On Monday, the Supreme Court of Brazil will decide whether to maintain a ban on the social networking site X, formerly known as Twitter. Justice Alexandre Moraes called for this vote after suspending the platform early on Saturday because X had not yet appointed a new legal representation in Brazil by the court-mandated deadline. The Brazil Supreme Court’s decision to ban X has drawn significant attention, especially due to the ongoing conflict between Justice Moraes and X owner Elon Musk.
The issue started in April when Justice Moraes suspended many X accounts because they were disseminating false information. The disagreement has intensified, and the platform’s activities in Brazil are now in jeopardy due to Moraes’s most recent decision. But the ultimate say-so lies with Brazil’s Supreme Court, which comprises 11 judges, each of two chambers of five members, minus the chief justice. The first chamber, which will consider his ruling, includes Justice Moraes.
Moraes’s order impacts major tech giants like Apple and Google, giving them five days to remove X from their app stores and block its use on iOS and Android devices. Furthermore, there are R$50,000 in fines for anyone or any organization found to be accessing X using virtual private networks (VPNs).
X cited the danger of arrest against its representative as one of the reasons it closed its Brazilian office last month. The business claims that the instructions violate Brazilian law and are thus unlawful censorship. The site is still being investigated, especially with regard to accounts connected to followers of the late right-wing president Jair Bolsonaro, which Moraes ordered removed. The Supreme Court’s decision to ban X will significantly impact the platform and its users, as Brazil is one of X’s most significant markets.
