In 2014, Brazil passed the “Internet Bill of Rights,” or the “Marco Civil da Internet.” This bipartisan framework for internet regulation aimed to strike a balance between free speech and user privacy. The main component was a “judicial notice and takedown” system where internet platforms were only liable for harmful content posted by users if they failed to remove the content after receiving a court order. However, the framework was too vague and left a lot of power in the hands of social media platforms.
According to The Conversation, there was a rise of disinformation campaigns relating to Brazil’s 2022 presidential election, specifically denial of election results by Jair Bolsonaro supporters, which resulted in the January 8, 2023 storming of the Brazilian Congress, Supreme Court, and the presidential palace. After these attacks, the Supreme Court investigated groups involved in the plot by requesting social media platforms to reveal IP addresses and suspend illegal accounts. Elon Musk, who had recently acquired Twitter and renamed it X, openly defied these orders and shared information with the public on the Supreme Court’s demands. As Musk continued to refuse to comply with the orders of Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, the platform was banned on Aug. 31, 2024.
The ban came after X did not appoint a legal representative in Brazil by the deadline of August 29, 2024. The deadline was set by Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who has since stated “Elon Musk showed his total disrespect for Brazilian sovereignty and, in particular, for the judiciary, setting himself up as a true supranational entity and immune to the laws of each country.” This also did not go over well with Elon Musk who called him an “evil dictator” in response for banning the best form of truth in Brazil. Morae’s ban was followed by the implementation of heavy penalties such as daily fines of nearly $9000 USD for anyone attempting to access X through VPNs. This fight has become politicized through “pro-free speech” protests led by Bolsonaro supporters and a lack of success facing Brazil’s more balanced efforts to regulate platforms through a “fake news bill” introduced in 2020.
According to The Sun, tens of thousands of protestors led free speech protests in support of Jair Bolsonaro, responding to the actions of so-called “dictator” Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes. Bolsonaro and his supporters have reacted with strong negativity and anger towards Moraes’ ban of X, calling for the removal of Moraes in favor of democracy and liberty. Their protest took place in Sao Paulo during Independence Day, countering a leftist military parade supervised by President Inacio Lula de Silva. Part of the reason for the ban was Elon Musk’s refusal to suspend X accounts belonging to Bolsonaro supporters spreading disinformation. The supporters feel as if they are being censored by Moraes and the current administration, who disregard the constitution in favor of their free will and power. They want to use X to demonstrate how they feel and the government going after X is an attack on their rights. They either get a form of X that is limited to government-approved topics or they get no X at all. This also poses questions for what other forms of social media could be under threat moving forward as people try to pick a new platform to express concerns on.
Written by Sirisha Kunamemni
