Tanzania: Intruders Ransack Home Of Journalist Sharon Sauwa – CFWIJ Calls For Police To Investigate Motive
Location: Tanzania, Dodoma
Date: April 4, 2023
Reporter Sharon Sauwa’s house broken into, property damaged, documents rifled through, nothing stolen. The Coalition For Women In Journalism calls for a thorough police investigation into the motive behind this attack.
On Saturday, April 1, journalist Sharon Sauwa returned to her home in Dodoma to find her house in disarray. Two doors were damaged, four window panes shattered, and her documents were scattered across the floor.
“I was even afraid of entering my own house,” said Sauwa.
The back door of journalist Sharon Sauwa’s house following the burglary. PHOTO | THE CITIZEN
Intruders also switched on Sauwa’s electric devices. They plugged in her iron and left it on a bed beside two pieces of timber and curtains.
Sauwa realized after entering her home that nothing had been stolen. “This tells me that they were on a mission in search of some documents,” she said.
Sharon Sauwa is a journalist with Mwananchi Communications Limited (MCL), which includes the daily Swahili paper Mwananchi and the English language paper The Citizen.
Although police have not determined whether the break-in is related to her work, Managing Editor at The Citizen newspaper Mpoki Thomson told CFWIJ this “case is alarming.”
“The safety of our journalists is a top priority,” said Thomson, adding they train their journalists in taking adequate safety precautions, “particularly during coverage of stories considered to have a higher risk threshold or during election coverage.”
Thomson says he and his colleagues at Mwananchi Communication are working closely with authorities.
Media landscape in Tanzania
Media outlets in Tanzania criticizing authorities often face possible suspension, and journalists risk arrest. In 2021 a cartoonist was detained following a drawing critical of the president. Investigative reporter Erick Kabendera spent seven months in jail after reporting on government corruption in 2019.
“Unfortunately, we have witnessed in the past an instance where an investigative journalist went missing five years ago and has yet to be found,” said Thomson. Freelance journalist Azory Gwanda went missing in 2017 while investigating mysterious killings in his community in rural Tanzania. According to CPJ, the government has failed to conduct a credible investigation into his case.
The damage to Sharon Sauwa’s property and the arson attempt is alarming. Evidence shows that intruders were searching for documents and intended to intimidate her. The Coalition For Women In Journalism calls on Tanzanian police to thoroughly investigate the motive behind this break-in.
The Coalition For Women In Journalism is a global organization of support for women journalists. The CFWIJ pioneered mentorship for mid-career women journalists across several countries around the world and is the first organization to focus on the status of free press for women journalists. We thoroughly document cases of any form of abuse against women in any part of the globe. Our system of individuals and organizations brings together the experience and mentorship necessary to help female career journalists navigate the industry. Our goal is to help develop a strong mechanism where women journalists can work safely and thrive.
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