Human rights body decries massive corruption

A Tanzanian human rights body has expressed concern over the high level of corruption in the country, which it said was continuing unabated and was curtailing people's human rights. However, in its 2003 report released on Tuesday, the Legal and Human Rights Centre said there had been some steps taken to tackle the vice, notably in the strengthening of the Prevention of Corruption Bureau and the prosecution of some government officials, but that this was merely "scratching the surface". "The government it still trying to do something, but it is still a massive problem on the ground," Helen Kijo-Bisimba, the centre's executive director said. "Just five percent of corruption cases reported to the regional offices over the last five years have actually been sent to court." She added: "We have begun the dialogue, which is good. But people are saying, 'Yes, it is a bad thing, but there is nothing we can do about it'." She said that while people talked about the term "petty corruption", these bribes that ordinary Tanzanians had to pay were what "really have an impact on people", terming them abuses of power that curtail people's rights. The government has so far declined to comment, saying that it has not yet seen the report. Amnesty International and the US State Department also produce annual human rights reports on the country, but the centre is the only Tanzanian organisation that is compiling information on abuses.