A specialist in gender violence, Aparecida Gonçalves took over today (3) the new Ministry of Women, created by the Lula government after the dismemberment of the Ministry of Women, Family and Human Rights (MMFDH).
In addition to the new portfolio, responsible for promoting women’s rights and proposing sectorial federal public policies, the extinction of the MMFDH – created during the administration of former President Jair Bolsonaro – also gave way to the Ministry of Human Rights and Citizenship, to be headed by the lawyer and philosopher Sílvio Almeida.
In a crowded ceremony, attended by several ministers, such as Marina Silva (Environment), Margareth Menezes (Culture), Anielle Franco (Racial Equality), Sônia Guajajara (Indigenous Peoples) and Esther Dweck (Management), Aparecida Gonçalves criticized the budget proposal drawn up by the previous government and claimed more money for his portfolio.
“The budget bill sent [pela equipe do ex-ministro da Economia, Paulo Guedes] to Congress, in 2022, predicted a measly BRL 23 million for [as ações agora sob a responsabilidade] this ministry, which represents only 10% of the amounts [destinados ao setor] in the 2015 budget,” said the minister.
“In the work group, we were able to partially reverse this loss [financeira] to give continuity to the portfolio’s priority programs in 2023. It is still not enough, but with the knowledge that without funds it is not possible to carry out public policy, we will always be working to increase the public budget for women”, said the minister.
Activist of the feminist movement, Aparecida participated in the founding of the Central dos Movimentos Populares no Brasil (CMPBrasil), in 1993. during the first term of office of former PT Governor Zeca. During the Lula and Dilma governments, she was the national secretary for Combating Violence Against Women.
Combating gender violence
Today, in Brasília, Aparecida emphasized that the ministry will act in defense of all women in the country, prioritizing the fight against gender violence and inequalities and the strengthening of programs such as `Mulher, Viver Sem Violência´, created by the federal government in 2013 and which, among other things, foresees the installation, in the states, of the so-called Casas da Mulher Brasileira, aiming to offer a humanized service to women victims of domestic violence – an initiative that the Minister claims to have been “dismantled” in recent years.
“In his speeches [no dia da posse], President Lula cited some of the main axes of this ministry. He said that we cannot continue to live with the hateful oppression imposed on women, subjected daily to violence in the streets and in their own homes. He also stated that it is inadmissible that women continue to receive lower wages than men, even when they perform equal functions”, mentioned the minister.
According to her, the very name of the folder, with the use of the noun women in the plural, represents the current government’s recognition of plurality.
“[Falar em] family in the singular is an attack on Brazilian diversity and the centrality of women as a focus for the elaboration and implementation of public policies. There are plural families [no Brasil] and this is a ministry that recognizes and welcomes them”, he declared, calling on other members of the federal government to think about joint actions that could be announced on March 8, when International Women’s Day is celebrated.
“It will be a challenge and a landmark of this government for the effectiveness of the transversality [das ações destinadas às mulheres]. I call on all female and male ministers to draw up concrete actions that the President of the Republic can announce on March 8”, concluded the minister.
Structure
The Ministry of Women will have at least three national secretariats: the one for Combating Violence will have the priority of rebuilding the Mulher Viver Sem Violência program and guaranteeing the operation of the Brazilian Women’s Houses and Dial 180.
The National Secretariat for Autonomy and Care Policies will take care, among other points, of promoting the insertion of women in the labor market, creating mechanisms to face wage inequality and harassment. And the National Secretariat for Institutional Articulation and Political Participation will be responsible for rebuilding the internal and external articulations to guarantee the effectiveness of the portfolio’s actions.
