The Questions On My Mind: Is Zambia Turning into A Police State?

In his book “very brave or very foolish” Ketumile Joni Masire, Botswana’s second Republican President describes opposition parties as very important to a functioning democracy.

He writes: “In a democratic system, parties that are in opposition to government of the day have an important role to play. If opposition parties are strong and full of ideas, they sharpen the wit of the governing party and keep it on its toes. If the opposition parties are weak or lacking in ideas about alternative policies, they weaken both the country and the ruling party.”

In this reflection, I speak directly to the president and indirectly to the police. The position of the president is one that must at all times be seen to unite the nation behind a vision and programme that will leave the country better than we found it. This is in light of what has been happening in the recent past. The latest being the use of state police to block the planned press conference by the opposition United Party for National Development (UPND).

While all this was happening, the head of state and Commander-In-Chief, President Edgar Lungu was in Muchinga Province, freely meeting his supporters and firing warnings to the UPND to recognize his presidency. If the opposition could be allowed the same then we could say we are a democracy.

Those who were there in 199o when the workers, civil society, the church and some brave individuals pushed for a return to multi-partism in their privacy are murmuring at what is happening. Some that I have met and spoke to have said they are worried with the narrowing space for freedom of expression and that of the press.

It needs no reminding that one of the reasons behind the growing frustration with the Kenneth Kaunda regime was the narrowing gap of freedoms of expression and that of the press. Kaunda had brought in what he called “participatory democracy” where for example, six candidates would stand on UNIP ticket and compete against each other and one would emerge to be the candidate of the party in a constituency but there was no other human being who would compete against him. He stood against the frog.

 

“We wanted change – and we saw that the people of Zambia wanted it,” said one of the senior citizens. “The sort of change we wanted was that of the mindset because many people could not believe that there was no other person who could stand as president apart from KK. They wanted openness, political competition. They wanted to revert to multipartism where you have so many political players, each with its own manifesto and ideologies, campaigning freely without any hesitation.”

The role of the press is important in a democracy as it gives space to people to voice out their feelings and frustrations about government. The press also has an important watchdog role to play in a democracy – pointing out the ills of government and demanding for transparency and accountability.

The police on the other hand have a very important role to play in providing

security and upholding the rule of law. The question being asked now is whether Zambia is becoming a police state or not. Are the police overstepping their role by clamping down on decent and freedoms? Is the application of the Public Order Act proving to be a hindrance to the growth of our democracy?

There are also questions being asked about the police’s conduct in public affairs. The use of force to suppress unruly behaviour like it happened at Heroes Stadium where teargases were used to disperse the crowd. Some police officers I have spoken to say the use of teargas, just like a gun is the last resort when controlling unarmed crowds.

Many of those who pushed for a return to a multiparty governance system were courageous men and women. They were also self-sustaining and very focused. Some of them had resigned from the UNIP government, while others were just returning from abroad where they had gone for their studies. While there they had picked up some lessons about democracy and they were keen to see a free Zambia.

During Kaunda’s time, life had become difficult and unbearable for many people in terms of accessing essential commodities. By that time there was fear among the citizens. You had to be careful with whom you were talking to and people wanted change of the mindset. The state was providing services for everything for its citizens – from buses, sugar, laundry and even mealie meal.

Where is civil society and the church in all this? Their role is important in a multiparty. They provide checks and balances on the executive. They are there to check on the governing party from abusing its powers. Greediness on the part of those in power is something that also needs checking – greediness to hold on to political power. Are we seeing this in the current situation?