News · 30 October 2025
Mika Chavala arrested and charged with treason
A day after Tanzania's general election, Mika was arrested over a video urging young people to rise up about the conditions they live in. The story travelled far beyond Tanzania.
On 30 October 2025, a day after Tanzania's general election and the protests that followed it, Mika Lucas Chavala was arrested and charged with treason at the Kisutu Resident Magistrate's Court in Dar es Salaam.
The charge followed a video he published during the protests, in which he argued that the dire state of life for many young Tanzanians left them with no option but to speak up. He was among more than 300 Tanzanians who faced treason charges connected to the election unrest.
The story travelled far beyond Tanzania. Ghanaian YouTuber Wode Maya, one of Africa's biggest creators, posted 'My brother Mika Chavala has been arrested and charged with treason' to millions of followers, and support poured in from across the continent and the diaspora under his hashtags.
Treason carries the death penalty in Tanzania and is unbailable, so Mika remained in custody while the case ran. It ended five weeks later, when the state dropped the charges.
