”.
Continues after advertising
Lula said he would like to convene the National Congress, sectors of the Judiciary and civil society to debate the issue. He said that the fight must belong to men too and that “united women will never be repressed”.
“I’m saying we men because I’m going to call a meeting with the Powers of the Republic. It’s important to involve the National Congress, Senate and Chamber, the Supreme Court, the STJ, the state courts of justice, the trade unionists, the evangelicals, everyone. An educational effort is needed so that the man, when he feels like hitting a woman, takes his shoe and hits her on the head, not taking revenge on the woman”, he stated.
The president told the audience of supporters that “it is for you and for you that I was elected and it is for us that I have to govern, not for the Brazilian elite”.
The statement was given in the context in which Lula spoke about the participation of militancy in his government. He repeated a few times that he is a representative of the people. “I’m not me,” he said a few times. He also remembered the period he was imprisoned and the support he received during almost two years in prison in Curitiba.
“I am a little bit of each one of you who gives everything so that I can do things. When I’m doing it, you can be sure that it’s you who are doing it. If it weren’t for your energy, willingness and confidence… Do you think I’ll forget 580 days in jail if it weren’t for you on the street to free me? Do you think I’ll forget that the Brazilian people had the courage to vote for a semi-literate man to be President of the Republic three times?”, he asked.
“That’s why I make a point of saying that I am you. It is for you and for you that I was elected and it is for us that I have to govern, not for the Brazilian elite”, he concluded, during the 14th National Social Assistance Conference, held in Brasília.
Continues after advertising
The president also stated that the “negationists” and “tranqueiras” will not govern the country again. The president’s statement comes three days after senator Flávio Bolsonaro (PL-RJ) was made official as the Bolsonaro candidate for the Planalto Palace in 2026.
In the statement, Lula reflected on his age and said that “many people aged 40 or 50 do not have 20% of his cause”. The senator and eldest son of former president Jair Bolsonaro (PL) will be 42 years old in the first round of the 2026 elections. The PT member, in turn, will be 81.
“I’m 80 years old, but I’ll tell you something, there are a lot of people, 40 or 50, who don’t have 20% of the cause that I have to fight for these people. I have a cause, and whoever has a cause doesn’t get old. The years go by, but the disposition is the same. That’s why I tell you that the denialists, those junkies who governed this country, will never come back”, said Lula.
Continues after advertising
