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X was suspended in Brazil after the company failed to meet a deadline for the nomination of a new legal representative in the country.
Supreme Court judge Alexandre de Moraes ordered the “immediate and complete suspension” of the social media platform, escalating an ongoing spat between the justice and Elon Musk, the owner of X.
Free speech is the bedrock of democracy and an unelected pseudo-judge in Brazil is destroying it for political purposes https://t.co/eqbowALCeu
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 30, 2024
Brazil’s Supreme Court issued a 24-hour ultimatum to ban certain accounts over fears of misinformation. As part of the clampdown on the platform formerly known as Twitter, the court warned users that anyone using a VPN to access X would be liable for daily fines of 50,000 reais ($8,900), though it’s unclear how this would be enforced.
In reaction to the decision, Musk posted to his account, “Free speech is the bedrock of democracy, and an unelected pseudo-judge in Brazil is destroying it for political purposes.”
He has upped the ante on de Moraes, pledging to publish “the long list of (his) crimes, along with the specific Brazilian laws that he broke.” Musk declared, “he is a dictator and a fraud, not a justice.”
Many of the accounts targeted in the action by Justice de Moraes professed support for the former right-wing president Jair Bolsonaro, with the judge insisting they must be closed down while under investigation. Musk has added his voice to local critics of de Moraes, accusing him of a left-wing bias.
Action Against X Extended to Apple and Google
The social media platform closed its office in the country earlier this month, describing the orders as “censorship” and illegal under Brazilian law.
In Brazil, X is said to be used by around 10% of the South American nation’s 210 million population.
The action against X has seen warnings issued to Apple and Google, with a five-day deadline to remove the platform from its app stores and block its use on iOS and Android systems.
This is not the only strife facing Musk in Brazil, as the bank accounts of his satellite internet enterprise, Starlink, have been frozen in relation to the X fallout. The company responded in a post on the platform, stating the “order is based on an unfounded determination that Starlink should be responsible for the fines levied – unconstitutionally – against X.”
