The Supreme Court in Brazil has ordered a nationwide suspension of the messenger service Telegram. The background is investigations into a blogger who is close to President Jair Bolsonaro.
Brazilian Chief Justice Alexandre de Moraes on Friday ordered the suspension of messaging app Telegram across Brazil.
(tla. / dpa / Reuters)
Brazil’s Supreme Court on Friday ordered the country-wide ban on Telegram over the messenger service’s violations of previous judicial decisions. The decision was based on a request from the federal police, the court said on Friday (local time) via Twitter. The background is investigations into a blogger who is close to Bolsonaro.
Brazilian Chief Justice Alexandre de Moraes ordered the app’s suspension. The company has repeatedly refused to comply with court orders to freeze accounts that spread disinformation or to comply with the country’s laws, according to a copy of the ruling, cited by Reuters news agency. In response, Telegram founder and CEO Pavel Durov apologized for the company’s “negligence” and asked the court to postpone the decision for a few days to improve compliance with the law.
Moraes led a series of Supreme Court investigations into Bolsonaro and his supporters over the spread of fake news – investigations that have incensed many on the right and raised questions of judicial overreaching.
Bolsonaro upset over Telegram suspension
The Supreme Court has antagonized President Jair Bolsonaro. Bolsonaro described the judge’s decision at an event in the city of Rio Branco as “unacceptable”. “Because he couldn’t reach two or three people who he thought should be banned from Telegram, he targeted 70 million people,” Bolsonaro said.
Ahead of October’s presidential election, the right-wing leader, his sons, ministers and advisors are increasingly turning to Telegram to get their political messages across. Bolsonaro wants to secure another term in the election. A Telegram ban would make it difficult for the populist to communicate with his followers.