NAIROBI, Kenya (BN24) — Tanzanian authorities have charged more than 200 people with treason following violent protests over last month’s disputed national election, deepening political tensions in the East African nation amid widespread reports of deadly unrest.
Court documents made public Saturday show that dozens of additional suspects face similar charges beyond those arraigned earlier in Dar es Salaam. The mass prosecutions mark one of Tanzania’s largest treason cases in decades.
Police have also issued arrest warrants for senior opposition figures, including Brenda Rupia, communications director for the opposition Chadema party, and John Mnyika, the party’s secretary-general. Chadema leader Tundu Lissu, who had called for electoral reforms before the October 29 vote, has been in detention for months and also faces treason charges.
Authorities have come under growing scrutiny over the death toll from the clashes. The opposition claims that more than 1,000 people were killed when security forces opened fire on protesters before and after the election. Chadema alleges that authorities secretly disposed of bodies to hide the extent of the violence. At the same time, Tanzania’s Catholic Church has said that the number of dead likely reaches into the hundreds.
President Samia Suluhu Hassan won the October 29 election with more than 97% of the vote, according to the official tally. She had automatically assumed the presidency in 2021 following the death of her predecessor. Her main rivals, Lissu and Luhaga Mpina of the ACT-Wazalendo party, were barred from contesting the election, leaving only minor opposition candidates on the ballot.
Rights organizations, including Amnesty International, have accused the government of carrying out enforced disappearances, arbitrary arrests, and extrajudicial killings in the run-up to the election allegations that Tanzanian authorities have denied.
In a statement this week, the African Union announced that its observer mission had found the election “did not comply with AU principles, normative frameworks, and other international obligations and standards for democratic elections.” AU observers cited ballot stuffing, multiple ballot issuance, and an environment “not conducive to peaceful conduct and acceptance of electoral outcomes.”
Tanzania has been governed by the Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party, which maintains historical ties with China’s Communist Party, since independence from Britain in 1961. While previous leaders tolerated limited dissent, critics say Hassan’s leadership has become increasingly authoritarian, suppressing the youth-driven pro-democracy movements that have gained momentum elsewhere in Africa.
The unfolding treason prosecutions and growing international criticism highlight deepening unease over Tanzania’s political direction as the government seeks to consolidate power amid mounting allegations of human rights abuses.
