Zambia Revokes Passports of Six Citizens on National Security Grounds, Fred M’membe Says

Socialist Party president Dr Fred M’membe has criticised the reported cancellation or revocation of the passports of six Zambians on national security grounds, arguing that authorities have not publicly explained the reasons for the action. In a post titled “History Repeats…

Socialist Party president Dr Fred M’membe has criticised the reported cancellation or revocation of the passports of six Zambians on national security grounds, arguing that authorities have not publicly explained the reasons for the action.

In a post titled “History Repeats Itself!”, M’membe identified the affected citizens as Emmanuel Mwamba, Sishuwa Sishuwa, Benwell Mpundu, Emmanuel Jay Banda, Kaizer Zulu and Lilian Mutambo.

M’membe said governments may revoke travel documents when a person is suspected of terrorism, treason or presenting a direct threat to state safety and the public interest. He added that passports may also be cancelled when holders have active arrest warrants, are fugitives or face court-ordered restrictions on travel.

Other grounds, he said, include using false identity information, providing inaccurate details on an application or altering a passport. Authorities may also invalidate passports reported lost or stolen, as well as documents belonging to deceased people. He further stated that some legal systems permit cancellations over serious unpaid obligations, including major tax evasion or delinquent child-support payments.

However, M’membe questioned whether national security grounds could “truthfully, justifiably, and legally” be applied to the six Zambians. He said authorities had not disclosed the specific security grounds supporting the decisions and suggested the absence of an explanation indicated that such grounds might not exist.

He also asked whether being a strong government critic was sufficient to classify someone as a national security risk. While acknowledging that some of the six could be regarded as irritating to those in authority, he maintained that this did not make them threats to national security.

M’membe described the measure as excessive and compared it to “trying to kill a fly with a hammer.” He said it could have a chilling effect on freedom of expression and speech.

Addressing the consequences of cancelling a passport while its holder is abroad, M’membe said the person could immediately lose a valid travel document and become stranded and legally vulnerable. He stated that a cancelled passport could be flagged in international border-control systems, preventing its holder from boarding commercial flights or crossing international borders.

He further said visas and residence permits may be linked to the passport used to obtain them. As a result, cancellation could affect the person’s immigration status and expose them to detention or deportation proceedings in the host country.

M’membe said international law prohibits governments from making their citizens legally stateless, meaning that passport cancellation does not remove citizenship. He stated that people who fled persecution could seek asylum or refugee status and, once recognised, apply for a Refugee Travel Document under the 1951 Refugee Convention. Those legally resident abroad but awaiting refugee status could request alternative identity or travel documents from local authorities.

He advised people seeking protection after fleeing persecution to avoid contacting their home country’s embassy or consulate, saying such contact might create physical danger or jeopardise a refugee claim.

He lamented that decisions whose consequences are already known were being repeated despite lessons from earlier periods. According to M’membe, new generations often fail to study or accept hardships experienced by their predecessors, instead treating present circumstances as entirely new and without meaningful historical parallels or warnings.

Concluding his post, M’membe said society repeatedly falls into historical traps because ambition, fear and short-term interests override lessons from the past. He invoked philosopher George Santayana’s warning that those unable to remember the past are condemned to repeat it and referred to the observation commonly attributed to Mark Twain that history may not repeat itself exactly, but its patterns often rhyme.