May Moncur says the removal of her post and her account from New Zealand Chinese-media outlet Skykiwi is concerning, but the Human Rights Tribunal found the site did not discriminate against her (file photo). Photo: The Detail/Sharon Brettkelly
A tribunal has found Chinese-media outlet Skykiwi did not discriminate against an Auckland forum user because of her political opinion when it deactivated her online blogging account.
May Moncur has been suspended from using the FML forum since 2021 when she wrote a message suggesting the forum's moderation was akin to Chinese Cultural Revolution-era censorship.
The thread was removed and Skykiwi later froze her membership, preventing her posting further messages.
She took the company to the Human Rights Review Tribunal (HRRT), alleging Sky Media (trading as Skykiwi) was using 'selective' censorship and discrimination - as it allowed content about Western governments and politics.
The company maintained that its forum rules stated users should not make political posts, and many replies to Moncur's post had "included extensive political discussions and content related to the Cultural Revolution".
The repressive Cultural Revolution in the 1960s and 70s aimed to enforce communist ideology and resulted in the censorship and purge of intellectuals and former leaders, leading to widespread persecution, social upheaval, and political instability.
A screenshot showing May Moncur's account is still frozen seven weeks after the HRRT review. Photo: Supplied/ Sky Media - FML
Skykiwi said it had warned Moncur, who moved to New Zealand from China more than 20 years ago, several times about her posts.
The tribunal heard her final post criticised Skykiwi, saying New Zealand should not tolerate "cultural revolutionary style behaviour". Her account was muted, with a warning a permanent ban would follow if she violated the forum's rules again.
Swatting the fly
On the same day as Moncur's critical post, an admin post appeared, alluding to 'Boss Lady' as 'Like a moth to flame, Stirring noise across the forum'.
It finished: "Like a fly in the living room - I always try to guide it out. But if it refuses to leave, a single swat ends it. And even then, I find myself sighing, "Wasn't it better to just say [sic] alive?" Alright, fine. Had I lived through the revolutionary era, I'd probably be the first to confess under pressure as a self-preserving traitor. And maybe that's not so bad. Adapt to survive. Victory is what matters. Methods? Who cares. Heroes? Villains? It's all blurred. After all, isn't this a world where petty people reign?"
The post also suggested she was courting attention or looking for clients.
Sky Media said the post was not a reference to Moncur - an employment law advocate - and denied the company had breached the Human Rights Act through its forum actions.
This screenshot shows the anonymous 'moth and fly' post in Chinese that the HRRT ruled was written by a Sky Media moderator. It since appears to have been taken down. Photo: Supplied/ screenshot - Skykiwi
When Moncur also posted the company lawyers' response to her allegations on the forum, her account was frozen by Sky Media's project manager, who told forum users 'everyone was prohibited from mentioning Ms Moncur's account and the complaint made'.
The tribunal concluded administrators were in fact referring to Moncur with the 'fly and moth' post, and that the action in posting it and blocking her original cultural revolution post amounted to refusal or less favourable treatment.
But it did not believe the decision to freeze her account was discrimination arising from Moncur's political opinion. It ruled the cultural revolution post itself was not political opinion, and agreed Skykiwi had instead removed it because of the political comments the thread generated. It suggested that Skykiwi may instead have breached contract law.
Moncur said she was very disappointed by the decision. "I commenced these proceedings because, for me, this is discrimination based on political content and selective censorship. In my submissions and also in my evidence, I touch on the issues which I think every Chinese user here in New Zealand understands what I'm talking about.
Censored, blocked or punished
"Skykiwi routinely allows overtly political posts about political issues. But this has to be New Zealand political issues, Western leaders, global political issues. Any contact touching on China in a negative light, culturally or indirectly, is immediately censored, blocked or punished," Moncur said.
"This is a pattern, a very established pattern. This kind of inconsistent censorship has been imposed on all the users like me. And such an inconsistency I believe is inherently discriminatory."
The company's website said it had 480,000 registered users, reached 93 percent of the NZ-Chinese community, and had 1.75m monthly visits to its site.
"Skykiwi is the biggest Chinese website in New Zealand," said Moncur. "And it's like the public square for Chinese Kiwis here in New Zealand, and even probably overseas. So prohibiting people like me to participate in this kind of a social platform in my view, is putting a cap on free speech and also undermines democratic engagement and the ability of Chinese New Zealanders to speak openly on social issues - and the social issues sometimes could be political."
She said the 'fly and moth' post showed how the company enforced its views. "Not only discrimination is rampant, but also personal attacks, online attacks conducted by the administrators on behalf of the website," she added. "It's concerning because such behaviour is condoned by the website and has a very eroding effect on the participation of ordinary members on this website, particularly if they target you and attack you personally. And yes, it's very harmful, and has a chilling effect."
Her account remains deactivated seven weeks after the ruling, Moncur said.
The tribunal decision last month concluded: "Sky Media was at pains to repeatedly say at the hearing that the suspension of Ms Moncur's account was temporary, applying only for the duration of the [tribunal] legal proceedings. We observe therefore that there seems to be no reason why Ms Moncur's account with Sky Media should not be re-activated, following the conclusion of the proceeding."
Skykiwi has not replied to requests for comment.
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