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Interfaith leaders from Tanzania, coordinated by the Lutheran World Federation and Dan Mission, traveled to Geneva to present their report and participate in several briefings ahead of the Universal Periodic Review, which will take place in Geneva on 5 November.
Peter Prove, director of the WCC Commission of the Churches on International Affairs, in introductory remarks, said that advocacy by the Tanzanian churches and religious communities is important so that the situation in Tanzania does not remain invisible in the international agenda. “On the United Nations mechanisms: they may not immediately give you the result you hope and pray for, but they are not without power,” he said. “Don't be discouraged by the absence of an immediate result; it is consistent witness over time that makes a difference.”
The dialogue covered three themes: whether communities are being heard, human dignity in everyday life, and building trust and inclusive futures.
Concerns brought forth included communities not supporting women’s political participation, girls missing school to fetch water, police using force against young people whenever they gather, the gap between constitutional protections and the lived experience related to freedom of religion, and many more.
Rev. Dr Moses Matonya, general secretary of the Christian Council of Tanzania, representing interfaith leadership in Tanzania, described how, at community gatherings, the women sit apart, listen, and speak only when consulted. “Men are the decision makers and women are recipients,” he said.
“Women candidates face a brutal campaign environment,” he said. “Some are beaten. The husbands are attacked, too.
“We are all created equally [...]-women also have the gift to contribute to society, Matonya added. “We have to listen to them, and by listening it can be also better for us as men.
“I want theological change and not only social change, because there are still male clergy saying women cannot lead,” he said. “I want a priesthood of all believers; the ministry is for men and for women.”
Matonya sees his role as not only about preparing people for heaven but promoting lives with dignity. “Water, farms, the economy, human rights– religious leaders themselves need training to understand how broad the mandate is,” he said. “Young people are on social media; they see what happened elsewhere and they conclude that force is what gets you heard.”
Beyond jobs, what the young people ask for is space to speak, Matonya said. “Engagement is quite important, with the youth or with everybody,” he said. “It’s not just a matter of saying; this is what you are supposed to be doing.”
Rogath Mollel, secretary general of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania, noted that the senior seats in churches are bishops—and all of them are men. "We are starting from within the church,” he said.
"The government's line to church leaders is ‘you are a religious leader, preach the gospel, leave political issues to the politicians. Disappearances are still happening.”
Mollel asked for a free and independent inquiry. “How many people were killed? What happened, what should be done now?” he said. “I want international attention on it.
"We don't bring the matters as activists. We are bringing them as [...] our duty. We are duty bound to do that,” he said.
Mollel cited an information gap: scholarships, micro-financing, and government programmes exist but young people do not know about them. “God has entrusted youth for leadership from the beginning of the creation where we see Adam and Eve, Moses, Jeremiah, Jesus himself, and his apostles and Timothy etc. Women as well such as Queen Ester. Always there has been space for the young,” he noted. "A lot of opportunities are written there, but in practice, you know, you will not see."
