Brazilian women
Women in Brazil are being asked to undergo gynecological exams as a part of their application process. The Public Prosecutor's Office in the Brazilian state of São Paulo is currently investigating why and how women are being made to submit to a gynecological test, in order to apply for government jobs. Shutterstock.com

As if finding a job wasn’t difficult enough, now women in Brazil are being asked to undergo gynecological exams as a part of their application process. Yes, unfortunately you read that correctly, The Public Prosecutor's Office in the Brazilian state of São Paulo is currently investigating why and how women are being made to submit to a gynecological test, that in some cases, are used to prove their virginity in order to apply for government jobs.

According to O Globo, the Brazilian daily news source, the state agency began an investigation after reports claimed that women have been asked to undergo medical exams before applying for jobs at the state Education Department. In addition to exams, women who are under the age of 25, and not sexually active have been instructed to provide a literal doctor’s not confirming that they are in fact virgins.

The Brazilian government has multiple requirements for applicants to meet before they even apply for the coveted state jobs. These gynecological exams are part of these requirements, they are included in a long list of health tests that applicants must undergo, seemingly under the ruse for screening for certain cancers. However, Brazilian women are no longer staying quiet about the medical exams, and state that it is invasive and a violation of women’s rights to have to prove their virginity or submit to a pap smear in order to apply for a job.

“It's very intimate information that she has the right to keep. It's absurd to continue with these demands,” women’s rights advocate Ana Paula de Oliveira Castro stated. And while O Globo reports that multiple Brazilian government officials have spoken out against the medical exams, stating that the procedure and requirement of such clearly violates the constitution. However, according to the Associated Press, these tests have been required and have been occurring since at least 2012. Brazil's national Special Secretariat for Women's Rights said they are against any requirements that compromise the privacy of women. "The woman has the right to choose whether to take an exam that will not affect her professional life," said the statement.

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