Tanzanian government has suspended The Citizen newspaper for seven days.
The government accused the privately-owned local daily of publishing false news in a story on depreciation of the shilling against the dollar on February 23.
Business Daily notes that according to the registrar of newspapers, Mr. Patrick Kipangula, the paper “deliberately published misleading information that the value of the Tanzanian shilling has declined compared to three years ago without following the due procedure and financial standards set by the Bank of Tanzania .”
Mr. Kipangula said the decision to suspend the license temporarily follows the printing of a number of misleading articles that largely violate media ethics and incite citizens against the government.
The letter by the registrar was addressed to the Managing Editor of Mwananchi Communications Limited, which owns The Citizen.
The government has, since 2015, closed several critical newspapers and imposed new restrictive laws on freedom of expression.