Key points: Chadema deputy Amani Golugwa was arrested as authorities press treason charges against more than 200 people over protests after the contested October vote. Lawyers say 250+ were arraigned on conspiracy and treason counts. The government has not released an official death toll; claims range from hundreds to thousands. The African Union reported electoral irregularities, including ballot stuffing and multiple ballots at some stations.
Tanzania Detains Opposition Deputy as 200+ Face Treason Charges After Disputed Vote
Key points: Chadema deputy Amani Golugwa was arrested as authorities press treason charges against more than 200 people over protests after the contested October vote. Lawyers say 250+ were arraigned on conspiracy and treason counts. The government has not released an official death toll; claims range from hundreds to thousands. The African Union reported electoral irregularities, including ballot stuffing and multiple ballots at some stations.
06:10, 09.11.2025Politics
Tanzania detains senior opposition figure amid mass treason charges
Amani Golugwa, deputy secretary-general of the opposition party Chadema, was arrested early on Saturday as part of a widening investigation into post-election unrest that has seen more than 200 people charged with treason.
Chadema said Golugwa is the third senior party official to be detained since leader Tundu Lissu and deputy leader John Heche were held before the October 29 vote. Police confirmed Golugwa’s arrest along with nine others and said the force, together with other security agencies, is conducting a "serious manhunt" for additional suspects, naming Chadema’s Secretary-General John Mnyika and communications head Brenda Rupia as wanted.
Lawyer Peter Kibatala told AFP that "more than 250 people were arraigned in three separate cases … and they’re all charged with two sets of offences. The first set of offences is a conspiracy to commit treason. And the second set of offences is treason itself."
The arrests follow widespread demonstrations after the electoral commission declared President Samia Suluhu Hassan the winner with 98% of the vote. Chadema has dismissed the result as a "sham" and accused authorities of trying to "cripple the party’s leadership" and intimidate lower-level activists into false confessions.
Protests erupted on October 29 in Dar-es-Salaam, Arusha, Mwanza, Mbeya and other regions, prompting a heavy security response. Authorities have not released an official death toll from the unrest.
Different groups have provided widely varying casualty figures: the Catholic Church in Tanzania said hundreds were killed; Chadema claimed more than 1,000 deaths and alleged that bodies were concealed; and the Kenya Human Rights Commission asserted that 3,000 people died and shared pictorial evidence it says shows targeted gunshot wounds.
The African Union said the election "did not comply with AU principles, normative frameworks, and other international obligations and standards for democratic elections," noting reports of ballot stuffing and instances where some voters were issued multiple ballots.
International and local observers continue to call for transparent, independent investigations into the alleged electoral irregularities and the reportedly lethal crackdown on protesters. The situation remains fluid and contested, with legal proceedings and security operations ongoing.