A destitute person is any individual who is without employment and unable to demonstrate that they possess visible and sufficient means of subsistence.
When it is satisfactorily established to a magistrate's satisfaction that an individual is a destitute person, the magistrate has the discretion to issue orders aimed at addressing the individual's circumstances. These orders may include requiring the person to find work and report to the magistrate by a specified date, detaining the individual in custody for up to one month to facilitate employment search, or, if the individual is a native not residing in their usual place of residence, ordering their return to their usual residence within Tanzania.
If a destitute person fails to report as ordered, they may be subject to a fine not exceeding five thousand shillings or imprisonment for up to (3) three months. Similarly, failure to find work before the specified date or failure of detention in custody to result in employment may lead to further orders, such as requiring the individual to return to their usual residence or, if not a native, to be detained for up to one month for deportation purposes.
For destitute foreigners who fail to find work or are detained in custody, the President has the authority to order deportation from Tanzania. Such persons are to be detained until deportation is carried out. Citizens of Tanzania who are ordered to be deported may be sent to any location approved by the President, while non-citizens can be deported to their country of origin or any other location with their consent, provided the government of that place consents to receiving them.
Deportation may be conducted across the frontier or aboard a suitable vessel by police officers, who are authorized to detain the individual on board within Tanzania's territorial waters. Any person deported who later re-enters Tanzania without the necessary license or breaches conditions of such license may face a fine not exceeding ten thousand shillings or imprisonment for up to (6) six months, and may be subject to deportation again.
When ordered to return to their usual residence, magistrates may detain individuals until suitable travel arrangements are made, including during their journey. Failure to comply with such orders, or leaving without proper authorization, can result in a fine up to ten thousand shillings or imprisonment for up to six months, with the possibility of further orders to return.
Persons detained under this Act may be held in prison or in any facility designated by the President. If detained in prison, they are to be treated as awaiting trial rather than as convicted prisoners, although they may be required to work to the extent permitted for simple imprisonment.
Police officers, acting on instructions from senior officers, are authorized to arrest without warrant any individual who appears to be a destitute person. Such individuals must be brought before a magistrate at the earliest opportunity.
The President retains the authority to order the release of any person detained under this Act at any time.
The legal framework is aimed for identifying, managing, and assisting destitute persons within Tanzania, balancing the need for social support with measures aimed at ensuring compliance and order.
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