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Tanzania yet to effectively observe her Bill of Rights
2008-04-23 09:14:54
By ROSE MWALONGO
Tanzania has witnessed a long and hard struggles before human rights were realized.
It has been 20 years ever since the Bill of Rights was incorporated in the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania, making people whose rights have been violated able to claim them through the effective and independent legal system.
However, activists see a lot of setbacks in terms of full realization of human rights in the country.
Among setbacks is failure by the Tanzania government to abide by Article 4 which calls for Right to Life and Integrity.
Failing to abolish death penalty, Albino killings, extra- judicial killings where suspects are tortured and later on killed like what happened to a couple of suspects who were shot in Dar es Salaam sometime ago, are some of the setbacks.
Mob justice still remain rampant with society taking law into own hands due to lack of confidence in the judicial system.
The right to own land as stipulated by Article 14 of the Union Constitution still remains out of reach for many.
Tabata dampo residents are a living example of the breaching act of the Article 14.
Dwellers of the area have been displaced for sometimes now and there may be a solution at hand to compensate for their loss, but that can not compensate the suffering they have endured ever since their houses were demolished.
Recently, the Swedish Ambassador to Tanzania, Staffan Herrstrom, insisted that human rights was a priority area for Sweden in Tanzania.
Herrstrom called for abolishment of death penalty saying it was a violation of human rights.
``During this year we give specific attention to promoting the Right to Information and also abolishment of the death penalty as it constitutes a serious human rights violation,`` said the Swedish envoy while launching an annual meeting for the Southern Africa Human Rights Ngo (SAHRINGON)-Tanzania Chapter.
Social security is also a critical problem facing majority of Tanzanians in the formal as well as informal sectors.
For instance most employees be in public or private sectors live a life of uncertainty as they are not equipped enough to deal with unforeseen emergencies such as accident or death.
According to the Swedish envoy, issues of social security need joint political solutions and therefore, need also be part of joint, free and pluralistic debate and very transparent scrutiny and review from civil society.
``Social security touches at the core of every human being`s life. It is the fundamental aspect of a life in dignity and every human being has the right to life in dignity,`` the envoy was quoted as saying.
Presenting a paper on human rights, Professor Chris Peter Maina from the Faculty of Law of University of Dar es Salaam, said that human rights were rights that one has by virtue of being a human being.
``Human rights move with time and our Constitution is quite obsolete. There is a need to improve human rights as they are not well realized,`` said the university don.
A renowned human rights` activist-cum-Chairperson of SAHRINGON-Tanzania Chapter, Hellen Kijo Bisimba said: ``Dignity is what makes us to be human while justice is what makes human beings live happily.``
Bisimba says there is a need to seek public opinion with regard to Constitution, saying people have to know what they want.
On her part, SAHRINGON National Coordinator Rehema Kerefu says there is no better way to seek human rights than in the the Constitution, adding ``We are living in a patched Constitution.``
Ole Nangoya, a human rights` activist from Ngorongoro in Morogoro Region says it was high time for the government to come up with a new constitution that would observe further enjoyment of human rights than it is now.
Nangoya cites Ngorongoro where he says the right to land has always been a nightmare due to its people losing pieces of land to investors and being told to move from their occupied lands every now and then.
A lot has changed ever since the Bill of Rights was passed and assented. But a lot more needs to change, if Tanzanians are to fully enjoy their constitutional rights.
Perhaps, a new constitution could do wonders.Tanzania may rank high in terms of peace and tranquility, but acts of human rights violations are still rampant and in need of a permanent solutions.
The killings of old women due to witchcraft beliefs, mob justice and death penalty tarnish the country\'s image before international community.
It has been 20 years and the struggles must go on, if Tanzania is determined to clean its image in terms of guaranteeing her people full human rights.
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