For one family member in Mwanza, Tanzania's second-largest city, justice could begin with a simple act: an apology. Raha, whose name has been changed for safety reasons, said her nephew, who she raised, was killed during protests that erupted following Tanzania's October 2025 general election. "The government should have asked for forgiveness for what happened.
Even just offering condolences," Raha said. A year later, the family is still waiting for answers about the death of their loved one. The violence followed an election campaign marked by the exclusion of the main opposition candidate.
Tundu Lissu, leader of the opposition Tanzanian Party for Democracy and Progress, commonly known as Chadema, had been arrested and charged with treason in April 2025 and his party barred from contesting the election. On election day and in the days that followed, protesters called for political reforms and the resignation of Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan. A government-appointed commission, chaired by retired Chief Justice Mohamed Chande Othman and commonly referred to as the Chande Commission, found that at least 518 people died from "unnatural causes," many from gunshot wounds, and over 2,000 people were injured.
Othman said the death toll could be higher because some families buried their loved ones without taking their bodies to morgues or reporting to the commission. Human Rights Watch (HRW) also said the actual number of people killed could be higher. "It's very clear that it's far more than the 518 people that were presented by the commission," said Oryem Nyeko, HRW's senior Africa researcher.
DW analyzed dozens of videos, interviewed sources, reviewed police guidelines and advocacy research, and obtained a leaked police report. We could not determine the exact location or publication date of every video, as some of the footage was released later due to internet blackouts or anonymously, for fear of reprisals. However, elements in the footage, our sources, public reports, and an internal police report give strong indications that these videos do reveal pieces of what happened in the days following the election.
The evidence DW has reviewed indicates that police likely acted beyond the scope of their guidelines and training. The material reviewed by DW included cases in which people were killed who were not protesting, where protesters were killed by head wounds, and where protesters were beaten or degraded by people in uniform. The police's specialized Field Force Unit, identifiable in some footage by its red berets and riot-control equipment, helmets, shields and heavy weapons, appeared repeatedly in the material reviewed by DW.
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