Brazil moves to limit abortion access for child rape victims

Brazilian Parliament in Brasilia on December 9, 2025. [AFP]

Brazilian lawmakers voted on Tuesday to make it tougher for underage victims of sexual violence to access abortion, in a lightning vote that followed less than two minutes of debate.

The vote moves to dismantle a resolution from the National Council for the Rights of Children and Adolescents that mandates prioritizing the interests of victims.

"It is a historic defeat in the comprehensive protection of girls and adolescents in Brazil," the state body said in a statement, calling it a "serious setback."

Under the overturned regulation, minors who disagreed with their parents or guardians on their pregnancy could obtain free legal assistance to safeguard their rights, including getting an abortion.

Right-wing senator Damares Alves said the regulation "disregards the role and strips away the authority of parents and guardians to decide on the care of girls and adolescents in situations of sexual violence."

Brazil's penal code punishes abortions by up to four years in prison, with exceptions for cases of rape, risk of death for the mother, or severe fetal brain malformation.

The Senate and Chamber of Deputies have approved the change but it faces one last hurdle to clear Congress -- gaining approval from allies of the far-right former president Jair Bolsonaro.