Sawt Falasteen - Protests erupt as Tanzania votes without an opposition

Despite heavy security in the commercial capital Dar es Salaam, with tanks stationed around key junctions, an AFP journalist said hundreds of young people took to the streets, singing: "We want our country back".

A group burned down a police station along Nelson Mandela Road, the main road from the city's port, the journalist said.

Police fired tear gas but were forced to retreat as protesters pelted them with stones, they added, while a military vehicle passed through the crowd but appeared to take no action against the demonstrators.

Internet watchdog NetBlocks reported a "nationwide disruption to internet connectivity" in a statement on X.

Polling stations in Dar es Salaam were virtually empty in the morning, AFP journalists saw, despite being busy at that time during previous elections.

"We are going to mobilise people from the streets and their homes to come and vote. We need to rescue the situation because some are hesitating," an official from the ruling Revolution Party (Chama Cha Mapinduzi: CCM) in Temeke district told AFP prior to the unrest breaking out.

- 'Wave of terror' -

Amnesty International has denounced a "wave of terror" ahead of the election including "enforced disappearance and torture... and extrajudicial killings of opposition figures and activists".

President Hassan, 65, is determined to cement her position with an emphatic victory that will silence critics within her own party, analysts say.

Her main challenger, Tundu Lissu, is on trial for treason, facing a potential death penalty. His party, Chadema, is barred from running.

The only other serious candidate, Luhaga Mpina of ACT-Wazalendo, was disqualified on technicalities.

Hassan was elevated from vice-president in 2021 on the death of her iron-fisted predecessor, John Magufuli, but faced opposition as the country's first female leader.

She was initially feted by democratic campaigners for easing restrictions on the opposition and media, but hopes soon faded.

Human Rights Watch said "the authorities have suppressed the political opposition and critics of the ruling party, stifled the media, and failed to ensure the electoral commission's independence".

There are fears that even members of the ruling party are being targeted.

Humphrey Polepole, a former CCM spokesman and ambassador to Cuba, went missing from his home this month after resigning and criticising Hassan. His family found blood stains in his home.

The Tanganyika Law Society says it has confirmed 83 abductions since Hassan came to power, with another 20 reported in recent weeks.

The situation was much calmer on the semi-autonomous island of Zanzibar, AFP journalists said, with analysts expecting a tighter race due to the island's greater degree of freedom.

- 'New normal' -

Hassan has done nothing to remove the "thugs" with which Magufuli stacked the intelligence service, said an analyst in the country's economic hub of Dar es Salaam, requesting anonymity for fear of reprisals.

"We thought Magufuli was a blip and the 2020 elections were an abnormality. My worry is that this is the new normal," the analyst said.

Protests are rare in Tanzania, in part thanks to a relatively healthy economy, which grew by 5.5 percent last year according to the World Bank, on the back of strong agriculture, tourism and mining sectors.

Speaking at an election rally, Hassan promised there would be "no security threat" on election day.

"We are well-prepared for security. Those who have failed to participate in the competition should not seek to disrupt our election."

Z.AbuSaud--SF-PST