Tanzania’s President Samia Suluhu Hassan
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Tanzania suspended the online operations of a leading newspaper on Thursday (October 3, 2024) after it released cartoons featuring the president and referencing recent abductions and killings of dissidents.

One of the animated videos released online earlier this week by The Citizen showed President Samia Suluhu Hassan watching news broadcasts of dissidents and victims of state repression.

Ms. Hassan has faced mounting domestic and international criticism over allegations that the security forces are behind the kidnapping and murder of opposition figures.

Her government has banned two major rallies by the opposition Chadema party since August, briefly detaining its leaders.

The Citizen, one of the most influential English-language papers, issued a statement on Wednesday saying its online publications had been suspended for 30 days.

The ruling came from the Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority, which described the clips as presenting “negative interpretations for the nation, something that affects and undermines national unity, peace and cohesion”.

The paper had already removed the animations, saying in a separate statement that it did so because of “the misinterpretation it has generated”.

Ms. Hassan took power after the sudden death of her authoritarian predecessor John Magufuli in 2021. She was initially feted for removing restrictions on opposition rallies and the media.

But rights groups and Western governments, including the United States, have criticised what they see as renewed repression ahead of local elections in November and a general election in late 2025.

One of the people featured in the animated videos was the father of artist Shadrack Chaula who was sentenced to two years in July after burning Ms. Hassan’s picture.

The father is heard saying “dead or alive… I want to see my child”, while Hassan watches from the sofa.