The Democratic Party (DP) is a political party in Tanzania. The party was registered on 7 June 2002. The DP is led by Rev. Christopher Mtikila, who is the Reverend of the Full Salvation Church. The DP calls for the dissolution of the Union Government of Tanzania and has openly campaigned for the separation from mainland of the islands of Zanzibar and Pemba from

Tanganyika Tanganyika may refer to: Places * Tanganyika Territory (1916–1961), a former British territory which preceded the sovereign state * Tanganyika (1961–1964), a sovereign state, comprising the mainland part of present-day Tanzania * Tanzania Main ...

. The DP supports the expulsion of minorities from the mainland. In elections for the Zanzibar Presidency and House of Representatives on 30 October 2005, DP presidential candidate Abdallah Ali Abdallah won 0.11% of the vote. The party failed to win any seats in concurrent House of Assembly elections. In elections held on 14 December 2005, Christopher Mtikila placed sixth out of ten candidates, winning 0.27% of the vote. The party failed to win any seats in National Assembly elections held on the same day.

Incidents involving the Democratic Party (DP)

In February 1992, DP leader, Rev. Mtikila was detained for distributing leaflets insulting President Mwinyi and the government over the handling of student unrest in 1990 at the University of Dar es Salaam. (Reuters 21 Feb. 1992) In January 1993, Rev. Mtikila and 4 DP supporters were arrested on charges of

sedition Sedition is overt conduct, such as speech and organization, that tends toward rebellion against the established order. Sedition often includes subversion of a constitution and incitement of discontent toward, or insurrection against, estab ...

, illegal assembly, and inciting violence, after cars belonging to

Asians Asian people (or Asians, sometimes referred to as Asiatic people)United States National Library of Medicine. Medical Subject Headings. 2004. November 17, 200Nlm.nih.gov: ''Asian Continental Ancestry Group'' is also used for categorical purpos ...

were stoned by DP supporters following a rally in which Rev. Mtikila accused the government of allowing Asians to plunder the country’s wealth. Although Rev. Mtikila and his supporters were released on bail, they were required to surrender their passports and stay in Dar es Salaam under "preventive" detention. (AFP 1 Feb. & 8 Feb. 1993) In September 1993, DP leader, Rev. Mtikila, was arrested for making volatile statements to President Mwinyi. (AFP 15 Sept. 1993) In October 1993 Rev. Mtikila and 3 DP members were arrested for holding an unlawful assembly. (BBC 26 Oct. 1993) In October 1994 a judge ruled in favor of a petition filed by Rev. Mtikila and determined that the law demanding licensing of political rallies violated the people’s right of association, that independent candidates can contest the first

multi-party elections In political science, a multi-party system is a political system in which multiple political parties across the political spectrum run for national elections, and all have the capacity to gain control of government offices, separately or in coal ...

, and that state-run radio must give equal air time to all legalised parties. (AFP 25 Oct. 1994) In February 1995 the government refuted involvement in plans to assassinate Rev. Mtikila upon his return from abroad. (Xinhua 4 Feb. 1995) In March 1995, there was suspicion that Tanzania’s former Minister of Labour and Youth had linked with the DP and Rev. Mtikila after the Minister’s resignation on the grounds that the

CCM CCM may refer to: * Cubic centimetre (''ccm''), metric unit of volume * Climate change mitigation (''CCM''), climate change topic Biology and medicine * Calcium concentration microdomains, part of a cell's cytoplasm * Photosynthesis#Carbon ...

is a "party of crooks" that is not representative of

Tanzanians This article is about the demographic features of the population of Tanzania, including population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations, and other aspects of the population. The popu ...

. In May 1995, a panel of judges rejected Rev. Mtikila’s request to bar Zanzibaris from presidential appointments. (BBC 29 May 1995)

References

External links

US State Department Country reports
{{Tanzania political parties 2002 establishments in Tanzania Christian fundamentalism Christian political parties Far-right political parties Nationalist parties in Africa Political parties established in 2002 Political parties in Tanzania