Opposition says 700 killed in Tanzania protests as UN condemns violence, calls for restraint

At least 700 people have reportedly been killed in three days of post-election protests in Tanzania, according to the main opposition party Chadema, as demonstrators continue to take to the streets amid an internet blackout.

"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," Chadema spokesman John Kitoka told the AFP news agency.

"The death toll could be much higher," Kitoka warned, adding that killings could be taking place during the overnight curfew.

President Samia Suluhu Hassan, whose government is accused of a campaign of repression, had sought to cement her position and silence critics in her party in the virtually uncontested polls, with the main challengers either jailed or barred from contesting in the elections.

Tanzania descended into chaos following Wednesday’s presidential election, as huge crowds took to the streets of Dar es Salaam and other cities, tearing down President Samia’s posters and attacking police and polling stations. The unrest prompted authorities to impose a nationwide curfew and shut down internet and mobile communications.

With foreign journalists largely banned from covering the election and a communications block entering its third day, information from the ground has been scarce.

The UN human rights office expressed alarm over the deaths and injuries in the election-related unrest and said it had reliably learned of at least 10 deaths.

"Credible reports we have received indicate that at least 10 people were killed in Dar es Salaam, Shinyanga and Morogoro as the security forces used firearms and tear gas to disperse protesters," spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Seif Magango said in a statement.

The UN Human Rights Office called for the immediate and unconditional release of those in arbitrary detention and stressed that anyone held legally must be accorded full due process and fair trial rights.

Authorities were also urged to ensure prompt, impartial, and effective investigations into all cases of election-related violence and to hold those responsible to account.

"Protesters should demonstrate peacefully. We urge the authorities to fully uphold Tanzania’s obligations under international human rights law. They must promptly reinstate access to the internet and facilitate citizens’ full enjoyment of their rights to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly," the UN statement read.

"Curtailment of communication will only further undermine public trust in the electoral process."

The UN Human Rights Office stressed that security forces must refrain from using unnecessary or disproportionate force, including lethal weapons, and that demonstrators should be allowed to protest peacefully.

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