Tanzania In Fresh Legal Battle With Tortured Foreign Activists

The Post On Sunday

In a chilling account of abuse and intimidation, two prominent East African activists have announced plans to sue the Tanzanian government for illegal detention and torture during a visit in May, when they traveled to Dar es Salaam to support opposition politician Tundu Lissu. The revelations have sent shockwaves across the region, raising concerns over the treatment of foreign nationals in Tanzania and the increasingly hostile environment for critics of the government.

Boniface Mwangi, a renowned Kenyan photojournalist and activist, and Agather Atuhaire, a Ugandan lawyer and journalist, held an emotional press conference earlier this month, detailing harrowing experiences of sexual assault and physical abuse at the hands of Tanzanian authorities. Mwangi claimed that the authorities subjected them to what he described as “sexual torture,” while Atuhaire alleged that she was smeared in excrement during their detention.

Speaking to Post on Sunday, Mwangi said, “Nothing in my life prepared me for this. I’ve been beaten, shot at, and my house has been bombed before, but I’ve never felt such pain. We are not going to let them get away with this.” Atuhaire added, “People need to know they cannot violate others unprovoked. Accountability must be enforced.”

The activists, who were attending a court hearing for Lissu on May 19, reported that they were forcibly removed from their hotel by individuals they described as security officers, illegally detained, and subjected to sustained verbal and physical abuse. Mwangi said he was beaten repeatedly at an immigration office and again at a police station, where officials accused them of attempting to “disrupt peace and ruin the country.”

The ordeal escalated later that evening when Mwangi and Atuhaire were blindfolded, handcuffed, and driven to a secluded compound. There, they allege, they were ordered to strip, suspended upside down, and beaten with wooden planks. Their screams were stifled by makeshift gagging methods, and both activists were subjected to invasive assaults. The attackers photographed them and threatened that disclosure would result in further harm. Two days later, the victims were abandoned at their respective national borders.

Atuhaire described the experience as “really, really painful,” and Mwangi emphasized that the psychological and physical trauma exceeded anything he had encountered in his years of activism. The activists now plan to initiate legal cases in Tanzanian courts as well as through regional and international mechanisms, including the East African Court of Justice and the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights.

Tanzanian authorities have yet to comment directly, though Abdallah Possi, Tanzania’s UN representative, acknowledged the allegations at a UN Human Rights Council meeting in Geneva. Possi stated that while the claims were “highly doubtful,” the government takes allegations of torture and abuse seriously and is investigating the matter.

The incident forms part of a troubling pattern of rights violations in Tanzania. Over the past year, killings, kidnappings, and arbitrary detentions have drawn condemnation both locally and internationally. Among the victims, Mohamed Ali Kibao, a Chadema opposition member, was found brutally beaten with acid on his face. Catholic priest Charles Kitima was also attacked near his home, while Josephat Gwajima’s church was deregistered after he criticized unlawful detentions. Two YouTubers promoting governance and democracy were recently arrested for “improper use of social media.”

Although there is no evidence linking President Samia Suluhu Hassan personally to these acts, critics argue that her administration is reviving fear-based tactics reminiscent of her predecessor, John Magufuli. Human rights activists warn that the targeting of foreign nationals marks a dangerous escalation, indicative of a government increasingly reliant on security forces to suppress dissent ahead of electoral contests. Maria Sarungi Tsehai, a Tanzanian activist in exile, described the actions as a sign of “huge panic” by the administration and an attempt to secure a second term at the expense of human rights.

Mwangi and Atuhaire’s case highlights the risks faced by human rights defenders in the region and underscores the urgent need for robust legal and institutional safeguards to protect activists and journalists from harassment, torture, and extrajudicial actions. Their fight for justice is not only a personal struggle but a call to the international community to ensure that abuses against civil society actors in East Africa do not go unchecked.