UN: Zambia: Special Rapporteur urges immediate end to post-election crackdown and release of political detainees
The Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of assembly and of association, Gina Romero, today, expressed grave concern over the deteriorating democratic and human rights environment in Zambia and urgently called on the Government to uphold democratic integrity, safeguard civic space, and immediately cease the criminalisation of political dissent.
Following the post-election period, reports indicate alarming systemic violations that follow severe allegations of electoral flaws. These violations include widespread intimidation, the alleged arrest of hundreds of opposition supporters, many held beyond legally mandated timeframes without formal charges. Concocted charges of treason—a capital offense—against senior opposition alliance leadership set a dangerous precedent. Alongside documented instances of voter intimidation, assaults, and abductions, the escalation of violence and loss of life -including of a former cabinet minister and polling agent – requires immediate international scrutiny.
“This crisis reflects a broader pattern of shrinking civic space. The pattern of restrictions includes arbitrary arrests of opposition leaders, parliamentarians, and civil society actors on charges that were often disproportionate and legally ambiguous,” Romero said.