TUNIS, Aug 31 (Reuters) - Lawyer and activist Ayachi Hammami accused Tunisian authorities on Friday of setting fire to his office to stop him addressing a Paris conference on the independence of Tunisia's judiciary.

Hammami was among eight activists who went on hunger strike in the same office on the eve of an international summit on the information society in Tunis in 2005 to demand more press freedom and the release of political prisoners.

"I accuse the authorities -- the Interior Ministry -- of burning my office. It's the only agency responsible for ... controlling and harassing activists so there is no one else to blame," Hammami said.

"I will not keep silent. (The blaze) is part of a chain of similar events but it won't affect my work, my principles or my message." A government official said Hammami's accusations were unfounded and irresponsible.

Hammami said he discovered the fire on arriving at his office in central Tunis shortly before 8 a.m. on Friday.

A Reuters reporter saw charred files and documents scattered on the floor and a computer lying burned and overturned. The walls were black with smoke.

"There is a clear desire to stop me presenting a report in Paris that shows the reality of (Tunisia's) judicial system," Hammami said.

Next month's two-day seminar on the independence and impartiality of the judiciary in Tunisia is organised by the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Network. Hammami is due to present a draft report on the judiciary's independence.

The government official said the cause of the fire was still unclear.

"The complainant's declaration about responsibility for the fire is surprising, unfounded and irresponsible," the official said. "Initial findings show no evidence of forced entry and an investigation into the cause of the fire is under way."

Rights campaigners accuse the Tunisian government of stifling criticism and harassing political opponents.

The government denies this and says it wants to instil real democracy in the increasingly wealthy North African country.

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