Due to a censorship dispute, X, formerly known as Twitter, terminated its Brazilian operation.
The social networking site said that Alexandre de Moraes, a judge of the Brazilian Supreme Court, had threatened to imprison the company’s Brazilian lawyer if it disobeyed his “censorship orders”.
On Saturday, the billionaire Elon Musk’s platform, X, announced that users in Brazil could still use it.
Mr. Moraes had mandated that X accounts, many of which were supporters of the former right-wing president Jair Bolsanaro, be disabled while they were being investigated for allegedly disseminating false material.
Following Musk’s criticism of Mr. Moraes, the judge imposed a day fee of 100,000 reais ($19,774; £15,670) for every account that X reactivated. The judge further emphasized that the company’s Brazilian legal representatives may be held liable in the event that this occurred.
In addition, he opened a probe against Mr. Musk on allegations of obstructing justice.
In a statement, X claimed that while Mr. Moraes has decided to intimidate Brazilian employees rather than follow the law, Brazilian staff members have no authority or responsibility over whether material is restricted.
“As a result, to protect the safety of our staff, we have made the decision to close our operation in Brazil, effective immediately,” X said.
The only person with accountability is Alexandre de Moraes.
The statement “no question that Moraes needs to leave” was made by Musk on X.
“It was a difficult decision,” he said, but if the corporation complied with Mr. Moraes’ “demands, there was no way we could explain our actions without feeling ashamed.”
Supporters of the late President Bolsonaro despise Mr. Moraes. He directed inquiries of a few of the president’s allies when he was president.
X’s closure in Brazil highlights the growing tension between global tech platforms and national legal systems. This dispute between Elon Musk and Judge Alexandre de Moraes may set a precedent for how social media companies handle censorship demands and navigate conflicting laws in different regions.
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