The US government has imposed sanctions on Faustine Jackson Mafwele, Tanzania’s Senior Assistant Police Commissioner, and prohibited his entry into the United States. The measures come amid allegations that Mafwele played a direct role in human rights violations carried out by Tanzanian police during a crackdown on opposition figures following the country’s recent general election.
These sanctions follow a contentious election in which President Samia Suluhu Hassan secured an overwhelming victory. Reports indicate that security forces detained, tortured, and sexually assaulted political activists and observers, including Ugandan and Kenyan nationals. The activists were arrested while monitoring court proceedings against opposition leader Tundu Lissu the previous year and later suffered mistreatment under Mafwele’s watch before being abandoned near the border with Kenya.
A government-appointed commission investigating postelection violence documented the deaths of over 500 people and thousands injured amid the unrest, marking the first significant political violence in Tanzania in decades. Opposition groups maintain that the human cost was much higher. The commission’s findings, published in April, called for further investigations into police conduct, highlighting incidents where unarmed civilians were reportedly shot in their homes.
During and after the election period, internet shutdowns disrupted communication nationwide, with social media blackout lifted only after several days. Videos circulated online depicting police shootings, despite official warnings against sharing such content. These developments have prompted the US, through Secretary of State Marco Rubio, to reassess diplomatic relations with Tanzania amid growing concerns over repression and electoral violence.