China’s all-in-one app, WeChat, has decided to say no to all posts from alleged religious groups or individuals asking for donations, before too many people fall victims to money-making schemes which give out so-called “good karma” or “universal love” in return.
Links to donations for so-called religious purposes will be banned to protect users’ “legitimate rights and interests”, the WeChat team said in a statement on Monday.
WeChat, which belongs to China’s leading tech giant Tencent, vowed to regulate fundraising activities in the name of religion on its platform, by terminating links related to donations through religious activities.
The “online donation” model has grown by leaps and bounds in recent years. It has helped to boost the status and income of individual artists, performers and content providers, yet some have also looked to use it to take an unfair advantage of users.
WeChat allows its users to pay a certain amount of money to the creators of content, opening up a channel for people to financially back and support innovative articles, videos and images.
Public accounts of non-religious bodies, or even registered religious organizations alike, must not organize any donation activities in any form, according to a report by the Global Times. Violators could face having their accounts permanently suspended, the WeChat team said in the statement.
While a majority of people in China claim to be non-religious, there are repeated cases of fraudulent religious groups swindling money from believers. In some places, tour agencies reportedly coerce tourists to “donate” at temples or other religious sites.
The new regulation could bring about major changes to one of China’s biggest social platforms, given WeChat’s dominant presence in the country. WeChat has 840 million active users every month, and it has become far more than an instant message service app in China.
WeChat has now expanded into an essential app for almost everyone who owns a mobile phone in China, providing services including online payments, taxi-hailing, news services and even food delivery.
