Maria Sarungi: Fear Suppresses Freedom of Information

"Fear is a demon that stifles free expression and prevents access to information." Maria Sarungi-Tsehai expressed her feelings during the Breakfast Debate organized by the Policy Forum early today at the British Council Auditorium.

Maria Sarungi is a director at Compass Communications Co., Ltd., Tanzania, and also the presenter and producer of many well-known and highly viewed shows in Tanzania since 2000. Aside from the independent production, Maria is also a communication consultant, having provided communication advice, PR management, and training to various organizations, including UN agencies, civil society organizations, and individuals.

Currently, everyone has fear. The activists, journalists, and politicians are all scared of the government. "Shall we call it a regime government?" The ministers are scared, and the president doesn't have confidence in his appointees. Where does the public's fear over oppressive laws like the Cybecrime Act come from? "Fear suppresses freedom of expression; we have to look at things from a bird's-eye view so that we can see where the fear comes from." Maria Sarungi emphasized.

She added that because of technological advancements, it is now easier to disseminate information than in the past, making it even easier to detect gossip from social networks on which actions are taken, but that doesn't mean gossip didn't exist in the past.