“What About the Women?” — Djamila Ribeiro’s question about the Master Bank case inspires the name of an international platform for the protection of women’s lives

Closing the program of Women’s Week, the question that titled a series of texts in Djamila Ribeiro’s column referring to the Master Bank case — “Federal Police: what about the women?” — went beyond the national debate and gained international resonance. The expression inspired the manifesto presented at the end of the Women Unite! conference, held in Amsterdam on March 8, and was incorporated by the city’s mayor, Femke Halsema, as the central axis of a new transnational platform for mobilization in defense of women’s rights.

The meeting, held at the Royal Theatre Carré, brought together intellectuals, journalists, and human rights defenders from several countries to discuss the contemporary challenges faced by women. Invited to the event, Djamila Ribeiro participated in the panel dedicated to the theme “War on Women,” in which she addressed the Brazilian situation, denouncing the rise in femicide, the persistence of child marriage, and the lack of investigation into European women taken to Brazil to attend parties with political figures.

During the event, the Brazilian philosopher also delivered a detailed report on the case to Ukrainian lawyer Oleksandra Matviichuk, winner of the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize. The document was also shared with journalists and authorities from different countries who were present, expanding the international repercussions of the case:

“The lawyer will act as a bridge with Ukrainian feminist organizations that work to denounce the international trafficking of women. The report was also delivered to Dutch authorities and journalists from Suriname and Nigeria,” Djamila emphasized on her social media.

The political strength of the denunciation led the question formulated in the column published in Brazil to become the symbolic axis of the conference’s final manifesto. Presented by the mayor of Amsterdam, the document adopted the English wording — “What about the women?” — as an international call to demand investigation, accountability, and protection for women who are victims of violence and exploitation.

The question will give its name to a transnational platform for mobilization, bringing together feminist organizations, jurists, and human rights defenders from different countries. The idea is simple and direct: when faced with allegations involving violence, sexual exploitation, or international trafficking, this is the fundamental question that must always remain at the center of public debate — “What about the women?”

For Djamila Ribeiro, the resonance of the issue demonstrates how local experiences can generate collective responses on a global scale.

“We, women from different parts of the world, recognize our differences, but we understand the importance of the condition we share. We will continue fighting for our rights and asking the fundamental question: what about the women? What about the women?”, she reinforced.

With the adoption of the slogan in the conference’s final manifesto, the question launched in the Brazilian debate now circulates through international activist networks, transforming a specific denunciation into a new global point of convergence in defense of women’s lives and dignity.

Translated via AI