In Tanzania, CHRI works with local organisations to advocate for improved policing and to educate the public and police on policing and human rights related matters. Currently, Tanzania is in the process of reviewing the national Constitution. CHRI hopes that, similar to the Kenyan process, that the police will also be reformed as part of the process of Constitutional reform. The legislation governing the police in Tanzania could be amended to improve the accountability of the police, to reduce the risk of unnecessary use of force by the police and to increase the community involvement in policing.
Constitutional and police reform
In response to the review process, CHRI prepared 2012 paper on Constitutional and security sector reform in Tanzania, drawing on our involvement in the constitutional reform process in Kenya. This paper will provides useful recommendations for civil society groups in Tanzania, who are advocating for reform to security and justice sector.
Public education
In 2012, CHRI is partnering with the Commission for Human Rights and Good Governance to prepare a simple public education booklet on policing and people’s rights: 101 Things that You Always Wanted to Know About the Police but Were Too Afraid to Ask (also available in Swahili). The booklet is an extension of CHRI’s 101 policing series, which has been very successful in South Asia.
Policing of public assemblies
In response to the involvement of the police in political protests, CHRI prepared a paper detailing the law regarding policing of public assemblies in Tanzania titled ‘Policing of Public Assemblies in Tanzania: Analysis of the Legal Framework’. This paper explains the legal framework, how the laws would be interpreted by the Courts, and then provides a summary of how the police must act to ensure Tanzanian’s right to assembly is protected, whilst maintaining public order and safety.
CHRI have also published opinion pieces about policing of public assemblies in Pambazuka and the Africa Review.
Working in collaboration with partners
In 2013 CHRI brought together organisations to form Haki na Usalama, a criminal justice coalition in Tanzania, to replicate the successful Usalama Reforms Forum in Kenya. The actors include Legal and Human Rights Centre, Tanganyika Law Society, National Organisation for Legal Assistance, Lawyers Environmental Action Team and CHRI. The coalition prepared a submission to the Constitutional Review Commission [hyperlink] outlining how new Constitution can spearhead criminal justice reform.
Key reports
The status of policing and police reform in Tanzania is covered in CHRI’s 2014 regional report ‘A Force for Good? Improving the Police in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda’. Also, in 2006, CHRI published a seminal report on police accountability in Tanzania: The Police, The People, The Politics: Police Accountability in Tanzania. The report outlines the situation of police accountability in Tanzania, the reforms that need to take place and sets out a roadmap for achieving this reform. CHRI conducted research and fact finding missions in preparation for this report in the preceding years 2003-2005.