"Tanzania state response to youth demonstrators was brutal bullets" - European Union MEPs

By Our Correspondent, BRUSSELS Belgium 

On the evening of November 26, Members of the European Parliament delivered blistering criticism during a debate on post-election killings and deteriorating human rights in Tanzania, including the case of Tundu Lissu. 

Speakers condemned the October 29 elections as deeply compromised, pointing to jailed opposition leaders, beatings, abductions, irregularities, near-total internet shutdowns, and a reported 98% win for President Samia Suluhu Hassan. 

They highlighted attacks on protesters, restrictions on journalists, and the torture of observers. Several MEPs described the state’s response to youth demonstrations as “bullets, brutality, and a blockade on truth.”

The debate heavily focused on post-election violence, with reports ranging from dozens to more than 2,000 people killed, alongside widespread arbitrary arrests and treason proceedings against Tundu Lissu. 

Tundu Lissu is the Chairperson of the leading Tanzania opposition party who is facing treason charges that carry death penalty. 

"When Tanzanian citizens, especially the young, rose up, they were met with bullets, brutality and a blockade on truth. Tundu Lissu’s imprisonment is a broader assault on democracy that has stripped Tanzanians of the freedoms they were promised,”- Abir Al-Sahlani, Member of the European Parliament.

MEPs called for immediate releases of detainees, fair trials, ICC referrals, targeted sanctions, and fresh elections under international supervision. 

Live streams of the debate caught massive attention from Tanzanian viewers on TikTok, flooding comment sections 

Following committee objections filed on November 20, the European Parliament is expected to vote on November 27 on whether to block €156 million in 2025 development aid over “democratic backsliding.” 

A separate human-rights resolution will also be tabled, potentially formalizing EU pressure and freezing funds under the NDICI–Global Europe framework.

In the meantime, Tanzania’s embassy in Brussels has lodged a formal protest, calling the debate an “affront to sovereignty” and a breach of the EU–OACPS Samoa Agreement because Tanzania’s perspective was not included. 

Tanzanian officials say an independent inquiry is underway but accuse the EU of promoting a “one-sided narrative.”

With similar concerns already noted by AU and UN observers, the EU’s escalating pressure intensifies fears of international isolation for the Tanzanian government.