Nandini Roy Choudhury, writer
Brief news
- Brazil’s supreme court ordered banks to transfer $3.3 million from Elon Musk’s X and Starlink accounts to cover penalties for violating local laws.
- X was penalized for not appointing a legal representative and failing to remove harmful content.
- Musk’s entities claim the court’s actions are illegal, while supporters view them as a defense of Brazilian sovereignty.
Banks were directed to transmit funds from Starlink and X accounts to cover penalties imposed by Brazil’s supreme court against Elon Musk’s social network, the court announced on Friday.
X was found to have violated Brazilian law on multiple occasions by the court’s top justice, Alexandre de Moraes, and a panel of five other justices. The court found that X had failed to appoint a legal representative in the country and had failed to remove content or profiles from its platform that the court perceived as detrimental to democratic institutions in Brazil.
Around $3.3 million, or roughly 18.4 million Brazilian reals, were transferred from the accounts by the court. In 2022, Musk acquired X, which was previously known as Twitter. SpaceX operates the satellite internet service known as Starlink.
The court ordered the release of the suspended bank accounts and assets of X and Starlink after the transfers, stating that there was no longer a necessity to retain them.
X was suspended by the court at the conclusion of August, and the suspension continues to be in effect.
Musk and his business entities have declared that they regard de Moraes’ actions as “illegal” and his court’s orders as having been issued without due process. On Friday, requests for comment were not promptly addressed by X and SpaceX.
Earlier this month, the Brazilian news agency UOL reported that some of the accounts de Moraes ordered Musk to suspend at X belong to users who purportedly threatened federal police officers involved in an investigation of former right-wing Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro.
Bolsonaro has been accused of orchestrating the violence that occurred in Brazil on January 8 and of attempting to mount a rebellion.
Musk is a supporter of Bolsonaro, in part because the former Brazilian president granted his business, Starlink, permission to operate in the country.
Insults and demands to impeach de Moraes have been increasing since April, according to Musk. On September 5, his long-time collaborator at the helm of SpaceX, COO Gwynne Shotwell, also launched an online attack on the Brazil supreme court.
She wrote, “@Alexandre, we implore you to cease harassing Starlink and allow us to continue serving the Brazilian populace.”
The orders against X Corp. have been perceived by supporters of de Moraes and the STF as a declaration of Brazilian sovereignty.
Source : CNBC News
