UPP REBUKES UN RAPPORTEUR: RESPECT ZAMBIA’S SOVEREIGNTY, CORRECT THE FACTS AND STOP PREJUDGING OUR COURTS

UPP REBUKES UN RAPPORTEUR: RESPECT ZAMBIA’S SOVEREIGNTY, CORRECT THE FACTS AND STOP PREJUDGING OUR COURTS LUSAKA, 3 SEPTEMBER 2026 The United Progressive People (UPP) strongly rejects the extraordinary attempt by United Nations Special Rapporteur Gina Romero to pronounce upon the legitimacy of criminal charges presently before Zambia’s justice system. By describing treason charges involving opposition […]

UPP REBUKES UN RAPPORTEUR: RESPECT ZAMBIA’S SOVEREIGNTY, CORRECT THE FACTS AND STOP PREJUDGING OUR COURTS

LUSAKA, 3 SEPTEMBER 2026

The United Progressive People (UPP) strongly rejects the extraordinary attempt by United Nations Special Rapporteur Gina Romero to pronounce upon the legitimacy of criminal charges presently before Zambia’s justice system.

By describing treason charges involving opposition figures as “concocted charges”, characterising accused persons as “political detainees” and calling for their release before the evidence has been tested before a competent court, the Special Rapporteur has crossed the line between legitimate human rights scrutiny and prejudgment of an active criminal process. This is unacceptable.

Zambia is not a lawless territory requiring an international official to determine guilt, innocence or the legitimacy of criminal charges by press statement. We are a sovereign constitutional Republic with courts of law, defence lawyers, prosecuting authorities and constitutional safeguards available to every accused person.

The UPP therefore calls upon the Special Rapporteur to correct or withdraw those portions of her statement that are factually inaccurate or that purport to prejudge matters properly belonging before Zambia’s courts. Most troublingly, the Special Rapporteur described treason in Zambia as a “capital offence.” That assertion is simply wrong.

President Hakainde Hichilema assented to legislation abolishing the death penalty under Zambia’s Penal Code in December 2022. The death penalty was subsequently removed from military law. An international expert making grave allegations against a sovereign Member State of the United Nations has a duty to establish something as elementary and readily verifiable as whether that country still has the death penalty. If the basic law is misstated, Zambians are entitled to question the care with which the wider conclusions were reached.

The UPP also rejects the casual conversion of persons facing criminal allegations into “political detainees” merely because some of them are politicians. Brian Mundubile, Makebi Zulu and every other accused person must be presumed innocent. They must have access to lawyers. They must be treated humanely. Their constitutional rights must be protected without qualification, but presumption of innocence does not mean presumption of fabrication by the State.

Calling charges “concocted” is itself a serious accusation. It implies that Zambia’s institutions have deliberately manufactured a criminal case. Where is the evidence for that conclusion? If the Special Rapporteur possesses evidence that investigators, prosecutors or other State institutions fabricated these charges, she should place that evidence before the appropriate institutions. If she does not possess such evidence, she should not pronounce fabrication as fact.

Human rights cannot mean due process for an accused person but no due process for the institutions being accused of misconduct.

The UPP particularly rejects any emerging international narrative that treats the arrest of an opposition politician as inherently political while treating allegations against the State as inherently true. That is not impartial human rights scrutiny. Opposition status is not immunity from the law. Government status is not permission to abuse the law. The same Constitution governs everyone.

The allegations against the accused are serious. They remain allegations. The State must prove its case. The defence must be free to dismantle that case. The courts must decide. That is precisely why neither Government supporters nor international officials should attempt to decide the case outside the courtroom

The UPP is a member of the UPND Alliance and proudly supported President Hakainde Hichilema’s re-election. We did so because we believe in constitutional government, democratic institutions, the rule of law and Zambia’s capacity to govern herself responsibly.

Our support for the Government does not require us to pronounce anybody guilty. It requires us to defend the institutions through which guilt or innocence must lawfully be determined.

We therefore welcome the firm response by the Government of the Republic of Zambia correcting the Special Rapporteur’s factual errors and rejecting attempts to prejudge matters before our justice system.

Zambia will engage the United Nations. Zambia will honour its international obligations, but cooperation is not submission. Membership of the international community did not extinguish Zambia’s sovereignty at Independence in 1964. No UN mandate holder possesses appellate jurisdiction over Zambia’s courts. No international official should manufacture a verdict in Geneva and expect Lusaka merely to accept it.

International human rights mechanisms command respect when they demonstrate independence, accuracy and fairness. They weaken their own authority when serious political and legal conclusions precede proper verification of basic facts. The United Nations should therefore be careful not to allow legitimate human rights oversight to become a platform from which the constitutional institutions of African States are casually discredited.

Zambia is entitled to the same presumption of institutional good faith and the same standards of evidential fairness expected elsewhere. We say to the Special Rapporteur; Correct the factual errors; Withdraw the prejudgment; Respect the rights of the accused; Respect Zambia’s constitutional institutions; and allow the courts to do their work.

The Republic of Zambia belongs to its people. Our democracy will be strengthened through scrutiny, accountability and the rule of law. It will not be strengthened by replacing the judgment of independent Zambian courts with the opinion of an international official.

Zambia is open to scrutiny. Zambia is not available for prejudgment.

Issued by:

Saviour Chishimba
President
United Progressive People (UPP)
UPND Alliance Partner