The president of the Chamber of Deputies, Hugo Motta (Republicanos-PB), reserved a week with remote voting to analyze bills combating violence against women, following a record of feminicides in the last ten years. The agenda was indicated by the women's bloc in homage to International Women's Day, which occurred on March 8. While some bills have already been approved, congresswomen criticize the emptied format, which reduces in-person debates.
Hugo Motta's decision comes amid an alarming rise in gender violence in Brazil. In 2025, at least 1,470 feminicides were recorded, raising the total since the crime's classification in 2015 to 13,448 victims, according to the Ministry of Justice and Public Security. A survey by the Brazilian Forum on Public Security indicates that 13.1% of feminicide victims had active judicial protection at the time of the crime.
The week in question, from March 9 to 13, 2026, allows remote voting due to the party window, which began on March 5 and ends on April 4. This period facilitates party switches without mandate loss, with expectations that at least 10% of Congress will change affiliations. The online voting system, implemented during the Covid-19 pandemic in March 2020, reduces physical presence in Brasília, limiting plenary discussions.
The women's bloc prioritized bills focused on combating violence. On Tuesday (10), a bill was approved mandating electronic ankle bracelet monitoring for aggressors and increasing the National Public Security Fund (FNSP) allocation from 5% to 6% for actions against gender violence. The bill proceeds to the Senate. Another recent approval, from the previous week, created a protocol for attending rape victims.
For Wednesday (11), analysis is scheduled for a bill allowing the commercialization and carrying of pepper spray, currently controlled. In February, the Municipal Chamber of Porto Velho (RO) approved local use of the product. The agenda also includes regulating the doula profession and votes in the Constitution and Justice Committee (CCJ), such as creating the crime of institutional violence in private institutions and aggravating factors for revictimization of domestic violence victims.
Congresswomen Talíria Petrone (Psol-RJ) and Laura Carneiro (PSD-RJ), bloc coordinators, differ on the format. Petrone criticizes the 'minimization' of agendas: 'This occurs in a country where every two minutes a woman is a victim of domestic violence and at least six women are murdered a day for being women. This is a democratic agenda and not a specific women's agenda.' Carneiro emphasizes approval: 'The important thing is the approval of the matters.' Motta reinforces ongoing commitment: 'It is a mandate commitment, as proven by the more than 50 projects of interest to the women's bloc approved in the last year.' The congresswomen argue that the agenda should not be limited to March.
