from ARNOLD MULENGA in Lusaka, Zambia
Zambia Bureau
LUSAKA, (CAJ News) – ZAMBIA’S post-election crisis is taking a sharper turn as the government intensifies a crackdown against some of its most prominent critics.
Opposition figures, already facing treason proceedings, are now confronted with additional sedition allegations.
The arrest of a female opposition legislator, after she was allegedly abducted, and the ruling party laying a complaint against a private online media outlet over alleged abuse of cyberspace have added fresh pressure on the country’s political and media space.
Exactly a month after what began as an electoral contest over political power, the situation is increasingly becoming a test of how far dissent will be tolerated in Zambia and how the Southern African country has lurched into a fallout with the international community.
This past weekend, the Zambia Police Service (ZPS) reported it had formally arrested and jointly charged losing presidential election candidate Brian Mundubile and his running mate, Makebi Zulu, at Kabwe Central Police Station with the offence of Seditious Practices.
What has puzzled observers about the so-called arrest is the fact that the pair had been in custody at Mukobeko Maximum Correctional Facility since August 27, exactly two weeks after election day, on treason charges.
They have since been returned to the same correctional facility, Timothy Malumo, Police Assistant Public Relations Officer, said.
“The Zambia Police Service reiterates its commitment to maintaining law and order, upholding the rule of law, and ensuring that all matters are handled fairly, professionally, and in accordance with the laws of the Republic of Zambia.”
The smaller opposition, Citizens First, reported unidentified individuals had abducted its Mafinga South Constituency Member of Parliament, Faith Munthali.
She later emerged at the Chinsali police station, where she was charged with “being armed in public and conspiracy to commit a felony.”
The non-governmental Gender Organisations’ Coordinating Council (NGOCC) is concerned by reports of the alleged abduction.
“If a sitting MP can be subjected to harassment, no citizen can feel secure,” Beauty Katebe, board chairperson, said.
She noted Munthali, charged alongside three others, endured verbal and physical attacks prior to her election.
“Sadly, she has continued facing injustice even after elections. This is totally unacceptable,” Katebe said.
“The government, particularly the Zambia Police Service, must desist from the increasingly blatant pattern of intimidating females and dissenting voices through arrests and alleged abductions.”
Also, this past weekend, police arrested content creator Misheck Mulubwa for allegedly “insulting” President Hakainde Hichilema and fanning tribal and hate speech.
The ruling United Party for National Development (UPND) has reported the online Zambia Freedom page to the Anti-Cyber Crime authorities for allegedly spreading falsehoods and promoting tribal divisions.
“Manufacturing quotations around tribe and ethnicity is particularly reckless because such falsehoods have the potential to create resentment and unnecessary divisions among citizens,” Mark Simuuwe, UPND spokesperson, said.
Last week, Hichilema’s government revoked the passports of six critics of the government for “security reasons in the interest of national security.”
Those affected are former ambassador Emmanuel Mwamba, Dr Sishuwa Sishuwa, an academic and historian, former Members of Parliament Emmanuel Banda and Binwell Mpundu, as well as ex-State House aide Kaizer Zulu and blogger Lillian Mutambo.
Agnes Callamard, Secretary General of Amnesty International, commented, “What a shame. What a disappointment.”
The French activist was commenting on the human rights situation in Zambia.
She recalled how officials from the organisation had visited Zambia three years ago, following hope that Hichilema’s election in 2021 would, as he promised, retrieve the country from repression.
“And less than three years later, he is unleashing repression on his political opponents, violating freedom of expression,” Callamard said.
Before winning, he had been detained for weeks on treason charges.
Brian Polombwe, a regular commentator on Zambia politics, quipped, “For Hichilema, the start of a second term is bringing an uncomfortable question back into focus: will the man who once stood on the other side of a treason charge protect the rights of the political opponents who now stand where he once stood?”
– CAJ News