NAIROBI, Kenya- Former Chief Justice David Maraga has arrived in Tanzania to represent detained Tanzanian opposition figure Tundu Lissu.
The former Chief Justice, in a post shared on his X account, averred that he was headed to court to represent Lissu.
“Safely arrived in Dar-es-Salaam. Headed to Court for the Tundu Lissu Court Case,” he posted.
Safely arrived in Dar-es-Salaam.Headed to Court for the Tundu Lissu Court Case
This comes on the back on an array of high profile deportation of Kenyans who had travelled to Tanzania ahead of the hearing of Lissu’s case.
Earlier, prominent Kenyan lawyer and People’s Liberation Party Leader Martha Karua, alongside her compatriots Lynn Ngugi and Gloria Kimani, who are all affiliated with the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) were detained for over six hours by Tanzanian authorities and later deported to Kenya.
The incident has triggered a wave of criticism from regional civil society groups who argue that the detention violates the principles of free movement and regional cooperation enshrined in the East African Community (EAC) treaty.
Similarly, Kenya’s former Chief Justice Willy Mutunga, along with human rights defenders Hanifa Adan and Hussein Khalid, received a similar treatment as they too were detained in Dar es Salaam on Monday in what’s becoming an increasingly high-stakes East African diplomatic drama.
The incident prompted Nairobi to pressure Dar to secure their release, with Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Korir Sing’Oei calling on Dar es Salaam to adhere to the norms of the East African Community, which allows for free migration of goods, services, and labour.
We strongly urge the authorities in Tanzania to release the former Chief Justice of Kenya and his delegation consistent with the norms of the East African Community.
Such incidents, however, are not new to the region.
Last year, Karua was similarly stopped from representing detained Ugandan opposition leader Kizza Besigye in Uganda after he was abducted in Kenya, in what is now becoming a worrying trend within the EAC region