Facebook blocks Chechnya activist page in latest case of wrongful censorship

The barring of a non-terrorist group for 'terrorist activity' sparks debate - again - about how overloaded moderators can handle content fairly and accurately

Facebook censored a group of supporters of Chechen independence for violating its community standards barring "organizations engaged in terrorist activity or organized criminal activity", the latest example of the social network mistakenly censoring government dissidents.

The Facebook group, Independence for Chechnya!, was "permanently deleted" by Facebook in late May, according to the group administrator, an Estonian human rights activist who asked to be identified by her initials, MP. She said she was "shocked" when she received a message from Facebook informing her of the deletion. "We do not support terror," MP said. "We support [a] political[ly] legal way for returning Chechen independence."