Tanzania has decided to block access to social media platform X because it allows pornographic content to be shared, the information minister has said.
Jerry Silaa told a local television station that the content went against the "laws, culture, customs, and traditions" of the East African state. After political tensions rose and the police account was hacked, Tanzanians have reported that access to X has been restricted in the last two weeks. However, the platform has not yet been completely shut down. In advance of the presidential and parliamentary elections in October, a Tanzanian rights group wrote on X that Silaa's remarks represented a "troubling pattern of digital repression."
Tanzania's President Samia Suluhu Hassan's government has been accused of becoming increasingly repressive as it campaigns to remain in office.
The Legal and Human Rights Centre (LHRC) stated in its post that the "recurrence" of restrictions raised "serious concerns about the openness of digital space" in Tanzania. At the time, X was known as Twitter, and it faced a similar shutdown in the lead-up to the 2020 election. The popular social audio app Clubhouse and messaging service Telegram are also inaccessible without the use of Virtual Private Networks (VPN), the rights group added.
It stated that it was troubling that government officials and public institutions continued to use the platform despite the minister's confirmation of the government's role in blocking X. LHRC added, "This inconsistency confuses the public and undermines the government's credibility."
Silaa made a connection between the ban and X's announcement that it would no longer block "consensually produced and distributed" adult content in his interview. The minister was quoted as saying that X has violated Tanzania's online "ethics guidelines" by "permitting explicit sexual material, including same-sex pornographic content." "Even on YouTube, you might notice that some content is inaccessible. That's part of our broader effort to protect consumers and ensure that all online platforms operating in our country comply with our laws," Silaa said.
On 20 May, internet watchdog Netblocks reported that X was unavailable in Tanzania following reports that the official police account had been hacked, showing pornographic material and falsely claiming that the president had died.
Pornographic content also appeared on the hacked YouTube account of the tax authority, AFP news agency reported.
The hacking was carried out at the same time as a government crackdown on Kenyan and Ugandan human rights activists who had traveled to Tanzania to support main opposition leader Tundu Lissu. The identity of the hacker is unknown. He has been detained on a charge of treason after he said he would spearhead a campaign to boycott the elections if the laws were not changed to allow for a free and fair poll.
Kenya's former Justice Minister Martha Karua was among those deported after arriving at the international airport in Tanzania's main city Dar es Salaam, ahead of a court appearance by Lissu.
He denies the treason charge, saying the case is political.
Boniface Mwangi, a Kenyan activist, and Agather Atuhaire, a Ugandan activist, were permitted entry, but they were held for several days. Atuhaire told the BBC after returning home that she had been blindfolded, stripped "violently," and sexually assaulted. On Monday, Mwangi said he too had been sexually abused in detention and was told by his torturers to say "asante" (thank you in the Swahili language) to their president.
The police chief of Dar es Salaam denied the allegations, calling them "opinions" and "hearsay." Amnesty International stated that Tanzanian authorities should hold accountable those responsible for the "inhumane" treatment, and regional rights groups have called for an investigation. Tanzanian activists from other East African states will not be allowed to "meddle" in the country's affairs or cause "chaos," according to President Samia.
After John Magufuli, the president at the time, died in 2021, she took over as president and was widely praised for allowing more political freedom. But her critics say she is showing the same authoritarian tendencies as Magufuli as she prepares to contest her first election as the ruling party's presidential candidate.
The government says Tanzania is a stable democracy, and the poll will be free and fair.
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