Tanzania's opposition leader Tundu Lissu told a court on Monday that he had been denied his basic legal rights and that he would defend himself against a treason charge that carries the death penalty.
Wearing a shirt emblazoned with the words "No Reforms, No Election," the Tanzanian politician Tundu Lissu told the judge that, despite not being sentenced yet, he has been placed in the prison's death row section.
"I am under constant surveillance by day and night," Lissu said, adding he has also been "denied the freedom to worship".
Lissu has been detained since April, a move denounced by international rights groups and monitors who have called for his release. He was charged with treason, but his trial has been adjourned several times.
Lissu has been arrested several times in the past, but this is the first time he has faced such a serious charge, including a potential death sentence.
This comes as authorities in the east African country increasingly crack down on Lissu's opposition Chadema party ahead of presidential and parliamentary polls in October.
Tanzanian politician's lawyers ask UN to declare his detention arbitrary
Denial of justice
Lissu told the packed courtroom on Monday morning that he had been denied confidential access to his lawyers since his detention.
"All the 68 days they have not been allowed to see me or speak to me," he said.
"It is time to step aside and let me do what I must do. From now on I will be my own lawyer," he said.
Chadema was disqualified from the upcoming elections after it refused to sign an electoral code of conduct.
Lissu has led a forceful charge against the Tanazanian government, vowing his party would not participate in polls without significant electoral reforms.
Kenyan politician, lawyer for Tanzania opposition leader arrested
UN request
Rights groups, including Amnesty International, have called for Lissu's unconditional release.
A week ago, on RFI's Spotlight on Africa, Tundu Lissu’s international lawyer, Robert Amsterdam, said he had lodged a complaint with the UN Working Group as part of a broader campaign of pressure.
Lissu's party has also accused President Samia Suluhu Hassan of returning to the repressive tactics of her predecessor, John Magufuli.
In May, two activists from Kenya and Uganda were also detained after travelling to Tanzania in solidarity with the opposition leader, both alleging torture and sexual abuse by the officers who detained them.
Chadema is Tanzania's main opposition party but was disqualified from running in this year's general election in April, after it refused to sign an electoral code of conduct, just a few days after its leader was charged with treason.
(with AFP)
