RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — A Brazilian Supreme Court judge threatened Wednesday to shut down the local operations of X, formerly Twitter, unless its Billionaire and owner Elon Musk will appoint a legal representative in Brazil within 24 hours.
Judge Alexandre de Moraes’ order is the latest development in an ongoing feud with Musk’s platform. The company At the beginning of the year there were clashes with de Moraes about free speech, far-right-linked accounts and misinformation on the platform, and she claims to be a victim of censorship.
Earlier this month, X said: withdraw all remaining Brazilian employees in the country “With immediate effect,” it was said, de Moraes had threatened his legal representative in the country with arrest.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday X informed of de Moraes’ order in response to a post from the company’s global government affairs account on the social platform.
“In case of non-compliance with the provision, the decision could lead to the suspension of the social network’s activities in Brazil,” the court said in a statement.
In the United States, free speech is a constitutional right that is much broader than in many other countries, including Brazil, where de Moraes in April ordered an investigation into Musk for spreading defamatory false news, as well as another investigation into possible obstruction of justice, sedition and criminal organization.
Brazil’s political right has long been characterized de Moraes exceeds his limits to restrict free expression and engage in political persecution. His defenders have said his actions were lawful, supported by at least a majority of judges, and served to protect democracy at a time when it was under threat.
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