By Gabriel Ani
NAIROBI, Kenya — Tanzanian opposition figures and civil society advocates renewed pressure on the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights on Tuesday, accusing the tribunal of prolonged inaction in a landmark case challenging alleged abuses surrounding Tanzania’s 2020 general elections and warning that delays have carried deadly consequences.
The case, Shaibu and Others v. United Republic of Tanzania (Application No. 046 of 2020), was filed in November 2020 by the Pan-African Lawyers Union (PALU) on behalf of Tanzanian voters and candidates. It alleges widespread violations during the Oct. 28, 2020 polls, including arbitrary detention, disqualification of candidates, suspension of opposition campaigning, voter manipulation, media suppression and excessive use of force.
Despite the African Court scheduling judgment for June 26, 2025, no decision has been delivered.
“If this case had been considered in a timely fashion, there is reason to believe that many of the people killed may have been spared,” Professor Chidi Odinkalu said in a statement shared on LinkedIn, adding that several original claimants have since died.
Activists say the stakes escalated sharply during the country’s most recent election cycle. On Oct. 29, 2025, the hashtag #TanzaniaDecides2025 trended online as violence again gripped the country.
“To get itself back in power, the government of Tanzania killed thousands,” said a representative of the exiled #VotersOfTanzania movement, speaking at a gathering in neighboring Kenya.
The claims could not be independently verified.
“Many of the people who survived in 2020 and looked forward to remedies from the Court were killed by the government last October,” the representative said.
“Now we must live with what might have been.”
From Nairobi, where several Tanzanian activists now live in exile, the group issued a Pan-African solidarity appeal urging the African Court to end what they described as #JusticeOnHold and deliver its long-awaited judgment.
“The credibility of the African Court itself is at stake,” the statement said.
“Further delays risk undermining public trust in African justice systems and weakening accountability across the continent.”
Legal filings before the Court cite Articles 28 and 33 of the Protocol establishing the African Court, alongside multiple provisions of the Court’s Rules of Procedure, arguing that the judges have the authority to issue judgment without further delay.
“This case matters not only for Tanzania,” said a regional human rights lawyer familiar with the proceedings.
“It goes to the heart of accountable government in Africa and whether continental institutions can protect citizens’ rights to vote, to run for office and to speak freely without fear.”
The African Court, based in Arusha, Tanzania, has not publicly commented on the delay.
As exiled voters and rights advocates continue to mobilize across the region, they say the outcome will shape both Tanzania’s democratic future and the standing of Africa’s highest human rights tribunal.
“The African Court must act,” the Nairobi statement concluded.
“Justice delayed here is not abstract. It has been measured in lives lost.”
