The result of Brazil’s election last October was a cause for celebration for many across the country. After four long years of far-right rule under Jair Bolsonaro, change was coming via a progressive administration committed to equality and freedom, under new president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Gabriella, a Brazilian-British woman and Lula supporter, was in the city of Salvador on election night. “The joy and relief… it was like Carnival,” she said, speaking to the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), the organisation where I work as regional director for the Americas. “The nightmare of Bolsonaro’s corrupt, violent and inept government was finally over.”
2023 marks the beginning of a pivotal era of change for Brazil, kicked off by the announcement that the country will leave the Geneva Consensus – a global anti-abortion declaration introduced by the Trump administration in 2020. It’s a colossal win for sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) advocates, who have fought long and hard for this moment.
