Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei has backed Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu’s decision to bar activists from entering the country.
Cherargei praised Suluhu for what he described as a move to stop the "export of bad manners" to Tanzania, calling it well-advised.
“I fully support Suluhu, President of the United Republic of Tanzania, for banning Kenya’s activists who tried to interfere with the domestic affairs of her country,” Cherargei posted on X on May 20, 2025.
“The principles of international
relations provide for mutual respect between friendly nations. Activists should
not transfer bad manners to Tanzania.”
The senator also warned Kenyan activists against accepting foreign funding allegedly aimed at destabilising Tanzania, stating that the neighbouring country is a friendly nation that deserves respect.
Cherargei is among several UDA stalwarts who have defended Tanzania’s decision to deny entry to Kenyan activists and human rights defenders.
The Kenyans had planned to attend the hearing of treason charges against Tanzania’s opposition leader Tundu Lissu on Monday, May 19, 2025.
Belgut Member of Parliament Nelson Koech also defended Tanzania’s decision to deport Narc Kenya party leader Martha Karua.
Koech, who chairs the National Assembly Committee on Defence, Intelligence, and Foreign Relations, acknowledged the incident was unfortunate but affirmed Tanzania's sovereign right to control its borders.
“It is unfortunate that Martha Karua was deported because it undermines the East African Community Treaty on free trade and free movement of people. Nonetheless, the admission of any citizen, even within EAC countries, remains at the discretion of the host nation,” Koech stated during an appearance on Citizen TV on May 19, 2025.
Koech emphasised that despite regional integration efforts granting EAC citizens border-crossing privileges, each country retains control over who can enter its territory.
“If the Tanzanian government or its security agencies believe Martha Karua should not be in their country, they have the right—and likely the reasons—to deny her entry,” he said.
“There is freedom, yes, but the right to admit any foreign citizen ultimately belongs to the host country. If they feel uncomfortable and choose not to admit someone, deportation is within their authority, which is exactly what happened yesterday,” he added.
Karua’s deportation appears to be part of a broader pattern of detentions involving prominent Kenyan figures.
Former Chief Justice Willy Mutunga, and activists Hanifa Adan and Hussein Khalid were also detained and deported by Tanzanian authorities on Monday. The three were in Tanzania as part of a Pan-African human rights mission.
However, human rights activist
Boniface Mwangi remains in custody in Tanzania following his arrest on the same
day.
