Bill does not prohibit biblical verses on social networks, contrary to what the post claims – 04/28/2023 – Politics

The post made by federal deputy Deltan Dallagnol (Podemos-PR) in which he claims that Bible verses will be banned from social media is misleading if bill 2630/2020, known as the Fake News PL, is approved in the House.

On Twitter, as verified by the Comprova Project, the parliamentarian quotes biblical texts that deal with themes such as the submission of women to men, same-sex relationships and the use of violence to educate children.

The text approved in the Senate on June 30, 2020 and which is under discussion in the Federal Chamber does not make any explicit reference to the suppression of postings with biblical excerpts or restriction of publication of this type of content. In fact, the proposal brings the safeguard of religious manifestations among the contents that must be removed or hidden by social networking platforms.

In the initial text of the project that is being discussed in the Chamber of Deputies, the same device was maintained, this time in Article 6. In addition, the wording is in line with the provisions of the Federal Constitution, in which freedom of conscience and belief are attested as inviolable.

The text of the PL will still be voted on in the plenary of the Chamber and the project’s rapporteur, deputy Orlando Silva (PCdoB-SP), stated that the proposition explicitly states that the measures to combat misinformation and hate speech provided for in the PL will not achieve religious freedom.

Silva presented the version of the text that should be voted on April 27. Like the original text, the proposed new wording makes no direct and explicit allusion to the suppression or impediment of posting biblical passages.

The word “discrimination” was also removed from the text in an attempt by the rapporteur to meet the demand of the evangelical bench, which says it fears censorship of religious content. The excerpt from the PL said before that the State was obliged to promote campaigns against disinformation to combat hate speech based on discrimination. The term, for the bench, would bar opinion publications

Comprova classifies as misleading all content removed from the original context and used in another so that its meaning undergoes changes; that uses inaccurate data or that induces an interpretation different from the author’s intention; content that is confusing, with or without the deliberate intent to cause harm.

Reach

Comprova investigates suspicious content with greater reach on social networks. On Twitter, the content had 513.8 thousand views, 10.9 thousand likes and 3.7 thousand shares until April 28th. On Facebook, until the same date, the post reached 1,400 interactions, including likes, comments and shares. On Telegram, the publication had 22,000 interactions until April 25.

How do we check

The first step was to look for more information about Bill 2630/2020, quoted by the deputy in the post, as the original text of the proposal and its current procedure. For this, Comprova consulted the websites of the Chamber of Deputies and the Federal Senate.

Afterwards, through searches on Google for the keywords “PL 2630/2020” and “biblical texts”, we found checks from the agencies Lupa and Aos Fatos and Coletivo Bereia (specialized in checking content aimed at the gospel public), in addition to news reports. The search also returned publications on websites aimed at the evangelical public that mention the PL and the alleged banning of Bible verses on social networks.

We also consulted the Federal Constitution regarding freedom of belief and Googled proposals that could lead to the banning of Bible verses through the terms “PL” + “Bible verses”.

As a result, we found two projects from 2019 by federal deputy Pastor Sargento Isidório (Avante-BA): PL 2/19, which wanted to prohibit the indiscriminate use of the word “Bible” or the expression “Bíblia Sagrada” in printed or electronic publications, and PL 4606/2019, which prohibits “any alteration, edition or addition to the texts of the Holy Bible, composed of the Old and New Testaments in their chapters or verses”.

The first project was shelved in March 2022, while the second awaits consideration by the Senate. None of them intends to prohibit the publication of biblical verses on the networks.

Finally, the team researched the content of each verse quoted in the tweet and contacted Dallagnol’s press office.

PL texts

When searching for the reference of the original text presented in the Senate and in the Chamber, we verified that the versions of PL 2630/2020 available for public consultation already provided that social media sanctions would not apply to religious content.

The initial text that was processed in the Senate, still in 2020, presented by Senator Alessandro Vieira (Cidadania-SE) states in paragraph 9 that “the measures established in the caput must be proportional, non-discriminatory and will not imply a restriction on the free development of the personality individual, artistic, intellectual, satirical, religious, fictional, literary or any other form of cultural manifestation”.

In the Senate, the proposal was approved in June of that year and then went to the Chamber, where it has been in process for three years. With the mobilization related to the fight against attacks on schools in Brazil, in recent months, the debate on the need to resume discussion of the Bill has intensified again. In this context, the processing of the proposal returned to the legislative house.

The text of the PL sent from the Senate to the Chamber provided in article 6 the non-application of sanctions by social networks to religious content: “The prohibitions in the caput will not imply a restriction on artistic, intellectual or satirical, religious, political, fictional content. or literary, or any other form of cultural expression, pursuant to articles 5, item IX, and 220 of the Federal Constitution”.

In the legislative house there is a dispute between parliamentarians against and in favor of the project. In this debate, proposals for changes to the text were presented and organized by the rapporteur, Deputy Orlando Silva (PCdoB-SP), who, on April 27, officially presented the version of the text that should be voted on.

The proposed new wording, as well as the original text, makes no direct and explicit allusion to the suppression or impediment of posting biblical passages.

In the rapporteur’s text, articles 1 and 3 of the PL, which mention the theme of religiosity, point out that the conditions provided for in the law will not imply the restriction of religious content and that the legislation must observe “the free exercise of expression and religious cults , either in person or remotely, and the full exposition of its dogmas and sacred books”, respectively.

In addition, as already pointed out, the wording of the PL has declared references to the constitutional guarantee of freedoms, including freedom of expression and religion.

misinformation

The misleading post made by Dallagnol about the alleged censorship of the publication of biblical verses has circulated, precisely, in the context of intense conflicts between groups in favor of and against the approval of the PL.

On April 23, posts of similar content were made on the Instagram of the FPE (Frente Parlamentar Evangélica do Congresso Nacional), in which federal deputy Eli Borges (PL-TO), president of the Front, says that the PL could bring problems to the religious community.

Faced with the dissemination of this misleading information, the project’s rapporteur Orlando Silva highlighted in a video published on April 26, alongside deputy Cezinha da Madureira (PSD-SP), former coordinator of the Evangelical Parliamentary Front, that “the Bible is untouchable” . And he stressed: “It’s fake news to imagine that you can mess with the sacred text”.

Publicly, the rapporteur has highlighted that neither the initial version of the PL, nor the proposal made after some discussions have any restriction on biblical content. He has publicly stated that there will be an extra effort in structuring the text to avoid any interpretation that might hinder the free practice of religion.

On April 25, the deputies approved the proposal’s urgency regime. With that, the text will no longer pass through any committee and will be voted directly in the plenary of the Chamber. The vote is expected to take place on May 2.

What the person responsible for the publication says

To the report, the deputy’s advisory sent a video posted on Instagram on April 25, 11 minutes and 30 seconds in which Dallagnol makes a statement. In the recording, which has the title “The house fell! They accused me of spreading ‘fake news’!”, the parliamentarian reads the biblical texts he quoted in the tweet and claims that they could be classified as discriminatory against women and the LGBTQIA+ population, for example , and therefore would be moderated or removed from the air.

“Anything that is read as a discourse of prejudice against women, ‘the man is the woman’s head’ [em referência a Coríntios 11:3]anything like that that is there in the Bible, even if it is religious discourse, will be considered… it has the potential to be considered abuse, to be moderated and controlled”, says the parliamentarian.

What can we learn from this check

Producers of disinformation use exaggerated or misleading statements aimed at causing commotion or anger in specific groups and to garner support or promote rejection of certain topics and issues that are under discussion.

To avoid being misled in cases that refer to bills or other texts under discussion in the House and Senate, it is advisable to look for the primary source of information. Both houses publish on their websites the full text of all matters discussed.

In the case in question, the misleading publication was made in a scenario of intense dispute over the highly impactful issue that is the regulation of social media platforms, which includes combating criminal and misinformation content in these environments.

Therefore, in the face of debates of such an implication, it is essential to consider the origin of the information received and the objectives of the page/profile that disseminates it, in order to avoid the repercussion of versions that have no support in reality and seek to confuse the population at crucial moments. of decision-making.

why do we investigate

Comprova monitors suspicious content published on social networks and messaging apps about public policies and elections at the federal level and opens investigations for those publications that have achieved greater reach and engagement. You can also suggest checks via WhatsApp +55 11 97045-4984. Suggestions and questions related to questionable content can also be sent to Sheet via WhatsApp 11 99486-0293.

Other checks on the topic

Dallagnol’s tweet was checked by the agencies Lupa and Aos Fatos, and by Coletivo Bereia. Vehicles such as Terra, CartaCapital and Veja reported the case stating that the deputy “shared fake news”.

Last year, Comprova showed that, using old statements by Dallagnol, the video was misleading in saying that Lula could lose his candidacy due to Lava Jato.