Tanzania: Authorities Weaponize Counterterrorism Laws to Restrict Civic Space Amid Pervasive Impunity Over Violent Election Crackdown
Blood was still fresh in the streets when Tanzanian authorities began reaching for their legal arsenals. One year after security forces killed hundreds of people and injured thousands more during protests that followed the 2025 general election, not a single officer has been held accountable. That finding comes from Amnesty International, which marked the grim anniversary with a damning assessment of the government's response.
The pattern is familiar across the continent but no less alarming here. Rather than face justice, the state has moved in the opposite direction, using counterterrorism laws to squeeze the civic space that activists, journalists, and ordinary citizens depend on. What began as a violent crackdown has quietly extended into a legal one.
Amnesty International's report lands at a moment when the world is watching how African governments handle post-election dissent. Tanzania, long held up as a beacon of relative stability in East Africa, is now facing hard questions about impunity and the rule of law. The silence from those in power is, itself, a kind of answer.
For the families of those killed and injured, the anniversary brings grief without closure. A year on, justice feels more distant, not less, and the laws meant to protect citizens are being turned against them.
Originally published by AllAfrica.