Tanzania slammed for ‘misguided’ arrest of pregnant schoolgirls

DAR ES SALAAM/NAIROBI - Campaigners on Wednesday condemned authorities in Tanzania for arresting five schoolgirls for being pregnant, saying they should have arrested the men who impregnated them instead.

The girls - aged between 16 and 19 were arrested by police in the southeastern town of Tandahimba over the weekend. They have been released on bail and are currently with their parents.

“Prosecuting girls who are victims of sexual exploitation and violence, whilst allowing adult perpetrators to go free, sends out the wrong message,” said Christa Stewart, a lawyer with the charity Equality Now.

“In a misguided attempt to prove that they take sexual violence seriously, the Tanzanian government is infringing on the human rights of adolescent girls and this is unacceptable. Arresting victims is never the solution.”

President John Magufuli caused an outcry among campaigners in June when he voiced support for a ban on pregnant girls and teenage mothers in state schools, which dates back to 1961, describing their behaviour as “immoral.”

The New York-based Centre for Reproductive Rights said the arrests were “unacceptable” and called for the men to be arrested, while Sabrina Mahtani of the rights group Amnesty International said the arrests were illegal.

Tanzania has one of the highest adolescent pregnancy rates in the world, with widespread sexual violence and many girls exchanging sex for school fees, food and shelter, says the United Nations.–