Parliamentary Committee condemns detention without trial

He made the remarks while officiating the opening of a national paralegal forum organised by the Legal Services Facility (LSF)—a basket funding mechanism which provides grants and technical support to legal aid organisations operating in Tanzania. 

“The law does not provide for such detention for more than 24 hours but many people are not aware of this and police is using the loophole to deny them their rights” he said.

Addressing over 400 paralegals from across the country who attended the meeting, he noted that there is gross human rights violation by law enforcement agencies in the country.
The legislator observed that millions of Tanzanians are subjected to untold suffering, adding that some people face major problems, including illegal detention simply due to lack of legal knowledge.

According to the parliamentary committee chairman, many people were not aware that they had a right to bail and were not supposed to be taken into police custody for more than 24 hours without being taken to court or being bailed.

He described paralegals as a driving force and main pillars that could help people of problems through legal education and provision of legal aid services, down to the grassroots both in urban and rural areas.
"Many people do not know they have a right to bail and it is illegal to detain a person for more than 24 hours without taking that person to court or bailing him or her," he stressed.

He showered praises on LSF for training more than 4,500 paralegals who are currently providing legal services to the needy people in all districts countrywide.

A paralegal from Zanzibar, Abdullkarim Saidi said despite the fact that they were providing legal aid they still faced critical challenges in the execution of their duties, something which he says contributes to their inefficiency. 

He mentioned some of challenges included lack of transport, insufficient funding to facilitate their work or sustain themselves, adding that “we are working under difficult environment, walking for long distances to provide legal aid.”

LSF Chief Executive Officer, Kees Groenendijk said the facility is working hard to support operations of paralegals-in terms of building their capacity and providing funding so that they reach large number of people needing legal and related assistance.