Tanzania’s Samia Suluhu Hassan, was yesterday sworn in for her second term as the country’s president. She won a massive 98% of the vote, which is what tends to happen when the main opposition parties aren’t allowed to run at all.
Tanzania: a crackdown on dissent
Voting began on 29 October. Massive civil unrest and protests broke out shortly afterwards, with government buildings set alight and police allegedly using live ammunition and tear gas against the gathered crowds.
The main opposition party, Chadema, claimed that the violence from security forces left “no less than 800” dead. A diplomatic source informed the BBC of credible evidence that over 500 people have been killed.
Chadema was barred from participating for refusing to sign a code of conduct. Its leader, Tundu Lissu, was also charged with treason back in April for calling on followers to obstruct the election. He was not permitted to enter a plea on the treason charge.
The electoral commission also disqualified Luhaga Mpina, the leader of ACT-Wazalendo, the second-largest opposition party. Human rights groups including Amnesty International pointed to the abductions of other government critics as evidence of Hassan’s crackdown on dissent.
Hassan was sworn in at the capital, Dodoma, in a military parade ground, as opposed to the usual stadium venue. State forces barred the public from entering. For their part, Hassan’s Chama Cha Mapinduzi party have acknowledged that people died in the protests, but claim that Chadema have massively inflated their numbers.
In her inaugural address to the nation, Hussan said:
All of us who wish well for this country are saddened and grieved by the incidents of unrest, loss of lives, and destruction of public and private property in some areas of the country. What happened is not in line with the image and character of Tanzanians, and it is not Tanzanian. It did not surprise us to see that some of the youths who were arrested came from outside Tanzania. Our security and law enforcement agencies are continuing to closely monitor and investigate what happened to restore the country to the peaceful state we are accustomed to.
‘Sham’ election
Chadema has denounced the election as a sham. Other international observers concurred, including southern African regional body Sadc, who stated that “voters could not express their democratic will”. Security forces instated a curfew following the polling, along with a near-total internet blackout.
On 31 October, UN Secretary-General António Guterres called for “a thorough and impartial investigation into all allegations of excessive use of force”. Likewise, an Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (ONCHR) spokesperson stated that:
All those in arbitrary detention must be immediately and unconditionally released and those held legally must be accorded full due process and fair trial rights…
We urge the authorities to ensure prompt, impartial and effective investigations into all cases of election-related violence, and to ensure those responsible are brought to justice.
Whilst the curfew was lifted Monday, the peace is far from easy in Tanzania. Police issued a statement urging citizens to:
Avoid sharing pictures or videos that cause panic or degrade a person’s dignity. Doing so is a criminal offense, and if identified, strict legal action will be taken.
[Warning, graphic link] Tanzanian activists have claimed that they have video proof of the alleged atrocities that government forces carried out against the protesters. Campaign group Human Rights Watch (HRW) have also stated that authorities responded to the protests “with lethal force and other abuses”.
On Tuesday, workers reopened scattered shops, and traffic resumed on Tanzania’s streets. However, many families are reportedly still searching for the bodies of loved ones who remain missing following the state violence.
Featured image via the Canary
This post was originally published on Canary.