Legal interpretation on distance allowable for assemble during counting of the votes near polling station

By Prof. Ruth Meena

While Inspector General of Police IGP Ernest Mangu warned youth to refrain from looming around polling stations during election day, as stern measures will be undertaken by the force, the allowable distance has different interpretations. On the one hand retired Justice Damian Lubuva said it is 200 metres, the Civic United Front (CUF) claims that the allowable distance is 100 metres. And vowed to have its supporters to watch out within this allowable distance peacefully to safeguard rigging of votes.(Read more The Citizen page 8 and Tanzania Daima page 8). This might seem to be a minor issue, but has a potential of escalating to unnecessary violence during the poll day. Any form of violent activities including those which are not necessarily based on gender, are more likely going to have differential impact on women, and in this case, young women as well as women with disability.