II Caravan to End Violence against Women mobilizes Pajeú this Tuesday (25/11)

Afogados da Ingazeira will host the II Caravan to End Violence against Women in Pajeú on Tuesday (25), bringing together farmers, trade unionists, feminist collectives and civil society organizations from various municipalities in the Pajeú hinterland. The gathering will take place at 7.30am at the Rural Workers’ Union, with the event leaving at 8am, followed by a screening of the documentary O Bem Virá and a debate at Cine São José.

The mobilization denounces the escalation of violence in the region’s municipalities. “We’re on the streets to denounce all forms of violence that cross the lives of women and girls, and to demand the effective presence of the state, which continues to be absent on issues that we’ve been pointing out for a long time,” says Graciete Santos, president of Casa da Mulher do Nordeste and one of the organizers of the Caravan.

The figures reinforce the urgency: between 2012 and 2024, Afogados da Ingazeira jumped from 77 to 478 cases of domestic and family violence; Itapetim from 30 to 1,013; Serra Talhada from 364 to 750. In 2025, from January to September alone, Afogados has already recorded 285 cases. In addition, the Social Defense Secretariat (SDS) recorded 71 cases of femicide in Pernambuco between January and October this year, an increase of 16% on the previous year. The women also highlight the difficulties faced by rural residents in accessing protective measures, police reports and shelter. “There is no Women’s Police Station in Pajeú, there is a lack of strengthening of the network and services that respect and welcome victims,” say the organizations, which are also calling for climate justice, valuing women’s work in their territories and a fair division of domestic work.

For Riva Almeida, Centro Sabiá’s territorial coordinator, the II Caravan is drawing the attention of society and the authorities to the lack of policies and equipment aimed at protecting women from violence, which has been on the rise in the territory. “This is even more serious for rural women, who will be taking to the streets to demand historically denied rights. The fight is for an end to patriarchy and machismo, which generate violence and inequality,” said Riva.

The II Caravan is organized by the Casa da Mulher do Nordeste in partnership with the Pajeú Women’s Forum, Centro Sabiá, Diaconia, the Pajeú Women Producers Network, Fetape, the Jurema Nucleus through Baraúnas dos Sertões, the Afogados da Ingazeira City Hall Women’s Secretariat and Raízes da Caatinga, with the support of Misereor.