Tanzanian police were moving Monday to shut down protests called by the main opposition party over the alleged kidnapping and killing of its members.
Police blocked access to the homes of two key leaders from the Chadema party, who had vowed to go ahead with protests in the commercial capital Dar es Salaam despite an official ban.
The party accuses the government of President Samia Suluhu Hassan of returning the country to the repressive tactics of her predecessor, John Magufuli.
She took over in March 2021 following Magufuli’s sudden death and appeared to signal a more open democracy, reversing restrictions on opposition rallies and the media.
But Chadema accuses the security forces of being behind the disappearance of several members and the killing of Ali Mohamed Kibao, of its national secretariat, who was found dead earlier this month.
“I remind Tanzanians that we are going to hold peaceful protests. We are neither carrying any weapons nor planning to violate the peace as some people allege,” party chairman Freeman Mbowe said in a speech broadcast on X on Sunday.
Riot police with water cannons were deployed from Saturday across key areas in the commercial capital Dar es Salaam.
Chadema said on X that the homes of Mbowe and Chadema vice-president Tundu Lissu were blocked by police.
“We have seen the deployment of armed police officers in the city but we are ready to face them. In case some of us will be arrested, hurt or even killed, pray for us and never turn back. We are doing this to make our country a peaceful place to live,” Mbowe said Sunday.
Police arrested hundreds of Chadema members when they last tried to hold a mass rally in August.
Rights groups and Western governments, including the United States, have criticised the crackdowns, which have raised fears of renewed repression ahead of local elections in November and a general election in late 2025.