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Zambia

Monthly Event Reports

November 2023 | Civil society reports warn of shrinking democratic space

In November, a month in which four opposition politicians were arrested in 24 hours, the Zambia Conference of Catholics Bishops (ZCCB) and the Law Association of Zambia (LAZ), released reports warning that democratic space in the country is shrinking. The reports raised a very similar set of concerns, including an increase in the arrest of opposition party members, a failure to grant them bail for bailable offences and to expeditiously bring them before courts which, according to LAZ, suggested the arrests were being used as an intimidation tactic by the state. Both reports called for government institutions to stop interfering in the affairs of opposition parties, to show greater tolerance of dissenting views (LAZ highlighted that cybersecurity and other penal legislation is being used to arrest government critics) and end the abuse of the colonial-era Public Order Act, whose security provisions were being used by the police to deny opposition party members their right to protest.

April 2023 | Largest opposition party threatened with de-registration
Watch flag

Zambia’s Chief Registrar of Societies, Thandiwe Mhende, has issued a notice of her office’s intention to de-register the country’s largest opposition party, the Patriotic Front (PF). In a letter dated 25 April, Mhende wrote that the PF was to be ‘cancelled’ for its failure to comply with a legal requirement to provide a complete list of the party’s office bearers. She wrote further that the party had previously been notified by her office of this non-compliance and that it now had seven days to explain why it should not be cancelled. The PF, which governed Zambia between 2011 and 2021, denied non-compliance and alleged the notice was an attempt to suppress the political opposition and that it constituted an ‘assault on democracy.’ In 2012, the Movement for Multi-Party Democracy, another former-ruling party, was de-registered shortly after losing power to the PF.

Representation (0)
Rights (0)

December 2022 | President Hichilema abolishes death penalty and controversial defamation law

On 23 December President Hakainde Hichilema announced that he had signed into law legislation abolishing the death penalty and a controversial colonial-era law criminalizing defamation of the president. The defamation law had long been used by Zambian governments to silence their critics and rights groups have alleged that the practice had continued (and even increased) under Hichilema’s presidency. Analysts and activists have welcomed its repeal but cautioned that free expression continues to be threatened by other repressive legislation that remains in place. Zambia has maintained a moratorium on executions since 1997 but at the end of 2021 257 people were on death row.

September 2022 | Hichilema’s government announces repeal of colonial-era defamation law

During his opening of the new session of Zambia’s National Assembly on 9 September, President Hakainde Hichilema announced that his government is to table legislation repealing a colonial-era law criminalizing defamation of the president. The law has long been used by Zambian governments to silence their critics and rights groups have alleged that this practice has continued (and even increased) during Hichilema’s presidency. On 1 September the leader of the opposition Patriots for Economic Progress party, Sean Tembo, was arrested under the law after criticizing the president for raising fuel prices – although he was later charged with the lesser offence of hate speech. Hichilema has been under increasing pressure from activists within and outside of Zambia to deliver on his 2021 campaign promise to repeal the defamation of the president law.

Explore past monthly event reports

GSoD Indices Data 2013-2022

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Basic Information

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Population Tooltip
18 920 660
System of government
Presidential system
Head of government
President Hakainde Hichilema (since 2021)
Head of government party
United Party for National Development (UPND)
Electoral system for lower or single chamber
First Past the Post
Women in lower or single chamber
15.1%
Women in upper chamber
Not applicable
Last legislative election
2021
Effective number of political parties Tooltip
2.84
Head of state
President Hakainde Hichilema
Selection process for head of state
Direct election (two-round majority)
Latest Universal Periodic Review (UPR) date
13/11/2017
Latest Universal Periodic Review (UPR) percentage of recommendations supported
90.15%
Population Tooltip
18 920 660
System of government
Presidential system
Head of government
President Hakainde Hichilema (since 2021)
Head of government party
United Party for National Development (UPND)
Electoral system for lower or single chamber
First Past the Post
Women in lower or single chamber
15.1%
Women in upper chamber
Not applicable
Last legislative election
2021
Effective number of political parties Tooltip
2.84
Head of state
President Hakainde Hichilema
Selection process for head of state
Direct election (two-round majority)
Latest Universal Periodic Review (UPR) date
13/11/2017
Latest Universal Periodic Review (UPR) percentage of recommendations supported
90.15%
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Human Rights Treaties

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State Party State party
Signatory Signatory
No Action No action
United Nations Human Right Treaties
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
State Party
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
State Party
International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination
State Party
Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women
State Party
Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman and Degrading Treatment or Punishment
State Party
Convention on the Rights of the Child
State Party
International Convention on Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families
No Action
International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance 
State Party
International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
State Party
International Labour Organisation Treaties
Forced Labour Convention
State Party
Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention
State Party
Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention
State Party
Equal Remuneration Convention
State Party
Abolition of Forced Labour Convention
State Party
Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention
State Party
Convention concerning Minimum Age for Admission to Employment
State Party
Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention
State Party
Regional Treaties
African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights
State Party
in
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Performance by category over the last 6 months

Representation neutral Representation
Sep 2023
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb 2024
Representation neutral Rights
Sep 2023
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb 2024
Representation neutral Rule of law
Sep 2023
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb 2024
Representation neutral Participation
Sep 2023
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb 2024

Global State of Democracy Indices

Hover over the trend lines to see the exact data points across the years

Explore the indices
Representation
Representation
0
/1
high 0.7-1.0
mid 0.4-0.7
low 0.0-0.4
Rights
Rights
0
/1
high 0.7-1.0
mid 0.4-0.7
low 0.0-0.4
Rule of Law
Rule of Law
0
/1
high 0.7-1.0
mid 0.4-0.7
low 0.0-0.4
Participation
Participation
0
/1
high 0.7-1.0
mid 0.4-0.7
low 0.0-0.4
Annual value

Factors of Democratic Performance Over Time

Use the slider below to see how democratic performance has changed over time

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