Government adviser blocks researchers and retreats – 04/14/2023 – Panel

Coordinator of Digital Rights at the Ministry of Justice and one of those responsible for the debate on social media regulation, lawyer Estela Aranha blocked her Twitter profile for a few hours from representatives of civil society and specialists who have been criticizing government positions on the subject. .

After suffering several criticisms this Friday afternoon (14), she backed down and released access to her account.

She had blocked Unifesp professor Luciana Moherdaui, author of two books on the internet and journalism, and researchers Nina Santos and Bruna Martins. The profile of the website Desinformante, which is dedicated to the subject and is managed by Santos, was also the target of the same action.

On Twitter, the three complained about the block, which they considered even more serious because it was a public authority dedicated to the discussion of digital rights.

“I find it regrettable that this is happening in the context of a democratic government and with researchers who have years of experience in the field,” said Martins.

For Santos, “in the midst of very important debates, the digital rights adviser apparently thinks that access to information is not a fundamental right”.

Moherdaui, on the other hand, tweeted an image of the blockade and wrote that “this is how the coordinator of Digital Law of the Ministry of Justice and Public Security deals with criticism”.

At the end of the afternoon, Aranha sent a note to the Panel saying that he had changed his mind. “I heard the criticisms about access to my profile, I reflected and reconsidered. Although it is a personal profile, as expressed in the bio itself, it will remain open for access to information and constructive public debate”, he declared.

According to the Disinformant’s note, the blockade took place amid the discussion on ways to combat attacks on schools.

The division between the government and part of civil society takes place in the context of the re-discussion of an article in the Marco Civil da Internet that makes it more difficult to hold platforms accountable for content such as disinformation and attacks against democracy.

The Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) government tried to modify the law through a provisional measure to hold networks accountable in some situations, which raised concerns among researchers that there could be self-censorship.

The government withdrew from the MP and the matter will be dealt with in the so-called Fake News PL. The researchers also say that the matter was dealt with in a hasty manner by the Federal Executive.

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