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Citizenship and election law in Tanzania
2005-04-19 08:29:57
By Keregero Keregero
It is elections and nothing but vote phobia which is presently looming in every corner of the country.
Wherever one goes, he/she hears talks on elections. The voters take to the registration process, think of how they financially gain from these elections.
Some candidates ponder on how they are going to play their cards, whether roughly through takrima or rightly by canvassing votes to register victory at the end of the day.
This is the time one can hear each and every candidate saying he has decided to contest for so and so because of public interest.
It could be. It may not be the case for he or she might have been driven to so do to satisfy his or her own ego and belly out his or her own being yet under the covert pretext of public interest, at the end of the day. That is politics, for they say politics is the art of the possible.
Politics and politicking have all virtually been directed to the same election cause, come in October this year, when the electorate shall be casting votes for the presidential and general elections.
Currently, the Tanzanian societal fabric is busy registering as voters in the Voters’ Permanent Register not as a mere political necessity but as a matter of law.
A fortnight ago, a sad looking girl suddenly emerged before me, asking to be relieved of her problem.
However, on demanding to know her name first and even before she had time to go into the merits of her problem, she suddenly openly burst into tears as she could not help it.
“What is the problem?” I asked, as I insisted her to be bold enough to reveal it all.
And, on cooling down, she slowly but surely gathered some bits of strength, and narrated a grotesque incident that had befallen her on the day.
“My name is Nyachiro Jambwene (not her real name). I am 20 years old. I was born in Tanzania Mainland where my parents were also born but they say I cannot register as a voter for the coming elections because my parents have a foreign origin.
“I cannot withstand this objection because it goes down to the root of my being a Tanzanian. This is my problem, what can I do, please, help.”
This observation has finally led me to write this article invoking the red letters of the law on the aspect of Tanzania’s citizenship.
We are confronted with a delicate but crucial issue that goes down to the roots of one’s citizenship, a human right that cannot easily be stripped from a person for no good cause, rendering one stateless.
In the foregoing scenario, Nyachiro’s issue goes beyond the bounds of politics and is essentially legal in character.
For, the Citizenship right being among fundamental rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, is respected the world over.
Suffice it to state at this juncture, the position of our law regarding Tanzania’s citizenship.
Before attainment of our independence, Tanzanians had no citizenship as we were British “subjects”.
But immediately before independence, the British colonialists passed a law for the creation of Tanganyikans (then) citizenship.
At that time the criteria used for granting citizenship to the people of Tanganyika was the “origin of parents nationality.”
No wonder that our first citizenship legislation was to the effect that any person born in Tanganyika and if one of his/her parent was born in Tanganyika then that person was a citizen of Tanganyika by birth.
No sooner had this piece of legislation been in force for quite sometime than its problematic criteria created serious problems of citizenship to some persons.
The legislation had not sought to guarantee the citizenship of some persons and, infact, had consequently deprived them of it, rendering the affected persons stateless! It was repealed and a new Citizenship law was enacted, namely Citizenship Act, Act No.6 of 1995.
Any prudent person can now see why Nyachiro had to openly shade tears, consciously allowing the rare but torrential tears snow in from her eyes freely running down her chicks to register her humble cry:
That her human right of being a Tanzania citizen who is qualified to register as a voter for the coming elections was being flagrantly violated.
The position of the law is to the effect that every person born in the United Republic or after Union Day is a citizen of this country.
Section 5 of the Citizenship Act, Act No. 6 of 1995 provides:
1) “…….every person born in the United Republic or after Union Day shall be deemed to have become and to have continued to be a citizen of the United Republic with effect from the date of his birth, and with effect from the commencement of this Act shall become and continue to be a citizen of the United Republic.
2) A person shall not be deemed to be or have become a citizen of the United Republic by virtue of this Section if at the time of his birth;
(a) neither of his parents is or was a citizen of the United Republic and his father possesses the immunity from suit and legal process which is accorded to an envoy of a foreign sovereign power accredited to the United Republic.”
Judged on its merits under the provisions of the law mentioned above, Nyachiro is a citizen of Tanzania, deserving all rights including voting in elections as long as she is of sound mind and meets all necessary requirements for a voter.
This Citizenship human right is also stated in the Citizenship provisions of Article 17(1) of the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania of 1977 as amended from time to time. It is also embodied in Article 15 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,1948 to the effect that:
“No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his nationality nor denied the right to change his nationality.”
The present law unlike the former legislation, embodies a criterion of determining Tanzanian citizenship on the basis of place of birth.
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