Brazilian President claims there is a political persecution against him

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has denounced a “relentless persecution” starring Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes and his recent attempt to suspend the use of Telegram in Brazil.

“We know the position of Alexandre de Moraes. It is a relentless persecution against me. Last year, we had difficult moments when the Supreme Court raised the possibility of cassation of the Bolsonaro-Mourão candidacy for fake news,” he explained in an interview with Jovem Pan TV channel.

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“I even responded to the process in the Supreme Court for abuse of economic power. These are processes that, in my opinion, should be archived ex officio. They want me out of combat and Lula elected,” he said about former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

De Moraes has decided on March 20 to revoke the suspension of Telegram in Brazil after the messaging app complied with the orders that the highest Brazilian judicial body had imposed on it.

The suspension was lifted when Telegram removed a message sent by Bolsonaro on his channel within the app that contained links to a Brazilian Federal Police investigation into an alleged attack by a ‘hacker’ on the systems of the Superior Electoral Court (TSE), as reported by ‘O Globo’.

A notice now appears in place of the publication explaining that it cannot be viewed because it “violates local laws,” according to ‘Folha de S.Paulo’.

In addition, Telegram has appointed a legal representative in Brazil to ensure the ability to respond to urgent requests from the court after ensuring that “an internal problem” led them to not respond to court requests, for which the platform has apologized.

In addition, the app’s creator, Pavel Durov, has explained to Brazil’s highest judicial body that it has implemented “several measures” to “minimize the publication of false messages” as well as a tool to “restrict the ability of users involved in spreading disinformation to create new profiles or post on existing channels,” according to ‘O Globo’.

The closure of the messaging app has sparked debate in Brazil for being an “attack on the freedom” of Brazilians, according to Brazil’s president, Jair Bolsonaro, who said on March 18 he was “saddened” by the Supreme Court’s decision to suspend Telegram in the country.