Tanzanian Opposition Activist Reported Missing in Kenya: Taken by Three Unidentified Men While Travelling by Taxi to Visit Friends; Kenyan and Tanzanian Police Yet to Respond
NAIROBI — Tanzanian opposition activist Twaha Mwaipaya was reported missing in Kenya on Sunday, according to a police report seen by Reuters, in the latest case involving the disappearance of a government critic in the East African country.
Mwaipaya was travelling by taxi to visit friends in Kamulu, around 35 km (22 miles) east of Nairobi, when three unidentified men intercepted him at about 2 p.m. (1100 GMT) on Sunday, Amnesty International researcher Sikula Oniala told Reuters. The men ordered the taxi driver to get out of the vehicle before they drove away with Mwaipaya inside, Oniala said.
Reuters could not independently verify Amnesty's account. It was not immediately clear who took Mwaipaya, whether he remained in Kenya or whether he had been harmed. Kenyan and Tanzanian police spokespeople did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The case follows reported cross-border abductions of government critics in Kenya. Ugandan opposition leader Kizza Besigye was abducted in Nairobi in November 2024, later appeared before a military court in Uganda, and has since been charged with treason. Tanzanian activist Maria Sarungi Tsehai was briefly detained in Nairobi in January 2025.
John Heche, vice-chairman of Tanzania's main opposition CHADEMA party, whose leader Tundu Lissu is on trial for treason, urged the Kenyan authorities to help find Mwaipaya. "Nairobi cannot remain an abduction hub for dictators," Heche said.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
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