In 2024, around 68 women – including black, indigenous, young, elderly, trans and disabled women, from both the countryside and the city – met in Rondônia with the same goal: to come up with strategies to tackle violence against women in the state. This was the “1st State Meeting against Femicide, Transfemicide and Lesbocide in Rondônia,”attended by 76 participants in all. The initiative received financial support from CESE.
According to the latest Brazilian Public Security Yearbook, in 2023, Rondônia had the highest rate of femicide in Brazil, with 43.8% of homicides motivated by gender issues.
Rondônia ranks second in terms of domestic violence(only behind Mato Grosso), with 520.9 cases per 100,000 women, highest in relation to both emergency protective measures (973.1 per 100,000 inhabitants) and records of rape and the rape of vulnerable victims (107.8 per 100,000 inhabitants).
Benedita do Nascimento, from the Grassroots Women’s Forum (Fórum Popular de Mulheres) was responsible fororganizing the meeting. “The murder of women [seen] in the press, spread across Brazilian cities, has become routine in our society. It’s up to both government bodies and society to remain vigilant and tackle this behaviour.”