Tanzania: Political Parties, Trades Unions and Pressure Groups Material

Letters, calendars, pamphlets, constitutions, manifestos, programmes, addresses, conference reports, directories and interviews from 1956 onwards issued by Chama cha Mapinduzi, the Movement for Free Popular and Democratic Tanzania, the Tanganyika African National Union (TANU) and the Tangayika Federation of Labour. All the political parties materials currently held here originate from TANU or Chama cha Mapinduzi (CCM), reflecting their political dominance, and cover such issues as the Arusha declaration of 1967 (which laid out Nyerere's vision for Tanzania's development - an African mixture of socialism and village communal life), agricultural policy and foreign affairs (Nyerere was a committed Pan-Africanist who provided support for exiled groups such as the ANC, PAC and FRELIMO). In addition there is pressure group material protesting against the imposition of a one-party state and calling for free elections.

Tanganiyika became independent in 1961, with Julius K. Nyerere as first its Prime Minister and then its President. In 1964 it merged with Zanzibar to form the United Republic of Tanganyika and Zanzibar, soon renamed the United Republic of Tanzania. Nyerere dominated Tanzanian politics until stepping down in 1985, turning the country first into a two-party state (led by his Tanganyika African National Union (TANU) and the Afro-Shirazi Party of Zanzibar) and in 1977 into a one-party one through the combination of these two to form Chama cha Mapinduzi (CCM).

Alphabetically by organisation, then in roughly chronoloogical order.

Open to all for research purposes; access is free for anyone in higher education.

Institute of Commonwealth Studies

Records at item level on library catalogue (SASCAT)

Description compiled by Daniel Millum, Political Archives Project Officer at the Institutes of Commonwealth and Latin American Studies.

Copies can usually be obtained - apply to library staff.

The Commonwealth Political Parties Materials collection was begun in 1960-61, with special emphasis being placed then, as now, on "primary material such as party constitutions, policy statements, convention reports and election manifestos." (ICS, Twelfth Annual Report 1960-1961). Since then, the main method of gathering material has been to appeal directly to political parties throughout the Commonwealth, though contributions from Institute members and staff following visits to relevant countries have been significant. More recently material has been collected by means of downloading documents from the websites of the major parties.

Further accruals are expected, some in electronic form

See also Political Party, Trades Unions and Pressure Group Materials for other Commonwealth countries and related material in the library's main classified sequence, all held at the ICS.