US reviews ties with Tanzania over post-poll crackdown

The US government on Thursday said it was reconsidering relations with Tanzania in the wake of its heavy-handed response against protesters.

In the announcement, Washington said it was concerned with the security agencies’ violent response to protests, including killings, noting that such actions “raise grave concerns about the direction of our bilateral relationship and the reliability of the Tanzanian government as a partner.”

“As a result, the United States is comprehensively reviewing our relationship with the Government of Tanzania. The Government of Tanzania’s ongoing repression of religious freedom and free speech, the presence of persistent obstacles to US investment, and disturbing violence against civilians in the days leading up to and following Tanzania’s October 29 elections, required this reconsideration of

our ties.”

This move could be a step backwards for President Samia Suluhu Hassan, who had retooled ties with Washington after taking the presidency in 2021, following the death of the inward-looking John Pombe Magufuli.

Samia successfully re-attracted American tourists, and the Millennium Challenge Corporation returned to consider investing in the country after a pause in the Magufuli era.

But, while she won with a controversial landslide in the October 29 elections, the response to youth-led protests has been condemned even by African electoral observers deployed there.

“These actions have put American citizens, tourists, and US interests in Tanzania at risk, and threatened to undermine the mutual prosperity and security that have defined our partnership for decades,” the State Department said on Thursday.

“The United States cannot overlook actions that jeopardise the safety of our citizens, or the security and stability of the region. The future of our bilateral relationship with the Government of Tanzania will be based on its actions.”

The new stance came just two days after President Samia tried to

justify the police crackdown on protesters as a move to prevent a

foreign-engineered regime change.

At a meeting with elders in Dar es Salaam, she accused unnamed foreign actors, again, of colluding with opposition groups to cause a “regime change,” while dismissing questions over her unprecedented 98 percent victory.

It was the umpteenth time the Tanzanian leader was speaking of foreign interference, even though her administration has provided little evidence to back the claim.

The meeting with Tanzanian elders was supposed to mark her continued victory speeches on the election and thanksgiving. But they have become defence arenas where she has had to explain the unprecedented 97.66 percent victory in the presidential contest.

“Our youth were manipulated, becoming mere parrots, singing songs and attempting to recreate what happened in Madagascar so that it would occur here. In that context, the response must be proportionate to the threat. When we are told we used excessive force, I askWhatat would constitute appropriate force?” Samia said on Monday.

“Were we to sit and watch the protesters who were prepared for regime change to succeed? It is not even unique to Tanzania. We have seen in other countries that whenever protesters misbehave, governments often exert their force. It has happened in other places, and we saw it. So, it doesn’t make sense. We ask ourselves whether those critics as the sponsors of this violence. We took an oath to protect the borders of this country and its people. In doing that, as they do, we will do the same here.”

After the October 29 General Election, Samia retained her seat after getting 31,913,866 votes (97.66 percent), out of the 32 million people who voted, according to the local electoral commission. Her nearest challenger didn't even muster 1 percent.

Yet, earlier in the year, the electoral commission disqualified the opposition party Chadema from posting candidates in any race. Chadema leader Tundu Lissu was then charged with treason, a crime punishable by death in Tanzania.

ACT-Wazalendo, another big opposition party, had its candidate, Luhaga Mpina, disqualified. He had crossed over from the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi. The electoral commission did not reverse the ban, in spite of a court order.

The exact number of injured or dead has been a matter of conjecture. Tanzanian authorities have fought back an opposition claim of “thousands,” but have not defended the heavy response, including the shooting to death of unarmed protesters. A _CNN _investigation found security agencies had fired at protesters and buried many of them in unmarked mass graves.