SNAPSHOT SNAPSHOT SWAZILAND TANZANIA I n Swaziland, 2013 saw the continued criminalisation of freedom of expression. In April 2013, Swaziland Independent Publishers and The Nation magazine editor Bheki Makhubu was convicted of ‘scandalising the court’ and slapped with a hefty fine. At the time of writing this report, in 2014, Bheki has just been convicted of contempt of court, along with human rights lawyer Thulani Maseko, for writing articles criticising the Swazi judiciary. The pair were sentenced to two years in prison, without the option of a fine, in what has been labelled the harshest sentence ever passed for contempt of court in Swaziland. MISA Swaziland works tirelessly to improve the country’s media environment through activities including the following: Mobilising media and citizens to advocate for media freedom On World Press Freedom Day 2013, MISA Swaziland led a protest march of print journalists, civil society groups and activists to deliver petitions to the Ministry of Information, Communication and Technology and the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs calling for an end to media freedom violations and the repeal of 32 restrictive media laws. The protesters brought to light media freedom violations in the country and as a result, King Mswati III and Prime Minister Sibusiso Barnabas Dlamini addressed for the first time the freedom of expression issues in public. faith-based organisations, youth organisations and trade unions, participated in a two-day workshop covering media relations and media strategy. Participants were sensitized about the importance of communicating effectively to the media and packaging their messages for different media. • • MISA Swaziland, in collaboration with the Cooperation for the Development of Emerging Countries (COSPE) programme, trained 14 journalists on the SADC Guidelines on Media Coverage of Elections. As part of the Save the Children-MISA media project, MISA Swaziland trained nine journalists in a similar way for the MISA-COSPE project. The training was mostly practical and guided journalists through holding discussions with young people and capturing their voices in articles. The journalists found this method of practical learning worthwhile, and the children involved in the youth discussions were also empowered. Promoting community Broadcasting Working closely with UNESCO Windhoek Office and six communities interested in community broadcasting, MISA Swaziland launched the Swaziland Community Radio Network in July 2013. Its mandate is to lobby parliamentarians to pass a law allowing the communities to be issued with community broadcasting licenses. Building capacity and skills Launching the Media Complaints Commission MISA Swaziland conducted a number of skillbuilding activities in 2013, including: In April, the Media Complaints Commission (MCC) became operational with the appointment of the Ombudsman, Jabu Matsebula. Both owners of the national newspapers, Times of Swaziland and Swazi Observer agreed on the choice of the ombudsman and to pay the running cost of the Ombudsman Office. • 40 Supported by the American Embassy, MISA Swaziland organised a training workshop on developing a media strategy for the civil society publicists in the country. Eighteen public relations officers, drawn from political parties, T he state of media freedom in Tanzania was not looking good in early 2013 when a journalist was found dead in a forest in January and a senior editor, Absalom Kibanda, was attacked just outside his Dar-es-Salaam home in March. Kibanda subsequently lost his left eye and sustained several other injuries. 2013, however, also saw the drafting of a new Constitution for Tanzania, including two laws media stakeholders believe are necessary to improve freedom of expression in the country. The media and right to information laws have been treated separately in the new draft Constitution and this is seen as a significant step towards more media freedom and an open society. However, despite the President signing the Open Government Partnership initiative in 2011, efforts to establish an access to information law have moved at a snail’s pace, thus denying the people their constitutional right to information. MISA Tanzania, as part of a national coalition of like-minded organisations, visited Parliament in 2013 to express their concerns on a number of restrictive sections in the government’s proposed Media Services Bill. Some other activities MISA Tanzania led in 2013 to mobilise the media to advocate for media freedom and build media capacity and skills include: • A needs assessment report on Internet training for journalists and conducted training sessions in July and August. • Collaborating with the Canadian High Commission in Tanzania to run training course on The Role of Journalists in Promoting Good Governance and Accountability in July 2013. Senior Tanzanian editor loses eye in brutal assault On the evening of Tuesday 5 March 2013, Absalom Kibanda, Chairperson of the Tanzania Editors Forum and Editor-in-Chief at New Habari Corporation was attacked by unknown assailants at the gate in front of his Dar-es-Salaam home as he returned from work. Tanzanian media reported that three people wielding guns approached Kibanda saying, “kill him” and dragged him from his car before physically assaulting him and leaving him unconscious, with his left eye seriously wounded. Sources told MISA the attackers plucked out some of Kibanda’s teeth and nails and pierced his left eye with a sharp object. He suffered multiple head injuries, apparently from heavy blows. After receiving treatment in Tanzania and South Africa, Kibanda ultimately lost his left eye. The Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Dr.. Hussein Mwinyi, described the attack on the editor as “appalling” and police in Dar-es-Salaam formed a nine-person team to investigate the assault. It is believed the attack was a result of Kibanda’s work, as the attackers did not steal anything or attempt to enter his house. Kibanda had been scheduled to appear before the Kisutu Resident Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday, 6 March 2013, facing charges of sedition in relation to a feature article that appeared in former newspaper, Tanzania Daima, during the time he was Managing Editor of the paper. After the attack, proceedings were adjourned to 26 March 2013. President Kikwete visits journalist, Absalom Kibanda at hospital after he was attacked by unknown assailants. MISA Tanzania images, 2013 41