Mission Completed — Democracy Safe? The Tanzanian Union, International Election Monitoring and the General Elections 2000

Starting with the killings of 30-40 civilians through the Tanzanian Field Force Unit on Zanzibar in January 2001, the article argues that this outbreak of violence should not be regarded as a problem limited solely to "Zanzibar" or "Pemba" as embedded in the history of the Tanzanian Union and the special status of the islands. The events should, at the same time, be understood as a symptom of the difficulties Tanzania is experiencing in its transition to democracy and which were condensed in the General Elections of 2000. Differing from a more abstract political analysis this article deals with complaints and irregularities during the elections as they were expressed through rumours and statements from the public, as well as in the local print media. The voices from parts of the population and from some domestic observers are then contrasted with the reports of international election monitors who attested to free and fair proceedings. In comparing the still existing power relations and networks of the former single party CCM with the actual democratic features and actions of opposition parties and of an emerging civil society, the authors critically discuss the role and responsibilities of international election monitoring. It is argued that election monitoring is engaged in promoting the picture of a democratic state as preferred by the donor community while neglecting its task as a trust-building measure for political parties and the general population.