Brazilian candidate and former president Lula da Silva reiterated his position, which was questioned by his opponent, current president Jair Bolsonaro. The dispute occurs in the context of a struggle to guarantee the Christian vote in the South American giant.
The candidate of the Workers Party (PT) for this elections of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, He stressed this Friday that although it is necessary “to understand that it is the woman who has hegemony over her body”, the debate on legislating about this issue also corresponds to Congress.
During an act in support of his candidacy in Sao Paulo, Lula responded again to those who questioned him about his position on this issue that he is against, but that “the law exists and the law says what happens with abortion.”
“Not only am I against abortion, but all the women I have married are against abortion,” he said as quoted Metropolises in a video released as part of his campaign.
He added that “I think almost everyone is against abortion. Not only because we are defenders of life, but because it must be something very unpleasant, very painful for someone to abort”, but clarified that “who has to say about abortion is who is pregnant, who is the woman, who has to have more power to decide whether he wants to or not.
“The law exists. That is not the role of the president of the republic, it is the role of the Legislature and above all it is a role that people have to understand belongs to women, who has hegemony over her body, ”she asserted.
The dispute over the Christian vote
It is not the first time that Lula da Silva has expressed himself in these terms during the campaign. The issue of abortion in Brazil is a delicate matter due to the country’s deep-rooted religious tradition, which only allows legal termination of pregnancy in the event of rape or risk to the mother.
These statements also come at a time when the PT is carrying out a campaign to obtain the vote among the influential Christian electorate, especially the evangelical, who has more affinity with his rival, Jair Bolsonaro, once it seems that Lula It already has the support of Catholics.
In response, Bolsonaro questioned the veracity of these words and accused Lula of leaning on those who “hate the Church” and defend abortion. “There is nothing more shameful than defending an idea contrary to everything you believe in just to be elected,” criticized the candidate for re-election.
Despite the fact that abortion has been legal in Brazil in these cases since 1940, it is common for anti-abortion groups, which have broad support from judges, doctors and conservative politicians, to try to prevent many women from accessing this right.
In mid-2020, a 10-year-old girl raped by her uncle was denied treatment at a hospital in the state of Espírito Santo and had to travel to the capital of Pernambuco, Recife, to carry out the process.