Political freedom in Tanzania under fire after abductions

DW (English)

Political freedom in Tanzania is under growing threat. Two East African activists Boniface Mwangi and Agather Atuhaire were abducted by security officers and tortured before being expelled. They share their experiences upon arrive in Kenyan soil. This report also looks at how some Tanzanians have expressed mixed reactions online to DW's coverage of the human rights report on political intimidation

Transcript

00:00Roughly five months before Tanzania's national elections,

00:04Ugandan journalist Agatha Atuhairi and Kenyan activist Boniface Mwangi

00:08were tortured by security forces while in the country.

00:12We were put on an upside position where my legs were up like this,

00:17my body's up, I'm stuck naked, and then they started beating my feet.

00:23So they would beat me and massage my feet, beat me and massage my feet.

00:28I was screaming so hard, there was no tears coming out because of how painful it was.

00:33There to observe a political trial, the pair were abducted from their hotel rooms in Dar es Salaam

00:38and taken to undisclosed locations where they were beaten and sexually abused by officers

00:44over several days.

00:45They didn't use their sexual organs. That was, and I had to say a relief with all that happened,

00:54but it could have been worse. I didn't see a way out of that. I didn't think we'd get out of that alive.

01:01Atuhairi and Mwangi came to Tanzania to observe the trial of opposition leader Tundu Lisu,

01:08who heads the Chademo party. Lisu was arrested for treason in April after holding a rally calling for

01:15electoral reforms ahead of the October elections. Along with a group of East African activists, they joined

01:21calls for greater political freedom, a risk in Tanzania where opposition voices are routinely harassed.

01:28Most Tanzanian activists go through similar things. They arrest you and they take you through sexual

01:39torture and tell you if you speak you're going to humiliate you to your family and all that.

01:43And it's what they did to us.

01:48A 2024 human rights report says Tanzanian authorities have stepped up crackdowns, including arbitrary

01:56arrests, disappearances and extrajudicial killings. While the courts may look like they follow the law,

02:04East African legal experts say they offer little help to victims of political violence.

02:09These are kangaroo trials. Even Tundu Lisu is a kangaroo trial. And I don't expect those two to get justice.

02:20The government has denied the 2024 findings, calling them false and misleading.

02:25Some Tanzanians are expressing that the issues raised continue to persist,

02:30with many showing support for DW's coverage of political intimidation.

02:34You say DW is telling lies. What lies? People are not killed by unknown people? In court are people

02:40not beaten by the police openly? Isn't all this a violation of human rights? Tanzania is the only

02:47country where if you just criticize the government, you become a missing person. And then we are told

02:52that we are a country of peace. I respect DW. In Tanzania, there is no freedom of expression. If you speak

02:58the truth, then you will not exist tomorrow. Many have disappeared and been killed. Others remain

03:04skeptical. DW, it's like you guys have been sent. Why are you asking provocative questions in the

03:10comments so that we can get into trouble? The Human Rights Watch cannot issue a report without

03:15involving the public and getting the truth about this matter. What they reported is completely false.

03:20With the aim of smearing our Tanzania and its leaders, we condemn their report with great regret.

03:26With elections looming in Tanzania, rights groups are increasingly concerned about the ever-shrinking

03:32space for government critics.

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