Tanzania: President Kikwete vows not to unban newspaper

Tanzania President, Jakaya Kikwete, has vowed not to unban the weekly newspaper, MwanaHalisi. The president said the newspaper would remain banned because his government does not condone breach of peace incited by the media.

We will not unban MwanaHalisi newspaper because inciting the army to commit treason isn’t the kind of journalism that we want,” Kikwete is quoted as saying by various Tanzanian media.

Reports say the president was responding to questions raised during the assessment report on the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) for Tanzania that was presented at the just-ended African Union Summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

In the same breath, Kikwete is reported to have affirmed his government's commitment to upholding freedoms of the press but insisted the same government would not be lenient to journalists who incite hatred and cause conflicts.

A coalition of human rights defenders, the Tanzania Human Rights Defenders Coalition (THRDC) recently called for the unbanning of MwanaHalisi. The newspaper was banned indefinitely on Monday, 30 July 2012 for allegedly publishing seditious material in three consecutive issues – July 11-17, 2012; July 18-24, 2012 and July 25-01 August 2012.

We once again insist that the government revisit its decision on the banning of MwanaHalisi and set it free immediately and without any attached conditionality,” read, in part, a statement released by the coalition and representing the views of at least 60 non-governmental organisations comprised of lawyers, journalists and social activists.