It was a two week ban back in late March - it is now May time of writing - I actually had forgotten about it.
I sent a message to the mod in question DM_7 no reply.
I noticed I am not the first person that this has happened to as other posters had similar issues. The cynic in me thinks this might be a deliberate ploy by the moderators of the forum to keep it in check/control - 'we don't like your kind in here' - 'not tonight' - 'regulars (we like) only'. Or is it designed to make posters grovel to get back in?
Or is it a completely innocent technical issue where the poster is not reinstated automatically?