The Australian Federal Court has refused to extend a temporary order on X to censor videos of a Sydney terrorist stabbing globally.
Federal Court Justice Geoffrey Kennett denied a request (pdf) from the eSafety commissioner to extend a global takedown injunction, which was due to expire at 5 p.m. on May 13.
“In this matter which I heard on Friday, the orders of the court will be that the application to extend the interlocutory injunction granted on the 22nd of April 2024, as extended on the 24th of April, is refused, and that the cost of the application are reserved,” Justice Kennett said in a brief court hearing.
In court on May 10, the eSafety commissioner’s barrister, Tim Begbie KC, argued X chose to remove content when it felt like it.
“Global removal is reasonable when X does it because X wants to do it, but it becomes unreasonable when X is told to do it by the laws of Australia,” he said.
However, X barrister Bret Walker SC told the court the social media platform had already taken all reasonable steps it could to block the clip from Australian viewers, short of removing the footage from everyone globally.
He argued the commissioner had the power to order the removal of videos advocating terrorism or showing gratuitous or exploitative violence, but the clip did not fall into either category.
In response to the court’s decision, Queensland Nationals Senator Matt Canavan celebrated the win for Mr. Musk calling it is a “big win for free speech.”
“Fed Court has refused eSafety Commissoner’s request for an injunction to make X remove the Bishop Mari Mari stabbing video globally,” he posted.
BREAKING: Fed court has refused the eSafety Commissioner’s request for an injuction to make @X remove the Bishop Mar Mari stabbing video globally.
Big win for free speech!
— Senator Matt Canavan (@mattjcan) May 13, 2024
Back in April, X received a global takedown order from Australia’s eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant to remove content following a stabbing attack on an Assyrian Christian bishop during a live-streamed service.
X Corporation said it had complied with a domestic order but disagreed with a global order, saying “no government should possess such authority.”
The attacked bishop himself expressed desire for the video to stay online.
AAP contributed to this report.
From The Epoch Times