Heroic struggles come alive in the treason trial of Tundu Lissu
Opposition leader Tundu Lissu raises his fist as he is escorted to the dock at Dar es Salaam’s High Court, acknowledging Chadema supporters during his treason trial on February 9, 2026.
Photo credit: Michael Matemanga | Nation Media Group
The treason trial of Tundu Lissu is attracting all of the public attention that it deserves. It has the elements of an epic, maybe even a moral battle between a superior force and a lone crusader for rights and justice that is almost biblical – his David to the government’s Goliath.
In watching how the trial is going it is clear that the sympathies of the public lie with Mr Lissu and his party Chadema, and in the aftermath of the October 29 electoral violence there is an added weight to the trial as it presents one of the fronts where at least an answer to the question of power in Tanzania may be forthcoming.
