Hundreds feared dead in election riots after president claims 98pc of votes
· The Telegraph via Yahoo NewsHundreds of people have been killed in election protests in Tanzania, according to groups opposing the government.
Samia Suluhu Hassan, the president, had sought to cement her position and silence critics in her party with an emphatic win in Wednesday’s election. Her main challengers had been either jailed or barred from standing.
She was declared the winner on Saturday, with the east African country’s electoral commission saying she had won 97.66 per cent of the vote, dominating every constituency.
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It added that turnout was at 87 per cent, despite reports from observers that polling stations were largely empty early Wednesday before election day descended into protests.
Crowds took to the streets of Dar es Salaam and other cities, tearing down her posters and attacking police and polling stations, leading to an internet shutdown and curfew. The main opposition party said that 700 people had been killed since Friday.
In the run-up to the vote, rights groups condemned a “wave of terror”, including a string of high-profile abductions that escalated in the final days. Much public anger has been directed at Hassan’s son, Abdul Halim Hafidh Ameir, accused of overseeing the crackdown.
Opposition groups and others said the vote was not a contest but a coronation. after Hassan’s two main rivals were barred or prevented from running. She faced 16 candidates from smaller parties. A quick swearing-in ceremony would take place on Saturday, state TV said.
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With foreign journalists largely banned from covering the election and a communications blackout entering its third day, information from the ground has been scarce.
Chadema, the main opposition party, was barred from taking part in the election and its leader put on trial for treason. It said clashes continued between protesters and security forces in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania’s biggest city, on Friday.
John Kitoka, a spokesman for Chadema, said: “As we speak the figure for deaths in Dar [es Salaam] is around 350 and for Mwanza it is 200 plus. Added to figures from other places around the country, the overall figure is around 700.”
He added that the death toll could be much higher if there had been killings during the country’s night-time curfew.
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International organisations have much lower initial figures. The UN said “credible reports” indicated 10 dead, while Amnesty International said it had information of at least 100 killed. Many hospitals and health clinics were too afraid to talk directly to AFP, it reported.
President Hassan had yet to comment on the unrest and local news sites had not been updated since Wednesday. The only official statement came from army chief Jacob Mkunda late Thursday who called the protesters “criminals”.
In Zanzibar, a tourist hotspot with its own semi-autonomous government, Hamis Mbeto, a spokesman for Hassan’s Revolution Party (Chama Cha Mapinduzi, or CCM), said the internet would return when the situation calmed.
Hassan has faced opposition from parts of the army and allies of her predecessor, John Magufuli, since she took over following his death in 2021, analysts say.