Govt challenged over independent candidacy

BY LUSEKELO PHILEMON

Lawyers register case in the African Court on Human and People`s Rights

The Tanganyika Law Society (TLS) and Legal and Human Rights Centre (LHRC) yesterday lodged a case against the government in the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, regarding the right to independent candidacy.

Speaking soon after registering the case number 009 in the Arusha-based court, TLS President Francis Stolla said it was the first such matter to be lodged in the African court from Tanzania.

TLS, and LHRC are instituting the case in partnership with East African Law Society (EALS) and the Pan African Lawyers Union (PALU).

The lawyer explained that the case challenges the provisions of articles 39, 67 and 77 of the country’s constitution as amended in 1992 and 1994.

“These amendments totally removed the right of ordinary Tanzanians seek to be elected as President, Member of Parliament or a councillor in a local ward unless they were members of a political party. Unlike the majority of African countries, a Tanzanian cannot seek office as an independent candidate,” he said, adding:

“The amendments force all Tanzanians who want to participate in leadership to have to join a political party, even if they do not subscribe to the manifesto, principles, policies or practices of any of the existing political parties.”

He however said that the country’s constitutional provisions, violate articles 13 and 2 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights as well as violating articles 3 and 25 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). Tanzania is a party to both international human rights instruments, the lawyer said.

In comparison, Stolla noted that all the other four East African Community (EAC) states allow independent candidates, citing Uganda, whereby independent candidates have vied for the Presidential Office.

According to the TLS boss, the right of Tanzanians to run for office as independent candidates has been litigated up to the highest court in the land.

He noted that the issue was first filed in the High Court as miscellaneous civil case number 5 of 1993, whose ruling in 1994 was in favour of such candidacy.

The government implemented the eleventh constitutional amendment in December, 1994, blocking independent candidacy, which was also challenged in the court in 2005. The court in 2006 ruled in favour of private candidacy.

Stolla said that constitutional amendments violate the democratic rules and principles enshrined in Tanzania’s constitution and also violate the constitutional doctrine of basic structures.

“There are certain basic, fundamental features of the national constitution that a national parliament cannot amend on its own,” he said.

“In 2009, the Attorney General Johnson Mwanyika instituted an appeal challenging the High Court decision and last year, the Court of Appeal issued its judgment, reversing the decision of the High Court and declaring that the basic structures doctrine doesn’t apply to the constitution of Tanzania and there is no right to independent candidacy in Tanzania.”

A lawyer with LHRC Shilinda Ndalula explained: “It is clear that the right of any Tanzanian to seek political office as an independent candidate has been exhausted locally. The only other legal option for pursuing this right is through international tribunals to which Tanzania is a party.”

“For this reason TLS, LHRC and several individual citizens of the country have resolved to pursue this right at the ACHPL for the benefit of all Tanzanians,” he said.

Donald Deya who is the chief executive officer of PALU, said that the room for independent candidates to get into political office should be open in an effort to fulfil the needs of democratic rights.

“I don’t know why the government of Tanzania is reluctant to allow this,” he queried.


(2011-6-3/ippmedia)