Martha Karua deported from Tanzania for attempting to observe opposition leader Tundu Lissu’s treason trial, sparking human rights concerns.

Leading Kenyan lawyer and former Justice Minister Martha Karua says she was deported from Tanzania to prevent her from attending the court hearing of Tanzanian opposition leader Tundu Lissu. Two of her colleagues—Kenyan lawyer Gloria Kimani and human rights advocate Lynn Ngugi—were also reportedly detained and deported after arriving from neighboring Kenya. Tanzanian authorities have yet to issue a formal response.

Lissu, the leader of Tanzania’s main opposition party, Chadema, is expected to appear in court on Monday after being charged with treason last month. Karua, a well-known human rights defender and outspoken critic of what she describes as “democratic backsliding” in East Africa, had traveled to Tanzania to observe the proceedings.

She has also represented Ugandan opposition figure Kizza Besigye, who was abducted in Kenya last year and returned to Uganda to face treason charges. Like Lissu, Besigye denies the charges, claiming they are politically motivated.

Karua served as Kenya’s Justice Minister from 2005 to 2009 and was the running mate to former Prime Minister Raila Odinga in the 2022 presidential election. Earlier this year, she founded her own political party, the People’s Liberation Party (PLP).

According to a statement from the PLP, Karua and her colleagues were subjected to “hours of unwarranted interrogation” before being deported. Chadema’s general secretary, John Mnyika, condemned the incident, saying, “The solution to hiding the shame of a false treason case is not to detain foreign lawyers, but to drop the case altogether.”

The Tanzania Human Rights Defenders Coalition expressed shock at what it called the “arbitrary arrests,” noting that Karua had previously been allowed into the country to observe Lissu’s court appearance on April 15.

Human rights groups have raised alarm over increasing repression of opposition voices in Tanzania in the lead-up to the presidential and parliamentary elections scheduled for October. Lissu, who is facing a treason charge—a capital offense in Tanzania—is ineligible for bail.

He survived an assassination attempt in 2017 in which he was shot 16 times. His arrest in April followed a rally held under the slogan “No Reforms, No Election.” Lissu has demanded major reforms, arguing that current laws in Tanzania do not permit free and fair elections. The government denies these claims.

Following his arrest, the Chadema party was barred from contesting the October election after refusing to sign a code of conduct issued by the electoral commission. The document obliges political parties and their supporters to “behave well” and “maintain peace and harmony” during the election period. Chadema sees this requirement as a tactic to suppress dissent and prolong state control.

The ruling party, Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM), in power since 1977, is expected to retain leadership. President Samia Suluhu Hassan is anticipated to be its presidential candidate. She was initially praised for broadening political freedoms after taking office in 2021, following the death of former President John Magufuli. However, critics now argue that her administration is reverting to the repressive practices seen under Magufuli. The government denies these allegations.