DAR ES SALAAM: CHRISTMAS Day 2025 was expected to unfold differently. In the days before it, whispers of planned demonstrations spread across social media and street corners alike.
The mood was restless, especially among young people who felt unheard, a generation determined to push for change in a country they deeply care about. But when the morning came, the scene on the ground told another story.
There were no crowds marching, no clashes, no raised fists of confrontation. Instead, there was calm. Young Tanzanians chose peace, not out of fear, but out of reflection.
In many cities and town neighbourhoods, you could see small gatherings: youth sitting with elders, families sharing food (Pilau) others in churches and community spaces, talking, debating, listening. The emotions were still real, the frustrations still present, but there was also a sense of maturity.
“We want change, yes, but we also want a future to inherit,” Mohammed Mbarouk, a third-year university student in Dar es Salaam said when we were eating our pilau with a glass of juice in Kijitonyama.
That sentiment echoed across the country. A youth generation (Gen Z) that questioned its next move For many young people, the temptation to respond with anger was understandable.
They live in an age where information moves fast, opinions sharpen quickly and social pressure builds loudly online. Yet, on Christmas Day, Tanzanian youth paused and thought.
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Some spoke of lessons from October 29th events. Others remembered stories told by parents and grandparents about moments when nations paid a heavy price for anger that burned too fast. Elders, too, were not sidelined in this moment, many of them became voices of caution, not to silence the youth, but to remind them that peace is the foundation upon which change can stand. Peace, in that sense, did not appear as weakness.
It appeared as wisdom. The bigger picture: Reform, dialogue and national listening The calls for change are not imaginary. Young people have been vocal about constitutional reform, political accountability and space to participate in shaping national decisions.
The 6th Phase Government has already acknowledged these national conversations and committed to advancing constitutional processes in the ruling party manifesto, a step many youths recognise as necessary, though not fast enough for some. Likewise, concerns arising from the post-election period did not disappear into silence.
A commission has been appointed to examine the issues, review grievances and provide direction.
The process may not satisfy every expectation immediately, but it signals that the matters are not being dismissed. National reform, like healing, takes time and honest inclusion. Beyond the streets: Peaceful ways to be heard The message that emerged from this Christmas was not “do nothing.” It was do better and do so peacefully.
Young people are increasingly realising that civic participation stretches beyond protest.
It includes:
• joining policy dialogues and national consultation platforms
• strengthening youth forums and advocacy networks
• engaging leaders constructively instead of confronting them destructively
• researching, writing, debating and shaping public thought
• building solutions, not only pointing out problems Older generations, meanwhile, have a responsibility to listen, not from a place of authority, but from understanding.
The bridge between generations is not built through blame; it is built through conversation. A quiet but powerful statement The Christmas of 2025 will not be remembered for streets filled with confrontation. It will be remembered for something quieter and perhaps more powerful.
A moment when the country’s young citizens stood at a crossroads and chose patience over provocation, dialogue over tension and hope over anger. It was not the end of the story. If anything, it was the beginning of a more thoughtful one, a reminder that Tanzania’s future belongs to a generation that wants progress, but refuses to sacrifice peace to get there.
And in that choice, there was courage. And perhaps, beyond the politics and disagreements, this Christmas reminded us of something deeper, that a nation is not built only in moments of noise, but also in moments of restraint and courage of the heart.
The youth who chose peace did not walk away from their dreams; they protected them. They chose to believe that dialogue can still work, that elders still have lessons worth hearing and that the future of Tanzania must be fought for without tearing the country apart.
In that quiet decision, there was dignity and a powerful message to the world: that change pursued with peace is not only possible, it is stronger, lasting and truly ours.