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The Edgar Lungu-led Patriotic Front (PF) has written to the Human Rights Commission (HRC) demanding the establishment of an inquiry into the alleged suspension of civil and political rights of the opposition in Zambia.
In his letter to the Commission dated October 9, 2024, PF faction Chairperson on Information and Publicity, Emmanuel Mwamba, said the silence of the Commission on widespread abuses of human rights amounted to complicity with abusive authorities and law enforcement agencies.
Mwamba cited the case of PF Secretary-General Raphael Nakacinda, who had been detained for over eight days without being granted police bond or presented before the courts.
He referred to a statement by Police Spokesperson Rae Hamoonga, who said police cells had become a “second home” for Nakacinda, as an example of “the wanton abuse and disregard of human rights by the Zambia Police.”
“During the course of his duties as Secretary-General in the last three years, Nakacinda has been summoned 30 times, arrested 21 times, and is appearing before 12 magistrates over cases related to offences of speech,” Mwamba said.
He argued that the authorities had breached the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), a multilateral treaty that Zambia had signed and ratified.
“The frequent arrests of opposition figures are a violation of human rights, freedom of expression, and democratic tenets,” he wrote.
Read More: PF’s Nakacinda arrested for alleged seditious statements
Mwamba noted that Nakacinda had been arrested and detained in the past month on charges of seditious practices after he condemned the presence of toxic substances (aflatoxins) in mealie-meal, the national staple food.
“On Wednesday, October 2, 2024, Hon. Nakacinda was yet again arrested on charges of sedition. Despite providing two impeccable working sureties, in the form of Members of Parliament, the Zambia Police have refused to grant police bond,” he said.
He added that police had refused to present Nakacinda before the courts eight days after his detention.
Mwamba further complained that members of the opposition had suffered long detentions before being brought to court, and Nakacinda’s case exemplified the human rights violations other opposition members had endured.
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