Tanzania’s main opposition leader, Tundu Lissu, was charged with treason on Thursday, a day after his arrest at a rally in Mbinga.
The treason charge, which carries the death penalty and offers no bail, marks the most serious accusation Lissu has ever faced.
His lawyer, Jebra Kambole, confirmed the charge following Lissu’s court appearance in Dar es Salaam, where he was also accused of spreading false information.
Lissu and other Chadema party members were detained after police broke up their rally with tear gas in the southern Ruvuma region.
Regional police commander Marco Chilya said Lissu was being questioned for allegedly inciting the public to block October’s general elections.
The Chadema party claims President Samia Suluhu Hassan is reviving the authoritarian tactics of her predecessor ahead of the high-stakes vote.
Human rights lawyer Tito Magoti wrote on X that the charges aim to silence opposition so President Hassan can campaign unchallenged.
“This is, yet again, a sad day for our democracy,” Magoti added, echoing concerns from rights groups and Western observers.
Chadema disputes the legitimacy of past elections and has pledged to take legal action demanding electoral reforms before the national polls.
Lissu, who became party chairman in January, has previously warned that the opposition would resist elections without reforms.
A lawyer by training and MP from 2010 to 2017, Lissu survived an assassination attempt and has been repeatedly detained in recent years.
He ran against Magufuli in 2020 and has faced arrests during nearly every major political event since then.
While President Hassan initially eased restrictions on political activity, critics now accuse her administration of escalating repression.
Opposition rallies have been violently disrupted, and Chadema leaders say their members face ongoing threats, abductions, and arrests.
