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The Committee for the Protection of Journalists today called on the Tanzanian government to provide a detailed public account of the fate of independent journalist Azory Gwanda after the country's foreign minister, Palamagamba Kabudi, said in an interview that the journalist was dead.
In an interview with the BBC's "Focus on Africa" program, Kabudi stated that Gwanda had "disappeared and died" in the Rufiji area in the east of the country, and that the government had "been able to contain this type of "extremism" in the region. .
Gwanda disappeared on November 21, 2017, after investigating murders and mysterious disappearances in his community, and the Tanzanian government never opened any investigations promised on his case, according to CPJ research.
"For a year and a half, Azory Gwanda's family and the Tanzanian media have begged the government to explain what happened to their loved one and to their colleague," said CPJ's deputy executive director, Robert Mahoney from New York. "Suddenly, the Minister of Foreign Affairs said, almost by the way, that the journalist was apparently dead, it is totally inadequate and painful, and the government must immediately publicly disclose all the information it has on the issue. fate of Gwanda. "
Kabudi told the BBC that the Tanzanian government was not "proud" of the disappearances and killings in Rufiji, which also reportedly claimed the lives of police officers and ruling party officials, and that the government take steps to ensure that citizens and journalists are safe.
However, CPJ research shows that impunity in the death or disappearance of journalists contributes to creating an environment conducive to violence against journalists.
CPJ 's phone calls today to Kabudi and Tanzanian government spokesman Hbadan Abbbadi remained unanswered.
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