A block on Elon Musk’s social network X in Brazil began to take effect early Saturday after a Supreme Court judge ordered its suspension, according to AFP.
On Friday, Brazilian Supreme Court judge Alexandre de Moraes ordered the suspension of the platform following a months-long standoff with Musk over disinformation in Brazil, South America’s largest nation.
Moraes issued the ruling after Musk failed to comply with an order to appoint a new legal representative for the company.
By early Saturday, access to X, formerly known as Twitter, was blocked for some users in Brazil, who were met with a message instructing them to reload their browser without being able to log in successfully.
Musk, who also owns Tesla and SpaceX, reacted angrily to the judge’s order, calling Moraes an “evil dictator cosplaying as a judge” and accusing him of “trying to destroy democracy in Brazil.”
“Free speech is the bedrock of democracy, and an unelected pseudo-judge in Brazil is destroying it for political purposes,” wrote Musk, who has increasingly aligned himself with right-wing politics, on X.
The two have been embroiled in a high-profile feud for months, with Moraes leading a campaign against disinformation in Brazil.
Musk, a self-proclaimed “free speech absolutist,” has faced criticism for turning X into a platform for right-wing conspiracy theories since taking over the company, previously known as Twitter, in 2022. He is also a vocal supporter of former US president Donald Trump’s bid to regain the White House.
Moraes ordered the “immediate, complete, and comprehensive suspension” of X’s operations in Brazil, instructing the national communications agency to take “all necessary measures” to enforce the order.
He also threatened a fine of 50,000 reais ($8,900) for anyone using “technological subterfuges” like a VPN to bypass the block.
The judge additionally instructed Google, Apple, and internet providers to “introduce technological barriers” to prevent access to the X app and website, though he later retracted that order.
The social media platform has more than 22 million users in Brazil.
Earlier this month, Musk shut down X’s business operations in Brazil, claiming Moraes had threatened the company’s previous legal representative with arrest to enforce “censorship orders.”
On Wednesday, Moraes gave Musk a 24-hour ultimatum to appoint a new representative or face suspension.
