Tanzania partially restores internet after five-day election blackout

Tanzania's internet services have been partially restored after a five-day nationwide digital blackout that followed the country's highly contested presidential election.

Cloudflare Radar, a leading internet traffic monitoring platform, announced the partial restoration on Monday evening, noting that “Internet traffic has once again started to increase in Tanzania, climbing after 14:00 UTC. However, we will need to watch and see if connectivity remains available, or if recovery is short-lived, as it was on October 30”.

While basic internet connectivity has returned, NetBlocks reported that significant restrictions remain in place across multiple social media and messaging platforms.

"Live metrics show widespread restrictions to multiple social media and messaging platforms as Tanzania comes back online after a five-day internet shutdown," the organisation stated, emphasising that "the incident continues to limit election transparency and the free flow of information."

The digital blackout began on October 29, a day before Tanzania's presidential election that saw widespread protests erupt across major cities, including Dar es Salaam and Arusha. 

The election, which critics described as fundamentally flawed due to the exclusion of key opposition candidates, resulted in President Samia Suluhu Hassan securing nearly 98 per cent of the vote to win a second term.

The election was marred by controversy from the outset, with major opposition leaders either imprisoned or disqualified from participating. 

The ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party, which has governed Tanzania since independence in 1961, faced its first significant public protests in 65 years as citizens demonstrated against what they perceived as an undemocratic process.

Opposition supporters expressed anger over the systematic exclusion of President Hassan's main challengers, leading to violent clashes that prompted the deployment of military forces. 

Despite the partial restoration of internet services, the security situation remains tense. 

The US Embassy in Tanzania has reported that a nationwide curfew remains in effect from 6 PM to 6 AM, with particularly strict enforcement in certain areas of Dar es Salaam.
"In certain localities of Dar es Salaam, security forces are reportedly enforcing stricter controls on movement," the embassy stated in its advisory. 

"Stores of food, fuel, and cash are running low in certain areas. International airports are operational, but international flight operations are intermittent."The five-day internet shutdown has drawn international criticism from digital rights organizations and press freedom advocates.