Social media platform X has appointed a legal representative in Brazil, a first step towards resuming its services in the country, but a judge has ruled that its suspension will remain in place until it meets further requirements.
In a ruling published on Saturday, Brazilian Supreme Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes said Company X still “has not met” all the requirements for lifting the ban and gave it five days to submit additional documentation.
The prominent judge has long been at odds with X’s owner, billionaire Elon Musk, as part of efforts to crack down on disinformation in Brazil.
Musk suspended his X account last month after it refused to remove dozens of right-wing accounts accused of spreading fake news and then failed to appoint new legal representatives in the country as ordered.
A clash between Brazil’s courts and an unconventional billionaire has escalated into a high-stakes fight that tests the limits of freedom of expression and corporate accountability in South America’s largest country.
The social media platform had more than 22 million users in Brazil before the ban.
Moraes also ordered X to pay a fine of at least 5 million reais ($913,000) for violating the suspension order after technical maneuvers effectively circumvented the government’s blockade and made the platform accessible again on Thursday.
X denied knowingly ignoring the ban, saying it was an “inadvertent and temporary” result of a change in network provider. X has since gone offline again.
But Moraes said X had engaged in a deliberate, “malicious, illegal and persistent” attempt to circumvent Brazil’s justice system.
In the ongoing conflict between the two, Musk has denounced Moraes as an “evil dictator,” while the magistrate has argued that Mr X cannot be allowed to spread false information that could endanger democracy.
The suspension of censorship was praised by Brazil’s leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, but was denounced by the right-wing opposition and former President Jair Bolsonaro, who called it unconstitutional censorship.
Moraes also froze assets of X and Musk’s satellite internet operator Starlink, which has been operating in Brazil since 2022, particularly in remote areas of the Amazon, to ensure the social network pays fines imposed on it for ignoring court orders.
Musk has repeatedly denounced Moraes in social media posts, calling him an “evil dictator” and calling him “Voldemort,” a reference to the villain from the “Harry Potter” series.
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