On 9th September 1964 about 9 p.m. one of the leaders of the usurper government
of Zanzibar, Muhammad Abdulla Kaujore, after intoxicating himself with
drink and hashish came upon a group of worshippers in a Shia mosque at
Kiponda. He shot dead a number of them for no reason at all. Five were
killed outright. One of them a boys of eight was called Abbas Kassim. Others
were Sayyid Abdul-Muttalib Hashim, Sayyid Ali Asghar, Haji Abdul-Husain
Tejani and Babu Haji.
Edington Kisasi, one of the leaders of the usurper government, and
who was at that time the head of police, announced by Radio Zanzibar saying:
"The government deeply regrets the act committed in the Ithnasheri
Mosque at Kiponda. The Government is making the necessary investigations
regarding this incident. Soon after getting the result of the investigation
the Government will take adequate measures regarding the crime that has
been committed."
Until the time that I am writing these words in this book, thirty
years have elapsed since that crime was committed, and the murderer continued
to live a free man until his death. The usurper government has not yet
come out with anything like a report on its investigation. (Edington Kisasi,
the Police Commissioner has also died, and so has Karume) It is a
remarkable coincidence that all the three who were responsible for the
massacres and their vindication were foreign born, and the poor victims
were Zanzibaris by birth! The murderer, Kaujole, was allowed
complete freedom to roam where he wanted, as if he had done nothing at
all. He even continued to hold his position as one of the leaders among
the thugs who have usurped authority in the country. What justice could
poor Zanzibaris expect from such a gang of criminal aliens?
Yet one hears Mwalimu Nyerere and his fellow leaders of the Usurper
Government of Zanzibar, and even those of our brothers, the self-styled
"progressives" allege :
"We made the revolution to bring about equality and to remove the
injustices of the Sultans and feudalists.!"
What rubbish! Which Sultan and which feudalist had ever entered a
mosque or a church, let alone to kill, even to interfere or interrupt with
anyone's worshipping? Such barbaric acts as have been happening since
1964 never happened before in the long history of Zanzibar.
OTHER MURDERS
After the invasion of January 1964 and the attendant heinous crimes committed
in murders, terrorism, intimidation and victimization of innocent citizens,
all these were considered not yet enough to cow down the population. Arbitrary
arrests and general harassment continued.
In 1964 the usurper government of Zanzibar, as its wont, pounced
upon an assorted group of citizens. Some of them were taken from their
homes, some from their places of work, and others were picked up in the
street. After being arrested they were first taken to the military station
at Mtoni, and then some were taken to the central prison and others were
sent to the military H.Q. "Army House," at Migombani.
Among those arrested at this time were the following gentlemen and
one lady:
Muhammad Salim Barwani (Jinja)
Amour Zahor
Said Dahoma (Komba-nyongo)
Muhammad Hamoud Barwani
Nasser Mansour
Sultan Binbrek
Ali Muhammad Barwani
Bibi wa Unguja (Wife of Abdul Rahman Haider- Maalesh)
Jinja, Amour Zahor, Kombanyongo, Muhammad Hamoud and Hamza Muhammad
were the ones who were taken from the central prison and sent to Army House.
From that day those taken from the central prison have never been
seen again. According to information from reliable sources, namely the
persons who were with them and who had witnessed what happened to them,
those were shot dead at Kama about eight miles from the town The
five martyrs were Muhammad Salim Jinja, Amour Zahor, Said Kombanyongo,
Muhammad Hamoud and Hamza Muhammad.
HOW MURDERED
Before being killed they and the others with them were ordered to dig a
large pit which would be their mass grave. The pit having been dug,
the first to be called was Muhahmmad Salim Jinja. He was ordered to strip
naked, and he did so. After that he was given a pen and paper that he may
write down his will if he wanted to do so. Sheikh Muhammad refused to write.
He was ordered to open his mouth. As he did so they put a pistol into his
mouth and shot him dead. He was pushed into the pit After him was
Amour Zahor. He also was ordered to strip naked, but he refused to put
off his underpants. They put a pistol on the left side of his chest and
pulled the trigger. He did not die instantaneously. He was thrown into
the pit while still breathing. The third one was Muhammad Hamoud, and after
him came Said Dahoma and the last was Sayyid Hamza Muhammad. The following
were those who were with them and witnessed these outrageous murders: Nasser
Mansour, Musa Lashoka, Ali Awadh, Awadh Salim, Idi Juma, Said Ali Hamoud
Al Harthy, Abdul-Rahman Haider (Maalesh), Sultan Binbrek and Bibi wa Unguja.
It was they who were ordered to cover their dead brothers. Having
done that they were told:
'Your day will be tomorrow. We will finish with you in the same way
as we have done to these mates of yours. Today you will go back to the
prison, and tomorrow you will be brought here. We are telling you we do
not want to hear you say anything of what has happened here today."
They were then returned to the prison in a state of total devastation.
They were like ones demented from the horrific things they had seen being
done to their companions. God Almighty!. Those thugs imagined that they
had power to do whatever they liked. They entirely forgot that God is the
Almighty and All powerful. Those survivors were not sent there again to
be eliminated. Some among them after staying for some time in prison were
released. Among those set free were Sh Ali Ahmed Riami, Sh Ali Muhammad
Barwani, Sh Sultan Binbrek, Bibi wa Unguja and some others who were with
them.
Among those left in prison were Musa Lashoka, Nasser Mansour, Idi
Juma, Ali Awadh, Awadh Salim, Abdul-Rahman Haider and Said Ali Hamoud.
They were sentenced to ten years each. Those victims of Afro-Shirazi inhumanity
languished in prison from 1964 upto 1972 when they were released together
with their other companions.
THEY DIED IN PRISON
(1) Mzee Muhammad Mbaba
Mzee Mbaba, an extremely popular former police officer, started complaining
of pain in his right leg. There was no sore, nor any swelling. The pain
was becoming more and more severe as days passed, and he was losing weight
and becoming weaker and weaker. At first he could limp about, then he could
not walk without using a crutch. In the end he could not lift that leg
at all. He had high temperatures and constant headaches. The only treatment
he received at Langoni prison was some aspirin tablets and
a liniment for local application. The paramedic at Langoni prison recommended
that Mzee Mbaba be sent to the central hospital in the town for more thorough
examination. The officer in charge of Langoni and Kinu Moshi, Muhidini
Khamisi Kwangwati refused to carry out the medical recommendation. Mbaba
was left undergoing excruciating pain and generally deteriorating on that
coir mat until he reached a state when he wanted to relieve himself he
had to be bodily lifted and carried to the toilet. At other times we would
just deposit him on the bucket, for it was too much suffering for him to
squat over a pit latrine.
It was only when he could no longer eat or drink without help,
and could hardly speak that the officer in charge, Muhidini Khamisi Kwangwati
ordered his removal to the clinic of the central prison at Kiinua Miguu.
Shortly after this Mzee Mbaba passed away, a victim of usurpers' callousness
and calculated cruelty.
One of the top-ranking army officers of Tanzania and a staunch "Comrade"
when he was a detainee after the assassination of the usurpers' president,
Karume, told a fellow-detainee of his morbid fear lest his food be "poisoned
as in the case of Mzee Mbaba. That poison," he explained, "does not kill
immediately; it immobilizes a victim gradually, until in time he is liquidated.
That particular poison was given us by some of our friends. Mzee Mbaba
was the first person on whom it was tried."
(2) Maalim Harun Ustadh
When we were put in prison, Maalim Harun was nearing 70, and his health
even before imprisonment was not good. He had hypertension and arthritis.
When he was free to move about as he wanted, and was getting good medicare
with good food, he was able to live fairly well. Within prison and missing
all that which had been keeping him reasonably well, and being made to
do hard labour beyond his capacity his health rapidly deteriorated with
every day that passed. Getting worse he coughed blood, developed oedeama
and was out of breath with the slightest exertion. The local prison medic
recommended his removal to the central hospital for proper treatment. The
officer in charge, Kwangwati, as was his practice refused to comply with
the medical recommendation. He let Maalim Harun getting worse and worse
until when he was nearly dying and hardly able to speak. It was then that
the poor man was allowed to be moved to the medical ward of the central
prison at Kiinua Miguu. There the man passed away, another victim of the
usurpers' barbarism.
(3) Idi Hassan
This was a young man from Makunduchi. He had been a police inspector. When
he left the police force he joined the Afro-Shirazi Party and became a
staunch and dedicated member. In 1970-71 Idi Hassan was brought to Langoni
to serve a ten year sentence. He came after he had undergone the
tortures of "Ba Mkwe" for a long time. He was in a pitiable condition.
According to his own statement Mandera had subjected him to beatings and
all sorts of unspeakable types of torture. Shortly after his imprisonment
he developed tuberculosis.
One day all of a sudden after returning from work Idi had a spasm
of coughing blood. By the time the "doctor" (staff nurse) arrived
from Kizimbani he found Idi had already died.
(4) Ramadhan Ibrahim Saadalla
This was a nephew of Saleh Saadalla who had been a minister of the usurper
government of Zanzibar. When Ramadhan was put in prison he was between
40 and 45. He was in good health when he came to the prison, although according
to his own statement, he had already undergone severe torture at the hands
of "Ba Mkwe". Ramadhan suffered for a long time from illness as he lay
on his coir mat. When he was about to die he was taken to the medical ward
in the central prison at Kiinua Miguu. When his time came he passed away
as the others.
These are the ones that I myself witnessed with my own eyes being
let to suffer unnecessarily and left to see themselves gradually dying
without any concern being shown by their persecutors. I am certain
there are many more prisoners who were similarly tortured and persecuted
by Karume and his government, and left to die in the same way as these
I have failed to know how Suleiman Amour (popularly known as Suleiman
Mpemba) died. He was born at Wingwi in the island of Pemba, and was the
Afro-Shirazi candidate for the Wete seat in opposition to Sh Maulid
Mshangama, the ZNP candidate. Suleiman Amour was jailed by Karume, and
until today it is not known how he met his death. His name has not appeared
in any of the numerous records in newspapers or otherwise. - not even once.
I hope others will take pains to mention those brothers and sisters that
they know passed away under the torture of the thugs who have pounced upon
Zanzibar.
KILLED IN PRISON
Abdul-Aziz Twala
Idris Abdalla Majura
Both these were among "political prisoners" with long term sentences,
ranging from five to ten years, without being sent to any court of law,
and without being given the right of defence. When they were killed they
had already served a good portion of their sentence.
Early in 1971 Twala and Majura escaped from Langoni prison. Unfortunately
the very night they had escaped they were caught and sent to "Ba Mkwe".
There they were put under torture, and in the end they were shot. As I
(the writer of this narrative) was closely associated with them when we
were all Karume's prisoners at Langoni, the security department took me
from Langoni prison to "Ba Mkwe" as they thought I might be aware of their
plots and where they intended to run to. As they succeeded in arresting
them the very night they escaped they had no longer any need of me. Even
then I was kept in the prison of "Ba Mkwe" for 38 days. (To be simply kept
in that prison of "Ba Mkwe" without any punishment for a month, is like
being kept for two months in the ordinary prison.)
When I was at "Ba Mkwe" a prison guard whispered to me: "Twala and
Majura have already been shot. Both have been thrown in the same pit."
OTHER PRISONERS KILLED
The following citizens were serving their 10 year each sentences imposed
on them by the usurper government.
Jaha Ubwa
Mdungi Usi
Juma Maulidi (Jimmy Ringo)
Khamis Masoud
Aboud Nadhif
In the same year of 1971, the year when Twala and Idris Majuria were murdered,
at about seven-thirty in the evening all the above named citizens
were taken out of prison. From that day they have not been seen, and they
will never be seen in this world.
On 9th January 1972, Karume and his gang of the Usurpers Council
came to Langoni prison to order the release of prisoners. Karume spoke
directing his speech particularly to Mdungi Usi's brother, Maalim Nngwali
Usi. At that time Maalim Nngwali was among the prisoners of the usurpers
government. Karume told Nngwalii: "We have done plenty of good to you.
We even sent you abroad for further study. You appreciated mighty little
of all that, instead you followed the evil steps of your brother (meaning
Mdungi Usi). Now here you are today, we have already removed your brother
from this world, and you will follow suit." Karume passed his hand in a
sweep at his throat, meaning Mdungi had already been killed. What devilry
was this of Karume! To commit murder and then brag about it publicly!
POLITICAL PRISONERS
CONTINUE TO BE KILLED
Towards the end of 1970 the usurper government of Zanzibar - as was its
accustomed practice - arrested a large number of citizens with the usual
allegation that they were "plotting to overthrow the people's Government"!
Among those arrested at that time were the following gentlemen:
Salim Ahmed Busaidi
Abdulla Suleiman Riyami
Othman Soud
Aziz Bualy
Hemed Said
Muhammad Juma
Muhammad Hamza
Musa Ali
Said Hamoud
The above named citizens and a number of others after being put in detention
were brought out in public at a rally specially convened at the Maisara
(Cooper's) grounds in the year 1971. To hoodwink the world the usurper
government displayed at that rally some guns and small arms alleging that
those were the weapons that those citizens had intended to use in overthrowing
the government. A flag was also displayed which allegedly was to be the
flag of the government that was to be installed after the overthrow.
In addition the usurper government got some stooges among army officers,
including some from among the self-styled "progressives" to give faked
evidence to condemn these fellow citizens for purely personal and
selfish reasons. Those officers declared in public that the accused had
plotted with them to overthrow the "people's government'. But those lying
officers alleged that they had all the time been reporting everything to
their superiors. This was so until when the time was ripe the Security
Department was informed and asked to do its work. The Security Department
swooped on them arresting them all red handed with the weapons that were
then being displayed for all to see. All those present, and all who heard
of it, except of course idiots or those demented by hatred, knew
that the whole thing was bogus, created by some among the usurpers for
their own ulterior motives.
After announcing these allegations Karume ordered the victims of
the accusation to stand up, subjecting them to all sorts of insults and
ridicule to his heart's content. After that he ordered their imprisonment.
Their punishment which he publicly announced was "to herd cattle" at the
Hanyegwa Mchana ranch.
After the assassination of Karume on 7th April 1972 and the installation
of Aboud Jumbe as President, all those victimized citizens were taken out
of their confinement and shot. They were then dumped into a common mass
grave. It is not far-fetched that what has recently happened in Ruanda
was copied from Zanzibar. To copy evil is not so difficult.
Some of the officers who agreed to utter those brazen lies in public
against innocent fellow nationals, now declare regrettably at long last,
after what happened to them as a result of Karume's assassination, "All
that we then said at the rally was what we were told by our superiors to
say. It was all lies." Such were our so-called committed leftists.
They were employed to destroy, in an unprecedented blood bath, their own
country which had given them birth. Those same "progressives "were the
ones who were only too willing to repeat fabricated lies against innocent
fellow countrymen, lies which were calculated to cause the death of the
helpless victims. It would be no surprise if these same "progressives"
are now being used to intensify confusion and discord among the naive under
the guise of this new-fangled toy of "multipartism". One must always be
on guard against possible mischiefs of those whose record has always been
professional playing the stooge.
