Twitter no longer works in Brazil

The country’s main internet operators have cut off access to Elon Musk’s social network

The main internet operators have already blocked the operation of X/Twitter in Brazil, hours after the Minister Alexandre de Moraes, of the Federal Supreme Court (STF), ordered the suspension of the social network. Oi Fibra subscribers were the first to be affected, followed by Vivo and Claro subscribers. Since the major internet service providers have prevented access to the service, the majority of the population has lost access to the platform.

The ban comes after X/Twitter defied Alexandre de Moraes’ decisions and closed its offices in Brazil. Since a foreign company cannot offer services in the country without having a local representative, the minister gave 24 hours to appoint a manager. The deadline expired Thursday evening (29/8).

Mutual accusations and investigations

The company attributed the departure from Brazil to Moraes’s actions, claiming that the minister had threatened to arrest its legal representative in the country if the “censorship orders” were not respected. The conflict between Musk and Moraes began in April, when the billionaire accused the magistrate of promoting censorship in Brazil. Musk was then implicated in the investigation into digital militias, denounced by Moraes, and in June he again criticized the magistrate’s judicial decisions. At the time, Moraes had ordered the exclusion of posts critical of the president of the Chamber of Deputies, Arthur Lira (PP-AL), which resulted in a fine of R$ 700,000 against the platform.

Closing of operations in Brazil

Since then, the fight has intensified and X/Twitter announced the closure of its operations in Brazil on August 17. The measure was taken after Moraes ordered the blocking of Senator Marcos do Val’s (Podemos-ES) profile and the removal of other users’ posts, which the social network did not comply with. For this reason, the minister began to fine the platform daily for not complying with the court orders.

Musk chose to close the X/Twitter office in Brazil to avoid paying the million-dollar fines, saying he is against removing content that violates the democratic rule of law and Brazilian legislation. In response, Moraes published a subpoena on X/Twitter itself, asking for the appointment of a representative so that the platform can continue to operate in Brazil. He also ordered the freezing of the accounts of Starlink Holding, another Musk company that operates in Brazil, providing satellite internet services, as a guarantee for the payment of the fines imposed on X/Twitter.

After freezing the accounts, Musk has completely lowered the bar. He criticized Alexandre de Moraes once again, calling him a “dictator” and also attacking the president of Brazil in a publication in X this Thursday (29/8), stating that Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is the minister’s “dog”: “The tyrant Alexandre is the dictator of Brazil. Lula is his dog.” Musk went further, publishing a video created by artificial intelligence in which Moraes and Lula passionately kiss. Along with the image, he wrote: “The most hated couple by Brazilians, Alexandre and Lula. Who is on top and who is on the bottom in this disgusting relationship?” And he added a vomit emoji.

Civil disobedience

After the subpoena expired, the official profile of the social network took a stance of civil disobedience, stating that Moraes “is asking us to violate Brazilian laws” and “we simply will not do it.”

As a result, Moraes ordered the suspension of the platform’s operation in Brazil, giving all platforms 24 hours on Friday (8/30) to disable access. In less than 8 hours, the platform stopped working for most Brazilians.

VPN Fines

The minister also banned users of the social network from using VPN tools to continue accessing the platform, setting a fine of R$ 50,000 per day for people and companies that adopt these “technological subterfuges”.

Block ends when Twitter complies with the law

The block is valid until all court orders issued by the STF are complied with and fines are paid. In addition, a legal representative of the platform in Brazil must be appointed.

Source: Terra

Rose

Rose James is a Gossipify movie and series reviewer known for her in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the latest releases. With a background in film studies, she provides engaging and informative reviews, and keeps readers up to date with industry trends and emerging talents.