Tanzanian police stand guard outside a vote counting center at a school in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, on October 28, 2015. On August 16, 2018, CPJ joined a call for the UN Human Rights Council to address a crackdown on free expression and other rights in Tanzania. (AP Photo/Khalfan Said)
Tanzanian police stand guard outside a vote counting center at a school in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, on October 28, 2015. On August 16, 2018, CPJ joined a call for the UN Human Rights Council to address a crackdown on free expression and other rights in Tanzania. (AP Photo/Khalfan Said)

CPJ joins call for UN Human Rights Council to address crackdown in Tanzania

The Committee to Protect Journalists and 29 other civil society groups yesterday wrote to the member and observer states of the United Nations Human Rights Council urging them to address the deteriorating situation for human rights, including freedom of the press, in Tanzania during the upcoming 39th session of the council in September.

Since 2015, journalists and bloggers in Tanzania, as well as human rights defenders and members of the political opposition, have been targeted with draconian legislation and both legal and extra-legal measures by the government. Under these conditions, freedoms of expression, peaceful assembly, and association have been deeply eroded.

The letter can be read here.