THE Children Education Society (CHESO) has issued an urgent appeal to the government to amend the Penal Code to exempt nursing women from being sentenced to death or executed.

The organization argues the move is critical to protecting the rights and welfare of both mothers and their infants. The appeal was made yesterday as Tanzania joined the rest of the world in marking the annual World Day Against the Death Penalty, commemorated every year on October 10.

In a statement released by CHESO Executive Director Richard Shilamba, the organization applauded the government for existing legal protections that already exempt pregnant women and children from death sentences, as outlined under Sections 26(1) and 26(2) of the Tanzania Penal Code (Cap 16 R.E. 2023).

"CHESO commends the government for these provisions, which show Tanzania’s commitment to human rights and the protection of vulnerable groups," Shilamba stated.The organization also recognized Tanzania's progress in ratifying the 2003 Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (the Maputo Protocol) on March 3, 2007. 

Article 4(2)(j) of this Protocol explicitly prohibits sentencing and executing nursing women.However, CHESO expressed concern that Tanzania has not yet domesticated this specific article into national law. CHESO warns that the failure to amend the Penal Code to include nursing women leaves both mothers and their infants at risk of extreme punishment.

“Sentencing and executing nursing women is tantamount to sentencing and executing both the woman and her innocent nursing child,” Shilamba emphasized.He urged the government to prioritize the amendment of Section 26 of the Penal Code to include this exemption, describing it as an urgent and moral obligation to uphold the best interests of the child.

CHESO, a local non-partisan, non-profit organization focused on empowering communities and removing policy barriers for vulnerable children, stated it will continue to advocate for legal reforms that strengthen child protection and align Tanzania’s laws with international human rights standards concerning capital punishment.