|
Media, activists condemn police raid on newspaper office
2008-07-23 10:10:09
By Hannah Mwandoloma
Media stakeholders and human rights activists have roundly condemned the recent raid by police on MwanaHalisi newspaper offices in Dar es Salaam.
Speaking during an Editors Forum in Dar es Salaam yesterday, the stakeholders expressed grave disappointment over the police action, saying that the Minister for Home Affairs Lawrence Masha owed journalists an apology for what had happened.
Editors Forum Chairperson Sakina Datoo said the incidents were shocking. ``Something is wrong somewhere. Why are such incidents only occurring to Kubenea?``
Datoo said journalists had millions of ways to get information and the people had the right to information.
She said even if the newspaper`s managing editor, Saed Kubenea, had indeed committed a crime, there was no need for police officers to storm his office and home the way they did.
``We have all heard of grand corruption suspects who are facing serious allegations in relation to the EPA Account, but the police have not moved to storm the home of a single such suspect. This is a serious case on media freedom in our country. Today it is MwanaHalisi, tomorrow is someone else,`` Datoo said.
Pili Mtambalike, reading a statement of the Media Council of Tanzania (MCT), said the council had received the news with disappointment.
She said MCT was not satisfied with explanations given by the police regarding the issue.
``We take this as a deliberate way of silencing the media. MCT will not allow this,`` she said.
``First of all, what Kubenea is alleged to have done is not a criminal offence. Secondly, no case has been filed against Kubenea or MwanaHalisi in relation to the search warrant issued by the court, and lastly there is some suspicion over the search warrant itself,`` added Mtambalike.
Media Owners Association of Tanzania (MOAT) executive secretary Henry Muhanika said they were not pleased with the police action and the MOAT executive committee would meet to discuss the issue.
``Attacks like these have been happening in other countries. Tanzania has been observing such incidents as a nation that has freedom of press but now the nasty events are occurring at this end, `` he said.
Tanzania Journalist Association (TAJA) representative, Hamza Kondo, praised Kubenea for a job well-done, saying what had transpired revealed the commitment he had in investigative journalism.
Usu Mallya, who spoke on behalf of members of Feminist Coalition of Tanzania (FemAct), said they condemned the police action. She said it was improper for any organ to seize the voice of the media.
Mallya said the government should respect the media personnel or any other institution that fought corruption so as to make sure that the same government attained its goals.
MISA Tanzania chairman Ayoub Ryoba said what had happened had brought shame to the country, known for its democracy, especially in the media sector.
Ryoba referred to police action as the misuse of security organs, saying it was not fair to raid the offices.
A lawyer from the Legal and Human Rights Centre (LHRC), Leonard Elias, said the constitution stated clearly that every citizen had the right to information. He said the police had acted in breach of the law.
Ellias said under anti-corruption law, whistle blowers were protected and it was wrong for anybody to expose them. He called on security organs to stop harassing journalists as they were doing a good job to the wananchi.
Kubenea said he wanted the Director of Criminal Investigations Robert Manumba to come out and name the person whose NBC bank account had been published by MwanaHalisi.
He said the DCI was wrong to publicise the name of an NBC employee who allegedly leaked confidential information to him. Kubenea said the action could destroy the future of that person because his employer could act on unsubstantiated information that was not proved in a court of law.
In January, Kubenea and Mwanahalisi Consulting Editor Ndimara Tegambwage were attacked by a group of people who splashed acid on them and slashed them with machetes.
|
