Tanzania rights group condemns ‘reprisal killings’ of civilians

AFP :

Tanzanian rights groups condemned on Friday widespread reports of “reprisal killings” of civilians, some in their own homes, in post-election violence that the opposition say killed hundreds.

President Samia Suluhu Hassan won the October 29 poll with 98 percent of the vote, according to the electoral commission, but the opposition, which was barred from participating, has branded the election a “sham”.

Violent protests broke out across the east African country on election day, with sources indicating hundreds — if not thousands — may have been killed, even as a six-day internet shutdown throttled the release of verified information.

In a joint statement with six other NGOs on Friday, the Legal and Human Rights Centre (LHRC) said there was “excessive use of force against unarmed demonstrators, including reprisal killings of civilians, some in their own homes.”

“Families have been left traumatized, and children have witnessed violence against their parents,” it said.

It noted that young people in particular had been targeted, “often caught unaware”.

Hundreds of people had been arrested, some remaining in detention without bail, it said.

The statement warned that the “extent of human rights abuses is yet to be fully uncovered”, criticising the internet shutdown and media restrictions.
Amos Ntobi, secretary with the opposition Chadema party, said he estimated hundreds had died in his northern Mwanza region alone.

“We saw people being shot in broad daylight. There were bodies all over the streets — some people were killed instantly, others left badly wounded,” he told AFP.

“There are so many bodies in the hospitals.” Ntobi said he had attended at least nine funerals, two for children aged nine and 11 — one shot near his home, the other while returning from a shop.

He also said some local party leaders remained unaccounted for.

In the run-up to the election, authorities swept the board of any opposition either by jailing them or barring them from running.

In an initial report African election observers said Tanzanians had been unable to “express their democratic will” thanks to the barring of opposition candidates, censorship and intimidation, as well as signs of rigging on election day. African Union election observers also said the poll was “compromised”.