In Dar es Salaam, Tanzania’s main opposition chairperson Tundu Lissu was convicted of incitement and handed a four‑year prison sentence after a court hearing that drew police and crowds in a heavily guarded convoy. The verdict followed a speech Lissu gave in April, in which prosecutors say he warned supporters that the opposition would "block the election" and "mobilise rebellion". He pleaded not guilty, arguing the charges were politically motivated and his words did not breach any law.
Video shared on CHADEMA’s X account showed Lissu waving a fist and shouting "Do not fear!" as he was escorted to the courtroom, where he later shouted "We will arrive" while the audience responded in Swahili. His party spokesperson Brenda Rupia confirmed that Lissu would appeal the sentence, while CHADEMA’s chief legal counsel Rugemeleza Nshala said he would seek bail.
Amnesty International condemned the guilty verdict as a travesty of justice and called for Lissu’s release. The case follows a period of intense political unrest during the October 2025 elections, when protests over Lissu’s April arrest and other grievances erupted into the country’s worst violence, claiming at least 518 deaths according to a commission led by President Samia Suluhu Hassan. The government denied that security forces used excessive force, while the United States has expressed concern over the trial’s implications for the rule of law.
