Maraga calls for fair hearing ahead of Tundu Lissu’s trial in Tanzania
Former Chief Justice David Maraga on Monday, May 19, 2025, called for a fair hearing ahead of Tundu Lissu’s hearing in Tanzania.
In a statement, the emeritus chief justice expressed hope that the Tanzanian opposition leader would be accorded the right to a fair hearing, with the process itself being transparent.
Maraga also implored the authorities in the neighbouring country to observe the basic human rights during the hearing of the case, which he hoped would be expedited.
“As a fellow member of Jumuiya, I hold firm in the hope that the legal process ahead will be fair, just, and expeditious—reflecting the highest standards of integrity, independence, and respect for human dignity,” Maraga’s statement read in part.
Meeting
Maraga was allowed entry into Tanzania and proceeded to court, where Lissu was presented ahead of his case, where he is facing treasonous charges.
In videos shared online, Maraga was seen stepping into the courtroom, which was filled to the brim, and walking through to take his designated seat amid cheers and shouts following the rising pressure from those present to have the court rule in Lissu’s favour.
He met Lissu, who was being held in a chamber at the front, dressed in a crisp white and blue outfit.
Lissu was arrested in April 2025 and charged with treason over a speech in which he called on Tanzanians to rise up and throw a spanner in the works of the country’s presidential and parliamentary elections that are scheduled for October.
CHADEMA, the main opposition party in Tanzania, was also locked out of the elections after it refused to sign an electoral code of conduct.
Kenyan delegation denied entry
His statement came hours after a section of other Kenyan leaders and activists were denied entry and later deported.
Emeritus Chief Justice Willy Mutunga and Martha Karua were among those who were denied entry and later deported.
“I arrived at Dar es Salaam Mwalimu Julius Nyerere International Airport at nine in the morning, and immigration referred my passport to the supervisor, who has kept me waiting for an hour as she consults her superiors. I am concerned that as a citizen of @jumuiya, my access within a @jumuiya country appears inexplicably restricted,” Karua wrote on Sunday, May 18, 2025.
