Tundu Lissu, leader of Tanzania's main opposition party Chadema, plans to begin a hunger strike Monday to protest prison authorities' refusal to allow court-ordered private consultations with his lawyers, his lawyer Rugemeleza Nshala said Saturday.
Lissu has been detained for more than 18 months and faces a treason charge carrying a possible death sentence. His final judgment is scheduled for Nov. 6. Nshala said he warned Lissu about health risks since Lissu relies on medication, but Lissu said he was prepared to stop taking it.
"I am ready to face the consequences, but I will fight for the rule of law," Nshala quoted Lissu as saying.
Nshala told journalists in Dar es Salaam that authorities had denied private consultations despite a court order and had barred access to Lissu on some occasions. Lissu questioned why court decisions keeping him in custody were enforced while an order protecting lawyer access was disregarded.
Lissu was arrested April 9, 2025, after addressing a rally calling for electoral reforms. He was charged with treason the following day. He survived being shot 16 times in a 2017 assassination attempt. In May 2025, he went on hunger strike to protest being required to appear in court remotely rather than in person.
Prison authorities, police, and the government issued no public statements on the planned hunger strike.