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TITLE: TANZANIA HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES, 1993
DATE: JANUARY 31, 1994
AUTHOR: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
TANZANIA
The United Republic of Tanzania amended its Constitution in
1992 to become a multiparty state; however, pending national
elections scheduled for 1995, the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi
Party (CCM) continued to control the Government. President
Mwinyi was reelected to a final 5-year term as President of the
Republic in October 1990. The Government lays down fundamental
political policies and monitors their implementation, including
steps toward national multiparty elections scheduled for 1995.
The islands of Zanzibar are integrated into the United
Republic's governmental and party structure, but the Zanzibar
government exercises a considerable degree of autonomy. There
has been growing debate about the viability of the current
Union structure (see Section 3).
The police have primary responsibility for maintaining law and
order. They are supported by a variety of citizens' anticrime
patrols known as "Sungusungu" in urban areas and "Wasalama" in
rural zones. The police occasionally beat suspects during
interrogations. Likewise, there have been instances when the
citizens' anticrime groups have used excessive measures while
carrying out their tasks.
Agriculture provides 90 percent of employment. Cotton, coffee,
sisal, tea, and gemstones account for most export earnings.
The industrial sector is one of the smallest in Africa.
Economic reforms undertaken since 1986, including
liberalization of agricultural policy, the beginning of
privatization of state-owned enterprises, rescheduling of
foreign debt payments, and the freeing of the currency exchange
rate, have helped stimulate economic growth--estimated at 3 to
4 percent in 1993--for the seventh straight year.
While the Government permitted the registration of 11 new
political parties and allowed increased freedom of speech and
press, it continued to restrict human rights. Moreover, the
Government attempted to control the pace and direction of
political change, purportedly to ensure social stability. In
the process it used short-term detentions of some political
opponents, engaged in several intrusive actions against the
independent press, sometimes interfered with the right of
peaceful assembly, and continued to impinge on the citizens'
right of privacy and free movement. Although the government
held no known political detainees or prisoners at year's end,
it had not rectified a variety of problems in the judicial
system which, in their totality, amounted to the denial of
expeditious justice and fair trial for many citizens. During
the year, religious tensions heightened with the public
appearance of Muslim fundamentalism. Discrimination and
violence against women remain severe and widespread, and
offenders were not usually prosecuted.
RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS
Section 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including
Freedom from:
a. Political and Other Extrajudicial Killing
There was one extrajudicial killing in 1993. On January 31,
following a confrontation on the island of Pemba over the
removal of a flag of the opposition party Civic United Front
(CUF), a local policeman shot and killed one party member and
injured another. Investigating what was widely viewed as an
unfortunate local incident, a police commission recommended the
policeman be charged with murder without intent and with
causing injury to another person. CUF leaders filed separate
charges against another policeman involved. Both cases were
still pending in the courts at the end of the year.
Spontaneous mob "justice" for suspected criminals also remained
a common practice throughout the country. For example, in May
a mob in Dar es Salaam killed three armed men and injured a
fourth following a gas station robbery. No one was arrested.
b. Disappearance
There were no reported cases of disappearance.
c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment
The Constitution prohibits the use of torture and inhuman or
degrading treatment, and government officials condemn these
practices whenever cases become public. In practice, however,
the police occasionally threaten and mistreat suspected
criminals during and after their apprehension. Officials are
seldom tried for such abuses when they occur.
The People's Militia Laws, as amended by Parliament in 1989,
bestow quasi-legal status on the traditional Sungusungu and
Wasalama village and neighborhood anticrime groups. The press
in April reported that eight members of a Sungusungu patrol in
Mwanza were imprisoned for beating a teacher accused of misuse
of school property. The widespread belief in witchcraft has
led, in a few instances, to the killing of alleged witches by
their "victims," aggrieved relatives, or mobs. While
government authorities attempt to discourage such practices,
they rarely prosecute participants.
Although there is no independent monitoring, prison conditions
generally reflect Tanzania's depressed economic conditions.
There has been little improvement over the past year.
Government-furnished food and medical care are limited in
quantity and quality, leading to outbreaks of serious diseases
such as cholera and malaria that have reportedly led to some
deaths. On the other hand, prisoners' families usually may
visit and attend to feeding and health care needs.
d. Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile
The Criminal Procedure Code, amended in 1985, requires that a
person arrested for a crime, other than a national security
offense under the Preventive Detention Act, be charged before a
magistrate within 24 hours and be permitted the right to
defense counsel. These amendments also restricted the right to
bail, reduced the number of bailable offenses, limited judges'
discretion in granting bail, and imposed strict conditions on
freedom of movement and association when bail is granted. An
average case still takes 2 to 3 years or longer to come to
trial, with the defendant incarcerated under poor conditions.
Under the Preventive Detention Act, the President of Tanzania
may order the arrest and indefinite detention without bail of
any person considered dangerous to the public order or national
security. The act was amended in 1985 to require the
Government to release detainees within 15 days of detention or
inform them of the reason for their detention. The detainee
was also allowed to challenge the grounds for detention at
90-day intervals. Despite a landmark ruling by the Court of
Appeal in 1991 that the Preventive Detention Act could not be
used to deny bail to persons not considered dangerous to
society, the Government has still not introduced corrective
legislation.
Arbitrary arrest in criminal cases occurs. For example, police
occasionally arrest innocent relatives of criminal suspects,
holding them in custody without charge for as long as several
years in efforts to force the suspects to turn themselves in.
Such relatives who manage to get their case before a judge are
usually set free, only to be immediately rearrested when they
leave the courtroom. The legal community appears helpless to
correct these abuses. Local lawyers estimate the number of
such cases at several hundred.
The Government has additional broad detention powers under the
Regions and Regional Commissioners Act and the Area
Commissioners Act of 1962. These acts permit regional and
district commissioners to arrest and detain for 48 hours
persons who may "disturb public tranquility." There are
credible reports that these powers continued to be abused to
detain political "troublemakers," citizens who question
authority, or those who resist forced contributions to the
ruling party.
In 1993 the Government sometimes used its legal powers to
harass and intimidate political opponents. The authorities
arrested opposition speakers who were particularly critical of
the Government during public rallies for using "abusive"
language. After a few hours or days in jail, the Government
routinely dropped charges. In June the Government arrested
three members of the unregistered Democratic Party and charged
them with inciting Muhimbili Medical Center nurses to
demonstrate for payment of benefits. It also arrested and
charged five others with unlawful assembly and assaulting a
police officer. While members of opposition parties have been
harassed by security officials, none was detained under the
Preventive Detention Act in 1993.
e. Denial of Fair Public Trial
Weaknesses in the judicial system and government interference
have the effect of denying expeditious and fair justice to many
citizens (see below).
The legal system in Tanzania is based on the British model,
with modifications to accommodate customary and Islamic law in
civil cases. Criminal trials are open to the public and the
press; courts must give reasons on the record for holding
secret proceedings. Criminal defendants have the right of
appeal. Military courts do not try civilians, and there are no
security courts. Defendants in civil and military courts may
appeal decisions to the High Court and the Court of Appeal.
Zanzibar's court system generally parallels the mainland's
legal system but retains Islamic courts to handle Muslim family
cases such as divorce, child custody, and inheritance. Cases
concerning Zanzibar constitutional issues are heard only in
Zanzibar's courts. All other cases may be appealed to the
Court of Appeal of the United Republic of Tanzania.
While the judiciary is constitutionally mandated to operate
independently from the executive branch, the Government can
influence cases. For example, judges who render decisions
unpopular with senior police or government officials may be
subject to pressures or may be transferred and reassigned.
Government officials also sometimes ignore judicial rulings.
In addition to this interference, the judicial bureaucracy is
widely criticized as inefficient and corrupt, bringing into
question the defendants' ability to receive a fair and
expeditious trial in all cases. There are reports of
prisoners, who could not pay bribes to police and court
officials, waiting several years for trial. Although the
Government initiated efforts as early as 1991 to highlight
judicial corruption, there has been little evident progress in
correcting this situation.
The Court of Appeal dismissed the celebrated case of former
Zanzibar Chief Minister Seif Sharif Hamad. He had been
released from detention on November 20, 1991, and allowed in
late 1992 to travel abroad and engage in political activities.
There were no known cases of political detainees or prisoners
held at year's end.
f. Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or
Correspondence
The State continued to interfere with these rights, although
the Government began to disassociate the intrusive,
neighborhood watch "10-cell" function from the CCM Party. The
CCM has historically penetrated all levels of society through
local cells, varying in size from single-family homes to large
apartment buildings and containing from 10 to 200 persons.
Unpaid party officials served as 10-cell leaders with authority
to resolve problems at the grassroots level and to report to
authorities any suspicious behavior, event, or noncompliance
with compulsory night patrol service in the neighborhood. In
1993 the 10-cell function continued in some areas but was
weakened in others as leadership was transferred to individuals
elected in recent "grassroots elections." The CCM was
withdrawn from most public establishments, and the military was
forbidden to belong to any political organization.
CCM membership is voluntary and is estimated at approximately 3
million cardholders. While in the past CCM membership had been
necessary for advancement in political and other areas, the
importance of such membership is beginning to wane.
The Criminal Procedure Act of 1985 authorizes police officials
(including the civilian anticrime units) to issue search
warrants; however, the act also authorizes searches of persons
and premises without a warrant if necessary to prevent the loss
or destruction of evidence connected with an offense or if
circumstances are serious and urgent. In practice, warrants
are rarely requested, and the police and others search private
homes and business establishments at will. Reportedly, the
security services monitor the telephones and correspondence of
some citizens and of selected foreign residents.
Compulsory participation in local civilian anticrime groups
continued in 1993 in some areas. Historically, these groups
have operated only in rural areas to combat cattle rustling and
other criminal activity. Peasant farmers are no longer
required to join agricultural cooperative societies controlled
by the ruling CCM party. The 1992 Cooperative Act eliminated
government interference in cooperative formation, and
cooperatives now serve economic rather than political ends.
Members elect their own officers. Various ordinances allow the
authorities to remove "undesirable" or destitute persons from
one area to their prior place of residence or origin if
employment is not available for them (see Sections 2.d. and
6.c.).
Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:
a. Freedom of Speech and Press
Freedom of speech and press is provided for under the
Constitution. Political activists openly criticized the
Government and ruling party in public forums, although there
were a few incidents in which vociferous opponents were briefly
detained, in some cases allegedly for using "abusive" language
(see Section 2.d.). While police were often seen at political
rallies, their presence was principally for crowd-control
purposes.
The single most important medium, radio, remained under
government control, with access for the nascent political
parties restricted to one or two weekly programs. On occasion,
the Government refused opposition political parties permission
to announce public meetings or purchase advertisement time on
the radio. The Government had not formulated a public policy
on access to government-controlled media by political parties
or nongovernmental organizations by the end of the year,
although political party leaders and Radio Tanzania officials
discussed the issue in July. During 1993 the Government laid
the groundwork for a reorganization of radio and the licensing
of private radio and television stations, culminating in the
inauguration of the National Broadcasting Commission on
November 15.
Daily papers available at the end of 1993 were the CCM-owned
Swahili-language Uhuru (circulation 80,000); the government
English-language Daily News (circulation 50,000); and a third,
the private Swahili-language Majira with an initial printing
run of 50,000 copies. A large number of other English- and
Swahili-language private newspapers and magazines appeared
regularly. These newspapers were also available in Zanzibar,
where the only local journal was a Ministry of Information
bimonthly. The official media generally reflect the CCM's
ideological line, publicizing and defending the Government's
programs with guidance from the Ministry of Information.
Editorials are often written by senior government officials.
Although there is no formal censorship, the official media
still exercise considerable self-censorship.
Numerous foreign newspapers and magazines were widely
available. Although the local newspapers and magazines varied
widely in quality, about half formed the core of a serious,
free, independent press. They have been largely critical of
the Government and have given extensive coverage to opposition
parties. The Government attempted to curb the critical
independent press with relatively little success. The
Information Ministry revoked the licenses of two newspapers in
January, ostensibly for printing obscene articles. This action
was broadly criticized as arbitrary, and the owners of one of
the newspapers had an appeal pending in the courts at year's
end.
The Government also proposed legislation to establish a press
council, ostensibly to handle complaints against the press and
to uphold standards of professionalism in journalism. This
bill was harshly criticized by the media, some academics, and
parliamentarians as a thinly veiled attempt to control the
newly independent media. The bill included provision for
licensing journalists as well as a binding code of ethics. The
negative response was so overwhelming that the Government
withdrew the bill.
Academic freedom exists in theory, although most academics are
employed in government institutions and hesitate to promote
sensitive subjects in their classrooms. On the other hand, in
publications and public appearances, they have been outspoken
and frank in their views, whether critical or supportive of
government policies.
b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association
Although Tanzanians enjoyed the right freely to discuss
political alternatives, local government officials sometimes
used existing laws to impede freedom of assembly and
association. In order to preserve public order, the Government
warned political opponents against employing "abusive" or
"inciting" language at public rallies. Permits must be
obtained from the Government for any public meeting. The
responses to requests of opposition parties for permits to hold
meetings were at times issued too late to publicize the rallies
or too restrictive in terms of approved times and locations.
Some requests were explicitly denied.
The registrar of political parties has sole authority for
approving or denying the registration of any political party
and is responsible for enforcing strict regulations on
registered or provisionally registered parties. Electoral
amendments approved in 1992 prohibit independent candidates,
require standing Members of Parliament to resign if they join
another political party, require all political parties to
support the Union with Zanzibar, and forbid parties based on
ethnic, regional, or religious affiliation. Parties granted
provisional registration may hold public meetings and recruit
members. They have 6 months to submit lists of at least 200
members from 10 of the country's 25 regions, including 2
regions of the islands, in order to secure full registration
and to be eligible to field candidates for election.
Nonregistered parties are prohibited from holding meetings,
recruiting members, or fielding candidates.
The most prominent unregistered party was Reverend Christopher
Mtikila's Democratic Party which advocates the expulsion from
the mainland of minorities and the establishment of a Christian
state. The authorities arrested Mtikila and four others in
January and charged them with unlawful assembly, breach of the
peace, sedition, and using abusive language against CCM leaders
and the Government when a public rally in Dar es Salaam
prompted a riot. They were released on bail 2 weeks later and
hearings continued throughout the year. In September the
Government held Mtikila another 2 weeks and charged him with
intimidation and sedition against the Government after he
called for the expulsion of President Mwinyi and other
Zanzibari leaders from the mainland and issued veiled threats
against their safety. He has since been released.
In May the entire undergraduate student body of Sokoine
University was suspended after students barred university
officials from entering the administration building in a
protest over health and related services. All students were
reinstated by the end of the year.
Under the Societies Ordinance, the Ministry of Home Affairs
must approve any new association. A number of professional,
business, legal, and medical associations exist but have only
begun to address political topics. Several nongovernmental
organizations were formed within the last 2 years to address
the concerns of families, women, and children.
c. Freedom of Religion
Freedom of religion is provided for in the Constitution and is
respected in practice, to the extent that public order and
safety are not jeopardized. A rise in religious tension and
violence (see Section 2.b. and below) did not impinge on
freedom of worship, but raised public concerns for the future
of religious tolerance. Missionaries are allowed to enter the
country freely to proselytize, and Tanzanians are allowed to go
abroad for pilgrimages and other religious purposes. Since
1988 the Government has allowed the Jehovah's Witnesses, who
were banned in Tanzania for many years, to hold services, to
register as an organization, and to proselytize.
In April the Government arrested 38 alleged Muslim
fundamentalists and charged them with destroying several pork
butcheries in Dar es Salaam. A subsequent demonstration during
a court hearing led to the arrest of at least 12 Muslim
sympathizers for illegal assembly. The authorities charged two
Muslim leaders, Sheikh Yahya Hussein and Sheikh Kassim Jumaa
Khamis, with instigating the violence, and Kassim also faced
charges of denigrating the beliefs of a religious group and two
counts of sedition. They released Sheikh Kassim on bail and
dropped charges against most of the accused in June. The
Government also banned Balukta, the Koran Reading Association,
for its alleged involvement in the incidents and arrested
Sheikh Kassim in August, charging him with four additional
counts of sedition. He was released on bail and awaited trial
at year's end. In April the Government expelled three Sudanese
Muslim teachers from the country for allegedly inciting
religious hatred and urging the establishment of an Islamic
state.
d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign
Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation
Apart from the Zanzibari requirement for documentation for
travel between Zanzibar and the mainland, short-term travel
generally is not restricted within Tanzania, but citizens must
follow national employment directives stipulating the nature of
employment and location of residence. The Human Resources
Deployment Act of 1983 requires local governments to ensure
that every resident within their areas of jurisdiction engages
in productive and lawful employment. Those not so employed are
subject to transfer to another area where employment is
available. For years city dwellers unable to show proof of
employment during police checks have been forced to return to
rural areas as the Government has sought to control increasing
pressure on urban resources. In early 1993, the Dar es Salaam
police shipped many of the city's beggars back to their home
villages. In April Zanzibar President Salmin Amour ordered an
alleged antigovernment activist to move to his ancestral
village on the mainland.
Mostly due to bureaucratic inefficiency, passports for foreign
travel can be difficult to obtain. Former exiled opposition
figure Oscar Kambona was finally issued a passport in August
after an unusually long investigation into his claim to
Tanzanian citizenship. The delay in his case appeared
excessive and possibly was politically motivated. The
authorities require citizens to obtain central bank and tax
office clearances in order to buy airline tickets and subject
those planning to travel or emigrate to intense scrutiny.
Tanzanians who leave the country without authorization are
subject to prosecution on their return. The Extraterritorial
Jurisdiction Act empowers the courts to try Tanzanians who
commit offenses outside the country. Although it is legally
possible for citizenship to be revoked, there have been no
reports that this has been done in recent years. Parliament
passed a bill in 1986 that required the registration and
identification of everyone over the age of 10 who resides in
Tanzania, apparently in an effort to control foreign workers,
but it has not been implemented.
Tanzania has a liberal policy towards refugees and displaced
persons. Following an attempted coup and ethnic conflict in
Burundi in October, Tanzania received an influx of over 300,000
Burundian refugees. Tanzania also continued to host some
292,000 refugees from earlier influxes from Burundi, Rwanda,
and Mozambique. In 1993, prior to the Burundi coup attempt,
several thousand Burundian refugees voluntarily repatriated.
Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens
to Change Their Government
A multiparty political system was officially introduced in 1992
after 28 years of one-party rule. Pending local elections
postponed until 1994 with the concurrence of the opposition
parties and national elections in 1995, the Chama Cha Mapinduzi
Party remains the sole party in the Government. In April all
but one opposition party boycotted a parliamentary by-election
in Zanzibar, ostensibly to protest the absence of further
constitutional and legislative reforms they believed necessary
for free and fair competition. However, most opposition
parties have indicated that they will participate in two
parliamentary by-elections in early 1994. In 1992 the
Constitution was amended to allow for the impeachment of the
President and votes of no confidence in the Prime Minister.
By the end of the year, there were 11 newly registered
political parties, with the main potential opposition to the
CCM found in James Mapalala's Civic United Front, two factions
of the Union for Multiparty Democracy headed by Christopher
Kassanga Tumbo and Chief Abdullah Fundikira, Edwin Mtei's Party
for Democracy and Development, and Mabere Marando's National
Conference for Construction and Reform.
Growing political discussion has brought to the surface open
controversy over the issue of the Union between Zanzibar and
the mainland, leading to mainland parliamentarians engaging in
an unprecedented questioning of government policy. Many
mainlanders have resented Zanzibar's disproportionate
representation and influence in state institutions, heightened
by Zanzibar's decision in late 1992 to join the Organization of
the Islamic Conference (OIC). Pressure from mainland
parliamentarians forced Zanzibar to withdraw from the OIC in
August, and at the same time Parliament approved a motion
calling for the establishment of a separate mainland government
of Tanganyika. The Union Government agreed to solicit public
opinion on possible modalities to establish a separate
Tanganyika government and report its recommendations by April
1995. Other issues debated in the 1993 budget session by
Parliament broke new ground in their substance and tone.
There are no restrictions in law on the participation of women
in politics and government. However, in practice the number
remains small, largely due to cultural impediments to the
schooling of women, as well as to the economic exigencies of
raising large families and engaging in subsistence agriculture
(see Section 5.a.). Females comprise 28 of 248 members of the
National Assembly and 3 of 25 cabinet members.
Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and
Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations
of Human Rights
Local groups devoted solely to monitoring human rights abuses
began to form in 1993 but had not established effective
procedures to address specific cases of human rights abuse.
While the Government continues to resent outside inquiries into
alleged violations of human rights, it has allowed visits by
representatives of international human rights groups in the
past. In August the Government announced plans to hold
tribunals or conferences throughout the country on human rights
abuses, focusing specifically on abuses against women and
children. The Tanzanian women's media association sponsored
such a workshop in November.
Section 5 Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion,
Disability, Language, or Social Status
The Constitution prohibits discrimination based on nationality,
tribe, origin, political affiliation, color, religion, or
lifestyle. Discrimination based on sex, age, or disability is
not specifically prohibited by law but is publicly discouraged
in official statements.
Women
Both party and government constitutions endorse equality in the
workplace. Nevertheless, strong traditional norms still divide
labor along gender lines and place women in a subordinate
position. For example, women face widespread discrimination in
access to educational opportunities, and in the countryside
they are relegated largely to farming and raising children.
Female students who become pregnant are dismissed from school.
Under Zanzibari law, unmarried women under the age of 21 who
become pregnant are subject to 2 years' imprisonment, although
this has not been enforced for several years.
Progress on women's rights has been more noticeable in urban
areas, where traditional values are weaker, but even there and
in the public sector, which employs 80 percent of the salaried
labor force, certain statutes restrict their access to some
jobs or their hours of employment. According to 1988
statistics, only 3 percent of economically active women are
engaged in the wage and salary employment sector, and women are
still concentrated in the traditional fields of nursing,
teaching, clerical, and related jobs.
The overall situation for women is even less favorable in
heavily Muslim Zanzibar. Women there and in many parts of the
mainland face discriminatory restrictions on inheritance and
ownership of property because of concessions by the Government
and courts to customary and Islamic law. While provisions of
the Marriage Act provide for certain inheritance and property
rights for women, application of customary, Islamic, or
statutory law depends on the lifestyle and stated intentions of
the male head of household. The courts have thus upheld
discriminatory inheritance claims, primarily in rural areas.
Violence against women is widespread. Legal remedies exist but
in practice are difficult to obtain. Traditional customs
subordinating women remain strong in both urban and rural
areas, and often local magistrates uphold them. The husband
has a free hand to treat his wife as he wishes, and
wife-beating occurs at all levels of society. Cultural,
family, and social pressure prevents many women from reporting
abuses to authorities. Government officials frequently make
public statements decrying such abuses, but rarely is action
taken against perpetrators. Several nongovernmental
organizations provide counseling and education programs on
women's rights issues, particularly sexual harassment and
molestation.
Children
Tanzania has ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child
and has made a number of constructive efforts to address
socioeconomic conditions that adversely affect children. For
example, the Government has allotted a plot to erect an edifice
to house street children near Dar es Salaam and has worked
closely with churches and nongovernmental organizations to
assess the well-being of orphans and neglected children. The
ruling party's National Policy for Children and Young Persons'
Welfare has exerted continuing pressure for commitment of
public policy to welfare and advocacy of children's rights.
However, government funding of programs for children is only
2.3 percent of government development expenditure, and
nongovernmental organizations that could support governmental
efforts to provide services and protection to children are only
just emerging.
Although officially discouraged by the Government, female
genital mutilation (circumcision) is still performed at an
early age in approximately 20 of the country's 130 mainland
ethnic groups. Government officials have called for changes in
customs which adversely affect females, but no legislation has
been introduced that would specifically restrict the practice
of female circumcision. Seminars sponsored by various
governmental and nongovernmental organizations are regularly
held in an attempt to educate the public on the dangers of
these and other traditional practices. Health authorities
state the practice is declining, but nongovernmental sources
maintain it is on the rise, especially in Central Tanzania.
National/Racial/Ethnic Minorities
The Barabaig people of Central Tanzania have been subject for
many years to government discrimination. The Barabaig and
their attorneys maintain that the Government has illegally
dispossessed them of their traditional lands in order to
implement a government-run agricultural project. A probe team
established to investigate Barabaig complaints made over 30
recommendations in May but supported continuation of the
agricultural project that prompted the conflicts. The probe
team confirmed cases of violence against the Barabaig and noted
that several cases were still pending in court.
The Asian community has declined by 50 percent in the past
decade to about 44,000. The Asians have been regarded with
considerable antipathy by many African Tanzanians since they
are a business-oriented minority in a recently Socialist
society, since they have disproportionate influence in key
sectors of the economy, and since they have remained culturally
and economically exclusive. There are, however, no laws or
official policies discriminating against them. As the
Government places greater emphasis on market-oriented economic
policies and privatization, concerns regarding Asian economic
dominance have increased. This has led to demands for policies
of "indigenization" to ensure that privatization does not
increase Asian economic predominance at the expense of the
African population. Several Asians were attacked, robbed, and
injured in Dar es Salaam in April after Democratic Party
leaders vociferously denounced nonindigenous businessmen during
a public rally. There is a similar but smaller Arab community.
Religious Minorities
As a consequence of colonial and postindependence
administration, which refused to recognize the traditional
mosque schools, there are significant disadvantages for the
Muslim community in educational achievement, prominence in
civil service and government, and in business success, with
resulting widespread Muslim resentment of the perceived unfair
advantages enjoyed by Christians. Christians, in turn, have
been critical of what they perceive as undue favoritism
accorded to Muslims in appointments, jobs, and scholarships by
the President, who is a Muslim. Some leaders in both camps
appear to be playing up imbalances, which reflect past
historical circumstances rather then deliberate
discrimination. In fact, there does not at present appear to
be any serious problem of discrimination on account of religion
in access to employment or educational opportunities. Muslim
parents, however, especially in rural areas, often do not send
their daughters to school because of a traditional belief that
education is unnecessary or even detrimental for women.
People with Disabilities
Physically disabled individuals are effectively restricted in
access to education, employment, and provision of other state
services due to physical barriers, which are not legally
prohibited, and limited funding for special facilities and
programs.
Section 6 Worker Rights
a. The Right of Association
Workers do not have the right to form or join organizations of
their own choice. At the end of 1993, there was still only one
labor union organization, the Organization of Tanzania Trade
Unions (OTTU), to which all unionized workers belong. A
subgrouping of teachers (Chakiwata) negotiated an arrangement
to operate independently of OTTU in 1993. And in November, the
Tanzania Teacher's Union (known as CWT in Swahili) was
registered. This union exists only on paper pending union
elections in early 1994.
The OTTU is nearing the end of a 3-year restructuring period
which will culminate in union general elections in 1994. The
purpose of the restructuring is to enable union workers to
elect new leaders who have not been "prequalified" by the
ruling party and to reshape the organization as an umbrella
organization presiding over a federation of independent
unions. The initial steps taken thus far have been to make the
OTTU legally separate from the ruling party. However, the new
Labor Law which accomplished this also mandated that all union
labor must be under the OTTU and permits the President of
Tanzania to disband any member union of the OTTU at his
discretion.
While the OTTU is no longer considered to be a mass
organization of the CCM party, it has pledged continued
affiliation to the CCM, and most of its officials are current
or former CCM officers. The OTTU, like its predecessor,
JUWATA, represents approximately 60 percent of the workers in
industry and government, but it has little influence on labor
policy. Overall, roughly 25 percent of Tanzania's 2 million
wage earners are organized. All workers, including those
classified as "essential" service workers, are permitted to
join OTTU, but "essential" workers are not permitted to strike.
Workers have the legal right to strike only after complicated
and protracted mediation and conciliation procedures leading
ultimately to the Industrial Court. The Industrial Court
receives direction from the Minister of Labor and Youth
Development. If the OTTU is not satisfied with the decision of
the Industrial Court, it can then conduct a legal strike.
These procedures can prolong a dispute for months without
resolving it. Pending a resolution, frustrated workers often
stage impromptu wildcat strikes and walkouts. Although most
strikes are in effect illegal (there were no legal strikes in
1993), there were several wildcat strikes, notably in the
railway sector, and a number of managers were locked out of
company premises by workers over labor disputes. There are no
laws prohibiting retribution against legal strikers. However,
penalties are seldom, if ever, imposed against even illegal
strikers, and there were no cases of retribution against
striking workers in 1993.
The OTTU continued JUWATA's policy of limiting its
international affiliations to regional and pan-African trade
union organizations.
b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively
Collective bargaining is protected by law but limited to the
private sector. Wages for employees of the Government and
state-owned organizations, which account for the bulk of the
salaried labor force, have routinely been set by the
Government. However, the Ministry of Labor established a board
to review and regulate wage rates which included
representatives of the Government, trade unions, and employers'
organizations.
Although the OTTU may negotiate on behalf of most private
sector employees with the Association of Tanzania Employers,
collective agreements must be submitted to the Industrial Court
for approval. The International Labor Organization (ILO) has
observed that these provisions are not in conformity with ILO
Convention 98 on collective bargaining and the right to
organize. Tanzania's Security of Employment Act of 1964
prohibits discriminatory activities by an employer against
union members. Employers found guilty of antiunion activities
are legally required to reinstate workers.
There are no export processing zones.
c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor
The Constitution prohibits forced labor. However, again in
1993 the ILO observed that provisions of various Tanzanian laws
are incompatible with ILO Conventions 29 and 105 on forced
labor. Specifically, the Human Resources Deployment Act (1983)
requires every local government authority to ensure that
able-bodied persons over 15 years of age not in school engage
in productive or other lawful employment. As in previous
years, police officials rounded up beggars and street people
and returned them to their home villages. In some rural areas,
ordinary villagers are still obligated to work in the village's
communal garden a set number of days per week. In one case,
residents complained that the income from these plots was never
distributed.
d. Minimum Age for Employment of Children
By law, children under the age of 12 are prohibited from
working, but this provision applies only to the formal wage
sector in both urban and rural areas and not to children
working on family farms or herding domestic livestock.
Children between the ages of 12 and 15 can be employed on a
daily wage and on a day-to-day basis but must have parental
permission and return to their residence at night.
The minimum age for entry into work of a contractual nature in
approved occupations is set at the age of 15. It is prohibited
for a child or young person to be employed in any occupation
that is injurious to health and that is dangerous or that is
otherwise unsuitable. Young persons between the ages of 12 and
15 may be employed in industrial work, but only between the
hours of 6 a.m. and 6 p.m., with some exceptions allowed.
A 1992 ILO report stated that the problem of child labor in
Tanzania is widespread and prevalent, with conditions in the
plantation industry particularly detrimental to children.
According to the report, the existing legal framework
regulating the employment of children is not fully adequate and
does not conform with international standards, nor are the
enforcement machinery and the Ministry of Labor inspectorate
equipped to deal with the problem. Government officials and
nongovernmental organizations are aware of the growing problem
but are limited in their responses by lack of resources and
institutional capacity.
e. Acceptable Conditions of Work
There is a legal minimum wage for employment in the formal
sector. The OTTU often negotiates higher minimum wages with
individual employers, depending on the financial status of the
business. A worker earning the minimum wage, even when
supplemented with various benefits such as housing,
transportation allowances, and food subsidies, may not always
be able to provide an adequate living for his family, and must
depend on the extended family or a second or third job. The
official minimum wage averages from $7 to $11 (3,500 to 5,000
Tanzanian shillings) per month, but many workers, especially
those in the informal sector, are paid less.
There is no standard legal workweek. However, a 5-day, 40-hour
workweek is in effect for government workers. Most private
employers retain a 6-day, 44- or 48-hour workweek. In general,
women may not be employed between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. Several
laws regulate safety in the workplace. An occupational health
and safety factory inspection system, set up with the
assistance of the ILO, is now managed by the Ministry of Labor
and Youth Development. Its effectiveness, however, is
minimal. OTTU officials have claimed that enforcement of labor
standards is fairly effective in the formal sector, but no
verification studies have been performed. Workers can take an
employer to court through their OTTU branch if their working
conditions do not comply with the Ministry of Labor's health
and environmental standards. Workers making such complaints
have not lost their jobs as a result. Enforcement of labor
standards is nonexistent in the informal sector.
[end of document]
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