On May 30 Home Affairs Minister, Mohammed Seif Khatib said the government has no objection to anyone going to the Bulyanhulu mines to enquire into the alleged death of small miners (TA No 72). He emphasised however that clearance had to be obtained before embarking on such research. The Minister refuted reports that more than 50 artisanal miners were buried alive at the gold mines in 1996. “No government can ever do such a thing,” said Khatib quoted in Majira.

Some 18 specialists from universities in Britain, America, Japan, France and Tanzania took part in a one-day seminar on July 1st under this title. It had been organised by Dr Andrew Burton, Assistant Director of the British Institute in Eastern Africa and others. The subject matter was full of interest but the room in the University in which the conference was held left much to be desired in the way of acoustics.

David Anthony of the University of California said that Dar es Salaam had grown in fits and starts. Its initial decades were a series of fateful encounters between very different peoples, motivated principally by the exigencies of trade.

In his paper entitled “How we’re gonna keep ’em down on the farm” Andrew Burton said that Dar es Salaam had been the site of what appeared to have been one of the most concerted attempts at urban population control in British colonial Africa. Large-scale repatriation campaigns aimed at removing ‘undesirables’ began in the 1940s and by the late 1950s so-called ‘wahuni raids’ were daily occurrences. Over 2,000 people could be repatriated in a single year. After independence the culture of control continued and included the most notorious of all actions -Nguvu kazi -in 1983 when many people were returned to the rural areas from which they had come.

Geoffrey Owens of Wisconsin University said that one of the most striking features of the transformation of the peri-urban areas of Dar es Salaam in the last 30 years had been the peaceful, even enthusiastic, transfer of land from the original scattered farms and homesteads of the original Zaramo inhabitants to newcomers who had profited handsomely through both urban agriculture and land speculation.

Simeon Mesaki of the University of Dar es Salaam explained the significance of the traditional medicine sector which had been described as ‘probably the largest in terms of practitioners, in revenue collected and number of contacts with the population in both urban and rural areas’. He gave the results of a survey he had conducted amongst some of the 700 healers in the city which revealed that 78% of them were Muslims (regarded as particularly good), only 34% of the practitioners were full-time and none had education beyond secondary level. There were many charlatans and ‘tabloid doctors’ who advertised their services in newspapers, often making extravagant claims. 64% of the clients came to seek protection against witchcraft and 42% were satisfied with the service they had received.

In a fascinating paper which astonished many in the audience and attracted the attention of the local media, Matteo Rizzo of the School of Oriental and African Studies in London, revealed the results of an investigation he had conducted amongst almost 700 workers on daladalas -the small buses which carry the majority of the people of the city to work. (It is hoped to reproduce part of this in a future issue of TA. Coincidentally, the main headline in the Sunday Observer on July 17 was headed ‘No end in sight to daladala chaos’; the article spoke of the rule of the jungle being supreme -Editor).

Another paper which attracted great interest, but whose delivery was largely inaudible, by Tadasu Tsurata of the Kinki University in Japan, described the history of the most popular and longest-surviving (since 1930) football clubs in Dar es Salaam -Simba and Yanga. The paper concentrated largely on ethnic issues but members of the audience pointed out that there were many other factors involved in the lengthy rivalry between the two clubs.

Adria la Violette, an archaeologist at the University of Virginia, described how a research team had found traces of village life in Dar in between the 8th and 10th centuries in a hole excavated next to the New Africa Hotel. This had shown a characteristic ceramic tradition, a stratum of dark brown soil and burnt earth from the wall of an urban thatched house indicating the presence of human activity plus the tusk of a wild boar.

Other speakers described colonial forest policy and the demand for timber and fuel in the city, land planning, water supplies, housing and the development of radio in Tanzania and the influence it had had on music and music making.

The popular music scene has changed in Tanzania. Congolese rhumba, which was dominant for many years, is no longer so. Below are extracts from a paper presented at the Society for Ethnomusicology on October 27, 2001 about Tanzanians’ new taste in popular music.

On Sunday afternoons, rappers and fans gather at the FM Club in Kinondoni which offers young rap artists, or MCs as they are called in Tanzania, an opportunity to practice their skills in front of an audience and a chance for local youth to enjoy an afternoon of free music. MC, which stands for master of ceremonies, was first used in the New York City hip hop community in the late 1970s to refer to people who commented on or introduced selections made by the deejay spinning records….. partially because the term for rap artists in Kiswahili, msanii wa kufokafoka, is too long to say and partially because MC has an exotic American sound to it that legitimizes the Tanzanian artists. Usually full of young men and a few women between 15 and 30 years of age, the audience and rappers dress in Tommy Hilfiger shirts, Sean John pants sagging several inches below the waist line, Yankees hats turned artistically to the side, and various boots and sneakers cleaned to an unbelievable shine considering the dirt and dust of the streets outside. The open-air club is small, with towering speakers in the middle of the room, a caged deejay spinning records in front, and a stage lined with microphones and instruments of FM Academia, the band who use the venue at night.

Anyone can perform at the club. Most artists use American sounding names, such as Bad Hardcore, Mack D, and Underground Souls. On stage, musicians dance and rap, generally acting as if they are in an American hip hop video, flailing their arms and hands, raising their fists in the air, and bouncing below the waist. The rap itself varies from those who cannot find the rhythm, to those who can carry the song well but lack performance skills. For most of the musicians on stage, there is anger in their voices, something not heard in regular conversation with them. For these musicians, the music acts as an outlet for emotions that they have little way to express in everyday life.

“BE MORE PROFESSIONAL”
One afternoon in November of last year, Taji Liundi, the host of the show and a local radio deejay, stopped a rap group in the middle of their song and told them to leave the stage. He walked to the microphone and, with a stern stare, lectured the audience about the art of rapping and the need to be more professional. He explained the construction of a rap song, with a main verse and chorus, and then asked, “Where was the chorus on that last song?” The crowd did not respond since they knew there was no chorus. Liundi then went into problems with stage performance and musicians who are prone to just stand on the stage and rap. Finally, he made fun of the American style of dress that the Tanzanian artists wore, and told them to find their own look. The room was silent. It was as if every one of the audience members’ mothers walked in the room and scolded them; no one dared move. The assistant announcer finally broke the silence and called the next MC to the stage. Who would be brave enough to walk up on stage after that? All eyes turned and followed a young man in his early twenties named Rap Nature as he stood and walked steadily to the stage. He wore a Yankees hat with a cut off brim and baggy pants, already breaking one of Liundi’s requests to find a unique look. Unlike other MCs, however, he walked to the stage alone, making the unfolding scene even more dramatic.

The crowd sat impatiently waiting for the song to begin. There was such hope that Rap Nature would be able to break the shame of the other MCs and fulfil the expectations of the shows’ sponsors. Rap Nature climbed on the stage and remained calm, waiting for the first track to start. With his head bowed, eyes closed, he listened for the opening beat. A minute passed and the crowd was leaning in to hear what would happen. The pool players in the back held their cues to their sides and studied the stage; people at the bar for a moment held their drinks away from their lips for fear of missing the opening of the song; and the promoters sat to the side of the stage calmly waiting. The song began and Rap Nature launched into his rap. The lyrics were brilliant-exploring the struggle of youth living in poverty with little chance for escape-and the chorus that followed was just what Liundi requested. For the first time that day, the audience erupted in excitement. There were people standing, pumping their fists, and cheering. They were all listening to Rap Nature preach about life and the hardships of living in Dar es Salaam. The crowd loved what they heard, but Rap Nature did not end there. He clenched his chest with his hand to highlight the pain in his heart over seeing his friends fall ill to sickness; he fell to the floor to show the desperation he suffered at being a poor, urban Tanzanian; and he closed his eyes to illustrate his connection to the lyrics he rapped. It was Tanzanian performance and rap at its best.

SOCIAL EXPECTATIONS
The scene that unfolded at FM Club that Sunday afternoon was a common example of social expectations expressed to shape peoples actions, habits, or beliefs. Rap Nature, in walking to the stage after Liundi’s comments, knew he had to follow the guidelines given to him or he would be removed from the stage, just as several other MCs were that day. The show was as much about enjoying and performing rap music as it was about educating up coming rap artists about what is proper and necessary for them within the rap community. The more experienced rappers and deejays dictated their expectations of style, performance practice, and song construction to the crowd of listeners and participants. These expectations pull both listeners and participants together to form a cohesive unit. In other words, through identifying the dos and the don’ts for upcoming rap artists, the Tanzanian hip hop community strengthened its own identity, the result of which was the music itself.

Expectations expressed through conversations, songs, radio shows, newspaper articles, and concerts are the most direct means of creating a group identity within the Tanzanian hip hop community. Through verbal and written commentary, young and upcoming members of the Tanzanian rap community learn what it is to be a rapper or a rap fan, a citizen of a poor urban city, and a social and political activist. The music is the culmination of this knowledge, learned by artists, deejays, fans, and others through the teachings of the already established generation of hip hoppers.

The idea of expectations came from Tanzanian youths’ discussion of hip hop. The Kiswahili word for expectation is tarajia or tegemea and, though these words are used infrequently in daily conversations, people expressed themselves through statements that showed what was expected of the community and its members. In discussing a rap artist, for instance, people would say, “anahitaji kufanya hivi (he needs to do this),” or “anahitaji kucheza kama hivi (he needs to dance more like this),” or “anahitaji kubadalisha sauti yake (he has to change his sound).” The more I talked to people, the more I realized that there was a vision of the Tanzanian hip hop community.

THE OLDER GENERATION
The older generation, or those that began to rap in the early 1990s, are generally responsible for teaching expectations to upcoming rappers. This generation, referred to as wazee or elders even though they are thirty years old or younger, has a very strong voice in the local music community. Veteran musicians, such as Dolasoul and Mr II, are often sought after for advice by younger musicians. Deejays, such as Sebastian Maganga and Taji Liundi, direct peoples’ likes and dislikes through radio commentary, play lists, and the concerts they host. In a profound way, the older generation guides the younger artists in a manner reminiscent of the government’s relation to the people of Tanzania. Since the country’s independence in 1961, leaders in the Tanzanian government have acted as father figures to the country, guiding people to act and think according to their direction. The first president of Tanzania, Julius Nyerere, was even called Baba wa Taifa or Father of the Nation. This paternalism has trickled into the rap community, though, obviously, on a much smaller scale.

Expectations are a direct and open means of solidifying group identity. In creating group identity, people can set standards subtly, perhaps through gestures, dress, actions, or conversation. The older artists, deejays, and fans, however, are very direct about their views of what the Tanzanian hip hop community should be. The elders are ‘watchdogs’ and father figures at the same time, teaching the younger artists what is expected ofthem. There is nothing subtle about it…..

NO CURSING
Despite its widespread use, people apply expectation to two areas of rapping: the song itself and the delivery (flow) of the song. Other aspects of the rap life are important, such as dress, attitude, and performance ability, yet these are secondary to the crux of what it is to be a rapper in Tanzania. The rap song, for instance, must have a number of elements: It should be sung mainly in Kiswahili; contain no cursing; have a social or political message; and make logical sense. The flow of a song should not imitate another rapper, it should be interesting, and follow the rhythm in the music. Rappers that break this mold are publicly mocked, either on radio, in conversations or in concerts. For instance, the audience at FM Club concerts would often begin talking to their neighbour about the problems in a song being performed that they did not like and even make disagreeable noises that were borderline heckling. Though Liundi gives himself a lot of credit for hindering the use of cursing, other rappers, fans, and even the general society have discouraged its use in Tanzanian hip hop. The rap community usually ignores artists that curse in English, such as the Tanzanian rapper Hakim, and no one, to my knowledge, has rapped a song in Kiswahili with vulgar lyrics (although one group had their song pulled from radio because some people thought the content too strong). Yet, as Liundi points out, the rap community is very direct about discouraging any type of vulgarity in rap music because it is too powerful and a distraction from the message in the song.

MEANINGFUL AND SOCIALLY USEFUL LYRICS
The most important element of a rap song- what is expected most of an artist- is meaningful and socially useful lyrics. A rap song has to contain a coherent message that informs listeners about an injustice, social or economic problem, or some other element affecting modem Tanzanian society…..A song is only as good as the meaning and the logic of the lyrics. . Speaking about sensitive topics and doing so openly is rare in Tanzanian culture, but Mr. II does this while creating a tight rap song. Considering that “Chini ya Miaka Kumi na Nane” (Under 18 years old) became well known all over Tanzania, there is no doubt that Mr. II was able to produce a powerful lyrical message appropriate for Tanzanian hip hop. Other artists have done the same, such as the Daznundaz who sang “Maji ya Shingo (Up to One’s Neck),” relating how difficult it is to make a living in a Dar es Salaam ghetto and John Mjema who tells about corruption in the political system of the country in the song “Mimi Sio Mwizi (I Am Not a Thief).” In each of these songs, and hundreds others like them, the social and political message to the people of Tanzania is strong. The youth, even those who feel most marginalized either because of lack of education or their social status, are given a sense of legitimacy through rapping and are able to present their viewpoints to the public.

The flow or delivery of a rap song is the second area where the wazee establish expectations. Any rap artist, regardless of lyrical content, has to be able to deliver his song in an original style while remaining in rhythm. Rappers who copy the styles of other MCs in Tanzania are heavily criticized.

Rhyming well and on the right beat is also crucial. Despite the old stereotype that Africans have inherent rhythmic abilities, numerous up coming MCs in Tanzania have a difficult time at making their lyrics ‘flow’ over music. New artists practice at home or school with other MCs and occasionally get a chance to sit in at a radio station on the weekend and practice their rapping, with a deejay spinning instrumental tracks.

Expectations exist for several reasons: To destroy images of rappers and youth as hooligans (wahuni); to legitimize rap music as a positive and useful art form to all Tanzanians; and to make the music socially beneficial for the local audience. Those that control the expectations in the music scene have a lot invested in its continuation as a viable art form among the local community. There was a time when elders, business people, and others considered the music offensive and unacceptable for Tanzania society. These people were certainly prejudiced by the American hip hop videos they saw on television with mostly semi-nude women, scenes of violence, and vulgar language. But, older generation hip hop artists knew that the art form could be constructive and, if made so, would become acceptable in urban Tanzania culture……

Because of the effectiveness of expectations, songs such as “Mimi Sio Mwizi” by John Mjema, became national hits in the country among all age groups. These songs spoke messages that could be identified by everyone, making the genre just that, a genre, not a determinate of listening audience. Expectations as controlled by the rap community created a larger market for Tanzanian rap music, much larger than if rappers adopted the methods of their American counterparts.

While expectations are a powerful means for enforcing group identify, individualism still exists within the rap community. Expectations set up the parameters, but each rapper or audience member experiments within these parameters. Further, there are areas where, ironically, few expectations are placed on the rap artists. For instance, many young artists drink and use drugs and are without the direct criticism of the rap community (though these practices are frowned upon). Nonetheless, the expectations that do exist and are an attempt to solidify and strengthen the local community. And, as most artists told me, setting up these expectations keeps the music ‘real.’ By keeping it real, the rap community makes sure the music reflects their world views and social ideologies, while educating the public at the same time.
Alex Perulla

Foreign Affairs Deputy Minister Dr Abdul Kadir Shareef told the National Assembly on 9th July that Tanzania now had 27 diplomatic missions abroad. They were in Kenya, Uganda, Zambia, Mozambique, the Congo, Rwanda, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Egypt, Nigeria, Japan, China, Germany, UK, Belgium, Switzerland, France Italy, Sweden, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Ethiopia, India, Canada, Russia, the USA and at the UN in New York. The envoys included three from Zanzibar (Mozambique, Saudi Arabia and Germany) and one woman (in India). He said Tanzania was also a member of 50 international organisations and regional groupings and had paid all its contributions to these organisations for the year 200112002 -Guardian.

Minster for Education and Culture Joseph Mumgai has announced that 1,614,212 children have been enrolled in Standard 1 in primary schools this year compared with 1,140,554 last year. The government planned to build 13,396 classrooms for the rapidly expanding enrolment this year -Guardian.

More than 80 students at Weruweru Girls Secondary School in Moshi have been deprived of their one-month holidays for speaking Swahili. According to the school regulation students must speak English while at school. Reporters saw the students gated at the campus while their parents were complaining. – Mwananchi

A week-long survey by the Sunday Observer (July21) revealed that the sale of dogs is mushrooming in Dar es Salaam because of the need for security and the unreliability of many watchmen. Some people used dogs to guard their cars by travelling with them. Most of the dogs were being sold by boys along the main streets of the city. One young dog seller, working along the old Bagamoyo Road, said that it was a lucrative business -prices ranged from Shs 5,000 (£4) for young dogs to Shs 20,000 for more mature animals. A resident of Manzese was reported to have said that sorcerers would not come to your house if you kept dogs.

The OAU Council of Ministers meeting on July 2 in Durban, South Africa endorsed a proposal by the Tanzanian delegation that Swahili should be used as one of the working languages of the new African Union (AU) which has taken the place of the OAU. Earlier the National Kiswahili Councilc-of Tanzania (BAKlTA) had called for harmonisation of vocabulary and promotion of Kiswahili literature as Africa prepared to give the language its rightful place in Africa -Daily News.

Official figures on the AIDS epidemic in Tanzania state that some 12% of the sexually active population in the mainland and 3% in Zanzibar were HIV/AIDS positive in 2000. 9.9% were men and 13.3% women -Guardian.

The Guardian quoted Tabora Regional Commissioner Abasi Kandoro explaining the difficulties being met in making people understand the need for the forthcoming national census. One man wondered whether the object was to privatise Tanzanians “because nowadays it is government’s policy to privatise each and every thing” he said.

The newly created Manyara Region will comprise Babati, Mbulu, Simanjiro, Hanang,and Kiteti districts with its HQ in Babati. The Arusha Region will comprise Monduli, Arumero, Arusha, Karatu and Ngorongoro districts.

The East African (July 22) quoted the results of research conducted in late 2001 by the Department of Traditional Medicine of the National Institute for Medical Research which confirmed that the roots and bark of 12 out of some 64 plants investigated in Kagera Region were effective in curing malaria without any side effects. There had been some problems during similar research in other parts of the country because some herbalists were unwilling to disclose information about medicines they had found to be effective in curing various diseases.

“Tanzania has no plans to abolish the death penalty. Those who kill must be killed” -Minister for Justice and Constitutional Affairs Bakari Mwapachu quoted in the Guardian.

A chimpanzee which had escaped from the Kitwe Game Reserve has ambushed and killed a resident in Kigoma town. The victim was a security guard on the beach. The famous Gombe Reserve has an estimated 100 chimpanzees but Kitwe shelters only four -The Guardian.

Michael Longford, the author of the book ‘The flags changed at midnight’ (reviewed in TA No. 72), who is fluent in two of Tanzania’s 120 ethnic minority languages (Kihehe and Kinyamwezi) is working on a project, in collaboration with the ‘Foundation for Endangered Languages’, to record and document mainland Tanzania’s endangered languages. President Mkapa, in a letter dated 14th May to Mr Longford, said he was pleased to hear of the project. “We are proud and relieved that we have in Kiswahili a lingua franca that unites us across tribal and religious lines. We will encourage the development and spread of Kiswahili …. but we have no intention of wilfully killing off any of our indigenous languages. That has always been the policy of all our governments and as far as I can see, it is going to continue to be our policy for which there is broad support among all political parties” the President wrote.

UN Secretary General Kofi Annan has nominated Tanzanian Professor Anna Tibaijuka as the first Executive Director of the newly formed UN human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT). The organisation was quoted in the Business Times (lOth May) as describing Tanzania as Africa’s trail blazer in an outstandingly successful experiment in urban cooperation. Through its partnership with UN-HABITAT Tanzania was said to be championing the prohibitions of yesteryear -privatisation, land ownership and individual enterprise -to upgrade its nine cities and the living standards of urban residents. The first project was launched in Dar es Salaam in 1992 and the first target was to privatise the rubbish collection system after all sectors in the City, businesses and industry, agreed to a surcharge to underwrite a rubbish collection in low income residential areas. ILO helped Mkokoteni handcart owners to start small businesses to ferry trash along the narrow muddy lanes in the slums to collection points. Some 68 companies now employed more than 3,000 people in these enterprises; there were 17 recycling and composting enterprises.

Fletcher Mwambo (43) a Tanzanian poet has been chosen by the International Library of Poetry in Washington DC to be one of33 poets whose artistry will be recorded professionally in a poetry collection called “The sound of poetry” titled “Letters from the Soul”. Mwanga’s poem is titled “What is love”.

A conference scheduled for September in Bagamoyo may lead to it becoming a UNESCO World Heritage site -Guardian.

The government decided in June to sell 3,000 ofits houses at prices between Shs 1.5 million and Shs 180 million but buyers would not be allowed to re-sell them until after 25 years. The government indicated that the sale might realise some Shs 23 billion which would be used to build more houses for civil servants.

President Mkapa directed heads of government departments to turn in within seven days some 1,800 vehicles bought through donor grants and loans which bore private registration numbers. If they did not do so they would be sacked he said. Some 1,181 vehicles were quickly re-registered with government numbers and 1,000 more were also to be given government numbers. He said that the re­registration had enabled the Government to save Shs 10 billion. It was explained that some vehicles were being used to ferry children to schools, taking wives to beauty salons, fetching water and other private activities. Most of the vehicles were from UN-run projects and many, in spite of performing private business, were still enjoying free fuel and maintenance as in the case of other government vehicles. Opposition parties objected to restricting the sale of these vehicles to civil servants and at the low prices being charged. President Mkapa told donor organisations not to interfere with the issue by dictating how the vehicles should be used after they had been given to government institutions,

Dr Jane Goodall, the famous primatologist known for her ground-breaking work on chimpanzees in Kigoma’s Gombe Stream National Park, has been appointed by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan as a UN Messenger of Peace. Messengers of Peace help to mobilise the public to get involved in work that makes the world a better place. Other messengers include Muhammad Ali, Michael Douglas and Luciana Pavarotti.

‘Thanks to you’ (Summer 2002), the journal of the British Alzheimer’s Society, reported how Alison Stirling, had been looking after her mother who was suffering from dementia for many years. After her death, Alison was persuaded by a friend to attempt to climb Mount Kilimanjaro. She tried to back out of the trip not once but twice but eventually agreed and took a hazardous ‘non-tourist’ route to the top. Did she feel triumphant when she reached the summit? “1 felt ghastly” she said. “I suffered from altitude sickness, I didn’t eat for three days and it was so cold during the climb that my tooth paste froze! When I got to the top I believed that I would think of my mother. But I didn’t. I was just too exhausted”. At times she admitted to crying with fear but was determined to keep going because she had some £1,800 of sponsorship money to collect. She succeeded.

The Government has decided to reintroduce DDT in its battle to combat malaria. Health Ministry official Chacha Mung’aho said that although DDT was very harmful to the environment and some living things there was no scientific research indicating that DDT was harmful to humans. He said that in Tanzania malaria killed more than a 100,000 out of the 16 million people who contract the disease each year, many of them being children under five years old. Alternative chemicals were four to five times more expensive than DDT. The insecticide would be strictly applied under ‘residual house spray mechanisms’. It would be able to kill a mosquito settling on sprayed walls within five minutes and would be efficient for one year.

As a result of “rising operational costs,” the US Embassy has announced new rates for its visas. The tourist visa will now cost Shs 65,000 instead of Shs 45,000 -Majira.

The Tanzania Heart Institute in Dar es Salaam successfully implanted an artificial electronic pacemaker in a 75-year-old patient on May 22 this year. The Director of the Institute said that this represented a giant step towards performing heart transplant operations in Tanzania. The pacemaker was bought for Shs 1.5 million from South African agents of the US-based Meditronic Company.

The leaders of both Britain and Tanzania made it very clear which side they favoured in the recent presidential elections in Zimbabwe. Britain favoured the opposition and Tanzania was on President Robert Mugabe’s side. After the election international observers came up with differing conclusions. The OAU observer team led by Tanzanian Gertrude Mongella found the elections free and fair as did the 25-member Tanzanian team. But observers from Europe, the USA and some countries in Africa including Ghana and Senegal described the elections as not free and fair. South Africa’s team was divided although its leader said that the election had been ‘legitimate’. But it was the Commonwealth team, led by a Nigerian, who proved decisive in describing the election result as ‘not having represented the views of the people.’ On March 19 Zimbabwe was expelled from the Councils of the Commonwealth.

“DESERVED MANDATE”
After the election President Mkapa wrote as follows to President Mugabe: “I am writing to extend our warmest congratulations on the renewed and deserved presidential mandate the people of Zimbabwe have given you.” He went on to commend President Mugabe for having been firm in defending the inalienable right of the people of Zimbabwe to free, democratic and sovereign governance -it would be a great tragedy for anyone to try and determine the outcome of an African election in Europe, he said. Mugabe’s firm stand was good for all of Africa. He went on: “Please accept, Excellency and Dear Brother, the renewed assurances of my highest consideration.” Earlier, in Australia, President Mkapa had been quoted in the Tanzanian Guardian as saying before the election “These people want to choose presidents for our countries… .It is indeed baffling when they want the ruling party out when it comes to elections; they do not look at policies or what the ruling party has done for its people.” He expressed bewilderment at the way in which some nations, backed by their media, mounted campaigns aimed at scandalising Zimbabwe’s administration and usurping Zimbabweans freedom to elect a government of their own choice.

Leader of the 25-strong Tanzanian observer team, Kingunge Ngombale-Mwiru, said that some people take elections to be free and fair when they win but if they lose it is neither free nor fair. “This is anti-democratic …..

Tanzanian members of the SADC Parliamentary Forum who went to Zimbabwe as observers disagreed with the group’s final report which had not accepted the elections as having been free and fair. The Tanzanian group comprising five MP’s led by Dr Hassy Kitine, said that they had witnessed an unexpected atmosphere of peace and tranquillity in the whole of Zimbabwe, contrary to how the situation had been reported in the Western media. “My group, throughout its stay in Zimbabwe, never heard of, or witnessed any violations of the rules of the election process,” Dr Kitine said. They had been shocked by an announcement by their colleagues after they had left Harare which denounced the elections. A full Parliamentary Forum meeting (representing members from some 160 nations) meeting shortly after the election in Capetown voted by 63 to 2 to call for new elections in Zimbabwe.

Tanzania’s opposition parties said that the election had not been free and fair. They drew parallels between the Zimbabwe election and the 2000 Zanzibar election which they said had also included alleged intimidation of voters, doubtful election registers and badly managed polling stations.

The acquisition by Tanzania of a £28 million BAE ‘Watchman’ air traffic control system using a Barclays Bank low interest loan to pay for it, has caused a major stir, particularly in Britain where the issue has divided the cabinet.

BAE Systems approached the Ministry of Defence in Britain as early as 1997 because, as the equipment included a military element, an export license was required. Under the procedures, firms can be given the nod and told that although this is distinct from and does not replace the issuing of a formal license, it is only rarely that such approval is subsequently overturned. Only five orders have been overturned in 10 years. So, having been given the nod, BAE began to manufacture the equipment.

When the matter became public knowledge, a battery of objectors attacked the sale. Those opposing it apparently included British Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown and Secretary for International Development Clare Short, the World Bank and the IMF and many NGO’s devoted to Tanzania’s welfare including OXFAM. The project was considered too expensive and its military component was considered unnecessary. The project would wipe out two-thirds of the real savings Tanzania had gained from debt relief.

Clare Short, reportedly acting independently of other cabinet members, then froze £10 million of a £65 million British aid programme already allocated for budgetary aid this year. Another major aid donor, Denmark was considering doing the same after a heated debate in the Danish parliament. The leader of the ruling Liberal Party said: “We give them Shs 52 billion and they spend Shs 35 billion in buying military equipment which is of no use to the country” he said. In defence of the purchase the Tanzanian Government published a 10-page paper which said, inter alia, that the lack of modem radar denied the country the chance of increasing revenue from aircraft using Tanzania’s airspace; that the project would enable the country to reinforce its defence and safety; that buying two systems -one for civilian and one for military purposes -would be expensive; and, that nine other countries used the equipment (Thank you Roger carter for letting us have this statement ­Editor).

Defending the sale, President Mkapa was quoted as saying that there could be only two reasons for rethinking the matter. Either there was some element of corruption or the equipment was not worth the money. No one had given him one iota of evidence about corruption and no one had shown him that he was not getting value for money. “In the meantime” he said, “this contract has to be fulfilled. It is as simple as that. ”

As this issue goes to press the International Civil Aviation Organisation was said to be investigating whether the military control system was appropriate for Tanzania.

Another headache for President Mkapa, which has been going on for six years rumbles on. Since 1966 there have been various accusations that some 50 small scale miners were buried alive during the establishment of a major gold mine at Bunyanhulu in Shinyanga Region by the Canadian company, the Kahama Mining Corporation Ltd.

The government and the corporation have insisted for years that no one was killed but recently a prominent Tanzanian judge proposed that there should be a commission of enquiry and opposition leader Augustine Mrema claimed to have obtained video cassettes indicating that several miners had been killed. In March this year a group of Canadian, American, British and Netherlands NGO members under the Dar es Salaam Lawyer’s Environmental Action Team (LEAT) arrived in Tanzania to investigate the matter. The government promptly expelled them from the country saying that they had infringed visa regulations.

LEAT said that nothing short of a fully transparent, open, public and completely independent commission of inquiry, conducted by credible and respected international and national experts would suffice to resolve these troubling questions. On March 22 two specialists from the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) of the World Bank arrived in Tanzania and were allowed to go to Buyanhulu and meet villagers. Their report was awaited as this issue of TA went to press. It was then reported that one of the miners, said to have been killed, had appeared live and well and had accused some of his fellow miners of seeking ‘international financial sympathy’. The video, he said, showed body parts filmed during ordinary mining accidents which were frequent in small-scale mining. Amnesty International stated that the cassettes did not prove that the killings had taken place.

Tanzania’s new High Commissioner in London is Mr Hassan Omari Kibelloh (54) who is presently Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Born in Tanga Region, Mr Kibelloh is a career diplomat who has worked as a Foreign Service Officer for several years. He was Ambassador to Sweden and, later, Director of Tourism in Tanzania. He took his Masters Degree in Social Sciences and also obtained two post­graduate diplomas in Sweden (Thank you Hildebrand Shayo for obtaining this information for us ~Editor).

In sending his condolences to the Queen on the death of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, President Mkapa described her as “a symbol of love and inspiration to many people throughout the world.” Former President Mwinyi and Deputy Foreign Affairs Minster Abdul Shareef represented Tanzania at the funeral of the late Queen.