The news that has been making rounds recently concerns the family of the famous footballer, Neymar. It has been revealed that they were instrumental in gathering the funds required to pay the R$ 900 thousand reais, which is equivalent to 150 thousand euros. This amount was paid to the victim by Daniel Alves, a former national team defender, who was convicted of rape. This payment played a significant role in lessening the severity of Alves’ sentence.
Alves was handed a sentence of four years and six months in prison this Thursday morning (22). His conviction and the subsequent support he received have been met with heavy criticism and outrage on social media platforms.
Apart from the monetary support, Neymar’s family also provided legal representative Gustavo Xisto, according to UOL. This support for a convicted rapist has been deemed ‘absurd’ by most internet users, who believe that Neymar is, in essence, defending a crime.
Furthermore, the fact that Neymar is the father of a young girl named Mavie, who is four months old, has also been brought up by critics as an aggravating factor. They argue that Neymar, as a father to a daughter, should be more sensitive towards such issues.
One user, @cabreloatips, highlighted the irony of the situation by stating, “Neymar paid to reduce the sentence of Daniel Alves, convicted of rape, by 5 years. Neymar… who is the father of a girl”. Fabrizio Neitzke, a journalist, also criticized Neymar’s role by noting that Alves was essentially able to buy four years of freedom with the compensation of 150 thousand euros provided by Neymar.
The outrage on the internet stems from the perceived difficulty of being a woman in a world where even famous and influential individuals lack empathy towards victims of sexual assault. User Amanda Ceará expressed her disappointment by writing, “Neymar just had a daughter, he has, I believe, unconditional love for his mother, sister. And he has no idea what Daniel Alves did? What this woman is suffering from”.
