In an interview, Karua recounted being abruptly deported from Tanzania, where she had travelled to observe the trial of opposition leader Tundu Lissu. No official reason was given for his removal. “The supervisor simply said the orders came from above,” Karua explained, implying the directive originated from President Samia Suluhu Hassan.
Karua pointed to Suluhu’s public remarks accusing unnamed foreigners of attempting to destabilise Tanzania. “That statement made it clear the order was political,” she said.
She also highlighted how opposition leaders in both Tanzania and Uganda are currently facing treason charges. “This is a worrying development for the region. Treason is a political offence, often used to protect those in power from being challenged,” Karua said.
Referring to Tanzania’s Lissu and Uganda’s Dr Kizza Besigye, she argued that the charges are groundless. “Calling for electoral reforms or boycotting an election cannot be treason,” she asserted. Karua also claimed Besigye was abducted in Kenya and illegally handed over to Ugandan authorities without proper documentation. “You cannot carry weapons on a commercial flight, and yet that’s what he’s accused of,” she added.
Karua believes these arrests are part of a broader strategy to suppress dissent ahead of elections in both countries. “It’s about ensuring incumbents go to the polls without facing real opposition.”
She also pointed to similar incidents across the region, from abductions and extrajudicial killings in Kenya to the persecution of opposition parties in Burundi, as evidence of a troubling trend. “What we’re witnessing is the weaponisation of the state to silence critics,” she said.
Karua called on citizens, civil society, and regional institutions to resist growing authoritarianism. “In times of oppression, silence is complicity. Institutions must act. The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights must speak out.”
She noted that East Africa was once seen as a region rooted in democratic values. “Sadly, that foundation is now under threat,” she warned.
Currently in Uganda, Karua is representing Besigye, who has been held on treason charges for six months. He recently ended a hunger strike after his case was moved to a civilian court. She now hopes he and fellow detainee Obed Mutale will be released on bail, as allowed by Ugandan law.
Karua said the problem is not confined to East Africa. Referring to the recent arrest of Chad’s former Prime Minister Succès Masra, she warned that this trend is spreading across the continent.
She concluded with a call for unity; “Africa must stand together. Injustice in one country affects us all. We must liberate ourselves from all forms of oppression.”
--ChannelAfrica--
