Authorities have taken action against a planned protest organized by Tanzania’s leading opposition party.
According to Chadema, several of its leaders were detained on Monday. Additional arrests occurred in the Magomeni district of Dar es Salaam, where protesters were assembling for a demonstration against purported killings and abductions of government critics.
This crackdown has heightened concerns about the possibility of increased political repression in the East African nation as local elections approach, followed by next year’s national vote.
Video footage posted on X by Chadema showed police arresting the party chairman, Freeman Mbowe, as he arrived “to lead a peaceful protest”.
In another post, police were depicted outside the residence of deputy chairman Tundu Lissu prior to his arrest. Authorities reported the detention of 14 individuals, including Mbowe and Lissu, for violating the ban on protests.
Before the arrests took place, police were observed surrounding the homes of both party leaders.
Lissu, who narrowly escaped an assassination attempt in 2016 after being shot 16 times, had previously shared on social media platform X that three police vehicles filled with officers in riot gear were stationed outside his home.
“They’ve informed me I’m directed to be taken to the Regional Crimes Officer. I’m getting ready to go,” he said.
Over the weekend, Dar es Salaam police chief Jumanne Muliro cautioned that the proposed rally would disrupt public order and that his officers would enforce strict measures to prevent it.
Since Saturday, riot police equipped with water cannons have been deployed in strategic locations throughout the city.
Chadema has charged that President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s government is reverting to the oppressive methods of her predecessor, John Magufuli.
Hassan assumed office in March 2021 after Magufuli’s unexpected passing and initially seemed to promote a more democratic environment by lifting restrictions on opposition gatherings and the media.
However, Chadema now claims that security forces are involved in the disappearances of several members and the murder of Ali Mohamed Kibao, a senior party official who, according to authorities, was attacked with acid and beaten to death last month.
In a speech shared on X on Sunday, Mbowe asserted that the planned protest would remain peaceful.
“We are neither carrying any weapons nor planning to violate the peace as some people allege,” he said. “We have seen the deployment of armed police officers in the city but we are ready to face them.”
When Chadema last tried to hold a rally in August, police arrested hundreds.
Rights groups and Western governments, including the United States, have criticised the crackdowns as “antidemocratic”.