Tanzanian opposition leader Tundu Lissu, chairman of the CHADEMA party and runner-up in the 2020 presidential election, has had a complaint filed on his behalf to the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention.
The move aims to increase international pressure for his release. Lissu was arrested last month and charged with treason, a capital offense, over comments allegedly made urging supporters to prevent national elections in October from taking place.
Lissu’s international lawyer, Robert Amsterdam, stated that the complaint is part of a broader pressure campaign. The European Parliament recently adopted a resolution denouncing Lissu’s arrest as politically motivated.
Amsterdam also plans to petition the U.S. State Department to impose sanctions on those involved in the case, warning that “prosecutors, judges, police – all the people involved in this false show trial had better be aware that they should protect their U.S. assets”.
Tanzania’s government has responded to criticisms by stating that outside opinions on the case are based on “incomplete or partisan information”.
Meanwhile, President Samia Suluhu Hassan, who will stand for re-election in October, has maintained that her government respects human rights and has ordered an investigation into reported abductions of government critics.
Lissu’s detention has sparked concerns about human rights in Tanzania, particularly given his history as a target of political violence. In 2017, he was shot 16 times in an attack that remains unsolved.
Recently, two rights activists from Kenya and Uganda who attended his court hearing were detained, allegedly tortured, and abandoned near their home countries’ borders.
The case highlights ongoing tensions between Tanzania’s government and the opposition.
Lissu is set to appear in court on Monday, amid calls for his release and concerns about the country’s human rights records.
