Abuse law protects Brazilian man

By Gary Duffy
BBC News, Sao Paulo

A law introduced in Brazil two years ago to protect women from domestic violence has been used to protect a man who was being abused by his ex-wife.

It is thought this may be the first time the legislation has been used to protect a man.

The case was heard before a judge in Cuiaba in the state of Mato Grosso.

The judge ruled that the former wife had to stay at least 500m away from her ex-husband and must avoid all contact with him.

The man alleged that he was suffering physical aggression, psychological and financial abuse and provided several documents to prove his case.

This included the results of a medical examination, a receipt for repairing a car allegedly damaged by his former partner, and defamatory and intimidating emails that had been sent to him.

Maria da Penha law

The judge recognised that while such cases happened much less frequently, there were examples of domestic abuse against men, and he decided to apply the law.

He stressed that men should not be ashamed to seek help from the courts, a course of action he said was more sensible than resorting to violence.

The legislation is commonly referred to as the Maria da Penha law, after a woman whose husband injured her so badly she was left paraplegic.

Maria da Penha had to fight through the courts for nearly 20 years to secure a conviction against her husband who made two attempts to kill her.

The law was signed by President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in 2006 and broadened the powers available to protect victims.

It was a way to deal with what had been up to then the much neglected issue of domestic violence directed against women in Brazil.