(AP Photo/str) © The Associated Press

October 31, 2025

Concerns over election corruption and repression in Tanzania have prompted three days of country-wide protests, resulting in hundreds of reported deaths (BBC).

What We Know

• President Samia Suluhu Hassan (incumbent) won Wednesday’s general election, but her main challengers were either jailed or barred from the election. | CBS News
• Human rights groups have accused Hassan’s government of stifling opposition through abductions, detentions, and forced disappearances of activists and journalists. | The New York Times
• Protests have led to a curfew and internet shutdown. | CBS News
• State security forces have used firearms and tear gas on protestors. | OHCHR
• Hundreds of people have reportedly died; exact numbers are unverified. | Al Jazeera News

Why We Care

• We believe that all people are created and loved by God (Genesis 1-2), and we care deeply for all our global neighbors.
• Specifically, we have partnerships with two Tanzanian organizations - Eripoto for Girls and Women and Mwaganza Education for Partnership
• We imagine our partners are experiencing fear, confusion, and uncertainty during this chaotic situation.
• A core part of our mission is to listen, respond, and bear witness to our partners’ needs.

Excerpts from the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights’ Statement

• “We call on the security forces to refrain from using unnecessary or disproportionate force, including lethal weapons, against protesters, and to make every effort to deescalate tensions."
• “We urge the authorities to fully uphold Tanzania’s obligations under international human rights law. They must promptly reinstate access to the internet and facilitate citizens’ full enjoyment of their rights to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly.”
• “All those in arbitrary detention must be immediately and unconditionally released and those held legally must be accorded full due process and fair trial rights.”
• “We urge the authorities to ensure prompt, impartial and effective investigations into all cases of election-related violence, and to ensure those responsible are brought to justice.”

Spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights: Ravina Shamdasani (from Geneva); Seif Magango (from Nairobi via Zoom), October 31, 2025

How You Can Support

Pray for peace and justice in Tanzania, using the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights’ statement as a framework:

Dear merciful and loving God. We pray for peaceful protests, deescalated tensions, full human rights for Tanzanian citizens, justice for those who have been unlawfully detained, accountability for those who have instigated violence, and a just and prosperous future for all Tanzanians. We ask you to protect all Tanzanians, especially the women and girls seeking education, freedom from violence, and brighter futures. We ask all this in your name. Amen.

Nov 3, 2025

Please continue praying for our partners, students, and all affected across Tanzania. Tanzania has a very peaceful political history, but has seen increasing consolidation of power and oppression of dissent. Read more about the situation below:

• Tanzania election: Several hundred feared dead as protests continue | BBC News
• Tanzania election: Erosion of democracy will also come at the cost of economic potential | Chatham House – International Affairs Think Tank
• About 700 killed in Tanzania election protests, opposition says | Tanzania | The Guardian

Nov 7, 2025

We are grateful to report that our Tanzanian partners are all physically safe. Thanks be to God.

While the immediate violence seems to have ebbed, prices of basic goods have soared. Food, fuel, and other goods are much more expensive now than they were before last week's election.

December 1, 2025

Nationwide protests are anticipated on and around December 9, Tanzania's independance day. These youth-led protests are in response to the reported state killings of hundreds of protesters during the post-election unrest. There are reports that protests could begin as early as December 5.

Another national internet shutdown is possible, as well as increased roadblocks, police and military presence, curfews, travel disruptions, and internet survellience. The Tanzanian government has cancelled planned independance day events and celebrations, and the U.S. Embassy has issued a travel advisory.

Please continue to pray for our partners in Tanzania during these uncertain times.