According to industry reports, the Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA) has suspended Mwananchi Communications Ltd.’s online content licences for 30 days. The TCRA says the company published content on Oct. 1 that damaged the country’s image.
“Mwananchi Communication Ltd published audio-visual content on its social media platforms… that has been prohibited by … the Online Content Regulations 2020,” the regulator said.
“The content has led to negative interpretations of the nation, affecting and disrupting unity, peace and national harmony.”
One of Mwananchi’s publications, The Citizen, published on Oct. 1 an animated video on its X and Instagram platforms depicting a woman watching a TV broadcast that showed people complaining about missing or murdered relatives and friends.
In early September, the body of a senior opposition official who had been abducted from a bus by armed men was found on the outskirts of the commercial capital Dar es Salaam with signs he had been beaten, and acid poured on his face, his party said.
The Citizen later deleted the video and issued a statement saying it had been misinterpreted. The clip “depicted events that raised concerns regarding the safety and security of individuals in Tanzania.”
The country’s second-largest opposition party, ACT-Wazalendo, called the government to revoke the ban.
“The government is trying to muzzle news outlets which detail the true problems facing Tanzanians,” said Rahma Mwita, ACT-Wazalendo’s shadow minister of information.
The suspension of the company, a subsidiary of the Kenyan-based Nation Media Group, comes as Tanzania’s government faces flak over its treatment of the press.
