X users in Brazil, and the company itself, are receiving support from several legal and rights advocacy groups, including the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) International, which has turned to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR).
The latter has authority over Brazil under the American Convention on Human Rights (ACHR). These developments come in the wake of Brazilian authorities’ decision to first ban X in that country, and then start fining those who use VPN to circumvent the ban.
According to ADF, Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court and Superior Electoral Court have engaged in censorship that runs afoul of international law.
IACHR, a tribunal of the Organization of American States (OAS), is being asked to intervene on behalf of those now censored and fined in Brazil.
Brazil’s own Bar Association wrote to the Supreme Court to say that “a daily fine to individuals and legal entities in a broad and generalized manner represents a serious affront to the fundamental rights enshrined in the Constitution.”
X owner Elon Musk, whose company has been engaged in an ever-escalating and more serious clash with those currently in power in Brazil over free speech, has welcomed the initiative.
The authorities there insist that all their actions taken against X have to do with preventing the proliferation of “disinformation” – but critics at home and abroad see this as a thinly veiled excuse for a showdown with political opponents, which X has decided not to facilitate.
Now, Brazil could face international repercussions for its actions, starting with the Organization of American States (OAS), which brings together 35 nations across the continent, while the American Convention on Human Rights (ACHR) has been ratified by 25 of those – Brazil included.
ADF wants this body to look into the conduct of Supreme Court justice Alexandre de Moraes, who is behind the decision to block X in Brazil, and the one to fine those using VPNs to access the site with daily fines equivalent to about $8,000.
Another “victim” in Brazil’s crackdown on X has been the Starlink satellite network, whose bank account has been frozen.
A number of figures, from Brazil’s Congress lower house speaker Arthur Lira to US hedge fund managers expressed trepidation that this will reflect negatively on future investments, as the measure creates legal uncertainty.
