Itaipu tries to silence those who criticize the plant's expenses in court

Itaipu Binacional has filed a lawsuit against federal deputies Sandro Alex (PSD-PR) and Nelson Padovani (União Brasil-PR) over public criticisms made by the members of parliament against the PT's management of the hydroelectric plant and the allocation of funds for political-partisan purposes through socio-environmental projects. In addition, Itaipu has been questioned for the lack of transparency and external control of the state-owned company's budget on the Brazilian side.

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Last year, the Federal Court of Paraná granted Itaipu's request and ordered the removal of a video posted on the social network Facebook by Congressman Padovani, which accused the state-owned company of encouraging land invasions by indigenous people in private areas in Guaíra and Terra Roxa , in the northwest region of Paraná. The 2nd Federal Court of Foz do Iguaçu granted an injunction that guaranteed "the immediate right of reply to Itaipu" and stipulated a daily fine of R$100,000 to Facebook and the congressman, if the video were kept.

In the most recent decision, the 12th Panel of the Federal Regional Court of the 4th Region (TRF-4) accepted the appeal filed by Padovani during the virtual trial of the appeal, in the second instance, which ended last Wednesday (7). In his vote, the rapporteur of the case, judge João Pedro Gebran Neto, considers that “the granting of the preliminary measure was hasty”.

The judge recalls the deputy's performance as a member of the Mining and Energy Committee of the Chamber of Deputies and as president of the Special Subcommittee of Itaipu Binacional, stating that the published video “is far from a personal offense”. Gebran Neto points out that “the comments made are inserted in a context intrinsically related to the performance of [parliamentary] functions”.

Removal of video about Itaipu violates parliamentary immunity, ruling says

Paraná congressman Nelson Padovani is one of the main critics of the policy defended by the Lula (PT) government of historical reparations to indigenous people for the construction of the hydroelectric plant, in the 1970s, on the border between Brazil and Paraguay. The measures in favor of indigenous people were determined by the Brazilian director of Itaipu, Enio Verri (PT-PR), an ally of Lula who took leave from his position as a congressman in the National Congress to take over the command of the company in early 2023.

At the end of March this year, Verri signed the purchase of 3,000 hectares of rural land that will be distributed to 31 indigenous communities living in five municipalities in the west of the state. The acquisition cost Itaipu Binacional R$240 million , with the possibility of additional funds in 2026.

In addition to criticizing the purchase of land, Padovani spoke out against the allocation of R$24.8 million to the "Opaná: indigenous land" project, in a socio-environmental agreement lasting 24 months. For the TRF-4 judge, the removal of the video from the federal deputy's social media “seems to violate parliamentary immunity,” as it does not take into account the legislator's activity.

“The entire factual context surrounding the comment about the author’s alleged encouragement of land invasions by indigenous people in private areas in Guaíra and Terra Roxa appears to have been disregarded. According to the appellant, such invasions and acts of violence were occurring after Itaipu Binacional announced the purchase of land to be occupied by indigenous people,” the judge emphasized.

Padovani said that Itaipu has been transformed into an “activist organization” that sponsors indigenous NGOs and the Landless Workers’ Movement (MST). “I denounced and demonstrated in the records that the current Itaipu administration hired indigenous activists who work to agitate the indigenous people with the promise of a ‘historical debt’, thus directly and indirectly encouraging invasions,” the parliamentarian declared in an interview with Gazeta do Povo.

In a statement, Itaipu responded that an agreement was made with Padovani during the action, in which he committed to not publishing the video again under penalty of a daily fine of R$10,000 for the period of publication.

Judge demands accessible information instead of “criminalizing criticism”

In April, the Federal Court of Paraná also rejected the criminal action brought by Itaipu against federal deputy Sandro Alex, who heads the Infrastructure and Logistics Secretariat of the Ratinho Junior (PSD) government in Paraná. The company accused the state secretary of defamation because of an interview on April 2 on a radio program in the city of Ponta Grossa (PR).

According to Itaipu, the secretary had the “objective of weakening the image” of the binational plant before “the population, governments and the international community”. In the decision, federal judge Edilberto Barbosa Clementino, of the 5th Federal Court of Foz do Iguaçu, states that Sandro Alex is protected by the principles of freedom of expression and democratic participation.

Society cannot be silenced, and the response to misinformation is not criminal proceedings, but rather the qualification of public debate.”

Judge Edilberto Barbosa Clementino, of the 5th Federal Court of Foz do Iguaçu

“Although blunt, [the statements] are part of a debate about the application of public resources and the actions of a binational entity of great importance to the country,” the judge emphasized. The magistrate also commented that public information needs to be debated transparently, instead of “criminalizing criticism.”

“If there are differences of opinion regarding the way the entity is managed and how resources are applied, the appropriate way to resolve them is through clear and accessible information for society, and not by criminalizing criticism. Society cannot be silenced, and the response to misinformation is not criminal proceedings, but rather the qualification of public debate,” said Clementino.

When contacted by Gazeta do Povo , state secretary Sandro Alex said he made the criticism based on the repercussions of press reports on Itaipu's socio-environmental spending and the lack of transparency in the reporting of accounts , acting as a parliamentarian, despite being on leave from his position as federal deputy.

“This is a topic that concerns members of Congress, since the Binational Accounts Committee has not yet been created to oversee Itaipu’s spending, and it cannot even be audited by the Federal Court of Auditors (TCU) because it is a supranational company,” says Sandro Alex. Itaipu Binacional responded only that the action against the state secretary is under appeal.