On paper, every citizen in Tanzania has the fundamental right of free speech. In practise however, this right is increasingly restricted by the government, especially for journalists. Last month two of Tanzania’s leading newspapers were temporarily shut down. The paper Mwananchi informed its readers about new government salary structures, whereupon Tanzanian authorities suspended the newspaper for two weeks. The Director of the Information Ministry, Assah Mwambene, justified the decision by explaining, Mwananchi used confidential documents which were not intended to be published.
Furthermore, the newspaper Mtanzania reported high security activity at Muslim worship places in an article called “Muslims pray under tight security”, alongside a picture of a police dog. Again, the Tanzanian government considered the article to be seditious. According to Islam, dogs are unclean and are not supposed to be in worship places. Mwambene claims the paper intended to provoke anger between Muslims and the police. It is said that Mtanzania has published seditious articles before. Now the newspapers’ staff must lay down their tools for three months.
Media organisations in Tanzania condemn the decision and responded with protest to the papers’ suspensions. In this regard, they warned against self-censorship among Tanzanian journalists. Critics are committed to allowing the newspapers to resume work and demand for editorial freedom.
A report by Tom Rhodes, consultant for the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), covers the restraining methods of the Tanzanian government and therefore suppressing investigative journalism. In his article “The invisible plight of the Tanzanian press” Rhodes explains that the 1976 Newspaper Act allows the government to ban provocative articles, so thereby not in conformity with international standards of media freedom. According to Rhodes there’s an urgent need to reform media laws in Tanzania to ensure editorial independence.
Rhode’s article also comments on the rise in violence against journalists. There are constant reports of attacks against representatives of the media, sometimes ending up deadly. According to Reporters Without Borders, two journalists were killed within four months in Tanzania. Journalists live in fear for their safety, and adding to this, often the murders of journalists are not sufficiently investigated.
