· ALERT Date: December 03, 2005 Persons/Institutions: Tanzania Daima, Amani, Violation: Censored The government of the United Republic of Tanzania has suspended the opposition-aligned Kiswahili newspaper “Tanzania Daima” for three days for publishing a picture deemed offensive to President Benjamin Mkapa. The government claims the photograph and its caption were misleading and intended to belittle, defame and create public disaffection against the president and his government. A government statement released by the Prime Minister’s Office on 2 December 2005 said the penalty was imposed under section 25 (1) of the Newspaper Act No. 3 of 1976. It said the penalty would serve as a lesson to other media institutions. In addition, the weekly entertainment newspaper, “Amani”, has been suspended for 28 days on the grounds of ethical violations. The suspensions of both publications came into effect on December 3, 2005. Tanzania’s Newspapers Act, 1976 regulates the operation of newspapers in the country. The Act has a number of cumbersome and restrictive provisions that seriously impinge upon media freedom. In fact, the Act retains most of the oppressive aspects of the Newspapers Ordinance legislated during the colonial days to subjugate the colonised people. The Act gives the Minister of Information wide discretionary powers to ban or close down newspapers. The minister may prohibit publication of any newspaper “in the public interest” or “in the interest of peace and good order”. Furthermore, the Newspapers Act also provides for the offence of sedition. The Act defines an act, speech or publication as seditious if it aims to bring lawful authority into hatred or contempt, or excites disaffection against the same, or promotes feelings of ill-will and hostility between different categories of the population. Anyone printing or publishing a newspaper which contravenes these provisions is liable to a fine or a prison sentence of up to three years, or both. · ALERT (including updates) Date: September 10, 2005 Persons/Institutions: Mpoki Bukuku, Christopher Kidanka, innocent civilians Violation: Beaten On September 10 2005, Mpoki Bukuku, chief photographer for the “Sunday Citizen” newspaper, and Christopher Kidanka, information officer for the Legal and Human Rights Centre (LHC), were brutally beaten by a group of prison guards in Ukonga, in the Tanzanian capital Dar es Salaam. The prison guards also brutalised innocent civilians and severely injured some of them. Bukuku and other journalists were at the scene to cover the eviction of ten families from houses formerly owned by Air Tanzania Corporation (ATC) near Ukonga Remand Prison. The families have occupied the houses for over 20 years and are currently involved in a legal battle with the Prisons Department over ownership of the homes. According to media reports, the case was brought to court on September 6 and adjourned to a later date. Journalists and photographers were ordered not to cover the event, but defied the order. * September 12, 2005: Home Affairs Minister Omar Ramadhan Mapuri declares the warders’ conduct “lawful”. * September 13, 2005: Dar es salaam Regional Commissioner Yusuf Makamba has labelled the incident illegal and a serious violation of human rights. He announced that he had ordered the immediate arrest of all those involved and would likely institute charges against them. * September 16, 2005: The Tanzania police force has formed a six-person committee to invesSo This Is Democracy? 2005 -124- Media Institute of Southern Africa