WhatsApp group turns humiliation group

Our landlord created a WhatsApp group for general updates, such as water outages, repairs and pest control schedules. At first, it was helpful. But lately, it’s taken a weird turn. He started posting passive-aggressive messages about tenants who come home late, make noise, or haven’t paid their utility bills. He even shared screenshots from the building’s CCTV footage showing people entering after midnight, sometimes accompanied by their girlfriends and boyfriends. He once tagged someone saying, ‘Still waiting on your majesty to pay the water bill.’ The other day, he showed footage of my neighbour and his girlfriend entering the premises and captioned it, ‘If you could not sleep last night due to the noise, these are the culprits.’ Worse, the people are afraid to speak up or even leave the group. It feels like surveillance and public shaming. Is this legal? What are our rights? Please guide me.
RK, Dar es Salaam

As a tenant, you are entitled to a reasonable expectation of privacy and dignity within your living arrangement. While landlords may create group communication channels, such as on WhatsApp, for the purpose of disseminating general information, like maintenance schedules or emergency notices, using these platforms to publicly shame or single out tenants for personal matters is highly inappropriate and constitutes a violation of your rights.

In many jurisdictions, tenants are protected under laws that guarantee the ‘quiet enjoyment’ of their premises, which includes freedom from undue interference, intimidation, or humiliation by the landlord. In Tanzania, the right of quiet enjoyment is also provided under section 92(1) (a) of the Land Act, which provides that there shall be implied in every lease convenants by the lessor with the lessee binding the lessor-that, so long as the lessee pays the rent and observes and performs the covenants and conditions contained or implied in the lease and on his part to be observed and performed, the lessee shall peaceably and quietly possess and enjoy the land leased during the term of the lease without any lawful interruption from or by the lessor or any person rightfully claiming through him. This section establishes an implied covenant of quiet enjoyment. In essence, it means that as long as you, the lessee, are fulfilling your obligations, such as paying rent and complying with the terms of your lease, you are legally entitled to occupy and enjoy the premises without interference from the landlord or anyone acting on their behalf. Now, applying this to your situation, the landlord’s behaviour may amount to unlawful interruption of your quiet enjoyment. Even though the landlord is not physically entering your space, the psychological pressure, embarrassment, and surveillance tactics can be interpreted as a form of interference, especially if they create a hostile living environment.

Furthermore, sharing personal information from CCTV screenshots without consent is a breach of privacy laws and personal data protection. Under the Personal Data Protection Act, Cap. 44 R.E. 2023, surveillance footage qualifies as personal data when it can identify or relate to an individual. This means that landlords who install CCTV systems must do so in a lawful, fair, and transparent manner. They must inform tenants of the presence of surveillance equipment, its purpose, and how the footage will be used. Surveillance is typically justified for security purposes, rather than for behavioural policing or public shaming. Thus, using surveillance footage to monitor tenant behaviour and social interactions, and then sharing that footage in public forums like WhatsApp groups, constitutes a clear violation of the purpose of the CCTV and thus a breach of the purpose limitation principle under section 25 of the Act. Of recent there has been a decision where the complainant was awarded general damages for near similar conduct.

We advise that you formally notify the landlord that their actions are infringing on your rights. If the behaviour persists, you can escalate the matter further. Consult your lawyer for further guidance.