Politics · Brazil · 5 hrs ago
Brazil’s Supreme Court backs obscenity law, with limits on how it applies
Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court has five votes to uphold the crime of public obscenity under the country’s Penal Code.
The law allows detention for three months to a year, or a fine, for obscene acts in public places, but does not define what counts as obscene.
The five justices who voted to uphold it also proposed excluding cultural and artistic expression from punishment, with one justice saying the law should cover only conduct with sexual meaning.
Some justices questioned whether local standards of modesty could lead to different outcomes across Brazil.
The case also raised concerns about protesters being punished, including a woman convicted after taking part in a 2013 protest in Guarulhos with her breasts exposed.
The hearing was suspended, and five justices have yet to vote; the court has not set a date to resume.
Because the case has nationwide effect, the court’s final position will guide similar cases across Brazil.
Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court has five votes to uphold the crime of committing an obscene act in public, while considering limits on how the law applies.
The five justices voted to uphold Article 233 of the Penal Code, with suggestions to exclude cultural and artistic expressions and limit the offense to conduct with sexual connotations.
The trial was suspended and will resume on a date that has not been set, with five justices still to vote.
The Latin American and Caribbean Committee for the Defense of Women’s Rights argued that the law is unconstitutional, or that protests protected by free expression and assembly should be exempt.
The court’s eventual ruling will apply to similar cases across Brazil because the case has general repercussion.
- Who
- Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court, with five justices voting so far.
- What
- The court is considering whether to uphold the crime of committing an obscene act in public and how narrowly it should be applied.
- When
- The votes were reported on Wednesday, November 4, 2026; the hearing was suspended and will resume on an unspecified date.
- Where
- Brazil.
- Why
- The court is reviewing the constitutionality of Article 233 of the Penal Code, which does not specify which conduct counts as obscene.
Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court justices who voted to uphold the law
Latin American and Caribbean Committee for the Defense of Women’s Rights
Constitutionality
Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court justices who voted to uphold the law
The five justices voted to uphold Article 233.
Latin American and Caribbean Committee for the Defense of Women’s Rights
The committee argued that Article 233 is unconstitutional.
Limits on punishment
Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court justices who voted to uphold the law
Some justices proposed exempting cultural and artistic expressions and limiting the offense to conduct with sexual connotations.
Latin American and Caribbean Committee for the Defense of Women’s Rights
If the law is upheld, the committee asked that protests protected by freedom of expression and assembly be exempt.
A woman was arrested and convicted after participating bare-chested in the Marcha das Vadias protest in Guarulhos.
Five Supreme Federal Court justices voted to uphold the crime of committing an obscene act, while suggesting limits on its application.
The trial was suspended, with five justices still to vote and no date set for its resumption.
- Penal Code provision
- Article 233
- Penalty under Article 233
- Detention of three months to one year, or a fine
- Votes to uphold the law
- 5
- Justices yet to vote
- Dias Toffoli, Gilmar Mendes, Alexandre de Moraes, Edson Fachin and Cármen Lúcia
- Earlier protest case
- Marcha das Vadias, Guarulhos, 2013
What people are saying
This allows the rule to adapt to changing customs without becoming obsolete.
Its limits are set by common sense, which is fully predictable for any citizen.
Values such as modesty and propriety, historically associated with women, should not restrict the right to protest.