Wayzata World Factbook 1996/The World Factbook - 1996 Edition - Wayzata Technology (3079) (1996).iso/pc/text/humanrts/tanzania.txu

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TITLE:  TANZANIA HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES, 1994
AUTHOR:  U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
DATE:  FEBRUARY 1995



Section 3  Respect for Political Rights:  The Right of Citizens
           to Change Their Government

A multiparty political system was officially introduced in 1992
after 28 years of one-party rule.  Pending national elections
in 1995, party elites within the Chama Cha Mapinduzi Party
(CCM) continued to exercise effective control of the
Government.  In 1994 the CCM won all four parliamentary
by-elections in which most of Tanzania's political parties
participated.  Although the elections were considered
technically free, the governing party's monopoly of the radio,
its use of government funds and other resources, and the
Government's legal authority to grant rally permits outside of
campaign periods, effectively denied the opposition a fair
opportunity to present their case to the voters.  However, in
Kigoma a judge overruled the results of the February
by-election because of irregularities in election proceedings.

The political parties also participated in the mainland's local
government polls held on October 30.  CCM won 97 percent of the
local government seats for which results were available at the
end of 1994.  Following the Kigoma by-election decision, Radio
Tanzania dropped blatant campaigning for CCM candidates, and
the Government prohibited CCM candidates and their supporters
from using government vehicles and congregating at government
buildings.  The opposition largely experienced no problems in
holding its rallies.  However, opposition parties charged that
some CCM officials threatened voters with denial of services
and other retributions if they voted for the opposition.

A group of mainland parliamentarians persisted in challenging
their party's longstanding policy on the union's framework and
criticized Zanzibar's disproportionate representation and
influence in state institutions by introducing a motion to
create a three-government system with a separate Tanganyika
government for the mainland.  Ultimately, however, the CCM
leadership succeeded in reestablishing party discipline and in
August declared party debate on the union issue closed.  The
Tanganyika government motion was defeated shortly thereafter.

There are no restrictions in law on the participation of women
in politics and government.  However, in practice few women are
politically active, largely due to cultural impediments and
traditional societal roles for women (see Section 5).  Women
hold 27 of 248 seats in the National Assembly and 4 of 25
cabinet positions.

Section 4  Governmental Attitude Regarding International and
           Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations
           of Human Rights

The Government has obstructed the formation of local human
rights groups.  Persons seeking to register human rights NGO's,
like the newly created Defenders of Human Rights in Tanzania,
complained that the Ministry of Home Affairs continued to delay
action on their applications.

While there were no visits by international human rights
organizations, a leading cabinet minister said the Government
would have no objection to such visits, including those for the
purpose of visiting prisons.

Although the Government announced in 1993 plans to hold
tribunals and conferences throughout the country on human
rights abuses, focusing specifically on abuses against women
and children, it did not hold any such conferences in 1994.

Section 5  Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion,
           Disability, Language, or Social Status

The Constitution prohibits discrimination based on nationality,
tribe, origin, political affiliation, color, religion, or
lifestyle.  Discrimination based on sex, age, or disability is
not specifically prohibited by law but is publicly discouraged
in official statements.

     Women

Although the Government advocates equal rights for women in the
workplace, it does not ensure these rights in practice.  In the
public sector, which employs 80 percent of the salaried labor
force, certain statutes restrict women's access to some jobs or
hours of employment.  While progress on women's rights has been
more noticeable in urban areas, strong traditional norms still
divide labor along gender lines and place women in a
subordinate position.  Discrimination against women is most
acute in the countryside, where women are relegated to farming
and raising children, with almost no opportunity for wage
employment.

The overall situation for women is even less favorable in
heavily Muslim Zanzibar.  Women there and in many parts of the
mainland face discriminatory restrictions on inheritance and
ownership of property because of concessions by the Government
and courts to customary and Islamic law.  While provisions of
the Marriage Act provide for certain inheritance and property
rights for women, application of customary, Islamic, or
statutory law depends on the lifestyle and stated intentions of
the male head of household.  The courts have thus upheld
discriminatory inheritance claims, primarily in rural areas.
Under Zanzibari law, unmarried women under 21 who become
pregnant are subject to 2 years' imprisonment, although this
has not been enforced for several years.

Violence against women is widespread.  Legal remedies exist but
are not used in practice.  Traditional customs that subordinate
women remain strong, and local magistrates often uphold them.
The husband has a free hand to treat his wife as he wishes, and
wife beating occurs at all levels of society.  Cultural,
family, and social pressure prevents many women from reporting
abuses to authorities.  Government officials frequently make
public statements decrying such abuses but rarely take action
against perpetrators.

Several NGO's provide counseling and education programs on
women's rights issues, particularly sexual harassment and
molestation.

     Children

Government funding of programs for children's welfare remains
miniscule, at only 2.3 percent of government development
expenditure.  The Government has made some constructive efforts
to address children's welfare, including working closely with
churches and NGO's to assess the well-being of orphans and
neglected children.

Although the Government officially discourages female genital
mutilation (FGM), it is still performed at an early age in
approximately 20 of the country's 130 main ethnic groups.
International health experts state that FGM is damaging to both
the physical and psychological health of girls.  Government
officials have called for changes in customs which adversely
affect females, but no legislation has been introduced that
would specifically restrict the practice of FGM.  Seminars
sponsored by various governmental and nongovernmental
organizations are regularly held to attempt to educate the
public on the dangers of these and other traditional
practices.  Health authorities state the practice of FGM is
declining, but other sources maintain that it is on the rise,
especially in central Tanzania.

     National/Racial/Ethnic Minorities

The Government has discriminated against the Barabaig people of
central Tanzania for many years.  The Barabaig and their
attorneys maintain that the Government has illegally
dispossessed them of their traditional lands in order to
implement a government-run agricultural project.  In 1994 the
Barabaig registered an NGO to press for redress of past
discrimination and to preserve their culture.

The Asian community has declined by 50 percent in the past
decade to about 44,000 as a result of considerable antipathy by
many African Tanzanians.  There are, however, no laws or
official policies discriminating against them.  As the
Government places greater emphasis on market-oriented policies
and privatization, public concern regarding the Asian
community's economic role has increased.  This has led to
demands for policies of "indigenization" to ensure that
privatization does not increase the Asian community's economic
predominance at the expense of the country's African population.

     Religious Minorities

The Muslim community claims to be disadvantaged in terms of its
representation in the civil service and government and in
state-owned businesses, in part because both colonial and past
postindependence administrations refused to recognize the
credentials of the traditional Muslim schools.  As a result,
there is widespread Muslim resentment of the perceived
advantages enjoyed by Christians.  Christians, in turn, have
been critical of what they perceive as undue favoritism
accorded to Muslims in appointments, jobs, and scholarships by
the President, who is a Muslim.  Some leaders in both camps
appear to play up religious tensions (see Sections 2.b. and
2.c.).  In fact, there does not at present appear to be
discrimination based on religion in access to employment or
educational opportunities.

     People with Disabilities

The Government does not mandate access to public buildings,
transportation, or government services for people with
disabilities.  Although there is no official discrimination
against the disabled, in practice the physically disabled are
effectively restricted in their access to education,
employment, and provision of other state services due to
physical barriers.  The Government provides only limited
funding for special facilities and programs.

Section 6  Worker Rights

     a.  The Right of Association

Both the Constitution and the 1955 Trade Union Ordinance refer
to the right of association of workers.  Nevertheless, workers
do not have the right to form or join organizations of their
own choice.  The Organization of Tanzania Trade Unions (OTTU)
Act of 1991 addresses all labor union issues, and the OTTU is
effectively the only labor union organization in Tanzania.  In
November 1993, the Government registered the Tanzania Teachers'
Union (TTU), and the TTU elected its own leaders in May.  The
TTU, however, remained closely affiliated with the OTTU, and
member dues deducted from salaries continued to go directly to
OTTU.

In 1994, the OTTU continued a 3-year restructuring program
which is intended to enable union workers to elect new leaders
who have not been "prequalified" by the ruling party and to
reshape the OTTU as an organization presiding over a federation
of independent unions.  However, the Labor Law still requires
all union labor to be under the OTTU and permits the President
of Tanzania to disband any member union of OTTU at his
discretion.  OTTU general elections under the restructuring
program are expected by July 1995.

The OTTU, like its predecessor, the Association of Workers of
Tanzania (JUWATA), represents about 60 percent of the workers
in industry and government, but it has little influence on
labor policy.  Overall, roughly 25 percent of Tanzania's 2
million wage earners are organized.  All workers, including
those classified as "essential" service workers, are permitted
to join the OTTU, but "essential" workers are not permitted to
strike.

Workers have the legal right to strike only after complicated
and protracted mediation and conciliation procedures leading
ultimately to the Industrial Court, which receives direction
from the Minister of Labor and Youth Development.  If the OTTU
is not satisfied with the decision of the Industrial Court, it
can then conduct a legal strike.  These procedures can prolong
a dispute for months without resolving it.

Pending a resolution, frustrated workers often stage impromptu,
illegal wildcat strikes and walkouts, and there were many such
strikes in 1994.  In March, for example, the OTTU called a
3-day nationwide public-sector strike which the Government
declared to be illegal, threatening to discharge any workers
who participated.  Only workers in Mbeya participated to any
notable extent.  There are no laws prohibiting retribution
against legal strikers.

The OTTU continued JUWATA's policy of limiting its
international affiliations to regional and pan-Africanist trade
union organizations.

     b.  The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively

Collective bargaining is protected by law but limited to the
private sector.  Wages for employees of the Government and
state-owned organizations, which account for the bulk of the
salaried labor force, are administratively set by the
Government.  However, the Ministry of Labor established a board
to review and regulate wage rates which included
representatives of the Government, trade unions, and employers'
organizations.

Although the OTTU negotiates on behalf of most private sector
employees with the Association of Tanzania Employers,
collective agreements must be submitted to the Industrial Court
for approval.  The International Labor Organization (ILO) has
observed that these provisions are not in conformity with ILO
Convention 98 on Collective Bargaining and the Right to
Organize.  Tanzania's Security of Employment Act of 1964
prohibits discriminatory activities by an employer against
union members.  Employers found guilty of antiunion activities
are legally required to reinstate workers.

There are no export processing zones (EPZ's) on the mainland.
The OTTU reports that two EPZ's opened on Zanzibar in 1994
using nonunion labor.

     c.  Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor

The Constitution prohibits forced labor.  However, again in
1994, the ILO observed that provisions of various Tanzanian
laws are incompatible with ILO Conventions 29 and 105 on Forced
Labor.  Specifically, the Human Resources Deployment Act of
1983 requires every local government authority to ensure that
able-bodied persons over 15 years of age not in school engage
in productive or other lawful employment.  In some rural areas,
ordinary villagers are still obligated to work in the village
communal garden or on small construction projects, such as
repairing roads.

     d.  Minimum Age for Employment of Children

By law, children under the age of 12 are prohibited from
working, but this provision applies only to the formal wage
sector in both urban and rural areas and not to children
working on family farms or herding domestic livestock.
Children between the ages of 12 and 15 may be employed on a
daily wage and on a day-to-day basis but must have parental
permission and return to their residences at night.

The minimum age for entry into work of a contractual nature in
approved occupations is set at 15.  The law prohibits a young
person from employment in any occupation that is dangerous or
injurious to health.  Those between the ages of 12 and 15 may
be employed in industrial work but only between the hours of
6 a.m. and 6 p.m., with some exceptions allowed.  The Ministry
of Labor and Youth Development is responsible for enforcement.
The effectiveness of government enforcement has reportedly
declined with increased privatization.  According to a 1992 ILO
report, approximately 12 percent of 10- to 14-year-old children
who work outside the family are in the wage sector.  Large
numbers of children work 11-hour days in cotton ginneries and
on sisal plantations.  On one sisal plantation, children
composed 30 percent of the work force; only half of the
children had completed primary school.  They had a high
incidence of skin and respiratory problems, were not provided
with protective clothing, and lacked adequate nourishment and
lodging.

     e.  Acceptable Conditions of Work

There is a legal minimum wage for employment in the formal
sector.  The OTTU often negotiates higher minimum wages with
individual employers, depending on the financial status of the
business.  A worker earning the minimum wage, even when
supplemented with various benefits such as housing,
transportation allowances, and food subsidies, may not always
be able to provide an adequate living for his family and must
depend on the extended family or a second or third job.  The
official minimum wage was increased to about $19 (10,000
Tanzanian shillings) per month, but many workers, especially
those in the informal sector, are paid less.

There is no standard legal workweek.  However, a 5-day, 40-hour
workweek is in effect for government workers.  Most private
employers retain a 6-day, 44- or 48-hour workweek.  In general,
women may not be employed between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m.  Several
laws regulate safety in the workplace.  An occupational health
and safety inspection system, set up with the assistance of the
ILO, is now managed by the Ministry of Labor and Youth
Development.  Its effectiveness, however, is minimal.  OTTU
officials have claimed that enforcement of labor standards is
effective in the formal sector, but no verification studies
have been performed.  Workers can take an employer to court
through their OTTU branch if their working conditions do not
comply with the Ministry of Labor's health and environmental
standards.  Workers making such complaints have not lost their
jobs as a result.  Enforcement of labor standards is
nonexistent in the informal sector.