Amnesty alert on Zanzibari prisoners

The human rights watchdog Amnesty International on Thursday expressed concern for the physical safety of two prisoners charged with the murder of a police officer during a political demonstration on Pemba Island on 27 January, and who have not been released despite Zanzibar’s Attorney General having ordered the authorities to do so.

Most of those charged with the murder of a police officer during clashes surrounding a demonstration in Wete, Pemba island, have been released but “prisoners of conscience” Juma Duni Haji and Machano Khamis Ali remain in detention, according to Amnesty.

Pemba, the second largest on the archipelago of Zanzibar, was wracked by violence in late January when security forces used strong-arm tactics to put down demonstrations by the opposition Civic United Front (CUF) against allegedly fraudulent general elections in October last year.

Both Juma and Machano are leading members of the opposition Civic United Front (CUF), and have recently been released from custody after being held for three years as prisoners of conscience on fabricated charges of treason, Amnesty stated on Thursday. Neither man is believed to have been on Pemba at the time of the demonstrations, it added.

On 28 May, Attorney General Iddi Pandu ordered the release of Juma and Machano and told journalists that the police had “failed to produce any evidence beyond reasonable doubt against the suspects,” according to the Amnesty press release. “The case should be dropped and the suspects released”, it quoted Iddi as saying.

In a court hearing on 4 June, police prosecutor Ramadani Hamis challenged the Attorney General’s decision and asked for “thorough clarification” before the two detainees could be released. The two remained in detention and were expected to appear in court again on 18 June, Amnesty said.

About 18 other CUF party leaders, who had also been charged with the murder and were held in Wete prison, were reportedly released at the beginning of June, and had their charges dropped, the human rights NGO stated. It appeared that the authorities still wanted three other suspects thought to be hiding in Kenya, it added.

Over 2,000 Zanzibaris fled to Kenya from the Zanzibari islands of Unguja and Pemba when the political clashes erupted in January. More than 600 were repatriated last month from a makeshift camp in the Kenyan fishing village of Shimoni, south of Mombasa. Five hundred and six others were now being registered at Dadaab refugee camp in northeastern Kenya in preparation for their voluntary repatriation later this month, UNHCR reported on Tuesday.
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Several hundred others have reportedly found shelter with local villagers on the Kenyan coast or made their own way home.

A monitoring mission to Unguja and Pemba last week reported that the situation on the islands had improved, and that “no reports of harassment had been received from those who have recently returned home”, UNHCR spokesman Kris Janowski stated on Tuesday.

A handful of the returning refugees currently faced criminal charges, ranging from destruction of property to minor traffic violations, he said.
The government of Tanzania has given assurances that, upon their return to Pemba, the refugees will not be prosecuted as a group for their involvement in the banned political demonstrations which had turned violent in January.