The judiciary and the protection of human rights in Tanzania: a critical examination of the legislation and judicial decisions on the rights to libertyof human rights in Tanzania: a critical examination of the legislation and judicial decisions on the rights to liberty
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Date
1993
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University of Dar es Salaam
Abstract
The major thrust of this work is to examine, critically, the judicial protection of fundamental rights and freedoms in Tanzania, before and after the incorporation of the Bill of Rights into the Constitution of the country: Concentration will be on the judicial approach to human rights cases. It is argued that the legal climate in Tanzania is as "suffocating" now as it were prior to the adoption of the bill of Rights in 1984, whose major characteristic is violative laws. That is why it is further argued that unless the judiciary adopts an activist, purposive and goal-oriented approach towards human rights cases, the Bill of Rights so entrenched, would remain an "empty shell"."Human Rights" is a concept, so are the "Rule of Law" and "Independence of Judiciary". These three concepts take the mantle of this study. For that reason, their sufficient coverage is availed. Chapter one sets out to discuss their meanings and underlying philosophy, whether or not one could argue for the existence of the concept of human rights, in its practical sense, prior to the adoption of the Bill of Rights in 1984, chapter two gives the answer.The argument is that neither the colonial nor the post independence government was interested in human rights, as both suppressed them. It is contended that the numerous violative laws that create the "suffocating legal climate" is the result of the three decades of one party state authoritarism.Thus chapter three traces and discusses the genesis of such laws. Having discussed, at length, the concepts in chapter one, the question whether the concept of human rights was existent prior to 1984 in chapter two, the genesis of violate laws in chapter three, this study turns to, critically, examine the legislation, and judicial decisions on human rights, in chapter four. The Preventive Detention Act, 1962; the Deportation Ordinance; the Criminal Procedure Act, 1985; the Regions and Regional Commissioners Act, 1962 and, the District Commissioners Act, 1962 are covered in so far as they curtail the individual's right to liberty. It is in this chapter that the weakness and the division within the Higher Judiciary is discovered. Chapter five summarizes and gives conclusions. The core thereof, is the recommendation of the approach the Judiciary has to adopt so as not to render the fundamental rights and freedoms enshrined in the Constitution meaningless.
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Keywords
Human rights, Tanzania
Citation
Amin, B.S(1993) The judiciary and the protection of human rights in Tanzania: a critical examination of the legislation and judicial decisions on the rights to liberty. masters dissertation, University of Dar es Salaam. Available at http://41.86.178.3/internetserver3.1.2/detail.aspx?parentpriref=()