The United States has imposed sanctions on a senior Tanzanian police official over allegations of involvement in the torture and sexual assault of two East African human rights activists last year.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Faustine Jackson Mafwele was designated based on “credible information” linking him to gross human rights violations.
The move bars Mafwele from entering the United States and marks the first time a senior official under President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s administration has faced such sanctions.
Tanzania’s Foreign Affairs Minister Mahmoud Thabit Kombo said the government had not yet received formal notification of the designation.
The sanctions stem from allegations involving Kenyan activist Boniface Mwangi and Ugandan rights advocate Agather Atuhaire, who travelled to Tanzania in May last year to observe the trial of opposition leader Tundu Lissu.
Both activists were detained and later released. Mwangi alleged he was beaten, humiliated, and sexually assaulted while in custody, while Atuhaire also accused authorities of rape during detention.
Tanzanian police previously dismissed the claims as “opinions” and “hearsay,” but US officials say members of the Tanzanian Police Force “detained, tortured, and sexually assaulted” the activists.
Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor Riley Barnes said Washington was acting to ensure accountability for what he described as a “heinous act.”
Human rights groups, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, have previously called for investigations into the case, citing arbitrary detention, torture, and suppression of dissent.
The sanctions come amid mounting international concern over Tanzania’s human rights record, particularly following a disputed general election last October that triggered widespread protests and deadly clashes.
A commission of inquiry said 518 people died in the unrest, including 197 shot dead, though opposition groups dispute the figures and accuse security forces of far higher casualties.
Erizia Rubyjeana
