Tundu Lissu

Tanzanian opposition politician and lawyer, national chairman of Chadema, on trial for treason in the High Court of Tanzania.

ChargedLatest source dated 2026-09-29Last reviewed 2026-10-26

What is Tundu Lissu’s legal position?

Treason prosecution (Penal Code s.39(2)(d))

Charged

Current position. Tundu Lissu is on trial for treason and has pleaded not guilty; judgment was set for 6 November 2026, according to The Citizen (Tanzania). No verdict has been delivered.^{[1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]}

Authority: High Court of Tanzania, Dar es Salaam Sub-Registry (three-judge panel led by Justice Dunstan Ndunguru); prosecution by the Republic
Status date: 2026-08-21

History

2025-04-09 Arrested by police after a rally in Mbinga, Ruvuma Region.
2025-04-10 Charged at Kisutu Resident Magistrate's Court, Dar es Salaam, with treason (no plea entered) and, separately, with publishing false information, to which he pleaded not guilty.
2026-08-21 High Court ruled that the prosecution had established a case for him to answer on the treason charge.
2026-09-29 The Citizen (Tanzania) reported that the High Court set judgment for 6 November 2026.

Sources

Tanzania opposition party leader Tundu Lissu charged with treasonAl Jazeera, 2025-04-10, secondary source
Tundu Lissu treason trial: a day-by-day timeline of the case that led to Friday's case-to-answer rulingThe Chanzo, 2026-08-21, secondary source
Tanzania court: Lissu has case to answerDaily Monitor (Uganda), 2026-08-21, secondary source
Tanzanian opposition leader urges courageous verdict in treason trialAfricanews, 2026-09-23, secondary source
Tanzania court rules opposition leader has case to answer in treason trial (AFP)Citizen Digital / AFP, 2026-08-21, secondary source
Lissu treason verdict set for November 6The Citizen (Tanzania), 2026-09-29, secondary source

Change history

2026-10-26 Record published.

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