Musalia Mudavadi Confirms Boniface Mwangi Is Detained In Tanzania amid Missing Reports
Nancy Odindo, a TUKO.co.ke journalist, has over four years of experience covering Kenyan politics, news, and features for digital and print media.
Prime Cabinet Secretary and Foreign Affairs Minister Musalia Mudavadi has confirmed that activist Boniface Mwangi is in the custody of Tanzanian authorities.
Source: Twitter
Mudavadi said the Kenyan embassy in Dar es Salaam had been in contact with Mwangi and was actively working to establish how he could be released and returned to Nairobi.
Speaking during an interview with Citizen TV on Tuesday, May 20, he acknowledged that the Tanzanian government had not provided clear details on the reasons for Mwangi’s arrest or the recent deportations of several Kenyan nationals.
“Boniface Mwangi is in Tanzania and is being held by the authorities. We hope he will be released and helped to return home,” said Mudavadi.
"I think the individuals who visited Tanzania seem to have rattled the administration there during this heightened and emotive electoral process,” the Foreign Affairs CS added.
Mwangi had travelled to Dar es Salaam to attend the trial of Tanzanian opposition leader Tundu Lissu.
Prior to his arrest on Monday, May 19, the activist reported that his life was in danger as armed men had surrounded his Serena Hotel room.
Earlier on Tuesday, May 20, the president of the Tanganyika Law Society (TLS), Boniface Mwabukusi, later confirmed that Mwangi and Ugandan journalist and advocate Agatha Atuhaire had been deported.
According to Mwabukusi, the deportation was supervised by Tanzania’s Immigration Services Department.
Mwangi and Atuhaire had reportedly been held at the Central Police Station in Dar es Salaam since their arrest on Monday, May 19.
It was alleged that Mwangi was arrested on the grounds of providing false information to gain entry into Tanzania.
However, after they failed to show up and confirm their safety, human rights activist Hussein Khalid raised the alarm, stating that efforts to locate Mwangi and Atuhaire through legal and diplomatic channels had failed, sparking concern about their safety and whereabouts.
Source: Twitter
The incident comes amid growing diplomatic tension in the region following the detention and deportation of other Kenyan figures, including politician Martha Karua and former chief justice Willy Mutunga, who were in Tanzania to show solidarity with Lissu.
The Kenyan government has yet to issue a formal diplomatic protest, as Mudavadi said investigations into the matter are still ongoing.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
