A police commander in Tanzania’s capital, Dodoma, has been removed from her post after making controversial remarks linking an alleged gang-rape victim to sex work.
The incident arose after a video showing a young woman being assaulted by five men went viral, sparking public outrage. Dodoma Regional Commander Theopista Mallya was quoted in a Tanzanian newspaper, Mwananchi, suggesting that the victim “appeared to be engaged in sex work.”
Her comments triggered widespread backlash, with accusations that they minimized the woman’s ordeal. In response, Tanzania’s national police force issued an apology and announced that Commander Mallya had been transferred.
National police spokesperson David Misime clarified that Mallya had stated the woman, regardless of her background, “did not deserve to be treated that way,” though these words were not included in the newspaper’s report.
The comments were condemned by activists and lawyers on social media, who decried them as evidence of systemic insensitivity towards women’s rights.
The suspects in the alleged gang rape, which reportedly took place in Dar es Salaam’s Yombo Dovya suburb, are scheduled to appear in court.
