The blocking of social media platform X in Brazil has left 20 million users frustrated, and has also generated widespread condemnation from all sectors where free-speech is cherished.
Hedge fund billionaire Bill Ackman is one of the critics of the measure.
Ackman has become one the latest critics of a court order to suspend Elon Musk’s social-media platform in Brazil.
He argues in an online post that the tyrannical ruling will drive away investors and harm the country.
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, on Friday, ordered internet service providers in Brazil to prevent people from gaining access to X.
The order was in response to X’s refusal to name a legal representative in the country since the Court was making illegal secret requests and threatening the representatives with prison.
Justice Moraes wanted the X platform to handle requests to remove accounts that allegedly spread political misinformation.
The reaction in many sectors has been fierce, and now Ackman joined critics of the court order to suspend X in Brazil.
Ackman reacted saying the ruling will likely drive away investors and harm the country.
Moraes also absurdly ordered the freeze of funds held by another of Musk’s enterprises, Starlink.
The move is supposed to serve as collateral for fines imposed on X for not following court decisions.
Bloomberg reported:
“The ‘illegal shut down of X and account freeze at Starlink put Brazil on a rapid path to becoming an uninvestable market’, Ackman said in a post on X on Saturday night. ‘China committed similar acts leading to capital flight and a collapse in valuations. The same will happen to Brazil unless they quickly retreat from these illegal acts’.
Over the weekend, most of Brazil’s largest internet providers complied with the order, pushing users in the country to migrate to some of X’s competitors. Social media network Bluesky, founded by Jack Dorsey after selling Twitter to Musk, reported one million new users in the three days ending on Saturday and published a series of posts in Portuguese to welcome Brazilians signing up for the service.”
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