Tanzanian immigration authorities detained CPJ Sub-Saharan Africa
Representative Muthoki Mumo, left, and Africa Program Coordinator Angela
Quintal in Dar es Salaam on November 7. PHOTO | CPJ
Following the dramatic arrest and interrogation by Tanzanian
authorities, Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) Africa coordinator
Angela Quintal recounted the nasty experience she went through with her
colleague Kenya’s Muthoki Mumo in Dar es Salaam.
The
two were detained on November 7 and interrogated for several hours as
the Tanzanian authorities searched their electronic devices, seized
their passports and accused them of being in the country illegally,
which the pair say is a false claim.
Ms Quintal, in an op-ed published in South Africa’s Daily Maverick, recounted their ordeal that led to global condemnation and their subsequent release.
Contrary
to Tanzanian authorities’ assertion, Ms Quintal says they had a letter
of invitation from the Media Council of Tanzania and had double checked
the visa requirements.
The pair stayed in a hotel near
Tanzania’s State House that is frequented by cabinet ministers,
government officials and business people, and that is where they held
several of their meetings and spotted intelligence agents lurking in the
shadows.
Many of the interviews revealed the extent of
the attacks on the Tanzanian press and government repression that
manifested itself in anti-press laws that the government uses to
prosecute those who insult the president and the stifling of bloggers
with hefty and unaffordable registration fees.
“Many spoke about last year’s 21 November disappearance of freelance journalist Azory Gwanda,
who was investigating extrajudicial killings in Kibiti. Gwanda has not
been heard from since. Many journalists were frightened that they would
suffer the same fate. Fear and self-censorship became a constant
refrain,” says Quintal in the article.
BETRAYAL ACCUSATION
A
week into their visit, Ms Quintal says they were bundled into a minivan
with several security agents and then driven aimlessly around Dar to
disorient them.
The vehicle had its rear and side
curtains closed. They were later taken to a house they said was in a
suburb since they recognised a sign of the new offices of Tanzania Human
Rights Defenders Coalition.
“We drove down a dirt road
and entered the premises of what appeared to be a safe house, through a
large gate. Several men in plain clothes stood in the front yard. At
least one appeared to be armed with a rifle. Their animosity was
palpable. We were ordered out of the vehicle into the house and taken
upstairs for interrogation. The men specifically targeted Muthoki,
because she was a young black female and Kenyan to boot,” says Ms
Quintal.
Ms Quintal says Ms Mumo was questioned in
Swahili, accused of betraying black people and asked whether I was
really a South African. They tried to separate us, but failed.
HOSTILE INTERROGATION
The
intelligence officers forced them to share their passwords so that they
could access their devices and content but Ms Mumo had wiped off data
on her mobile phone in line with CPJ's protocol.
The
officers claimed they used Israeli technology and could retrieve their
data but CPJ ensured her social media accounts were disabled after a
tweet was sent by the Tanzanian authorities.
“We were
alone at the mercy of a posse of men, some of whom were very abusive and
hostile. The only woman agent had long gone home. We were taken back
downstairs into a shabby sitting room and asked gendered questions. An
intelligence agent was particularly abusive towards Muthoki. He even
slapped and shoved her.”
Ms Quintal says she feared Ms
Mumo would be sexually assaulted but her interrogator suddenly left the
room and she was unharmed.
She says they remained calm
outwardly during the aggressive encounter to avoid antagonising the
men, instead used jokes and discusses regional and liberation politics
with some of them.
The superior officer, who identified
himself as Yusuf Mohamed, reappeared after a long absence. Ms Quintal
says he was very hostile to Ms Mumo when he interrogated her but luckily
left the room after receiving a phone call.
Mr Mohamed addressed Ms Quintal directly: “I did not know you were the Africa programme co-ordinator. You are so clever.”
It was then that he announced that they were free to go back to their hotel.
Ms
Quintal says her Facebook SOS and tweet about the impeding arrest
contributed to their release. She also credited CPJ’s statement as well
as efforts by diplomats.
Kenyan and South African diplomats later joined the pair at the hotel following their released.
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