Politics · Other · 1 hr ago
Tanzanian opposition leader Tundu Lissu begins hunger strike
Tundu Lissu, leader of Tanzania’s CHADEMA opposition party, has begun a hunger strike while held in prison.
He started refusing food on Monday after his lawyers were denied entry to Ukonga prison, where he is being held.
He says the strike protests his inability to meet his lawyers, after a High Court ruling said he must be allowed to see them in private.
Lissu has been detained on treason charges since April 2025, accused of urging people to disrupt the 2025 election; he has pleaded not guilty.
He was runner-up in Tanzania’s 2020 presidential election, and CHADEMA was barred from the 2025 vote.
A conviction could carry the death penalty, and his case has drawn attention to concerns about human rights in Tanzania.
A verdict is expected on November 6, and the Tanzania Prisons Service has said it will provide an update on Lissu soon.
Tanzanian opposition leader Tundu Lissu has begun a hunger strike after his lawyers were denied entry to the prison where he is held.
His party says the strike protests his inability to access his legal team.
Earlier this month, Tanzania’s High Court ruled that Lissu must be allowed to meet his lawyers in private.
Lissu is on trial for treason and has pleaded not guilty; a verdict is due on November 6.
He faces the death penalty if convicted.
- Who
- Tundu Lissu, leader of the CHADEMA opposition party.
- What
- He has begun refusing food to protest being unable to access his lawyers.
- When
- He began refusing food on Monday; the reports were published on October 27, 2026.
- Where
- Ukonga prison in Tanzania.
- Why
- His lawyers were denied entry to the prison, and he has also alleged that conversations with them were not private.
Lissu and his legal team
Tanzanian authorities
Access to lawyers
Lissu and his legal team
Lissu’s party says he began a hunger strike after his lawyers were denied entry to the prison. His legal team says their conversations were not private, despite a court order requiring private meetings.
Tanzanian authorities
Tanzania Prisons Service spokesperson Elizabeth Mbezi said the service would give an update soon. The articles do not report an official explanation for the lawyers’ denied entry.
Treason case
Lissu and his legal team
Lissu pleaded not guilty, and his lawyer has said the charges are politically motivated.
Tanzanian authorities
Prosecutors allege Lissu made a speech calling on the public to rebel and disrupt the election.
Tanzania’s High Court ruled that Lissu must be allowed to meet his lawyers in private.
CHADEMA chief legal counsel Rugemeleza Nshala said Lissu planned the hunger strike after being denied privacy during talks with his lawyers.
Lissu began refusing food after his lawyers were denied entry to the prison.
The court is due to deliver its judgment in Lissu’s case.
- Prison
- Ukonga prison
- Party
- CHADEMA
- Charge
- Treason
- Trial verdict
- November 6
- Possible penalty
- Death penalty if convicted