Brazil's Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes ruled that social media companies should provide the Attorney General's Office with publications by former President Jair Bolsonaro on elections

Brasilia, Aug 11 (RHC) Brazil's Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes ruled that social media companies should provide the Attorney General's Office with publications by former President Jair Bolsonaro on elections, electronic ballot boxes, courts and the Armed Forces.

In his ruling, De Moraes also includes requests for photos and videos related to these topics.

Signed on August 7, the determination was made in the investigation into the intellectual authors and instigators of the terrorist acts of January 8 against the headquarters of the National Congress, the Federal Supreme Court (STF) and the Planalto Palace, seat of the Executive Branch in Brasília.

The Attorney General's Office (PGR) demands that Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, Tik Tok and other platforms report whether 244 denounced/accused for the violent episodes at the Three Powers Square "were or are followers of Jair Messias Bolsonaro, and, if no more, on what date they stopped following him."

Such companies must also communicate whether these people shared the publications made by Bolsonaro "that coincidentally have as themes of fraud in the election."

In granting the request to the PGR, De Moraes emphasizes that "there is no, in the legal system, absolute right to freedom of expression."

Thus, "one of the foundations of democracy, freedom of expression, cannot be used to attack it", writes the minister.

He refers that "the immune system of democracy does not allow such a parasitic practice that should always be inhibited in light of concrete practices that seek to achieve the integrity of the electoral process". The superior court magistrate points out that he emphatically reiterates that the Federal Constitution does not allow "the use of freedom of expression as a protective shield for the practice of hate speech, anti-democratic, threats, aggressions, criminal offenses and all kinds of illegal activities".

Specifically for Meta (conglomerate controlling the Facebook, Messenger, WhatsApp and Instagram applications), the minister requires the social network to send a video in which Bolsonaro attacks the elective system after the anti-democratic actions of January 8 perpetrated by radical followers of the far-right politician.

On the 10th of that month, the former military officer was in the United States when he posted on Facebook that "Lula was not elected by the people, he was chosen and elected by the STF and the TSE (Superior Electoral Court)". (Source: PL)