Endorsing the sale of plant extracts, the popular pepper spray, to women victims of violence is not a political choice, but an urgent moral necessity. We’re talking about life. Women today live in fear, ask for help, and often times, do not even have the right to fight back in the face of their attacker.
That is why we submitted Bill No. 1,226/2025 to the Legislative Assembly of São Paulo, which regulates sales, sets clear sales conditions and mandates that the state provide free pepper spray to women who have a protective order. In these cases, the aggressor himself will bear the costs.
The project is already being processed in Alisp, currently in the Constitution, Justice and Writing Committee, and represents a concrete step towards ensuring a non-lethal, accessible and effective resource for women in risk situations. We cannot continue to allow bureaucracy and fear to confront this discussion louder than protecting victims.
While São Paulo is debating, Rio de Janeiro has already passed a law allowing sales in pharmacies. In other words, what we are advocating here is already a reality in another state of the union. There is no excuse for São Paulo’s women to be left behind. When it comes to violence against women, every day without public policy can cost a life.
In the first half of this year, the number of murders of women recorded at Women’s Defense Police stations across the state increased compared to the same period last year. There were 128 femicides, meaning that, on average, 21 women were killed each month in São Paulo.
It is worth noting that femicide is the end point of a series of attacks, threats, persecution and humiliation that could have been stopped earlier. If something can be avoided, it is the state’s responsibility to act immediately.
I speak with the responsibility of someone who knows this pain intimately. I am the brother of lawyer Mircea Nakashima, the victim of a brutal crime – murdered by her ex-boyfriend in 2010 – that marked the country’s history. This loss changed me. You changed my life, my mission, and my struggle. And precisely because I carry this wound, I will never remain silent in the face of any violence that befalls other women. It’s not theory, it’s real life. It’s the pain that never goes away.
Our state has a strong track record in combating violence against women. We have already passed important laws, expanded protection mechanisms and strengthened the support network. But we know that this is still not enough. The reality shows that many women remain unprotected, especially in the most dangerous moments, when the attacker approaches and the threat is immediate.
Therefore, we defend the right to self-defense. Pepper spray does not replace structural public policies, but it can save lives. It gives the victim precious seconds to escape, seek help, stop the cycle of aggression, and survive. It is a simple and cheap resource used in many countries, carries no fatal risks and has real potential to prevent tragedies.
While the state cannot be everywhere, at all times, on the side of every woman facing an aggressor, it is our duty to ensure at least one response mechanism.
For all this, I reiterate: I will fight until the end for this law to be approved in São Paulo. I will not rest until we guarantee women the right to defend themselves. Their lives are worth more than any political, bureaucratic or ideological resistance. The time to protect is now, and our commitment is to move forward with courage, resolve and responsibility so that no woman is left to die.
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