Thursday, June 4, 2026 -Brazilian lawmakers have voted to make it tougher for underage victims of s£xual violence to access abortion, in a lightning vote that followed less than two minutes of debate.
The vote moves to dismantle a resolution from the National
Council for the Rights of Children and Adolescents that mandates prioritising
the interests of victims.
“It is a historic defeat in the comprehensive protection of
girls and adolescents in Brazil,” the state body said in a statement, calling
it a “serious setback”.
Under the overturned regulation, minors who disagreed with
their parents or guardians on their pregnancy could obtain free legal
assistance to safeguard their rights, including getting an abortion.
Right-wing senator Damares Alves said the regulation
“disregards the role and strips away the authority of parents and guardians to
decide on the care of girls and adolescents in situations of sexual violence”.
Brazil’s penal code punishes abortions by up to four years
in prison, with exceptions for cases of rape, risk of death for the mother, or
severe foetal brain malformation.
According to AFP, the Senate and Chamber of Deputies
have approved the change, but it faces one last hurdle to clear Congress –
gaining approval from allies of the far-right former president Jair Bolsonaro.
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