00:00Tundu Lisu will be his own lawyer in a case where he faces the death penalty if convicted.
00:07A court in Dar es Salaam on Monday granted his request after he argued that prison authorities
00:13had denied him a chance to consult his lawyers in private.
00:17Lisu was arrested on April 9 and charged with treason after addressing a public rally calling for electoral reforms.
00:25Tanzania will hold a general election in October.
00:28Lisu's Chadema party has criticized the electoral commission for lacking independence.
00:34It has also denounced regulations which it says favor the ruling Chama Chama Pinduzi party.
00:40Human rights activists have accused Tanzania's government, led by President Samia Suluhu,
00:45of heavy-handed tactics against the opposition.
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