The police commander of Dodoma, the capital of Tanzania, has been transferred following controversial comments about an alleged gang-rape victim, national police officials announced Monday.
The transfer comes after a video purportedly showing a young woman being assaulted by five men went viral in Tanzania earlier this month, sparking public outrage.
Dodoma Regional Commander Theopista Mallya was quoted in the Tanzanian newspaper Mwananchi on Sunday as saying the “woman in question appeared to be engaged in sex work.” This comment led to accusations that Mallya was minimizing the victim’s ordeal.
National police spokesperson David Misime issued an apology Monday for the commander’s statement. “The police force would like to apologize to everyone who was touched and offended by the statement circulating in the media while monitoring is being done to find its accuracy,” Misime said.
Misime added that Mallya had also stated that even if the woman was a sex worker, “she did not deserve to be treated that way.” However, these words did not appear in Mwananchi’s original report.
The viral video reportedly shows the suspects interrogating the woman and forcing her to apologize to someone referred to as “afande,” a term often used in Tanzania to refer to a soldier or police officer. This detail led many activists and social media users to speculate that the assault might have been carried out on orders from a member of the security forces.
Addressing these concerns, Mallya told Mwananchi, “The investigation revealed that the youths were not acting on orders from any officers; they were merely under the influence of alcohol and drugs.”
Following the public backlash, Tanzania’s national police force announced Mallya’s transfer to police headquarters. It remains unclear whether this transfer is temporary or permanent.
The case has reignited discussions about sexual violence and the treatment of victims by law enforcement in Tanzania. Women’s rights activists have called for a more sensitive approach to handling such cases and for thorough investigations into all allegations of sexual assault.
Tanzanian authorities have not provided further details about the ongoing investigation into the alleged gang-rape or the identities of the suspects seen in the video.
The incident and its aftermath highlight the challenges faced by law enforcement in addressing sensitive cases of sexual violence while maintaining public trust.
