A liberdade de expressão e o crime de desacato no Brasil à luz do sistema interamericano de direitos humanos

Abstract

Considering the importance of the right to freedom of expression for the consolidation of a democratic society, especially regarding the democratic control of state activities, there is a need to discuss the understandings concerning this right and the ways in which it can be restricted. In this sense, the purpose of this research is to study the content of the right to freedom of expression in light of the Inter-American System of Human Rights. On this basis, the aim is to observe the understandings of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights and the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights regarding freedom of expression, defining its content and the criteria listed so that its restriction does not constitute a violation of human rights, seeking to understand the points in which the understandings of these bodies converge or diverge, which can be better observed when it comes to the use of criminal means as a way to restrict freedom of expression. . Subsequently, the aim is to analyze whether the crime of contempt as typified in Brazilian law is compatible with the protection of freedom of expression. In order to observe how the international provisions on the subject are applied in domestic law, the arguments used by the Federal Supreme Court in ADPF 496/2020, which deals with the conventionality of the offense of contempt, will be studied in order to analyze whether they are consistent with the protection of freedom of expression and with the understanding of the Inter-American System. Thus, this study aims to answer the following research problem: what is the position of the bodies of the Inter-American System of Human Rights on the right to freedom of expression and the use of criminal means and how does the Federal Supreme Court use this understanding to decide on the conventionality of contempt in ADPF 496/2020? This will be done by using bibliographic research, in order to help define the concepts, and documental, especially through the analysis of documents from the Inter-American System, focusing on the Court sentences that deal with the protection of freedom of expression and the respective merit reports from the Commission.