In Tanzania, opposition leader released on bail ahead of local and general elections

The leader of Tanzania’s main opposition party, Freeman Mbowe, was released on bail, his party announced on Saturday, November 23, following his arrest the previous day, just days before local elections. The Party of Democracy and Development (or Chadema, for Chama cha Demokrasia na Maendeleoin Swahili) had already protested earlier this week against the disqualification “unfair” of several of its candidates, on the eve of a vote in the cities and towns of the country. Wednesday’s elections are expected as a barometer of the political panorama, before the presidential elections, scheduled for October 2025 in the country.

“Tonight, Chadema President Freeman Mbowe […] “Together with other leaders who were detained at the Vwawa police station, they were released on bail.”declared the political party early Saturday morning on the social network

Mbowe was arrested on Friday along with other officials after police broke up a gathering. “Use tear gas”depending on the match. After his release, around midnight local time (10pm on Friday in Paris), the opposition leader spoke to reporters and said: “We have been accused of violating the campaign calendar, but this is unfounded. » “I think this is a deliberate measure to alter the campaigns we had planned”added Mbowe, according to whom the police continue to arrest several Chadema members.

“Ambush”

“Police ambushed convoy in Halungu forest”in the west of the country, “and arrested the party’s national president, Freeman Mbowe, as well as several other leaders accompanying him”Chadema spokesperson John Mrema announced on X on Friday.

According to Mrema, the police had prevented Freeman Mbowe, before his arrest, from speaking at a demonstration of his followers in Mlowo, in the south of the country. Then the police intervened and “dispersed the gathered crowd using tear gas”depending on the match.

The police then confirmed that they were arresting Mr. Mbowe and his colleagues, accusing them of having violated the demonstration calendar by trying to organize “a meeting in an area that was not planned for Chadema”.

“We are detaining them for questioning and investigation because some officers were injured by opposition supporters while dispersing the crowd.”Songwe regional police chief Augustino Senga said in a video.

Return to authoritarian practices

Tanzania has seen intensifying political repression in recent months. Chadema accuses the security forces of being involved in the disappearances of several of its members and in the murder of Ali Mohamed Kibao, one of its leaders found dead on September 7. Mbowe had already been briefly detained at the end of September along with dozens of others, when Tanzanian police prevented a demonstration of his party in Dar es Salaam.

The local elections will be the first test for President Samia Suluhu Hassan, who took office after the sudden death of her predecessor, John Magufuli, in March 2021.^me Hassan had shown signs of democratic openness when he came to power, by quickly reopening, for example, banned media outlets.

But the president has faced heavy criticism in recent months, accusing her of returning to her predecessor’s authoritarian practices in the run-up to local elections in November and general elections in late 2025.

Chadema invited the international community to “witnessing the continued violations of democratic rights against opposition parties during these elections”.