By Anthony Boedel
BRASILIA (Reuters) – Brazilian judge Alexandre de Moraes’ decision to shut down billionaire Elon Musk’s social media platform X is just the latest chapter in a borderless crusade against alleged attacks on democracy and the political use of disinformation.
“We have the right to defend fundamental rights. Those who violate democracy, who violate basic human rights, whether in person or through social media, must be held accountable,” Moraes said in a speech on Friday, without mentioning X by name or his name. decision.
On Friday, Moraes ordered the complete and immediate suspension of X in the country until all related court orders against
Moraes ordered telecoms regulator Anatel to implement the suspension order and confirm to the court within 24 hours that it had carried out its execution.
Musk, who is also CEO of electric vehicle maker Tesla (NASDAQ:) and rocket company SpaceX, had previously denounced the threatened move as censorship.
Moraes, 55, is a lawyer who was tough on crime when he was in charge of public security in the state of Sao Paulo. He rose to prominence in 2019, two years after his appointment to the Supreme Court, when he began leading an investigation into “fake news” generated during the administration of former far-right President Jair Bolsonaro.
That investigation, which is still ongoing, focused on what Moraes himself has described as a “cabinet of hate” that operated from Bolsonaro’s presidential palace with the aim of attacking opponents and spreading lies and distortions.
“Brazilian institutions failed to properly regulate social media,” said André Cesar, a political analyst. “Moraes has taken on the role of major regulator and he is happy to do that.”
Among the falsehoods investigated by the judge were criticism by Bolsonaro and his political associates that Brazil’s electronic voting system was open to manipulation.
Moraes was also responsible for investigating an alleged conspiracy to provoke a military coup to overturn Bolsonaro’s defeat by left-wing President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in 2022, and for Bolsonaro’s encouragement of his supporters to enter government buildings to attack and destroy a week after Lula came to power.
Under his leadership, the country’s election authority declared Bolsonaro ineligible for eight years, the first time this had happened to a Brazilian president in the country’s history.
While Moraes’ defenders see him as a crusader in defense of democracy, critics accuse him of using heavy-handed methods to raid the homes of politicians and businessmen, arresting them without trial and freezing their bank accounts.
Musk, who has compared Moraes to “Harry Potter” villain Voldemort, has also described the judge as a “dictator” and called him “an outright criminal of the worst kind, disguised as a judge.”
In his fight against disinformation, the judge ordered social media networks to remove posts from politicians and influencers he deemed a threat to Brazil’s institutions, mostly based on stories from Bolsonaro supporters who denied he had lost his 2022 re-election bid.
And that’s where his confrontations with Musk’s platform began.
After Musk challenged his decision to block certain accounts and said he would reactivate them, Moraes opened an investigation into the billionaire in April for obstruction of justice.
Earlier this month,
The judge warned on Wednesday that he would suspend the service if X did not appoint a legal representative, as required by Brazilian law. On Thursday, Moraes blocked the local bank accounts of Musk’s internet company Starlink, saying they could be used to cover fines the judge had previously imposed on X.
While many Brazilians have sided with Moraes and insisted that Musk must comply with Brazilian law, some have wondered whether he has gone too far.
“He is a defender of democracy, but has sometimes overstepped his role as a judge when dealing with social media,” said analyst Cesar from consultancy Hold Assessoria Legislativa. “He thinks public opinion is on his side, but I don’t know for how long.”
Before joining the Supreme Court, Moraes served as Minister of Justice after serving as Minister of Public Security in his home state of Sao Paulo.
Moraes, a Catholic, has conservative views on economics. For years he was a member of the centrist Brazilian Social Democratic Party, which has largely disappeared from the political landscape.
