Lula asks for withdrawal of project that limits removal of content on networks

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) presented a message to the National Congress, this Thursday (6th), asking for the withdrawal of a bill that limits the removal of content on the internet. The request was published in the Federal Official Gazette.

The proposal criticized by the current government refers to a Provisional Measure, presented by former President Jair Bolsonaro, in September 2021, which was transformed into a bill. The text changes the Marco Civil da Internet, and tries to provide a legislative solution to the problem of freedom of expression in social networks in Brazil. Its main target is the unjustified moderation of content and accounts on social networks.

The previous government wanted to “fight the arbitrary and unmotivated removal of accounts, profiles and content by providers”. After a barrage of criticism, the proposal was rejected by the President of the National Congress, Rodrigo Pacheco, and had the text suspended by Minister Rosa Weber, of the Federal Supreme Court (STF).

At the time, the Brazilian Bar Association (OAB) published an opinion on the subject and said that the MP aimed to prohibit social networks from acting in the fight against “disinformation”, the “dissemination of untrue information about public health”.

With the rejection of the MP, former President Bolsonaro presented a bill, PL 3227/21, similar to a measure to limit the removal of content.

In addition to the withdrawal of this project, the Lula government also asked for the withdrawal of proposals dealing with norms for the performance of the military in Guarantee of Law and Order (GLO) operations, the assignment of surplus in pre-salt sharing contracts and the institution of National Long-Term Policy.