The treason hearing of the leader of Tanzania’s main opposition party, CHADEMA, Tundu Lissu, has attracted significant regional attention following the attendance of prominent African lawyers, activists, and legal personnel. Two former Kenyan Chief Justices, David Maraga and Willy Mutunga, were in the country to attend the hearing, as well as several other human rights activists and lawyers in the Eastern region.
Lissu, the Chairman of the opposition party CHADEMA, is facing two charges at the Kisutu Resident Magistrate’s Court: treason and publishing false information. The treason case is currently at Kisutu for committal proceedings, after which it will be transferred to the High Court for trial.
While Justice David Maraga was able to enter the country and participate in the hearing, Justice Willy Mutunga was held at the Airport and later deported, together with two Kenyan activists, Hussein Khalid and Hanifa Adan.
The leader of Kenya’s People’s Liberation Party (PLP), Martha Karua, also arrived in the country on Sunday, but he was also denied entry alongside Law Society of Kenya (LSK) Council member Gloria Kimani and member of the Pan-African Progressive Leaders Solidarity Network Lynn Ngugi. Justice Maraga, who was able to participate in the hearing, had a brief exchange with Tundu Lissu.
“Mkuu, Shikamoo [Chief, Greetings]. Am so happy you are here. How is my good friend, Chief Justice? [Maraga]. I am told he was turned away yesterday. I’m sorry on behalf of my countrymen, I’m so happy you are here, thank you so much,” Lissu said in his usual jovial mood.
Lissu went on to reference his 2017 assassination attempt, during which he was airlifted to Nairobi covered in a pool of his blood after being shot sixteen times by a gunman. “My greetings to the Kenyan people, I always say I have Kenyan blood running through me.”
In an X post, Justice Maraga said he was inspired to see Lissu at the court. “It was truly inspiring to see my brother, Tundu Lissu, in high spirits today in Court”. Speaking to journalists after the court session, Maraga highlighted that there is an ongoing trend of regression in East Africa, which is worrying.
“We are here to stand in solidarity with the accused person because we are very concerned about the shrinking democratic space in the East African region,” Maraga said.
“We have seen that in Uganda, and we are seeing it in Tanzania. And even in Kenya, in one way or the other, we are seeing it coming with the kidnapping of young people, we are concerned about that. And what happens in one country affects what happens in another country,” he continued.
He emphasized: “What this indicates to East Africa is that we are regressing, we are going back. When we see this kind of trend, they are extremely worrying.”
International lawyer from Comoros, Saïd Larifou, was also present at the court and was able to speak to the media, where he emphasized that democracy is not a luxury. Some of the activists who were set to attend the hearing, including Kenyan activist Boniface Mwangi and Ugandan lawyer Agather Atuhaire, are still detained by Tanzanian authorities. Mwangi was arrested at his hotel in the morning, and his lawyers reported that he was taken to his hotel for inspection.
Speaking during the launch of the new Tanzania foreign policy today, May 19, 2025, the Tanzanian president warns activists in the region not to interfere with internal matters.
“We have started to see a trend of activists within our region invading and interfering with our affairs here. Now that they have been contained in their own countries, they should not come here and mess things up for us. Let us not give them a chance, they already ruined their own countries, they already caused chaos there,” President Samia said.
She continued: “The only country left that is not messed up, where people enjoy security, peace, and stability, is ours. There are already several attempts, so I kindly urge the security and defense organs, as well as those of you who oversee our foreign policies, not to allow undisciplined individuals from other countries to cross into ours and spread their indiscipline here.”
In his press statement, Justice Maraga took a moment to reflect on Tanzania’s rich history of fighting against injustice on the continent. Maraga argued that Tanzania has given exemplary lessons in Pan-Africanism. He also underscored the country interventions in Uganda, Mozambique, and South Africa as examples of rich Tanzania history.
“This history of institutionalized humanity has given Tanzania the character of Utu we all wish to emulate. Sometimes, the teacher forgets they are the master. We stand at the cusp of a new rising as a continent, and it is upon us to fiercely protect this potential so the present generation will never again ask why their leaders failed them. We must not relent in our solidarity in the pursuit of the rule of law, dignity, and the protection of human rights,” Justice Maraga emphasized.
