Chinese social media app WeChat removed dozens of accounts on LGBT topics run by university students and nongovernment groups late Tuesday, raising concerns by some activist leaders that the country may be tightening its grip against sexual and gender minority groups.
Several LGBT-led groups reported outages on their accounts late Tuesday, as they were notified they violated rules of the platform but were given no details.
“Many of us suffered at the same time,” one account manager told Reuters, who declined to be identified due to the sensitivity of the matter.
The bans removed content posted on the WeChat accounts, including personal stories and photos, according to the founder of another advocacy group page.
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Users attempting to view the now-banned accounts were reportedly greeted with the message: “After receiving relevant complaints, all content has been blocked and the account has been put out of service,” according to CNN.
It was not immediately clear whether the multiple account removals were ordered by Chinese authorities. While homosexuality has been decriminalized by the Chinese Communist Party since 1997, some LGBT activities have remained blocked.
Most of the content posted to the accounts ranged from LGBT-themed book recommendations to resources for psychological help. Several of the accounts existed for years prior to the ban, with one Beijing university group manager saying her account had been active for six years and had 18,000 followers.
Another LGBT group operator explained they were told by officials from their university to shut down a social media account on sexual minority topics and avoid the mentioning of school names. The group operator added that officials were told to investigate women’s rights and sexual minority groups to “maintain stability.”
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Tencent, which owns WeChat, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Washington Examiner.
