Canterbury Kent UK

Ambassador Lennarth HJELMKER Embassy of Sweden, P.O. Box 9274 Dar es Salaam Tanzania 8th May 2013

OPEN LETTER

Dear Ambassador Hjelmaker, I refer to your statement issued in respect of the $US 500 million to be given in direct budget support (DBS) to the Government of Tanzania from the Development Partners Group (DPG). One of those partners is the government of the United Kingdom, my government. The aid is given to provide support to strengthen the capacity of the government of Tanzania to deliver results and improve the lives of Tanzanians by reducing poverty and inequality. You state the release of the funds depends on the governments performance and the results delivered through the implementation of national policies and development plans. The same old rhetoric continues to be trumpeted by the Tanzanian government in respect of the DPG budget support. In 2010 Prime Minister Mizengo Pinda told the DPG that his government pledged to continue to respect human rights, the independence of the Judiciary, the rule of law and good governance in Tanzania. All the evidence suggests Tanzania is not delivering results. The International Finance Corporations Ease of Doing Business Index shows Tanzania is traveling down the scale as opposed to travelling up. Importantly, the USA 2012 Department of State Report on Tanzania Human Rights Practices state the three most widespread and systemic human rights problems in the country were excessive use of force by security forces resulting in deaths and injuries, restrictions on political expression, and lack of access to justice as well as a related continuation of mob violence. Despite this evidence (which is supported by Tanzanias own research body the Legal and Human Rights Centre) the DPG keeps on giving unconditional DBS to the government of Tanzania. The aid is, as a result, undermining the potential for sustainable development in Tanzania and is pointless on anything other than a discreet level.

I refer you yet again to the Silverdale Farm issue. The corruption involved in this case illuminates corruption at the highest levels in Tanzania and the Tanzanian governments failure to uphold the rule of law. By this failure, it has condoned the wanton destruction and theft of lawful foreign direct investment in the agricultural sector (a sector supported by the DPG) capable of providing sustainable development in Tanzania. The DPG has made no public statement on the horrific legal abuse associated with this issue. Such an omission must therefore condone the abuse. I ask you to consider how the DPG can justify providing vast amounts of money in direct budget support to the Tanzanian government when it continues to disrespect the human rights of its citizens and foreign investors and offers no more than a rhetorical commitment to principles of good governance which you state, is a pre-requisite of the money it receives from the DPG. Whilst I stress the Silverdale issue is not about individuals, I refer you to the recent Libel case that Reginald Mengi brought against me in the UK of which I am sure you are aware. The ruling of the court in this case (which I successfully defended) was that Reginald Mengi was complicit in the corruption of his brother Benjamin in creating an environment of abuse which allowed our property to be unlawfully taken from us. He was found to have lied to the court and to operate a favourable media policy in favour of Kikwete and his own family. Despite the above case and the public condemnation the DPG makes in respect of corruption, you paid a personal courtesy visit to Reginald Mengi recently in Dar es Salaam. Reginald Mengi told you that unethical journalism cannot be separated from unethical leadership and that If you want to address unethical journalism one must also address unethical behaviours perpetrated by some leaders who want to get power by deceiving journalists. May I suggest, that if the DPG is serious about addressing corruption in Tanzania then such a courtesy visit does nothing more than show support for the very corruption it seeks with tax payers money to condemn. If the DPG wishes to address unethical behaviour in journalism then it needs to address the corrupt behaviour of powerful media owners. On this level alone, your courtesy visit was indefensible. President Kikwete has also remained silent on this particular issue of corruption and has failed to address the vicious attacks on Tanzanian journalist Erick Kabendera who bravely gave evidence in this trail. This seeks to highlight the fact, that if the DPG does not condemn the abuse of their own citizens, it necessarily condones the abuse of the citizens of Tanzania. This respectfully is an indefensible position and undermines the ethical integrity of the DPG as a whole and what it actually seeks to secure in return for its DBS to Tanzania. Yours sincerely, Sarah Hermitage.