Martha Karua deported from Tanzania

By Newsflash Writer

Martha Karua, leader of Kenya’s People’s Liberation Party (PLP), was on Sunday, 18 May, deported from Tanzania after being denied entry at the Julius Nyerere International Airport in Dar es Salaam.

Karua, accompanied by Law Society of Kenya (LSK) Council member Gloria Kimani and Pan-African Progressive Leaders Solidarity Network member Lynn Ngugi, had traveled to Tanzania for a legal observer mission but were barred from proceeding past immigration.

Karua took to social media early Sunday morning to announce the incident, stating that the three were being held at the airport awaiting deportation. “I have been denied entry into Tanzania and I and two colleagues are awaiting deportation at Mwalimu Nyerere International Airport, Dar es Salaam,” she posted on X, formerly Twitter.

In a follow-up post at 2:58 p.m., Karua revealed she had been placed on a Kenya Airways flight back to Nairobi. She touched down at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport shortly after 4 p.m.

The group had travelled to Tanzania at the invitation of the East Africa Law Society, intending to attend and observe legal proceedings involving Tanzanian opposition leader Tundu Lissu. Karua stated she arrived in Dar es Salaam at 9:00 a.m. but was stopped at immigration, where her passport was referred to a supervisor. After being made to wait for an hour as consultations were held with higher authorities, she was informed that her entry into the country had been declined.

Deportation sparks political outcry

Expressing her disappointment, Karua questioned the basis of the decision, especially as a citizen of the East African Community (EAC). “I am concerned that as a citizen of @jumuiya my access within @jumuiya country appears inexplicably restricted,” she wrote, referencing the regional bloc.

Karua believes the deportation was politically motivated, tied to her support for opposition leader Tundu Lissu, who is facing treason charges in Tanzania. Lissu, a senior figure in the Chadema party, was arrested during a rally on April 10 after calling for electoral reforms, and his prosecution has drawn widespread criticism from rights groups across Africa.

Karua has been actively involved in efforts to support Lissu through a pan-African coalition advocating for his release and for the dismissal of what she and others view as politically charged accusations. She, along with Ngugi and Kimani, was scheduled to attend a court hearing for Lissu’s case on Monday, May 19, at the Kisutu Magistrates’ Court in Dar es Salaam.

In a statement, Karua’s PLP condemned the deportation, calling it “disgraceful” and a “blatant violation” of regional principles. “That a prominent East African stateswoman can be treated in this manner, without due process or cause, is a stain on the integrity of regional cooperation,” the party said. It accused Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu’s government of attempting to suppress democratic oversight and promoting authoritarianism.

Amnesty International Kenya also criticized the move. Its executive director, Irũngũ Houghton, described the deportation as a threat to the right to a fair hearing and a blow to Tanzania’s credibility in the eyes of the international community.

The organization demanded that Karua and her colleagues be allowed access to monitor the trial proceedings.