The opposition in Tanzania talks about the killing of hundreds in protests against the elections news

Chadema, the main opposition party in Tanzania, said on Friday that about 700 people were killed during protests that broke out this week against the backdrop of the general elections. While the government denied these numbers, describing them as “extremely exaggerated” amid international calls for an independent investigation into the violence.

John Kituka (party spokesman) said, “The number of deaths in Dar es Salaam reached about 350, and in Mwanza more than 200. With the addition of victims from other regions, the total number reaches about 700 dead,” noting that these estimates are based on testimonies from health sector workers.

For its part, the government denied these numbers, and Foreign Minister Mahmoud Thabet Kombo said in statements to Al Jazeera and Reuters that “there was no excessive use of force… and I did not see these 700 dead,” adding that the authorities have not yet conducted any official census of the victims.

The country, with a population of about 68 million people, witnessed widespread unrest on Wednesday, coinciding with the presidential and parliamentary elections that took place without the participation of the opposition, after President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s most prominent rivals were imprisoned or their nominations were rejected.

Despite the security closure, hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets of the economic capital, Dar es Salaam, yesterday, demanding electoral reforms, at a time when the opposition rejected the election results, which showed a landslide victory for the ruling party, considering them “stolen.”

Gunfire was heard in the streets of Dar es Salaam and a police station was burned, while protests spread to other cities, including Zanzibar and Mwanza, despite the imposition of a nightly curfew and widespread internet outages.

The day before yesterday evening, the first official comment was issued from the military establishment, as Army Chief of Staff Jacob Mkunda described the demonstrators as “criminals” and stressed that “the defense forces are controlling the situation,” while President Samia has not made any statement yet.

International concern

In this context, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres expressed his “deep concern” about this situation, calling for a “careful and impartial investigation” into accusations of the use of excessive force, and stressed the importance of respecting basic rights, including freedom of expression, assembly, and access to information.

For its part, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights said yesterday that it had received reliable reports indicating that at least 10 people were killed in 3 cities, in the first public estimate from an international body regarding the victims.

The Foreign Ministers of Britain, Canada and Norway also expressed their concern – in a joint statement – calling on the Tanzanian authorities to exercise restraint and respect civil rights.