Published9. October 2024, 01:35
Brazil: Supreme Court lifts ban on X
After a week-long dispute with tech billionaire Musk, the judiciary has collected a fine worth millions.
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Since the end of August, the online service X has been no longer available in Brazil with a short interruption.
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The country has imposed a fine on the platform – on the grounds that the spread of false information should be stopped.
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Now X has paid the fine of the equivalent of 4.5 million francs.
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The ban has therefore been lifted.
After more than a month, Brazilian federal judge Alexandre de Moraes lifted the ban on the online platform X in the South American country. “I order the termination of the suspension and authorize the immediate resumption of X’s activities,” the Supreme Court said in its decision. The National Telecommunications Agency Anatel will be instructed to take the necessary measures to bring the provision into force.
The cancellation comes because tech billionaire Elon Musk’s company has fully paid the fine of 28.6 million reais (4.5 million francs). Anatel now has to notify the internet operators about this, reported the news portal “G1”.
On August 30, Moraes ordered the shutdown of X in Latin America’s largest country with millions of active X users. The news platform had previously allowed a court-imposed deadline to appoint a legal representative to pass. The company also refused to block the accounts of right-wing activists who spread conspiracy narratives and misinformation. In the meantime, X complied with these demands, even though Musk had announced opposition to them.
After the ban was lifted, X emphasized that they were “proud” to return to Brazil. “We will continue to defend freedom of speech, within the limits of the law.”
All requirements met
After the million-dollar fine was transferred, X recently requested the suspension be lifted again. According to a statement from the Supreme Court, the company proved on September 27 that it had appointed the legal representative for Brazil and blocked the profiles.
Musk had accused Moraes of an attack on freedom of expression and described him as an “evil dictator”. The billionaire, who has been a prominent supporter of Republican former President Donald Trump in the US election campaign for some time, always presents himself as a defender of free speech. The federal judge had already initiated an investigation against Musk himself in April for alleged obstruction of justice and incitement to crime.
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