Two Folha columnists debate whether easing access to pepper spray and tasers aids women's self-defense against violence in São Paulo. A deputy supports a bill to regulate sales, while a lawyer argues it fails to address root causes. The discussion comes amid rising femicides in the state.
On December 5, 2025, Folha de S.Paulo published two opposing opinion pieces on easing access to non-lethal weapons like pepper spray and tasers for women's self-defense in São Paulo. State deputy Enio Tatto (PDT-SP), author of bill 1.226/2025 in the São Paulo Legislative Assembly (Alesp), advocates for the measure as a moral urgency. The bill regulates pepper spray commercialization, sets sales conditions, and provides it free to women with protective orders, with costs borne by the aggressor. It is currently under review in Alesp's Constitution, Justice, and Drafting Committee.
Tatto points to rising femicides: 128 cases were recorded in the first half of 2025 at Women's Defense Police Stations (DDMs) in São Paulo, an increase from the previous year, averaging 21 women killed per month. He shares his personal experience as the brother of lawyer Mércia Nakashima, murdered by her ex-boyfriend in 2010, and argues the spray provides 'precious seconds' for victims to escape or seek help, without replacing structural policies. In Rio de Janeiro, a similar law already allows sales in pharmacies.
Conversely, lawyer Bruna Pinheiro, co-founder of the Rede Feminista de Juristas and coordinator of Me Too Brasil, counters that such weapons do not form effective public policy. She criticizes penal populism for offering 'false promises' and notes they fail to address violence's roots, overlook trauma responses like paralysis, minimize state responsibility, and victim-blame. Pinheiro references a November 2025 latrocínio in São Paulo where a 20-year-old woman was killed after using spray during a robbery. Additionally, Governor Tarcísio de Freitas (Republicanos) cut the budget for the Secretariat of Policies for Women by 54.4% for 2026, from R$16,508,889, allocating only R$1,639,935 for direct anti-violence actions.
Both sides agree on the severity of domestic violence and femicides but differ on simple solutions versus complex, science-based approaches with state investment.