"A certain atmosphere was created": Bolsonaro is condemned for his remarks about Venezuelan women.

Brazil Agency - The Federal District Court on Thursday (24) sentenced former President Jair Bolsonaro to pay R$ 150 in collective moral damages for the interview in which he said that he “painted in the mood” when meeting young Venezuelan women.

The decision was handed down by the Court of Justice of the Federal District and Territories (TJDFT) when judging an appeal by the Public Prosecutor's Office to overturn the first instance sentence that acquitted Bolsonaro.

By majority vote, the Fifth Chamber of the court understood that the former president's statements caused "suffering and harassment" to the teenage girls and their families.

“The phrase painted a picture in reference to teenagers, coupled with the direct and malicious inference that earning a living refers to sexual exploitation or prostitution, objectifies young women, sexualizes them, and unacceptably insinuates a situation of vulnerability and sexual availability. Such an approach is blatantly misogynistic, by linking female physical appearance to a pejorative sexual connotation, and aporophobic, by associating the social condition of migrants and economic hardship with the supposed need for prostitution,” says an excerpt from the decision.

During the 2022 election campaign, Bolsonaro gave an interview to a podcast channel and recounted that, during a visit to the town of São Sebastião in the Federal District (DF) in 2021, he encountered well-dressed Venezuelan teenagers, which, according to him, demonstrated that they were subjected to sexual exploitation to "earn a living." 

“I was in Brasília, in the São Sebastião community, if I'm not mistaken, on a Saturday, on my motorcycle. I stopped the motorcycle on a corner, took off my helmet, and looked at some little girls. Three, four. Pretty. 14, 15 years old. All dressed up, on a Saturday, in a community. And I saw that they were somewhat similar. There was a vibe, I went back. 'Can I come into your house?' I went in. There were about 15, 20 girls, Saturday morning, getting ready, all Venezuelan. And I ask: pretty little girls of 14, 15 years old, getting ready on a Saturday for what? To earn a living,” Bolsonaro recounted.

In addition to paying R$ 150 in damages, the former president is prohibited from coercing children and adolescents into reproducing violent gestures, disseminating images of children on the internet, and using words with sexual connotations in situations involving children.

An appeal may be made to the Superior Court of Justice (STJ). 

Defender 

In a statement, lawyer Marcelo Bessa said that the former president's defense team "received the decision with surprise."

"The grounds adopted by the Court completely disregard definitive decisions issued by the Superior Electoral Court and the Supreme Federal Court on the matter, cite evidence that does not exist in the records, and for these reasons, the aforementioned decision will certainly not prevail in the Superior Court of Justice," he declared.