Challenges and obstacles to the applicability of the Maria da Penha law in protecting women.

Abstract

Violence against women is historical and has a structural character, which is perpetuated due to their subordinate position in the patriarchal sociocultural order. Current data show an increase in all indicators of violence against women in Brazil. The Maria da Penha Law represents a significant advance in the protection of women against this type of violence, however, the effectiveness of this law in practice has been questioned and is the subject of debate among scholars and professionals in the field. Therefore, this study generally analyzed the challenges and obstacles to the applicability of the Maria da Penha Law in protecting women against domestic violence in Brazil, aiming to identify the main barriers faced in implementing this legislation. This is a literature review study with studies from the last 10 years, in addition to book chapters and current legislation on the subject. The results showed that although the Maria da Penha Law can be understood as an affirmative action by the State, aimed at correcting the violations experienced by the female gender, there is a complex network of factors that hinder the full implementation of this legislation, ranging from insufficiency of human and material resources in the bodies responsible for applying the law, to the lack of specialized police stations and the lack of procedural speed. Therefore, the full implementation of the Maria da Penha Law requires a serious and continuous commitment from the State and society to overcome the challenges and obstacles identified, moving towards a more just and egalitarian society, where domestic violence is effectively combatted and eradicated.