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History of Zambia (1964–present): Difference between revisions
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History of Zambia (1964–present) (view source)
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{{History of Zambia}} | {{History of Zambia}} | ||
{{Featured article}} | |||
[[Image:Zambia Ind000.jpg|thumb|130px|right|A book published by the government upon independence.]] | [[Image:Zambia Ind000.jpg|thumb|130px|right|A book published by the government upon independence.]] | ||
'''Zambia since 1964''', despite its considerable mineral wealth, Zambia faced major challenges. Domestically, there were few trained and educated Zambians capable of running the government,<ref>There were only eight indigenous Graduates in the country at Independence</ref> and the economy was largely dependent on foreign expertise. Most of Zambia's neighbouring countries were still colonies or under white minority rule. | '''Zambia since 1964''', despite its considerable mineral wealth, Zambia faced major challenges. Domestically, there were few trained and educated Zambians capable of running the government,<ref>There were only eight indigenous Graduates in the country at Independence</ref> and the economy was largely dependent on foreign expertise. Most of Zambia's neighbouring countries were still colonies or under white minority rule. | ||
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==Banda: 2008-2011== | ==Banda: 2008-2011== | ||
{{Main|Rupiah Banda}} | {{Main|Rupiah Banda}} | ||
[[File:Rupiah Banda.jpg|thumb|right|Rupiah Banda in 2009]] | |||
After Mwanawasa suffered a stroke while attending an African Union summit in Egypt on June 29, 2008, [[Rupiah Banda]] became acting President. He subsequently delivered a series of optimistic but vague updates on Mwanawasa's health. These updates were greeted with widespread skepticism, but Banda insisted that he had "no reason to lie".<ref>[http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=68&art_id=nw20080725114637910C642354 "Mwanawasa's condition 'promising'"], Sapa-AFP (''IOL''), July 25, 2008.</ref> | After Mwanawasa suffered a stroke while attending an African Union summit in Egypt on June 29, 2008, [[Rupiah Banda]] became acting President. He subsequently delivered a series of optimistic but vague updates on Mwanawasa's health. These updates were greeted with widespread skepticism, but Banda insisted that he had "no reason to lie".<ref>[http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=68&art_id=nw20080725114637910C642354 "Mwanawasa's condition 'promising'"], Sapa-AFP (''IOL''), July 25, 2008.</ref> | ||
Mwanawasa never recovered from his stroke and died while still hospitalized in Paris on August 19, 2008. Expressing "immense grief and deep sorrow", Banda announced his death to the nation and declared a seven-day period of national mourning, urging Zambians to "remain calm and mourn our President with dignity".<ref>[http://www.statehouse.gov.zm/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=414&Itemid=47 "STATEMENT BY HIS HONOUR THE VICE PRESIDENT, MR. RUPIAH BANDA, MP., ON THE DEATH OF THE PRESIDENT"], Zambian Presidency website, 18 August 2008.</ref> Banda officially took over as acting President prior to a new presidential election, which according to the constitution should be called within 90 days of Mwanawasa's death.<ref>[http://www.iht.com/articles/reuters/2008/08/20/europe/OUKWD-UK-ZAMBIA-PRESIDENT.php "Zambian VP takes charge"], Reuters (''International Herald Tribune''), August 20, 2008.</ref> | Mwanawasa never recovered from his stroke and died while still hospitalized in Paris on August 19, 2008. Expressing "immense grief and deep sorrow", Banda announced his death to the nation and declared a seven-day period of national mourning, urging Zambians to "remain calm and mourn our President with dignity".<ref>[http://www.statehouse.gov.zm/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=414&Itemid=47 "STATEMENT BY HIS HONOUR THE VICE PRESIDENT, MR. RUPIAH BANDA, MP., ON THE DEATH OF THE PRESIDENT"], Zambian Presidency website, 18 August 2008.</ref> Banda officially took over as acting President prior to a new presidential election, which according to the constitution should be called within 90 days of Mwanawasa's death.<ref>[http://www.iht.com/articles/reuters/2008/08/20/europe/OUKWD-UK-ZAMBIA-PRESIDENT.php "Zambian VP takes charge"], Reuters (''International Herald Tribune''), August 20, 2008.</ref> | ||
As President, Rupiah Banda was focused on economic development, travelling abroad to promote Zambian trade to other world leaders. In December 2010 he travelled to Egypt to meet with President Hosni Mubarak.<ref>[http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/3/12/2881/Business/Economy/Zambia-eyes-Egyptian-investment.aspx Zambia eyes Egyptian investment – Economy – Business – Ahram Online]. English.ahram.org.eg (2010-12-30). Retrieved on 2011-06-21.</ref> | |||
In mid-2009 it was announced that the MMD National Executive Committee had chosen Banda as the party's candidate for the [[Zambian presidential election, 2011|2011 presidential election]]. Some criticized this, arguing that the nomination process should be open to other candidates; Mpombo, the Defense Minister, resigned from his post in July 2009 while criticizing the process as undemocratic. President Banda has since welcomed others to challenge him for the nomination at the MMC Conventions taking place across the country.<ref>[http://www.lusakatimes.com/2011/01/10/im-ready-challenged-banda/ ] {{wayback|url=http://www.lusakatimes.com/2011/01/10/im-ready-challenged-banda/ |date=20110113080745 }}</ref> | |||
After taking office, Banda dismantled much of the anticorruption effort put into place by his predecessor, Mwanawasa.<ref>{{cite news|last=Bearak|first=Barry|title=Frederick Chiluba, Former President of Zambia, Dies at 68|work=The New York Times|date=20 June 2011|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/20/world/africa/20chiluba.html}}</ref> | |||
Banda's Special Assistant for Press and Public Relations was [[Dickson Jere]]. | |||
===Defeat and Immunity Removal=== | |||
[[Michael Sata]], leader of the opposition Patriotic Front, defeated Bwezani Banda in the [[Zambian general election, 2011|September 2011 presidential election]], ending his three-year presidency. | |||
On the 15th March 2013, Banda became the second head of state in Zambian history to have his presidential immunity removed. This was due to accusations of abuse of authority, corruption and the misappropriation of oil revenue.<ref>http://www.mwebantu.com/2013/03/15/rupiah-banda-loses-immunity-from-prosecution/</ref> | |||
==Sata: 2011-2014== | ==Sata: 2011-2014== | ||
{{Main|Michael Sata}} | {{Main|Michael Sata}} | ||
[[File:Michael Sata.jpg|thumb|Right|Sata addresses the press at [[State House]] announcing the suspension of [[Supreme Court]] judge [[Philip Musonda]] and two [[High Court]] judges, [[Charles Kajimanga]] and [[Nigel Mutuna]] on Monday April 30, 2012 - Picture by Joseph Mwenda]] | |||
Sata ran for President for a fourth time in the election held on 20 September 2011. In the early stages of the campaign he was more vitriolic in his [[Sinophobia|anti-Chinese]] rhetoric, but he later toned down his rhetoric. Results showed him receiving about 43% of the vote against 36% for Banda, and Chief Justice [[Ernest Sakala]] accordingly declared that he had won the election in the early hours of 23 September. He was sworn in later in the day.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://af.reuters.com/article/metalsNews/idAFL5E7KN2JB20110923|title=Zambia's Sata sworn in as new president|publisher=}}</ref> He was said to have won because of the urban vote. Despite the toning down of his rhetoric, the investment climate in Zambia was considered uncertain in the wake of his victory. | |||
===Policies=== | |||
On 8 September 2008, Sata claimed that he would protect Chinese investments if he was elected, abandoning the hostility towards Chinese investment that he had expressed during the 2006 presidential election campaign.<ref>Shapi Shacinda, [http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=84&art_id=nw20080908120911204C230040 "Sata warms to Chinese investment in Zambia"], Reuters, 8 September 2008.</ref> | |||
During the 2006 election campaign he was reported to have said of Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe that "Mugabe hasn't done anything wrong. It is the [[imperialist]]s, the capitalist-roaders, who say he is a villain."<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/5387298.stm "Long queues in tight Zambian poll"], BBC News.</ref> | |||
In 2008, he said that he would revoke licenses for foreign investors if they resisted his orders to give at least a 25% stake in their companies to Zambians.<ref>[http://www.news24.com/News24/Africa/News/0,,2-11-1447_2410432,00.html "Sata to help local investors"], News24.</ref> | |||
==Lungu: 2015-Present== | ==Lungu: 2015-Present== | ||
{{Main|Edgar Lungu}} | {{Main|Edgar Lungu|Zambian presidential election, 2015|Zambian general election, 2016}} | ||
[[File:ECL2016.jpg|thumb|right|Lungu takes oath of office]] | |||
After [[Michael Sata]]'s death on 28 October 2014, Scott became acting president. The constitution of Zambia requires a new election within 90 days to permanently fill the office.<ref>[http://www.cnn.com/2014/10/29/world/africa/zambia-white-president/index.html Zambia's Guy Scott makes history as white president in sub-Saharan Africa], Faith Karimi, CNN, 29 October 2014.</ref> | |||
The [[constitution of Zambia]] requires that both parents of presidential candidates are "Zambian by birth or descent", thus Scott was considered ineligible to stand in the January 2015 election.<ref>{{cite news|title=Another Zambian president dies in office. What happens now?|url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/monkey-cage/wp/2014/10/29/another-zambian-president-dies-in-office-what-happens-now/|accessdate=29 November 2014|work=[[The Washington Post]]|date=29 October 2014|author=Kim Yi Dionne}}</ref> The provision was put in place by President [[Frederick Chiluba]] to prevent [[Kenneth Kaunda]] – whose father was born in what became Malawi – from becoming president.<ref name="bbc">{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-29816559|title=BBC News – Guy Scott's rise to Zambia's presidency|work=BBC News|accessdate=5 November 2014}}</ref> However, a [[Lewanika and Others vs. Chiluba|previous judgement]] by the Zambian Supreme Court, in a similar case in 1998, could have validated him as a potential candidate.<ref>{{cite news|title=After the Cobra: What does the law say about Vice-President Guy Scott?|url=http://eliasmunshya.org/2014/10/28/after-the-cobra-what-does-the-law-say-about-vice-president-guy-scott/|accessdate=29 October 2014|work=|date=28 October 2014}}</ref> Scott did not stand as a presidential candidate for the [[Patriotic Front]]. [[Edgar Lungu]], standing as the PF candidate, won the [[Zambian presidential election, 2015|January 2015 presidential by-election]] and succeeded Scott as President on 25 January 2015.<ref>Matthew Hill, [http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2015-01-25/edgar-lungu-sworn-in-as-president-of-zambia-in-lusaka.html "Zambian Ruling Party's Edgar Lungu Inaugurated as President"], Bloomberg, 25 January 2015.</ref> | |||
Lungu was sworn in as President of Zambia on 25 January 2015 at the [[National Heroes Stadium]] in the capital [[Lusaka]].<ref>Matthew Hill, [http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2015-01-25/edgar-lungu-sworn-in-as-president-of-zambia-in-lusaka.html "Zambian Ruling Party's Edgar Lungu Inaugurated as President"], Bloomberg, 25 January 2015.</ref> | |||
The following month, Lungu forced the head of the country's central bank out of office and promised lower interest rates. He appointed [[Inonge Wina]] as Zambia's first female Vice-President.<ref>Matthew Hill,[http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-02-13/zambian-president-names-denny-kalyalya-as-central-bank-governor-i63nj3ws "Zambia Central Bank Chief Replaced as President Vows Lower Rates"], Bloomberg, 13 February 2015.</ref> | |||
In March 2015 Lungu collapsed while holding a speech commemorating International Women's Day in [[Lusaka]]. After spending a short while in a Zambian hospital he had an operation for his narrowed oesophagus in Pretoria, South Africa.<ref>{{cite web|author= |url=http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-31795526 |title=Edgar Lungu collapse: Zambian president 'needs treatment abroad' |publisher=BBC News |date=9 March 2015 |accessdate=3 January 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author= |url=http://www.reuters.com/article/zambia-lungu-surgery-idUSL6N0WG02620150314 |title=Zambia's president recovering after surgery in South Africa |publisher=Reuters |date=14 March 2015 |accessdate=3 January 2016}}</ref> | |||
Lungu commuted the death sentences of 332 prisoners to life in prison on 16 July 2015 and condemned the massive overcrowding at the [[Mukobeko Prison]], calling it "an affront to basic human dignity".<ref>[http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/07/16/us-zambia-prison-idUSKCN0PQ18M20150716 "Zambian president gives death row inmates life sentences"], Reuters, 16 July 2015.</ref> | |||
In October 2015, Lungu ordered a national day of prayer, to prevent further damage to his country's economy. Top religious and political officials participated, and other public events were cancelled.<ref>[http://www.rt.com/news/319018-zambia-national-prayer-currency/ "‘God have mercy on currency’: Zambia holds national prayer day to hold Kwacha from record drop"], RT, 18 October 2015.</ref> | |||
===Second presidential term (2016-)=== | |||
Lungu ran for reelection in the [[Zambian general election, 2016|2016 election]], which turned out to be a rematch of the [[Zambian presidential election, 2015|2015 presidential election]] between him and [[Hakainde Hichilema]] of the [[United Party for National Development]]. Lungu won the election with 50.32% of the vote, thus avoiding a run-off and also increasing his margin of victory over Hichilema to 100.530 votes or 2.72%. Hichilema refused to concede defeat after the announcement of official results and filed a case before the Constitutional Court, asking for the results to be nullified due to irregularities. The court dismissed the case on 5 September 2016 and Lungu will be inaugurated for a full five-year term of office on 13 September. | |||
==References== | ==References== | ||
