Tanzania election violence: one year on, no arrests and no answers

One year after Tanzania's disputed 2025 elections, the government has made no arrests for human rights abuses committed before and during the vote. In the months before the election, authorities sharply increased repression of opposition politicians, government critics and the media. They also failed to explain a series of apparent enforced disappearances. One case is that of Humphrey Polepole, a former Tanzanian ambassador to Cuba, who went missing weeks before the vote after publicly criticizing the ruling party, Chama Cha Mapinduzi. His whereabouts remain unknown. On and after election day, police and plainclothes officers killed hundreds of protesters and bystanders during widespread protests and a five-day nationwide lockdown. A year later, many families still do not know what happened to their relatives. Some have buried their loved ones without a body. Authorities arrested more than 2,000 people, accusing them of destroying government property and treason, though some were later released. Some told Human Rights Watch that police beat them while falsely accusing them of taking part in the protests. In November 2025, President Samia Suluhu Hassan set up a commission of inquiry into the violence. It found that at least 518 people were killed but did not meaningfully examine the role of security forces. The president has since set up another commission, which will reportedly investigate how the unrest was planned and the excessive and unlawful use of force during the elections. It is unclear whether this includes investigating and prosecuting those responsible for abuses by security forces. In recent months, the authorities have stepped up their crackdown on government critics. The treason trial of Tundu Lissu, leader of the main opposition party, Chama Cha Demokrasia Na Maendeleo (CHADEMA), continued this year. On October 21, authorities charged John Pambalu, a CHADEMA official, with treason for allegedly forming an "intention to persuade the public to cause obstruction" of the elections through protests. Treason carries the death penalty in Tanzania. A year after the election violence, families of those killed or missing are still waiting for answers and justice. President Hassan's government should stop targeting critics and instead ensure credible investigations into disappearances and abuses by security forces, and hold those responsible to account.