Brazil Supreme Court Judges to Vote on X Ban

The Supreme Court's Judge Alexandre de Moraes speaks during a session in Brasilia, Brazil, on June 18, 2024. Evaristo Sa/AFP via Getty Images

Brazil’s Supreme Court will vote on Monday on whether to uphold a ruling to shut down Elon Musk’s social media platform X in the country.

On Aug. 30, Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes ordered a shutdown of X for failing to appoint a legal representative in the country.

The blockade marks an escalation in a months-long dispute between Musk and de Moraes over free speech and posts that the judge described as misinformation.

In his shutdown order, de Moraes said X will stay suspended until the company complies with his order, setting a daily fine of around $8,900 for individuals or firms who attempt to access the site via a virtual private network (VPN), or another means.

De Moraes has called a virtual session of the court’s first chamber—of which he is a member—so peers can review his decision.

The Supreme Federal Court (STF) is the highest organ of the Brazilian Judiciary and decisions made by a single judge can be reviewed and either maintained or overturned by the full court, consisting of all 11 justices.

Lula

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has backed de Moraes’s decision to shutdown the social media platform, as has Chief Justice Luis Roberto Barroso.

“A company that refuses to name a legal representative in Brazil cannot operate in Brazilian territory,” Barroso said in an interview with the newspaper Folha de S.Paulo published on Sunday.

Brazil is one of the biggest markets for X, with tens of millions of users, according to research firm Oosga.

Maurício Santoro, a political science professor at the State University of Rio de Janeiro, wrote on X before it was taken down in his country that the move is dystopian.

“I used VPNs a lot in authoritarian countries like China to continue accessing news sites and social media. It never occurred to me that this type of tool would be banned in Brazil. It’s dystopian,” he wrote.

President Jair Bolsonaro

Brazil's Superior Electoral Court President Alexandre de Moraes holds documents during the fourth day of the trial of Brazilian former President Jair Bolsonaro, accused of abuse of power and misinformation, in Brasilia on June 30, 2023. Sergio Lima/AFP via Getty Images

Earlier this year, de Moraes ordered X to block certain accounts, as he investigated so-called digital militias accused of spreading fake news and hate messages during the government of former President Jair Bolsonaro.

The inquiry—backed by the current leftist government of Lula—came after the Tesla CEO challenged a court order requiring the removal of certain accounts on X as part of alleged efforts to crack down on fake news and misinformation in Brazil.

The five-year investigation, overseen by de Moraes, appointed as a justice of the STF in 2017 by then-President Michel Temer, blamed the accounts for inciting demonstrations across the country after Bolsonaro’s 2022 loss.

De Moraes has authorized adding Bolsonaro to an investigation into who incited a crowd of protesters to break through security blockades and breach the buildings of Brazil’s Congress, Supreme Court, and the presidential palace in Brasília on Jan. 8, 2023.

‘Not Comply in Secret’

Elon Musk speaks at an AI conference in Beverly Hills, California, on May 6, 2024. Photo by Apu Gomes/Getty Images

On April 7, de Moraes said Musk will be probed for alleged obstruction of justice, criminal organization, and incitement, according to multiple reports.

“The flagrant conduct of obstruction of Brazilian justice, incitement of crime, the public threat of disobedience of court orders, and future lack of cooperation from the platform are facts that disrespect the sovereignty of Brazil,” the judge said.

He said the social media platform “shall refrain from disobeying any court order already issued, including performing any profile reactivation that has been blocked by this Supreme Court.”

X claims it had been forced by court decisions to block “certain popular accounts in Brazil” and was prohibited from disclosing the targeted accounts. On August 13, it shared a document with the accounts.

“This letter demands censorship of popular Brazilian accounts, including a pastor, a current Parliamentarian, and the wife of a former Parliamentarian. We believe the Brazilian people should know what is being asked of us,” X’s Global Government Affairs account wrote in a statement.

On Friday, X said: “Unlike other social media and technology platforms, we will not comply in secret with illegal orders. To our users in Brazil and around the world, X remains committed to protecting your freedom of speech.”

Jack Philips and Reuters contributed to this report.