Last week an angry mob in Musoma rural, Mara Region burned to death five fishermen who were fishing in Lake Victoria using a pesticide known as thiodan. The lethal pesticide is used to treat cotton. Do you think the mob did justice to the offenders?

YES. I think that was the only treatment the lawbreakers deserved. Thiodan, apart from being lethal and dangerous to the health of consumers, can also contaminate parts of the Lake and make fish fillets for export sub standard. The practice also kills other species of fish, which are not even targeted and this can lead to fish depletion and the total extinction of particular species. These offenders were destroying the highly valued natural resources of the country.
Mkama Mussa – Fisherman.

NO. The villagers who burned to death the fishermen committed a very grave offence. I am perplexed to learn that the owners of the property (the vessel and the poison) are the ones who have been apprehended, while the killers are strolling free. Nobody is allowed to take the law into their own hands; the best thing to do would have been to apprehend the culprits and take them to a court of law. By taking appropriate steps, the culprits could have possibly revealed who was behind the whole operation; now that they are dead maybe the truth will never be discovered.
Faraja Mathew – Activist.

NO. Killing the fisherman was a gross abuse of human rights and the action was against the law of the country. In the first place, I wonder if the court will have enough evidence to prove beyond any reasonable doubt that the accused committed the crime. It might happen that the villagers had been looking for a loophole to frame them. It can also be difficult for the law enforcers to know if the poison used was planted or not as the accused are dead. I think the authorities should arrest the culprits immediately.
Abdallah Ramadhani – Student.

NO. The villagers should face a murder trial. They had no authority to kill the accused. It is a lame excuse given by the killers that once the culprits are taken into police custody, they are set free. What they could have done was to take them to the police, once set free they could have gone to higher authorities to object their release. Suppose they just had an old score to settle, how could it be known? The killers should be arrested at once.
Ajesia Mtambo – Sociologist.

Compiled by Timothy Kitundu.