Dar es Salaam – International supermodel and human rights advocate Tausi Likokola has announced she is indefinitely shelving a documentary designed to promote tourism in her native Tanzania, stating her conscience will not allow her to promote the nation’s beauty while its people are in mourning.
The decision follows a violent government crackdown on post-election protests on October 29, 2025, which resulted in hundreds of civilian deaths and widespread human rights abuses.
In an exclusive interview with The Chanzo’s Khalifa Said published on January 10, 2026, the US-based model of Tanzanian descent revealed that her documentary, Tales of African Beauty: Tourism, Wildlife & Conservation, is complete but will not be released.
“I cannot promote something as beautiful while there is darkness connected to it,” Likokola stated. “My heart is not touched. I am in solidarity with the people, and the people are hurting right now. Unless we are able to hear them and help them, then we cannot shout hallelujah.”
The protests of October 29, 2025, accompanied a contentious general election that saw incumbent President Samia Suluhu Hassan re-elected with a reported 98 per cent of the vote. Exclusion of viable opposition parties, including the main opposition party CHADEMA, led to widespread protests across the country, most notably in Dar es Salaam, Mwanza, and Arusha.
Security forces responded with lethal force, with reports of live ammunition being fired into crowds and homes, extrajudicial killings, and mass arrests. Casualty figures remain highly disputed. While the United Nations initially confirmed at least 10 deaths, CHADEMA has alleged a death toll between 3,000 and 10,000, with other rights groups citing figures in the thousands.
A CNN investigation in November 2025, using satellite imagery and witness testimony, corroborated claims of extreme violence and suggested the existence of mass graves. The government has acknowledged the unrest, with President Samia launching a commission of inquiry, but has also defended the actions of security forces and condemned the protests as illegal.
For Likokola, the violence was a turning point. “People were killed inside their homes. Bystanders were killed. So there is something wrong. Who gave the order?” she asked. “Justice must be done; mistakes have been made, and those who made mistakes must be held accountable.”
Fashion to human rights
Likokola’s outspokenness marks a significant evolution from her early career. As Tanzania’s first international high-fashion model in the 1990s, she graced runways for top designers like Christian Dior and Gucci.
She used her platform for social causes, establishing the Tausi AIDS Fund in the early 2000s to support orphans and promote HIV/AIDS education, and later campaigning against the brutal killings of people with albinism in Tanzania.
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She rejects the notion that her current activism is a “shift,” but rather a continuation of her life’s work. “This human rights matter maybe touches in a different way, but HIV/AIDS awareness, albino protection, it’s advocacy,” she explained in the interview. “When I saw something that maybe wasn’t good, and I could lend my voice, I actually had to go educate myself. Why shouldn’t we all focus on that area?”
Her journey has not been without personal cost. Likokola acknowledged receiving threats and facing online attacks aimed at discrediting her. However, she remains resolute.
“I have to be aware that, of course, there is danger and there is risk,” she said. “But for the human, the bigger picture is that when I finish my journey in this world, I will have done what I thought was right and I have done it on behalf of many others who were never in a position to do what I could.”
An industry held back
Beyond the immediate political crisis, Likokola offered a sharp analysis of the industry that launched her career. She described Tanzania’s fashion scene as one of immense potential hobbled by a lack of infrastructure and professional support.
Unlike the established systems in Europe and South Africa, she noted, Tanzania lacks a network of professional modelling agencies, bookers, and the legal framework to treat modelling as a serious profession.
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“It has come a long way, but still at home, maybe it has not reached the level where when someone says they are a model, they live at home, work at home, and still support their life by modelling,” she lamented.
She pointed out that successful Tanzanian models have almost universally had to leave the country to build their careers. She attributes this to a combination of governmental neglect and a societal perception of modelling as a “uhuni” (sense of decadence) rather than a legitimate industry.
To unlock its potential, she argues, the industry needs “respect for making it a real job,” government support, and the establishment of a professional infrastructure that can nurture and represent local talent on an international stage.
A better Tanzania
Despite the current turmoil and her personal grief over the state of her homeland, Likokola has not given up. Raised by her grandmother in Kigoma after her parents passed away, she credits her upbringing for her resilience and faith.
She dreams of a Tanzania that returns to the values of peace and justice she remembers, a nation where “political differences, differences in ideas are not enmity.”
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“My hope for Tanzania is that there will be justice, hopefully fair elections where we will choose and put in leaders we want, who will uphold our rights,” she concluded.
“I won’t give up on Tanzania. Wherever I can help in any way—whether by lending my voice or educating in one way or another, in any form that God can use me—I will still do what I can.”
