MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 19th August, 2021) Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro blocked over 170 accounts of critics on his social media, as the right-wing president ramps up efforts "to silence or marginalize' the growing ranks of his antagonists, a prominent human rights watchdog said on Thursday.
"Human Rights Watch identified 176 blocked accounts, the vast majority on Twitter, including journalists, members of Congress, influencers with more than a million followers, and private citizens with just a handful," the organization said in a statement.
HRW, which is investigating blocking on social media, received screenshots by social media users, proving that they had been blocked by the president. Some news media and non-governmental organizations such as the Brazil Twitter accounts of Reporters Without Borders, Amnesty International, and Human Rights Watch were also among the blocked accounts.
"He is trying to rid his social media accounts of people and institutions that disagree with him and turn them into spaces where only applause is allowed, part of a broader effort to silence or marginalize critics," Maria Laura Canineu, Brazil director at HRW, stated.
Those blocked have a hindered access to important official information that Bolsonaro often shares on social media like announcements on infrastructure investments, minimum wage increase, congratulating the newly elected Israeli prime minister.
Brazil's Congress is considering a bill that would prohibit presidents and other high-ranking officials from blocking users on social media. The practice of silencing followers was assessed by Brazilian judges as "discriminatory" and infringing the rights of information and free speech. At least six cases against Bolsonaro over social media blocking are pending before the Supreme Court.
Bolsonaro is currently entangled in multiple investigations into his activities as president. Earlier this month, the Brazilian Supreme Court launched a probe into the president's allegations that Brazil's electronic voting system is vulnerable to fraud. At the same time, it began investigating Bolsonaro himself over alleged dissemination of fake news. Several days later, the Supreme court launched a probe into the release of secret Federal Police documents by Bolsonaro that he posted on Twitter in a bid to prove vulnerabilities of Brazil's long-established e-voting system.
