Kenyan activist Boniface Mwangi has spoken out in stark detail about the alleged torture he and Ugandan journalist Agather Atuhaire faced while detained in Tanzania, holding President Samia Suluhu directly responsible for their ordeal.
Mwangi, who was released on Thursday after being detained since Monday, said the two had travelled to Dar es Salaam to express solidarity with Tanzanian opposition leader Tundu Lissu. However, their mission took a grim turn when they were allegedly arrested, stripped naked, and subjected to physical and psychological abuse by Tanzanian authorities.
“We were told to strip naked, crawl and go wash off the blood,” Mwangi recounted, describing the ordeal as politically motivated and inhumane. He last saw Atuhaire on the morning of May 20. She was later found abandoned at the Mutukula border between Tanzania and Uganda.
The activist condemned what he termed a pattern of repression under President Suluhu’s leadership. “Everything that happened to us in Tanzania was done in Samia Suluhu’s name, and we will ensure the world gets to know,” he declared. “We shall not be silenced by a torturous dictator who has her foot on the necks of the Tanzanian people.”
A known Pan-Africanist, Mwangi defended their trip as part of a broader commitment to continental solidarity. “I’m not African because I was born in Africa, but because Africa was born in me,” he said, quoting Kwame Nkrumah. “Our arrest and detention should not stop the solidarity among African activists. Dictators are united, and only our own unity can democratize our respective countries.”
Mwangi’s statements have sparked international concern, with calls mounting for an independent investigation into the incident. Tanzanian authorities have yet to comment on the allegations.
Written By Rodney Mbua
