Tanzania Votes Without Opposition Candidates
Polls kicked off on Wednesday for the elections in Tanzania, where many of the main challengers found themselves either locked up or prevented from participating altogether.
Rights groups are sounding the alarm over what they describe as a “wave of terror.” President Samia Suluhu Hassan, who is 65, is eager to solidify her hold on power with a decisive win that could quiet her critics within the party, according to analysts.
In 2021, she stepped up from her role as vice-president following the passing of her tough predecessor, John Magufuli, but her journey as the nation’s first female leader hasn’t been without its challenges.
Hassan, hailing from the semi-autonomous island of Zanzibar, initially won praise from democratic advocates for loosening restrictions on the opposition and media, but that optimism quickly dwindled.
As polls opened in Zanzibar, analysts are predicting a more competitive race thanks to the island’s relatively higher level of freedom.
However, foreign journalists have been largely prevented from traveling to the mainland to cover the voting process there.
A recent report from Amnesty International highlighted a “wave of terror,” citing instances of “enforced disappearance and torture… and extrajudicial killings of opposition figures and activists.”
Human Rights Watch pointed out that “the authorities have suppressed the political opposition and critics of the ruling party, stifled the media, and failed to ensure the electoral commission’s independence.”
Hassan’s main rival, Tundu Lissu, is currently on trial for treason, facing the possibility of the death penalty, while his party, Chadema, has been barred from participating.
The only other notable candidate, Luhaga Mpina from ACT-Wazalendo, was disqualified over technical issues.
Concerns are growing that even members of the ruling party, Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM), are being targeted.
Humphrey Polepole, a former CCM spokesman and ambassador to Cuba, vanished from his home this month after resigning and criticizing Hassan. His family discovered blood stains in his residence.
The Tanganyika Law Society reports that it has confirmed 83 abductions since Hassan took office, with an additional 20 cases reported in recent weeks.
An analyst from Dar es Salaam, the economic heart of Tanzania, expressed concern that Hassan hasn’t taken any steps to remove the “thugs” that Magufuli placed in the intelligence service, speaking on the condition of anonymity due to fears of retaliation.
These operatives are intensely focused on quashing any signs of internal dissent, having already stifled the opposition in the lead-up to the 2020 elections.
“We thought Magufuli was just a temporary setback and that the 2020 elections were an anomaly. My concern is that this might be the new normal,” the analyst remarked.
Protests are quite uncommon in Tanzania, partly because the economy is relatively robust, having grown by 5.5 percent last year, as reported by the World Bank, thanks to thriving agriculture, tourism, and mining sectors.
Hassan has made promises of significant infrastructure projects and universal health insurance to win over the electorate.
However, police reported that they arrested 17 individuals in the northwestern Kagera region this past weekend, who were allegedly planning to incite unrest on election day.
Tanzania Votes Without Opposition Candidates
