from ALLOYCE KIMBUNGA in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania
Tanzania Bureau
DAR-ES-SALAAM, (CAJ News) – HUMAN rights groups and opposition figures have expressed alarm over the disappearance of former Tanzanian ambassador Humphrey Polepole, a prominent government critic, amid mounting political tension ahead of the country’s October 29 general elections.
According to Amnesty International, Polepole may have been forcibly abducted after his family discovered his Dar es Salaam home ransacked on Monday, with doors broken, wires cut, and blood at the scene — signs suggesting a violent confrontation.
“Amnesty International is deeply alarmed that Humphrey Polepole might have been forcibly disappeared and possibly assaulted,” said Tigere Chagutah, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for East and Southern Africa. “The Tanzanian government must put every effort into locating him and bringing him back to safety. They must hold his abductors accountable.”
Polepole, who once served as Tanzania’s ambassador to Cuba and was a senior member of the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party, resigned earlier this year after publicly accusing the government of eroding the rule of law and constitutional freedoms. His disappearance comes just months after his sister was reportedly abducted and assaulted in similar circumstances.
Police spokesperson David Misime confirmed that Polepole had recently been summoned by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) over comments made on social media, but failed to appear. He added that authorities were working to verify the abduction claims.
Amnesty International warned that Polepole’s case fits into a wider pattern of enforced disappearances targeting journalists, human rights defenders, and opposition supporters in Tanzania. In June, UN human rights experts urged President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s government to end such abuses, citing at least a dozen unresolved cases.
As election campaigns intensify, analysts say the incident could heighten fears of political repression in a country still grappling with concerns over civic freedoms and state accountability.
“Far too many people have disappeared in Tanzania without any accountability,” Chagutah said. “Authorities must bring this impunity to an end.”
– CAJ News