Expanded Bill of Rights necessary to achieve inclusivity, stronger protection for marginalized groups —NGOCC

The Non-Governmental Gender Organisations Coordinating Council (NGOCC) has welcomed the proposed constitutional amendments, emphasizing that a strengthened Bill of Rights would provide a legal basis for equal participation and stronger protections for marginalized groups.

NGOCC Board Chairperson, Beauty Katebe, said the constitutional review should promote greater participation of women, youth, and persons with disabilities in politics.

Speaking at a media briefing in Lusaka on Monday, Katebe stressed the need for a more inclusive composition of elected representatives at both parliamentary and local government levels.

Katebe emphasized the need for national consensus and a clear roadmap in order to allow people scrutinize the document and have a clear message on the timeframe.

“To this end, we have proposed a mixed-member proportional representation system to increase the numbers of women, men, youth, and persons with disabilities in political office,” she said.

She argued that the current electoral system had failed to create a level playing field for inclusive participation.

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Katebe further urged the government to ensure that the amendment process was open, transparent, legitimate, and guided by a broad consultative process.

“For a more robust legal framework, NGOCC has also been advocating for a referendum to include an expanded Bill of Rights in the Constitution,” she added.

Katebe also reiterated the NGOCC’s call for a political parties law that mandates inclusive candidate lists for elections.

“This should be supported by reforms to the Electoral Commission Act, empowering the Commission to reject party nominations that fail to meet fair representation standards,” she said.

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