Alexandre de Moraes

His Excellency
Alexandre de Moraes
Moraes in 2022
Justice of the Supreme Federal Court
Incumbent
Assumed office
22 March 2017
Appointed byMichel Temer
Preceded byTeori Zavascki
President of the Superior Electoral Court
In office
16 August 2022 – 3 June 2024
Vice PresidentRicardo Lewandowski
Preceded byEdson Fachin
Succeeded byCármen Lúcia
Minister of Justice and Citizenship
In office
12 May 2016 – 22 February 2017[a]
PresidentMichel Temer
Preceded byEugênio Aragão
Succeeded byJosé Levi do Amaral (acting)
Other judicial positions
2022Vice President of the Superior Electoral Court
2020–2024Effective Justice of the Superior Electoral Court
2017–2020Substitute Justice of the Superior Electoral Court
2005–2007Counselor of the National Justice Council
Other political positions
2015–2016Secretary of Public Security of the State of São Paulo
2007–2010Secretary of Transports of the Municipality of São Paulo
2002–2005Secretary of Justice of the State of São Paulo
Personal details
Born (1968-12-13) 13 December 1968 (age 55)
São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
Political partyBrazilian Social Democracy Party (PSDB) (2015–2017)[2]
SpouseViviane Barci de Moraes
Alma materUniversity of São Paulo (LLB, PhD)

Alexandre de Moraes (Brazilian Portuguese: [aleˈʃɐ̃dɾi dʒi moˈɾajs]; born 13 December 1968) is a Brazilian jurist, ex-politician, former president of the Superior Electoral Court and currently justice of the Supreme Federal Court. Moraes was appointed to the Supreme Court by President Michel Temer in 2017 when serving as Minister of Justice and Public Security.[3] Previously, Moraes had acted as Secretary for Public Security in the State of São Paulo and had been a member of the Brazilian Public Prosecutor's Office.[4]

Since around 2020, Moraes has generated wide public attention in Brazil and abroad for ordering several arrests, search warrants, and terminations of social media accounts of individuals and groups involved or suspected to be involved in planning coups and propagating fake news, in addition to nationwide blocks of widely used platforms that have failed to comply to his judicial demands, such as Telegram and Twitter. He has been a widely controversial figure since, gathering a great number of both supporters and opponents. While critics say his measures are authoritarian, abusive, anti-constitutional, and partisan, to supporters they are legal, albeit stern, and have been necessary to maintain the country's democratic rule, preventing coups and the rise of extremism. Among Moraes' supporters is the current left-wing president of Brazil Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, and among his critics is the former right-wing president Jair Bolsonaro.

Moraes' presidency of Brazil's Superior Electoral Court and certain actions he took during the 2022 Brazilian general election has made him the target of criticism, including some false conspiracy theories, by Bolsonaro and his supporters.[5] After the 2023 Brazilian Congress attack, Moraes ordered several controversial judicial actions.[6][7] Moraes ordered the arrest of the invaders, which provoked protests from parliamentarians and groups linked to the political right (according to research, 24%), while the majority (63%) of people supported Moraes' decision.[8] Another controversy is defining whether the invaders of the Three Powers Square were patriots or terrorists, with Moraes classifying them as terrorists.[9]

Early life

Alexandre de Moraes studied at the Law School of the University of São Paulo, graduating in 1990.[10] Moraes is an associate professor of the Law School, University of São Paulo (USP). He received a doctorate in State Law from the same university under the supervision of professor Dalmo Dallari, with a thesis about constitutional jurisdiction.[11]

Career

Moares was a member of the Brazilian Social Democracy Party (PSDB). In 2002, he was appointed Secretary of Public Security of the State of São Paulo.[10] His management was controversial: he was accused of covering up police violence. One out of every four homicides in the city of São Paulo was committed by the police. In addition, Moraes sent armoured vehicles to suppress left-wing demonstrations.[12]

At the beginning of 2016, he was called upon by Michel Temer. The latter was living under the threat of a hacker who had hacked into the cell phone of his wife, Marcela Temer, and demanded 300,000 reais under penalty of releasing compromising information and photos. Alexandre de Moraes quickly mobilized his police force, assembled a team of 33 investigators and arrested the blackmailer.[12]

Moraes assumed office on 22 March 2017. As minister, he claims to defend a policy of "zero tolerance". He denounced the alleged "criminal attitudes" of leftist movements and justified police violence. He was at the centre of another controversy when the Brazilian newspaper Estadão published an investigation claiming that he had intervened to defend the Transcooper cooperative, suspected of being linked to Brazil's main drug trafficking group, the First Command of the Capital (PCC), which he denied.[10]

On 10 June 2020, Moraes – in response to a legal challenge from three political parties – said the health ministry must "fully re-establish the daily divulgation of epidemiological data on the Covid-19 pandemic", including on its website: "Mr Moraes gave President Jair Bolsonaro's government 48 hours to release the full figures again."[13]

On 16 August 2022, Moraes was elected as the presiding justice of the Superior Electoral Court in a public ceremony with 2,000 guests at the court auditorium. The justice Ricardo Lewandowski took place as his vice-president on duty.[14][15][16]

2020 Brazil Judiciary fake news inquiry

In April 2019, the Supreme Federal Court president Dias Toffoli, a former legal representative for the Workers' Party (PT) in the presidential campaigns of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in 1998, 2002 and 2006,[17] launched an inquiry to investigate personal attacks and statements against court members. Moraes was chosen as its rapporteur.[18] That month, Crusoé magazine reported that a document from Operation Car Wash revealed that then-Solicitor General Toffoli was also involved in the Odebrecht scandal,[19][20][21][22][23][24] according to the company's former chairman Marcelo Odebrecht. On 15 April, Moraes ordered that Crusoé take down the article from their website. Toffoli himself later requested a probe into whether Crusoé illegally leaked the document. The Court's decision on the matter was criticized by outlets such as The Intercept on the basis of censorship and attack on the freedom of the press.[25][26] On 27 May 2020, as part of that same inquiry, the Federal Police launched an operation probing businessmen, bloggers and politicians allied to President Jair Bolsonaro.[27]

On 19 March 2022, Moraes ordered the suspension of the messaging app Telegram, accusing it of repeatedly failing to block accounts spreading disinformation, and ignoring previous court decisions. President Bolsonaro called the ruling "inadmissible", while Telegram founder Pavel Durov blamed the company's failings on email issues, pledging to do a better job.[28]

In October 2022, the Superior Electoral Court gave Moraes the unilateral authority to order the removal of online content that did not comply with previous TSE rulings, as part of an effort to combat disinformation. Bolsonaro supporters and legal experts criticized the move, fearing that it could allow for censorship. Moraes cited the proliferation of false information and hate speech when initially proposing the move to the Superior Electoral Court.[29]

On 30 October 2022, during the second round of the presidential election between Bolsonaro and Lula da Silva, hundreds of roadblocks set up by the Federal Highway Police (PRF), under orders from the government, prevented voters from going to the polls in the Nordeste region of Brazil. Moraes summoned the director of the PRF, Silvinei Vasques, and threatened him with imprisonment if he did not lift the blockades.[12]

2023 Brazilian Congress attack

Main article: 2023 Brazilian Congress attack

Shortly after the 2023 Brazilian Congress attack, Moraes ordered the arrest of the former commander of the Military Police of the Federal District, Fabio Augusto Vieira, the former secretary of Public Security of the Federal District and former Justice Minister, Anderson Torres, and enacted a federal interference for the removal of the Governor of the Federal District Ibaneis Rocha.[30]

Criticism

Several politicians, members of the private sector, civil society and the media accused Moraes of practicing nepotism, political interference, political repression, abuse of power and deploying a constitutional dictatorship.[31][32][33] American journalist and lawyer Glenn Greenwald has criticized several decisions of Moraes, accusing him of censorship and undermining freedom of speech.[34]

In 2023, The New York Times published a piece entitled "He Is Brazil’s Defender of Democracy. Is He Actually Good for Democracy?" The article questioned if the decisions of Moraes were beneficial for democracy, and observed that he "has jailed people without trial for posting threats on social media; helped sentence a sitting congressman to nearly nine years in prison for threatening the court; ordered raids on businessmen with little evidence of wrongdoing; suspended an elected governor from his job; and unilaterally blocked dozens of accounts and thousands of posts on social media, with virtually no transparency or room for appeal."[6] Twitter owner Elon Musk, responding to Greenwald on Twitter, said Moraes' moves were "extremely concerning", while Beatriz Rey, a political scientist at the State University of Rio de Janeiro, said Moraes' approach, while not ideal, was necessary because other branches of government, especially the legislature, had not done their duty.[6]

Twitter suspension in Brazil

Main article: Blocking of Twitter in Brazil

In Brazilian law it is understood that freedom of expression cannot overlap with other rights. The Constitution itself provides that the freedom of one individual cannot harm that of another. Section X of article 5, for example, determines the protection of intimacy, privacy, honor and image of people.[35]

In April 2024, X (formerly Twitter) owner Elon Musk accused Moraes of "brazenly and repeatedly betraying the constitution and people of Brazil" in response to the Supreme Federal Court's order to block several X accounts, arguing combat of misinformation as the reason. This in turn resulted in the Supreme Federal Court opening a criminal inquiry against Musk for spreading misinformation and alleged obstruction of investigations. The exchange has elicited mixed reactions both from Brazilian politicians as well as international netizens.[36][37][38][39] In August 2024, X's press service accused Moraes of threatening to arrest the social network's employees in Brazil for failing to comply with blocking orders. In response, X announced the closure of its representative office in the country. Elon Musk again lashed out at the judge and proposed impeaching him.[40][41]

On August 30, 2024, X was suspended nationwide for failing to follow the directive, and Moraes set a fine of 50,000 Brazilian reais (roughly $8,900 USD) per day for anyone using VPNs to access it.[42] Shortly thereafter, X created the @AlexandreFiles account, purportedly in order to "reveal the unlawful directives issued to X by Alexandre de Moraes" and posted several allegedly illegal court requests that had made of X.[43][44] On September 2, the Supreme Court of Brazil upheld the ruling by Moraes.[45]

Political views

Since becoming a member of the Superior Electoral Court, Moraes has refused to express his political opinions publicly. He was previously known for his conservative views on economic issues and his support for tougher methods in fighting crime. With Moraes, tougher decisions are also expected in relation to the prison system and drug consumption, in addition to more developed stances on public spending cuts.[46] Carlos Velloso, a former president of the Supreme Federal Court, described Moraes as "a centrist jurist, neither too conservative nor too liberal. There are no excesses for any of these extremes."[47]

Personal life

Moraes is married to Viviane Barci de Moraes and has three children. He is of the Catholic faith.[10][12]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Discharged from 7 February 2017 to 22 February 2017[1]

References

  1. ^ Chagas, Paulo Victor (22 February 2017). "Alexandre de Moraes é nomeado para o Supremo Tribunal Federal" (in Portuguese). Agência Brasil. Archived from the original on 30 June 2019. Retrieved 30 June 2019.
  2. ^ "Indicado ao STF, ministro da Justiça pede desfiliação do PSDB".
  3. ^ "Brazil Senate committee approves Temer pick for Supreme Court". Reuters. 21 February 2017. Archived from the original on 14 March 2023. Retrieved 13 March 2023.
  4. ^ "Conheça o currículo do ministro Alexandre de Moraes". Tribunal Superior Eleitoral. 11 August 2022. Archived from the original on 27 October 2022. Retrieved 13 March 2023.
  5. ^ Nicas, Jack; Spigariol, André (29 September 2022). "On Eve of Election, Bolsonaro's Party Attacks Brazil's Voting Systems". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 13 March 2023. Retrieved 13 March 2023.
  6. ^ a b c Nicas, Jack (22 January 2023). "He Is Brazil's Defender of Democracy. Is He Actually Good for Democracy?". The New York Times. Retrieved 27 March 2023.
  7. ^ Curvello, Ana Carolina (22 November 2023). "Advogados e familiares de presos do 8/1 protestam contra Moraes". Gazeta do Povo (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 4 November 2024.
  8. ^ "Maioria dos brasileiros concorda com prisão dos participantes do 8 de Janeiro, revela pesquisa". CartaCapital (in Brazilian Portuguese). 3 October 2023. Retrieved 4 November 2024.
  9. ^ ""Patriotas" ou terroristas?". Brasil 247 (in Brazilian Portuguese). 25 December 2022. Retrieved 4 November 2024.
  10. ^ a b c d Meyerfeld, Bruno (15 October 2021). "Brésil : Le juge Alexandre de Moraes, bête noire de Bolsonaro". Le Monde (in French). Archived from the original on 12 November 2021. Retrieved 4 November 2024.
  11. ^ Moraes, Alexandre de; Dallari, Dalmo de Abreu (2000). "Jurisdição constitucional e tribunais constitucionais: garantia suprema da Constituição" (in Brazilian Portuguese).
  12. ^ a b c d "Alexandre de Moraes, the Brazilian judge on Jair Bolsonaro's trail". Le Monde.fr. 5 April 2023.
  13. ^ Coronavirus: Brazil resumes publishing Covid-19 data after court ruling, BBC news, 11 June 2020 Archived 16 November 2020 at the Wayback Machine.
  14. ^ "Ministro Alexandre de Moraes toma posse como presidente do TSE". Agência Brasil (in Portuguese). 16 August 2022. Archived from the original on 17 August 2022. Retrieved 17 August 2022.
  15. ^ "'Black box' found after plane crash killed Brazil judge". Reuters. 20 January 2017. Archived from the original on 11 November 2022. Retrieved 11 November 2022.
  16. ^ "Operation Car Wash: The biggest corruption scandal ever?". the Guardian. 1 June 2017. Archived from the original on 11 November 2022. Retrieved 11 November 2022.
  17. ^ "'PT é página virada', diz ministro Dias Toffoli antes de assumir o TSE". O Globo (in Brazilian Portuguese). 13 May 2014. Archived from the original on 8 November 2022. Retrieved 8 November 2022.
  18. ^ "Entenda o inquérito do Supremo que investiga ameaças à Corte e veja os pontos polêmicos". G1 (in Brazilian Portuguese). 16 April 2019. Archived from the original on 14 June 2020. Retrieved 18 June 2020.
  19. ^ ""Corrupção na Odebrecht é a mais organizada da história do capitalismo"". Exame (in Brazilian Portuguese). 20 September 2018. Archived from the original on 8 November 2022. Retrieved 8 November 2022.
  20. ^ BrasilBrasília, Gioconda (14 April 2017). "Delações da Odebrecht: entenda o maior escândalo de corrupção do país". Jornal Hoje (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on 8 November 2022. Retrieved 8 November 2022.
  21. ^ Minas, Estado de (8 October 2019). "Odebrecht confirma propinas para o PT". Estado de Minas (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on 8 November 2022. Retrieved 8 November 2022.
  22. ^ "O ocaso da Odebrecht – DW – 28/07/2020". dw.com (in Portuguese). Archived from the original on 8 November 2022. Retrieved 8 November 2022.
  23. ^ ICIJ (26 June 2019). "Vazamento expõe novos indícios de corrupção no caso Odebrecht". Poder360 (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on 8 November 2022. Retrieved 8 November 2022.
  24. ^ "PF acusa Lula de corrupção por causa de doação da Odebrecht a Instituto". Consultor Jurídico (in Brazilian Portuguese). 26 December 2019. Archived from the original on 8 November 2022. Retrieved 8 November 2022.
  25. ^ Brasil, The Intercept (16 April 2019). "'O amigo do amigo de meu pai': publicamos a reportagem da Crusoé que o STF censurou". The Intercept. Archived from the original on 3 July 2020. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
  26. ^ Braziliense, Correio (19 April 2019). "'Não houve mordaça nem censura', diz Toffoli sobre tirar reportagem do ar". Correio Braziliense (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on 19 April 2019. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
  27. ^ "Polícia Federal faz buscas em endereços de Roberto Jefferson, Luciano Hang e blogueiros". G1 (in Brazilian Portuguese). 27 May 2020. Archived from the original on 16 June 2020. Retrieved 18 June 2020.
  28. ^ Brito, Ricardo; Paraguassu, Lisandra (19 March 2022). "Brazil's Supreme Court suspends Telegram, a key Bolsonaro platform". Reuters. Archived from the original on 19 March 2022. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
  29. ^ "Brazil: Freedom in the World 2023 Country Report". Freedom House. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  30. ^ "Glenn Greenwald questiona decisões de Moraes e é criticado nas redes sociais". CNN Brasil (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  31. ^ ""Censura, ditadura e vergonha": bolsonaristas reagem a ação da PF". 27 May 0312. Archived from the original on 5 June 2020. Retrieved 27 May 2020.
  32. ^ "Advogado confronta Toffoli e Moraes durante sessão do STF: 'A pior ditadura é a do judiciário'". jusbrasil.com.br. 15 April 2019. Archived from the original on 9 February 2021. Retrieved 15 June 2020.
  33. ^ "STF governa ilegalmente o País e pune quem incomoda Moraes". Estadão (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on 10 November 2022. Retrieved 10 November 2022.
  34. ^ Sestrem, Gabriel. "Após denunciar abusos de Moraes, Glenn Greenwald vira o alvo da vez da esquerda". Gazeta do Povo (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  35. ^ https://www.jusbrasil.com.br/artigos/inciso-ix-liberdade-de-expressao/2113287504
  36. ^ Pearson, Samantha (8 April 2024). "Elon Musk Vows to Defy Brazil Order to Block Some X Accounts Amid Hate-Speech Clampdown". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 8 April 2024.
  37. ^ Sousa, Dayanne; Carvalho, Daniel (8 April 2024). "Brazil's Top Justice Opens Criminal Inquiry Against Elon Musk". Bloomberg. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
  38. ^ "Brazil Supreme Court justice investigating Elon Musk over fake news and alleged obstruction". The Indian Express. 8 April 2024. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
  39. ^ Masih, Niha; Paúl, María Luisa (8 April 2024). "Elon Musk challenges Brazilian judge over order to block X accounts". The Washington Post. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
  40. ^ "X Global Government Affairs Statement". Global Government Affairs. 17 August 2024.
  41. ^ Benedito, Luana Maria (17 August 2024). "X says it is closing operations in Brazil due to judge's content orders". Reuters. Retrieved 18 August 2024.
  42. ^ Ortutay, Barbara, Savarese, Mauricio, Brazilian judge suspends X platform after it refuses to name a legal representative, Associated Press, August 30, 2024
  43. ^ @AlexandreFiles (31 August 2024). "Today, we begin shining a light on the abuses of Brazilian law committed by Alexandre de Moraes. We have been forced to share these orders because there is no transparency from the court, and the people who are being censored have no recourse to appeal. Our own appeals have been ignored. And now the people of Brazil are denied access to X. Secret justice is no justice at all. Today, we say that must change. ------------------------ Hoje começamos a lançar luz sobre os abusos cometidos por Alexandre de Moraes em face da lei brasileira. Estamos compartilhando essas ordens porque não há transparência por parte do tribunal, e as pessoas que estão sendo censuradas não dispõem de meios para contestar essas decisões. Nossos próprios recursos foram ignorados. E agora o povo do Brasil tem seu acesso ao X bloqueado. Justiça secreta não é justiça. Hoje, dizemos que isso precisa mudar" (Tweet). Retrieved 31 August 2024 – via Twitter.
  44. ^ "X cria perfil dedicado a divulgar decisões sigilosas de Moraes | Blogs". CNN Brasil (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 1 September 2024.
  45. ^ Biller, David, Brazil Supreme Court panel unanimously upholds judge’s decision to block X nationwide, Associated Press, September 2, 2024
  46. ^ "STF deve ficar mais conservador com Alexandre de Moraes". Gazeta do Povo (in Brazilian Portuguese). 12 February 2017. Retrieved 9 November 2024.
  47. ^ Grillo, Marco (7 February 2017). "Juristas comentam indicação de Alexandre de Moraes ao STF". O Globo (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 9 November 2024.
Legal offices
Preceded by Justice of the Supreme Federal Court
2017–present 		Incumbent
Preceded by Vice President of the Superior Electoral Court
2022 		Succeeded by
Preceded by President of the Superior Electoral Court
2022–2024 		Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by
Edson Luiz Vismona
 Secretary of Justice of São Paulo
2002–2005 		Succeeded by
Hédio Silva Júnior
Preceded by
Fernando Grella Vieira
 Secretary of Public Security of São Paulo
2015–2016 		Succeeded by
Mágino Barbosa
Preceded by
Eugênio Aragão
 Minister of Justice and Public Security
2016–2017 		Succeeded by
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