Journalist Erick Kabendera has been freed after spending eight months behind bars.
The journalist on Monday pleaded guilty to tax evasion and money laundering charges after reaching an agreement with the state.
He will now be required to pay a Tsh100 million fine for money laundering and a Tsh172 million fine for tax evasion.
The tax evasion fine will be paid in six months.
He has also been ordered to pay a Tsh250,000 fine failure to which he would have been sentenced to six months in jail.
Read: Eric Kabendera To Remain In Custody Longer As Court Sets Bail Hearing For Next Week
Several states including the United States, United Kingdom, and Canada and human rights groups condemned the irregular arrest, detention, and indictment of Kabendera by Tanzanian authorities.
Just like Kabendera, Titus Magoti, a Tanzanian human rights activist working with Legal and Human Rights Center (LHRC), was arrested on December 20, 2019.
Magoti was apprehended alongside a friend, Theodory Giyan.
Read Also: Ugandan Activist Stella Nyanzi Awarded Sh1.4 Million Over Violation Of Right To Freedom Of Movement
The duo was charged with leading an organized criminal racket, possessing a computer program designed to commit an offense, and money laundering.
Since 2015, the President John Magufuli-led government has passed repressive laws, curtailed media freedom, and arrested government critics, including journalists and opposition politicians.
In a report by Reporters without Borders (RSF), the East African country dropped 25 positions in the latest World Press Freedom Index Report.
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