nderingosha
JF-Expert Member
- Mar 20, 2011
- 4,281
- 3,243
A DISTURBING trend of repression has been sweeping across East Africa. From Ethiopia's crackdown on journalists and opposition viewpoints toKenya's attempt to restrain media freedoms, governments have been using the pretext of counterterrorism to suppress criticism. Even in countries less affected by terrorism, governments are using draconian laws to restrict independent reporting on official activities.
Take Tanzania, for example. Ranked as "partly free" by Freedom House in its annual report on press freedom, the country is part of the U.S.-led Open Government Partnership , a coalition of 65 governments and numerous civil society organizations committed to transparency. But the government of President Jakaya Kikwete is on the verge of adopting some of the region's most draconian information laws, which were passed quickly through parliament in March and now await Mr. Kikwete's signature.
One, a cybercrime bill, would criminalize the publication of information that the government deems to be "misleading, deceptive or false," with a penalty of up to six months in prison. Another would criminalize the "distortion of facts" by the publication of statistics not authorized by the National Bureau of Statistics; offenders could be sentenced to at least a year in prison. If signed by Mr. Kikwete, these strictures would stifle informed policy debates ahead of the country's elections in October.
This is not the first time that Tanzania has used legal means to squelch the press. Earlier this year, the East African newspaper was banned in Tanzania after 20 years of operation after it published a cartoon lampooning Mr. Kikwete. The government claimed that the paper violated a 1976 newspaper registration law, which has been used to shutter media houses with which the government disagrees. At least 17 laws are on the books that hamper the media's ability to report freely in Tanzania.
Tanzania has long been held up in the region as a U.S. partner in open governance, rule of law and transparency. In 2008, the U.S. Millennium Challenge Corporation awarded the country the largest grant in the program's history, nearly $700 million. The World Bank is proposing to loan Tanzania $100 million for an open government program. What's more, Tanzania is set to host the second Africa regional meeting of the Open Government Partnership from May 19 to May 21, under the theme "Enhancing Accountability through Open Governance." But a country that is on the verge of criminalizing data dissemination and is shutting down newspapers to stifle criticism can hardly be called a leader in open governance.
The Millennium Challenge Corporation already has linked a renewal of its compact with Tanzania to steps by the government to combat corruption. It should go further and make future aid conditional on the dropping of laws stifling free expression. The World Bank should do so as well.
Secretary of State John F. Kerry recently called Tanzania a "model in the region of good governance, democratic ideals and individual freedoms" - praise that's impossible to square with the information crackdown. The Obama administration does democracy in Tanzania - or in Africa - no favor by continuing to ignore the country's backslide on freedoms.
SOURCE: Tanzania's troubling moves against freedom - The Washington Post
My Take:
....What the Washington post Editors are not aware is that the said draconian bills (laws) have already been signed/passed by the TZ president.
This is according to the information given to MPs by the Speaker on Friday (15th/ May/2015)....This is a very sad thing about status quo in TZ indeed....
Take Tanzania, for example. Ranked as "partly free" by Freedom House in its annual report on press freedom, the country is part of the U.S.-led Open Government Partnership , a coalition of 65 governments and numerous civil society organizations committed to transparency. But the government of President Jakaya Kikwete is on the verge of adopting some of the region's most draconian information laws, which were passed quickly through parliament in March and now await Mr. Kikwete's signature.
One, a cybercrime bill, would criminalize the publication of information that the government deems to be "misleading, deceptive or false," with a penalty of up to six months in prison. Another would criminalize the "distortion of facts" by the publication of statistics not authorized by the National Bureau of Statistics; offenders could be sentenced to at least a year in prison. If signed by Mr. Kikwete, these strictures would stifle informed policy debates ahead of the country's elections in October.
This is not the first time that Tanzania has used legal means to squelch the press. Earlier this year, the East African newspaper was banned in Tanzania after 20 years of operation after it published a cartoon lampooning Mr. Kikwete. The government claimed that the paper violated a 1976 newspaper registration law, which has been used to shutter media houses with which the government disagrees. At least 17 laws are on the books that hamper the media's ability to report freely in Tanzania.
Tanzania has long been held up in the region as a U.S. partner in open governance, rule of law and transparency. In 2008, the U.S. Millennium Challenge Corporation awarded the country the largest grant in the program's history, nearly $700 million. The World Bank is proposing to loan Tanzania $100 million for an open government program. What's more, Tanzania is set to host the second Africa regional meeting of the Open Government Partnership from May 19 to May 21, under the theme "Enhancing Accountability through Open Governance." But a country that is on the verge of criminalizing data dissemination and is shutting down newspapers to stifle criticism can hardly be called a leader in open governance.
The Millennium Challenge Corporation already has linked a renewal of its compact with Tanzania to steps by the government to combat corruption. It should go further and make future aid conditional on the dropping of laws stifling free expression. The World Bank should do so as well.
Secretary of State John F. Kerry recently called Tanzania a "model in the region of good governance, democratic ideals and individual freedoms" - praise that's impossible to square with the information crackdown. The Obama administration does democracy in Tanzania - or in Africa - no favor by continuing to ignore the country's backslide on freedoms.
SOURCE: Tanzania's troubling moves against freedom - The Washington Post
My Take:
....What the Washington post Editors are not aware is that the said draconian bills (laws) have already been signed/passed by the TZ president.
This is according to the information given to MPs by the Speaker on Friday (15th/ May/2015)....This is a very sad thing about status quo in TZ indeed....
