The leaders of Tanzania’s main opposition party, Chadema, were released on bail, according to a party spokesman on Tuesday, following their detention ahead of a youth day rally.
Police had arrested as many as 520 people nationwide, as stated in an overnight police report, before a banned rally on Monday in the southwestern city of Mbeya, which was anticipated to attract thousands of young attendees.
Rights organizations condemned the detentions as “troubling,” while government critics expressed concern that the police actions might signal a return to the oppressive tactics seen during the late President John Magufuli’s era.
Among those released were Chadema chairman Freeman Mbowe, his deputy Tundu Lissu—both former presidential candidates—as well as John Mnyika and John Pambalu, according to party spokesman John Mrema. Mrema posted on X that they had “been returned to Dar es Salaam by police and have bailed themselves out.
” However, he noted that “some leaders” remain in custody, without providing further details.
Overnight, Awadh Haji, the police chief of operations and training, stated that “all the top Chadema leaders who were arrested, after interrogation and other procedures, have been returned to where they came from.” On Tuesday, the party posted on X that their offices in Mbeya “are surrounded by the police, who are not allowing anyone to enter.”
Police had warned in a previous statement that they would “take strict legal action against any individual or group involved in disrupting peace” and added that officers would continue to monitor the situation closely, “strengthening security in Mbeya and other regions of Tanzania to prevent any planned acts of violence.”
Mbowe, 62, was detained on Monday at the Mbeya airport, a day after several other leaders, including Lissu, were arrested. Hundreds of young supporters were reportedly rounded up by police as they traveled to the city, with the party having expected around 10,000 people to gather in Mbeya to mark International Youth Day on Monday.
But police accused the party of planning violent demonstrations and made reference to widespread anti-government protests in neighbouring Kenya, led largely by young activists.
– ‘Troubling’ –
Rights groups and government opponents had voiced fears the police action could signal a return to the oppressive policies of late president John Magufuli as Tanzania gears up for national elections due late next year, as well as local polls in December.
The arrests came despite his successor Samia Suluhu Hassan vowing a return to “competitive politics” and easing some restrictions on the opposition and the media, including the January 2023 lifting of a six-year ban on opposition gatherings.
Oryem Nyeko, a researcher at Human Rights Watch, said on Monday: “It’s troubling because it’s very similar to the mass opposition arrests we saw when Magufuli was president.”
