When it comes to freedom on the Internet, Brazil is a free country according to a special report released by the Freedom House. The country has scored a total of 26 points out of a possible 100 (the lower the score the greater the freedom), showing that it has a generally open environment with few government obstacles to access (5 points out of 25), a low level of content control (8 points out of 35 for limits on content), and few violations of individual users’ rights (13 points out of 40). The main problem in Brazil, and according to the findings a growing threat, is judicial decisions leading to content censorship. Along with the United Kingdom and Turkey, the country faces a high number of violations of user rights from the threat of prosecution for libel and defamation. According to the report Freedom on the Net: A Global Assessment of Internet and Digital Media: “Internet freedom is increasingly undermined by legal harassment, opaque filtering procedures, and expanding surveillance.” The same report offers the following statistical view of digital Brazil: Brazil in numbers Population: 194 million Internet Users/Penetration 2006: 32 million / 17 percent Internet Users/Penetration 2008: 68 million / 35 percent Mobile Phone Users/Penetration 2006: 100 million Mobile Phone Users/Penetration 2008: 151 million Freedom of the Press (2008) Score/Status: 42 / Partly Free Digital Opportunity Index (2006) Ranking: 65 out of 181 GNI Per Capita (PPP): $9,400 Web 2.0 Applications Blocked: Yes Political Content Systematically Filtered: No Bloggers/Online Journalists Arrested: No Freedom on the Net: A Global Assessment of Internet and Digital Media investigated 15 countries with the aim of looking at emerging tactics adopted by governments to control internet and mobile phone use, including attempts to control, regulate, and censor the content of blogs, websites, and text messages. A growing threat Although freedom of expression is a constitutional right, there have been a great deal of civil and administrative charges against bloggers, notably lawsuits by politicians. The latest blogger to fall victim to one of these is Juvêncio de Arruda, from the very popular Quinta Emenda [pt] blog, who has had to delete a few posts [pt] at request of a former Para state parliament representative, Luiz Afonso Sefer, who is being investigated by a Parliamentary Inquiry Commission into pedophilia. According to Judge Teresinha Nunes Moura's decision [pt], the blogger must refrain from publicizing either on his blog or any other media any phrase which might be linked to the concerned politician. If Arruda had not complied, he would have had to pay a daily fine of R$1,000 (about US$ 457.89). Fellow bloggers claim blogs have in fact had an important role in bringing to light the accusations that led to a state wise investigation into pedophilia, and see this as the latest display of censorship in Brazil. Hiroshi Bogéa [pt] points out that the blogger had commented on public information, and had been reporting on the investigation on a daily basis. He says that this suit shows that authorities are not happy with people having freedom of information: Mais uma razão pra se aceitar a máxima que circula em Belém dando conta de que a força da família Seffer é capaz de tudo. Franssinete Florenzano [pt], who has been following the investigation closely, cannot believe how quickly the blogger was judged, considering that Brazilian justice is infamous for its slowness to act. The suit was filed on the eve of a bank holiday and the summons was ready on the next business day. She points out that the justice system was very quick to punish the blogger who has made information public whereas the accused man in the investigation is free: Tal celeridade seria louvável se tratasse, por exemplo, de proteger uma criancinha estuprada anos a fio, explorada como mão-de-obra escrava, privada de viver em família, excluída do convívio saudável com outras de sua idade, aniquilada em seus sonhos infantis, destruída em sua integridade física, psicológica e moral. Lafayette wishes that Brazilian justice was always fast like this: REZO, TODOS OS DIAS, SANTOS OU NÃO, PARA QUE A JUSTIÇA FUNCIONE ASSIM PARA TODOS, POBRES OU RICOS !!! Following the same line of though, the blogger at Blog do CJK [pt] says he would not be surprised if the investigation into pedophilia comes to nothing: Não se duvide, ao final de todo este processo, o único condenado pela Justiça pode ser o blogueiro. José Carlos Lima [pt] highlights the important role bloggers have played in the State of Para: Muita coisa que hoje virou notícia no Pará, incluindo a CPI da Pedofilia, rodou primeiro no mundo dos blogueiros, cujo símbolo de todos nós é o Quinta e seu condutor Juvêncio Arruda.