UAMSHO: OPEN LETTER TO AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL ON HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSE IN ZANZIBAR ISLAND!

Members of UAMSHO being sent back to Kiinu-Wa-Miguu (Jail)

Amnesty International

1 Easton Street

London

WC1X ODW

UK

REF: HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSE IN ZANZIBAR ISLAND

Recent developments in Zanzibar show that the authorities there have

taken a big step backwards in terms of human rights.  Rampant and

deplorable human rights abuses came to light during a series of events

which led to confrontations between the police and followers of an

Islamic organisation called UAMSHO (Awakening).

UAMSHO, a registered NGO, has been active in Zanzibar for a number of

years now.  In addition to its religious activities, it has taken part

in observing elections, has produced well-researched reports on past

elections and has provided civic education to the populace.  The

organisation has a wide grass root support within the community.

Recently it has been actively championing for the restoration of

Zanzibar’s sovereignty.

The government has accused it for inciting its followers to commit

unlawful activities. UAMSHO denies it and has on its part accused

government security apparatuses of inflicting harm on its followers

during their peaceful demonstrations.  This pattern of accusations and

counter accusations culminated last month with the three day

mysterious ‘disappearance’ of a charismatic leader of UAMSHO, Sheikh

Farid Ahmed Hadi.  UAMSHO maintained that the Sheikh was abducted by

the security forces, a charge which the government denied.

However, when Sheikh Farid resurfaced he too intimated that he had

been abducted by the security organs.  The government’s response was

to promptly arrest him together with his fellow leaders and to charge

with several criminal offences.  This came as no surprise as for weeks

rumours were rife that the government was under pressure by diehards

of the Chama cha Mapinduzi (CCM), Tanzania’s ruling party, to ban

UAMSHO. It is not our intention to judge the merit or demerit of the

case as it is sub-judice.

What is troubling us is the well prepared measures to humiliate all

the detainees connected with UAMSHO. By their actions the state organs

have shown that they are bent on humiliating and dehumanizing the

UAMSHO detainees.  For example, despite knowing very well how Muslims

sheikhs cherish their beards the sadist jailers have found it proper

to forcefully shorn them of their beards.  They did it even before the

accused were brought to court for the first time.  Defence lawyers

have publicly complained of other forms of mistreatment meted out to

the detainees.  These include, denying them the opportunity to offer

their obligatory prayers, denying them a change of clothes since their

arrest and inhuman prison conditions. No doubt the jailers what they

do to satisfy their primitive sense of power, to show Zanzibaris that

they are capable of doing whatever they want to do and nobody can

question them.

It is sad to note that the government has remained silent to all these

injustices. The detainees constitutional rights are denied. The

protests of their lawyers have fallen on deaf ears. In the meantime,

indiscriminate harassment of ordinary citizens continues unabated. All

those suspected of being sympathetic to UAMSHO are publicly

brutalized. It reminds us of the dark days of Zanzibar when there was

no respect for human rights.

We, therefore, appeal to all human rights activists to urge the

Tanzanian and Zanzibar governments to impress upon their state organs

the urgent need of according each and every citizen their human

rights.

Copy:

Human Right Watch – UK

High Commissioner of United Republic of Tanzania – UK

High Commissioner of Republic of Kenya – UK

High Commissioner of Uganda – UK

Source: Wanabidii