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Detained Tanzanian opposition leader Tundu Lissu plans to begin a hunger strike on Monday, October 26, demanding that prison authorities allow him to meet privately with his lawyers.
Lissu, chairman of Tanzania’s main opposition party, Chadema, has been detained since April 2025 and faces a treason charge. The High Court is scheduled to deliver its judgment on November 6, 2026.
Chadema’s chief legal counsel, Rugemeleza Nshala, announced the planned hunger strike on Saturday, saying prison officials had continued to prevent confidential meetings between Lissu and his legal team despite a court order.
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On October 16, the High Court ruled that detainees should be able to communicate privately with their lawyers. Prison officers may observe such meetings for security reasons but should remain outside hearing distance, the ruling said. Chadema says those conditions have not been implemented at Ukonga Prison.
“Starting Monday 26th October 2026, Lissu is commencing a hunger strike,” Nshala said.
Chadema Secretary General John Mnyika said Lissu had also raised concerns about his personal safety and the food supplied to him in detention. Prison Commissioner General Jeremiah Katungu told local media that he would investigate the allegations surrounding access to Lissu.
Lissu was arrested in April 2025 after addressing a rally calling for electoral reforms before Tanzania’s general election. Prosecutors allege that his statements were intended to encourage the public to prevent the election from taking place. Lissu has rejected the prosecution’s case and maintains that his political activities did not amount to treason.
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The 58-year-old opposition politician survived an assassination attempt in 2017 and later spent periods outside Tanzania before returning in 2023.
His detention and trial have drawn criticism from opposition figures and rights campaigners, particularly following Tanzania’s disputed 2025 election. Major opposition presidential candidates were excluded from the vote, which was followed by demonstrations and deadly violence. An official inquiry later reported at least 518 deaths, while Chadema has claimed a substantially higher toll that the United Nations said it could not independently verify.
Lissu’s planned hunger strike adds another dispute over his detention days before the High Court is expected to rule on the treason case.
