NAIROBI, Kenya – Tanzania’s main opposition leader Tundu Lissu told his supporters to have no fear as he appeared in court on Monday on charges including treason, as President Samia Suluhu Hassan warned foreign rights activists against interference.

Lissu, who was appearing in court for the first time since his arrest, had earlier refused to participate in a hearing on April 24 because authorities conducted a virtual, rather than an in-person trial.
On Monday he entered the court with his fist raised in the air as supporters chanted “No Reforms, No Election”, according to a pvideo of the courtroom shared by his CHADEMA party on X.

“We will be fine. You should not fear,” Lissu said as he took his place in the dock, waving victory signs.

Lissu, who was shot 16 times in a 2017 attack and came second in the last presidential poll, was charged with treason last month over what prosecutors said was a speech calling on the public to rebel and disrupt elections due in October.

During the proceedings on Monday, prosecutors informed the court that investigations into the case were still underway and the hearing was adjourned to June 2, Lissu’s lawyer, Rugemeleza Nshala, told reporters.

A series of high-profile arrests has highlighted the rights record of President Hassan, who plans to seek re-election.

Hassan says her government is committed to respecting human rights.

In a televised speech on Monday, Hassan warned foreign human rights activists against “invading and interfering in our affairs,” and asked the security services to block them from entering the country.

Lissu’s CHADEMA party has demanded changes to an electoral process they say favours the ruling party before they participate in the ballot.

Several Kenyan rights activists, including a former justice minister, said they were denied entry to Tanzania as they travelled to attend the trial.

Kenya’s former Justice Minister Martha Karua, a prominent lawyer and opposition politician, and former Chief Justice Willy Mutunga were among those detained when they landed at Tanzania’s Julius Nyerere International Airport in Dar es Salaam, they said on X.

Tanzania’s immigration spokesperson Paul Mselle did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

“Today was going to be a big day and we went out there in solidarity,” Karua told Kenyan broadcaster NTV on Monday after she was denied entry and sent back to Nairobi.

“The state cannot be used as a personal tool. You cannot deport people whom you don’t like, who are not aligned to your views.” – Reuters