DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania (Chatnewstv.com) — Hundreds of protesters took to the streets for a second consecutive day Thursday in Tanzania amid mounting unrest following a disputed election, as an international human rights group reported two deaths in the violence.
The demonstrations, which began Wednesday, led the government to shut down the internet, impose a curfew, and deploy the military to the streets.
The ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party, which has been in power since the nation’s independence in 1961, sought to extend its long rule in Wednesday’s poll. The two main opposition parties were effectively sidelined after their presidential candidates were barred from running.
The incumbent, President Samia Suluhu Hassan, faced 16 other candidates from smaller parties who barely campaigned. The electoral body announced Thursday through state television that President Hassan had taken an early lead, garnering 96.99% of the votes in 8 out of 272 constituencies tallied.
International Scrutiny and Casualties
Lawmakers from the European Parliament released a statement Thursday asserting that the elections in Tanzania were “neither free nor fair.”
They urged democratic partners to “stand firm in the defense of democracy and human rights.”
Turnout during Wednesday’s election was low. Chaos erupted in the afternoon as protesters burned a bus and a gas station, attacked police stations, and vandalized polling centers.
Amnesty International reported that two people—a civilian and a police officer—died in Wednesday’s protests. The government has yet to comment on casualties in the ongoing demonstrations.
Curfew and Military Deployment
The government imposed a curfew Wednesday evening in the commercial capital, Dar es Salaam, where most protests had occurred, but demonstrations continued late into the night. Public servants were asked to work from home on Thursday to limit the movement of nonessential staff.
The Tanzanian army erected roadblocks across the country, turning away those who could not prove they were essential workers. Hundreds of protesters managed to breach security barriers to access a road leading to the country’s main airport but were unable to enter the premises.
Amnesty International called for investigations into the use of force by police against the protesters.
In the border town of Namanga, several protesters were injured as they lit bonfires on the highway and police fired tear gas to disperse them. Business people said the unrest had halted operations in the usually busy town.
Ferry services from the Tanzanian mainland to the semi-autonomous archipelago of Zanzibar, where the electoral body is expected to announce results Thursday, were also suspended.
The main opposition leader Tundu Lissu remains in prison after he was charged with treason for calling for electoral reforms. The presidential candidate for the second-largest opposition party, Luhaga Mpina, was barred from running.
