Kenya’s former Justice Minister Martha Karua says she was deported from Tanzania on Sunday after arriving to observe a high-profile treason trial involving Tanzanian opposition leader Tundu Lissu. Karua, a prominent human rights lawyer and opposition figure, claims she and two colleagues were subjected to hours of interrogation before being forced to leave the country.
“I came in peace, to stand in solidarity with a fellow freedom fighter,” Karua said in a statement released by her newly formed People’s Liberation Party (PLP). “What I received instead was intimidation, detention, and deportation. That should trouble all who care about democracy in this region.”
Karua was accompanied by fellow Kenyan lawyer Gloria Kimani and activist Lynn Ngugi. The trio flew into Tanzania intending to attend Monday’s court hearing for Lissu, who leads the opposition Chadema party and faces a treason charge that could carry the death penalty.
Tanzanian officials have yet to publicly address the deportations. However, human rights groups and opposition voices have condemned the action, calling it a worrying sign of deepening political intolerance ahead of Tanzania’s national elections scheduled for October.
“This is nothing short of arbitrary arrest and deportation,” the Tanzania Human Rights Defenders Coalition said in a press release. “Ms. Karua was allowed into the country in April to attend court. So why now? What’s changed?”
The incident underscores growing unease over the Tanzanian government’s treatment of its political opponents. Lissu, a longtime critic of the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party, was arrested in April after organizing a rally under the slogan “No Reforms, No Election.” He has since been denied bail and remains in custody. His supporters argue that the treason charge is politically motivated—a claim the government denies.
Lissu’s legal troubles are not new. In 2017, he narrowly survived an assassination attempt after being shot 16 times in broad daylight. Now, he stands accused of endangering state security just months ahead of a general election many fear will be neither free nor fair.
“The solution to hiding the shame of a false treason case is not to detain foreign lawyers,” said Chadema’s general secretary, John Mnyika. “The solution is to drop the case altogether.”
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Chadema has also been barred from contesting the October elections after refusing to sign a controversial electoral code of conduct, which the party believes is a thinly veiled attempt to silence dissent. The CCM, in power since 1977, is widely expected to retain its hold on power, with President Samia Suluhu Hassan likely to seek re-election.
President Samia, who initially earned international praise for loosening some of the political restrictions imposed under her predecessor John Magufuli, now faces criticism for what some see as a return to heavy-handed tactics. The government insists it remains committed to democracy and has denied allegations of political repression.
Martha Karua’s deportation marks another flashpoint in the increasingly strained relationship between opposition leaders and state power in East Africa. Karua, who served as Kenya’s justice minister from 2005 to 2009 and was a vice-presidential candidate in the 2022 Kenyan elections, has long been vocal about democratic erosion across the continent.
She also represents Ugandan opposition figure Kizza Besigye, who was forcibly taken back to Uganda from Kenya last year to face treason charges. Karua’s critics accuse her of inserting herself into foreign disputes, but her supporters see her as a principled voice in an increasingly authoritarian region.
“The message is clear,” Karua said before boarding her flight back to Nairobi. “When you stand up for justice in East Africa today, you are not just ignored—you are punished. But that won’t stop us.”
