Tanzania Votes Amid Opposition Crackdown and Rising Fear of Repression
Political analysts warn that Tanzania’s political repression, once an exception under Magufuli, can now be the “new normal.”.
A probable other contender, ACT-Wazalendo's Luhaga Mpina, was also barred on allegations of alleged technical errors. Photo/courtesy
By Ruth Sang
Polling stations opened on Wednesday in Tanzania as citizens cast their ballots in an election clouded by charges of political repression, exclusion of top opposition leaders from the ballot, and mounting human rights violations. The election has been branded a test of President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s rule and has drawn stern criticism from rights groups who depict the political environment as a landscape of “fear and intimidation.”
President Hassan, 65, is widely predicted to win by a landslide in a judgment that will tighten her hold on power domestically and within her governing Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party. The outcome of the election could determine her political destiny and influence within CCM, as she continues to struggle with hardline rivals who remain committed to the late former president John Magufuli.
Hassan, who became Tanzania’s first female head of state in 2021 following Magufuli’s death, initially gained praise from both local and international observers for loosening some of the previous administration’s harsh restrictions on political and media freedoms. However, optimism has waned over time, as reports of repression, harassment, and intimidation against opposition figures have resurfaced.
In Zanzibar, where contests are likely to be freer, voting proceeded relatively smoothly, although observers still anticipate a tight race. Foreign access to the media has been severely limited on the mainland, however, stoking fears over transparency and accountability throughout the electoral process.
Amnesty International also reported more recently that the pre-election environment was “a wave of terror,” and documented forced disappearances, torture, and extrajudicial execution against political rivals and activists. Human Rights Watch agreed with these apprehensions, denouncing the Tanzanian government as crushing dissent, silencing the media, and discrediting the independence of the electoral commission.
The opposition space appears literally in pieces. Its biggest challenger, Tundu Lissu, faces charges of treason that carry the death penalty, and his party, Chadema, has been barred from contesting. A probable other contender, ACT-Wazalendo’s Luhaga Mpina, was also barred on allegations of alleged technical errors. Even members of the ruling CCM have not remained unaffected; recent open criticism of the president by former party press secretary Humphrey Polepole led to him going missing. His family subsequently discovered bloodstains in his residence.
At least 83 kidnappings have been documented since Hassan’s inauguration, and another 20 in the past few weeks, stated the Tanganyika Law Society. Political analysts warn that Tanzania’s political repression, once an exception under Magufuli, can now be the “new normal.”.
Despite the tense environment, Tanzania’s economy is relatively stable with a 5.5 percent growth rate recorded over the past year driven by mining, agriculture, and tourism. President Hassan has pledged to implement infrastructure projects and universal health insurance in her election manifesto.
The authorities have also provided citizens with protection across the voting period. Police recently made a public declaration of arresting 17 individuals who are accused of organizing unrest in the Kagera region. “We are fully prepared to maintain peace and order,” Hassan declared at a recent rally. “Those who failed to meet the standards of the election should not attempt to interfere with the democratic process.”
As the polls are closing, the atmosphere in Tanzania is tense with fear and resignation—most people waiting for something other, others fearful that political freedom will keep on being lost in the name of stability.
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