X goes dark in Brazil as tensions between Musk and Judge escalate
Social media platform X was banned in Brazil after Musk refused to comply with court orders.
Alexandre de Moraes, a Supreme Court judge, ordered the âimmediate and complete suspensionâ of social media platform X in Brazil, the BBC reported on Aug 31. The judge directed the countryâs telecom agency to block access to X, causing the platform to go dark earlier today, according to the New York Times.
The ban was imposed after CEO Elon Musk failed to meet the judgeâs deadline to appoint a new legal representative in the country. The ban will stay in place until the company complies with the court orders and pays existing fines totaling $3 million.
According to an X user, the judge will also levy fines of $8,874 per day for using virtual private networks (VPNs) to access X after the ban. Additionally, app stores of Google and Apple have five days to block access to the app and comply with the ban.
In April, the court had ordered the platform to suspend certain X accounts that violated Brazilian laws by spreading disinformation. Musk had ignored the courtâs orders, upholding free speech as a basic right.
Last week, Musk shuttered its Brazilian office after Justice Moraes warned of impending arrests for failing to comply with his April order.
On Friday, Musk wrote on X:
âFree speech is the bedrock of democracy and an unelected pseudo-judge in Brazil is destroying it for political purposes.â
Months of tension #MuskEffect
Musk and Judge Moraes have been at loggerheads for months. Musk claims that the judge is trying to silence conservative opinions. This is because Judge Moraes ordered the suspension of X accounts that mainly belonged to supporters of former right-wing president Jair Bolsonaro.
The official account of X posted yesterday that:
âSoon, we expect Judge Alexandre de Moraes will order X to be shut down in Brazil â simply because we would not comply with his illegal orders to censor his political opponents.â
