The role of every good opposition is crucial to a democracy and speaks directly to a state’s future. Opposition plays varying roles in parliament; this could be on behalf of their constituency, for policy development and accounting for project implementation. When these roles are impeded, stifled or totally annihilated, it creates a dense atmosphere which could lead to political instabilities and chaos.
In August 2016, Zambia held its presidential elections which led to the victory of President Edgar Lungu of the Patriotic Front’s (PF), leaving the main opposition candidate Hakainde Hichilema, of the United Party for National Development (UPND) out of the race.
Just after the election proceedings, Hakainde carried out an investigation on the electoral processes that gave victory to Edgar Lungu. He outlined some irregularities in the election process stating that there was repression of the press by the PF party candidate Edgar Lungu. He also stated how other parties including UPND were not allowed to carry out political rallies and campaigns talks leading to the elections.
Adding to his statement, international bodies present at the election reported that the elections were free but certainly not fair. The reports found that leading up to the election, the incumbent party had not allowed for open campaigning on an equal footing. The main areas identified as causes for concern were as follows: media freedom, political violence and the right to organise for political rallies. The issue of media freedom was a major one and focused mainly on the closure of the Post Newspaper due to a dispute with the Zambian Revenue Authority.
However, the case filed against the election proceedings by the opposition party was dismissed due to technicalities.
As if that didn’t raise enough tension for the Southern African nation, on the 11th of April, Hakainde Hichilema was arrested after the convoy he was travelling in allegedly refused to give way to the President’s motorcade. He was later charged with three counts: treason, disobeying lawful orders and using insulting language. The latter two were dropped but even though the Magistrate court had no formal basis to continue the charge of treason, the court said that the order to dismiss has to come from the high court but that has not been done.
The charges of treason come with no bail hearings in Zambia so UPND’s front man Hichilema has been behind bars for over a month now with no option of bail or family visit. Opposition members say the charges are baseless and are evidence of increasing authoritarianism.
Also, in a report by Reuters, on April 18, Hichilema and five other UPND members received an additional charge of treason for allegedly trying to overthrow the government between October 10, 2016 and April 8, 2017.
The tension between the government and the opposition in Zambia has been running high and even the Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) have waded into the political situation in Zambia calling for the government to address the issues in order to avert threatening political violence. Observers of African politics see Hichilema’s arrest as part of a troubling trend in several nations in sub-Saharan Africa.
Zambia is among the few African countries that have seen two democratic transfers of power, a sign of strengthening democracy. But under Edgar Lungu, critics say progress has been whittled away. Media and political freedoms are under attack and the independence of the Constitutional Court has been compromised.
Adding to the increased opposition tension in the nation, Chilufya Tayali, another opposition leader, was also arrested in April for a Facebook post attacking the police over Hichilema’s arrest. Some others were detained for trying to visit Hichilema in prison after authorities banned anyone from seeing him, including Zambia’s revered elder statesman — founding President Kenneth Kaunda and South African opposition leader Mmusi Maimane.
This drawback in Zambia’s fragile democratic gains is worrying as it shows how quickly a step that took decades to cement can easily be destroyed. It also points out how the life span of opposition parties are being threatened when they speak up and act against the growing authoritarian operations of most African government.
According to a recent report by LA times, Zambia is not the only African country whose opposition parties face trying times. Opposition parties or people who speak against the government in Ethiopia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania and Kenya are all under attack by the sitting government. What lies ahead for these opposition parties? And, to what extent will the government go to further silence them?
