A priest attacked after a meeting about democracy with faith leaders, an opposition official’s corpse found doused in acid, an ex-ambassador missing from his blood-stained home – this is the “new normal” in Tanzania, say critics.
The grim assessment comes as the country readies to hold presidential and parliamentary elections tomorrow, amid what Amnesty International has called a “wave of terror”.
President Samia Suluhu Hassan, 65, is said to want nothing less than total victory, similar to the 99% her party Chama Cha Mapinduzi won in local polls last year.
Her main opponent, Tundu Lissu, is on trial for treason, facing a potential death penalty. His party, Chadema, is barred from running.
The only other serious candidate, Luhaga Mpina of ACT Wazalendo, was disqualified on technicalities.
“We see abductions, disappearances,…
