Tanzania Police yesterday used live bullets and teargas to disperse people who had gone to Tumbatu Island to register for voter card

Men go into hiding in Pemba turmoil
By Salma Said, Pemba

Men in Ole constituency, North Pemba have reportedly fled their homes for fear of being arrested by police and members of the Zanzibar Revolutionary Governments' Special Forces, commonly known as KMKM.

Speaking to The Citizen yesterday at Ole-Kangagani, Ms Salama Mohammed, 60, said police went to her house at around 1.00am yesterday and demanded she open the door but she refused daring them to break it open.

"They told me to open the door or else they would break it. I told them they could go ahead but I would never do it at my peril," she said.

Her husband is said to be a staunch opposition member whose name was in the list of people who were allegedly to be 'dealt' with. A branch secretary of one political party was said to lead the law enforcers to homes of men deemed as troublemakers.

"He (her husband) was not at home, because nowadays our husbands and sons cannot sleep in the house. They sleep in 'Makaani.' So I felt very unsafe," she said. 'Makaani' is the local term for the bush or farms.

However, the North Pemba regional police commander, Mr Yahya Rashind Hemed, said there were no reports of people who have fled their homes to sleep in the bush for fear of their personal safety.

"We have not yet received that report," he said when reached for comment.

Residents of Kangagani accused the North Pemba regional commissioner, Mr Dadi Faki Dadi, of threatening to turn the area into �another Piki� if they continued to resist voter registration, which has been marred by violence for several days.

In 2005, Zanzibar Government Special Forces besieged Piki village for more than two weeks because villagers allegedly killed their member. Houses were reportedly pulled down, others looted and women raped, hardly a month after announcing that year's general election results.

"Dadi told us the other day at Kiuyu Minungwini that he would turn Ole into another Piki. Remembering what happened to Piki in 2005, we are terrified. We are afraid that this time they (the government) want to kill us all," said Ms Siti Omar Suleiman, 50, a resident of Kangagani.

Her remarks were supported by a number of fellow residents near the Kangagani registration centre.

However, Mr Dadi refuted the allegations, insisting that he could not use such demeaning words against his own people.

"That is insane. How could I? A leader, tell my people such words? They are lying. They do not tell the truth. I have never uttered anything like that,"he said.

Voter registration was received not so enthusiastically at Ole and Mtambwe constituencies in North Pemba. Only a few people turned up for registration when officials arrived yesterday.