DETAINED TANZANIA INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALIST'S MOTHER DIES

Verdiana Mjwahuzi died on Tuesday at Amana
Hospital in the capital city of Dar es Salaam

Dar es Salaam, TANZANIA

The mother of imprisoned Tanzanian investigative journalist, Erick Kabendera, has died at the age of 80, the family has confirmed.

Verdiana Mjwahuzi died on Tuesday at Amana Hospital in the capital city of Dar es Salaam, where she has been receiving treatment.

Two weeks ago, Mjwahuzi pleaded with the Tanzania President John Magufuli to pardon her son; who according to her, was her caretaker.

Kabendera, an international correspondent journalist was initially arrested in late July 2019 after police claimed his citizenship was in question.

They later changed tack and charged him with economic crimes including money laundering and tax evasion—accusations for which he cannot qualify for bail.

FILE: Erick Kabendera being escorted to a
Kisutu court-room in Dar es Salaam

The case has so far been adjourned six times, with Kabendera appearing in court limping on Sept. 12 amid reports that his health is deteriorating.

The detention of Kabendera is the latest in a string of years-long crackdown on the press in Tanzania under the this regime.

Popularly known as “The Bulldozer,” Magufuli strode into office in 2015 after a populist campaign promising to tackle corruption and introduce large-scale reforms.

At the time of his arrest, Kabendera’s ailing mother was living with him.