The Tanzanian government on Tuesday said it has deployed police and soldiers to its commercial city, Dar es Salaam, to prevent a planned protest by activists.

Some activists had earlier called for a mass protest to denounce the violent suppression of demonstrations during the October elections.

The government stated that any protest on the anniversary of mainland Tanzania’s independence from Britain in 1961 would amount to a coup attempt and urged people to stay at home.

The police and army were patrolling major streets in Dar es Salaam and checking the identification of anyone seeking to move around, residents told Reuters.

They said the situation appeared calm, though one resident and some activists on social media reported that small protests had begun in some parts of the city. This could not be immediately confirmed.

A police spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment.

In October, Samia Hassan won a new term in the election with nearly 98 per cent of the vote after leading opposition candidates were barred from running.

However, the presidential and parliamentary elections on October 29 triggered the worst political violence in Tanzania’s post-independence history.

The UN has estimated that hundreds were killed. UN human rights experts said at least 700 people were estimated to have been extrajudicially killed in the violence.

The government has acknowledged that people died but has not provided its own death toll.

The United States said it was reviewing its relationship with Tanzania over concerns about violence against civilians as well as religious freedom, free speech, and barriers to investment.

In the months leading up to the elections, opposition leaders and human rights activists accused the government of being behind the disappearance of dozens of its critics.

Ms Hassan said she had ordered an investigation into reported abductions, but no results have been announced.

(Reuters/NAN)