When is it OK to kiss a colleague? Two Tanzanian
police officers, whose kiss was widely shared on social
media, have prompted a discussion about just that -
and both have also lost their jobs.
A relationship with a colleague can throw up any
number of complications, but the two young police
officers in the picture may not have thought it would
end their careers. The photograph - taken in Kagera,
north west Tanzania - shows the pair kissing whilst
dressed in their work uniforms, and was considered
grounds for dismissal. Residents of the country have
taken to social media to voice their dismay.
The image was uploaded to the internet by a third
officer, who also took the photo, and drawn to the
attention of the authorities at the Kagera police force.
Henry Mwaibambe, the regional police commander,
spoke to the BBC about the steps taken, and defends
his department's decision. "We followed all disciplinary
procedures to make sure that they were given a chance
to defend themselves," he says. "The officer looking at
the case was convinced there was compelling evidence
against them, and that they had breached police code
of conduct. That's why they lost their jobs." In this
case it wasn't the kiss itself that led to their dismissal,
but the fact that that it happened in public, whilst in
uniform, and was subsequently posted online. Indeed,
the officer behind the camera also lost his job over the
incident.
The story was picked up by the local press last week,
and news of the punishment has surprised many on
social media. Most believed the response was
disproportionate. "They should have been reprimanded,
sacking them is extreme, huuh!" posted one on
Facebook . "I once saw a pic of former US President the
late Reagan kissing his wife in the Oval Office... and
nobody called for his impeachment," said another.
"Police couple kissing taken more serious than bribery,"
wrote a third on Twitter.
Masoud George, a lawyer at the Tanzania Legal and
Human Rights Center says that as severe as the
punishment seems, the decision is unlikely to be illegal.
"It is according to their code of conduct, so from a
legal point of view we can't say their dismissal was
unfair," he tells the BBC.
Source: bbc.com/trending
