The Brazilian Supreme Court (STF) ruled Friday that for X (formerly Twitter) to resume activities in Brazil, it must prove payment of the fines imposed for non-compliance with the court’s order to appoint a legal representative in Brazil. Brazil, with more than 21.5 million X users, is a significant market for the social media platform. Earlier this week, X sent a document to the STF stating that it had blocked nine accounts under investigation in a hate speech and misinformation probe and appointed a legal representative to represent the company in Brazil. STF Justice Alexandre de Moraes ruled that the fines, totaling R$18.3 million, must be paid first.
Initially, Brazil gave X a 24-hour deadline to appoint a legal representative in the country, but after X failed to do so, Justice Moraes ordered the company to suspend operations in Brazil. The Brazilian Supreme Court then imposed a daily fine of R$5 million on the platform for non-compliance with the suspension order and a daily fine of R$50,000 on individuals and entities attempting to bypass the suspension using technological means such as virtual private networks (VPNs). To date, X owes a total of R$10 million for two days of non-compliance, in addition to other fines totaling R$8.3 million.
Elon Musk, who has branded himself as a champion of free speech, has been involved in an ongoing censorship battle with Justice Moraes, who froze both X’s and Musk-owned satellite internet provider Starlink’s accounts in Brazil. Musk responded by saying, “Alexandre de Moraes is an evil dictator cosplaying as a judge.”
The Global Government Affairs team at X addressed the situation Thursday, stating, “X is committed to protecting free speech within the boundaries of the law, and we recognize and respect the sovereignty of the countries in which we operate. We believe that the people of Brazil having access to X is essential for a thriving democracy, and we will continue to defend freedom of expression and due process of law through legal processes.”
For further details, you can read the full article here.