TAMWA ZANZIBAR yakemea udhalilishaji wa watoto kupitia mitandao ya kijamii.

TAARIFA KWA VYOMBO VYA HABARI:

TAMWA ZANZIBAR yakemea udhalilishaji wa watoto kupitia mitandao ya kijamii.

CHAMA cha Waandishi wa Habari Wanawake Tanzania Zanzibar (TAMWA –ZNZ) kinaiasa jamii kujizuia kurikodi watoto wadogo na kuwaweka katika mitandao baada ya kufanyiwa vitendo vya udhalilishaji kwani kufanya hivyo ni kuwadhalilisha zaidi.

Kufuatia kuenea kwa simu janja/mtetemo kumeibuka watu ambao wanarikodi watoto na kusambaza taarifa zao kupitia picha, sauti na video kinyume na taratibu na maadili ya uandishi wa habari.

Tunaamini kwamba watu hawa wana nia njema ya kutaka haki itendeke na kuwatia ujasiri zaidi watoto lakini tunashauri wasifanye kazi hiyo na badala yake wawaaachie waandishi wa habari ambao wamesomea kazi hiyo na hivyo wanajua kuficha utambulisho wa watoto hao.

Watoto wana haki ya kulindwa dhidi ya vitendo vyote vya udhalilishaji, vitisho vya usalama wao na unyanyasaji wa mtandaoni, sambamba na kulinda taarifa zao binafsi.

Sheria ya Mtoto Na. 6, 2011 kifungu cha 33 (1) kinakataza mtu yoyote kutoa taarifa au kuchapisha picha ambayo itapelekea kumtambulisha mtoto aliyeathirika bila ya amri ya Mahakama.

Tunaiomba pia Serikali kwa kushirikiana na wadau kuandaa mkakati imara utakaosaidia kutoa elimu hii kwa wana jamii ili kuzuia vitendo hivi vya kurikodi na kusambaza taarifa za watoto.

Kwa mujibu wa uhakiki wa habari uliofanywa na TAMWA Zanzibar hivi karibuni ni kuwa waandishi wa habari wanaelewa umuhimu wa kumlinda mtoto dhidi ya mitandao na kwamba habari zao huficha taarifa za wahanga,  hivyo video zinazofichua taarifa za watoto huwa mara nyingi zinatoka kwa watu wasio na taaluma ya uandishi wa habari.

Tukio la hivi karibuni linahusisha mtoto mdogo anayedaiwa kubakwa na baba yake mlezi ambaye bado hajatiwa hatiani na vyombo vya sheria na hivyo TAMWA,ZNZ inaiomba Serikali na vyombo husika kutoa adhabu kali kwa mshtakiwa pindi ikibainika ukweli wake ili iwe ni funzo kwa wazee wengine wenye tabia kama hizo.

Watoto wamekuwa ni wahanga wakubwa wa kufanyiwa vitendo vya udhalilishaji ambavyo vinawaathiri kimwili, kisaikolojia na hata katika maendeleo yao kwa ujumla na malalamiko yapo kwenye utoaji wa hukumu bado ni mdogo. Kwa mujibu wa taarifa ya Mtakwimu Mkuu wa Serikali matukio 1360 ya udhalilishaji yaliripotiwa mwaka 2022 na kwamba ni matukio 181 tu sawa na asilimia 13 ndiyo yaliyotiwa hatiani

Dkt. Mzuri Issa,

Mkurugenzi,
TAMWA ZNZ.

 

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23 November, 2023.

PRESS RELEASE:

TAMWA ZNZ Calls for a halt of Abuse of Children through Social Media.

Tanzania Media Women’s Association, Zanzibar (TAMWA – ZNZ) urges the community to refrain from recording children and posting on the social media networks after they have been subjected to humiliating acts. By doing so, is to aggravate the problem and is humiliating them even more.

Following the spread of smartphones there have been people who record children and distribute their information through pictures, audio and video contrary to the procedures and ethics of journalism.

TAMWA, ZNZ believes that these people may have good intentions seeking justice to the children but strongly advises them not to do that work and instead leave it to journalists who have studied the work and thus know how to hide the identity of the children.

Children have the right to be protected from all forms of abuse, threats to their safety and cyberbullying, as well as to protect their personal information. 

According to the Children’s Act Na. 6, 2011 section 33 (1), no person shall publish any information or a photograph that may lead to the identification of an abused child except with the permission of the court. 

Similarly, TAMWA Zanzibar requests the government in collaboration with stakeholders to prepare a strategy that will help provide awareness to the community to prevent these acts of recording and distributing children’s information.

In a recent study conducted by TAMWA Zanzibar, it was found that most journalists understand the importance of protecting children from social media and their news by veiling their identities. Therefore, videos that reveal and expose children’s information are often from non-professional journalists. 

The recent trending incident via social media networks involves a child who is alleged to have been abused by a guardian father who has not yet been convicted by law enforcement agencies, therefore, TAMWA ZNZ calls for the government and relevant agencies to administer severe punishment to the suspects when the truth is revealed so that it will be a lesson for others. 

Children have been the main victims of sexual abuse and legal remedies still remain an uphill task thus affecting them both physically, and psychologically.  According to the Chief Government Statistician, 1360 incidents of humiliation were reported in 2022, and only 181 incidents, equal to 13 %, got convictions.

Dr. Mzuri Issa,

Director,
TAMWA ZNZ.