Zambia’s civic space has been slowly narrowing. In May, the country’s parliament pushed through a legislative blitz that saw 77 bills passed in record time. Many of those new laws expanded state power and gave state authorities more space to control public gatherings, track personal data, and constrict free speech. It all came to a head two weeks ago when the country went to the polls as President Hakainde Hichilema sought a second term.
Barely 24 hours later, state security forces raided the residence of Hakainde’s challenger for the top job. By the end of that raid, one opposition leader was dead and more were arrested or fled into hiding. This week, on the last day that a presidential petition challenging his victory could be filed, the courts were closed, with a cordon of soldiers to stop entry. These scenes are unprecedented in Zambia – and people are worried.
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Zambia is going down.... What is with some leaders and they are just unable to let go? And they bring their country down with them