Charge announced, case to go to court

Treason charges in Zambia have now been formally brought against one of the main opposition figures, Brian Mundubile. His lawyer, Milner Katolo, said Mundubile was confronted with the charge on Saturday night.

Katolo said 17 more people were charged in the same case, including Mundubile’s election ally Makebi Zulu. The lawyer said his client was expected to respond to the allegations in court.

Mundubile was detained on Thursday. The move came after the opposition politician had spent time in hiding following a security operation that left people dead.

Election result and raid deepen tensions

What do the official figures show?

According to official results from the August 13 presidential election, incumbent President Hakainde Hichilema won 60% of the vote. Mundubile came second with 38% and has challenged the outcome.

Authorities accused Mundubile’s party, the NRPUP, of planning an armed uprising. The party has denied the allegation. A day after the election, a raid targeted an address in the capital, Lusaka, said to be linked to Mundubile; a former cabinet minister was killed and several politicians were detained.

  • The government said weapons were found during the raid.
  • The opposition denied the accusations.

After the raid, Mundubile and Zulu took refuge in a United Nations building in Lusaka. The pair were later detained after the president pressed the UN to hand them over.

Appeal process stalled as rights body calls for accountability

The opposition says it was unable to file a legal challenge to the election results. It says the courts were closed by authorities on Monday, the final day on which a case could have been lodged, preventing the appeal process from moving forward.

Hichilema is expected to be sworn in for a second term on September 1. While regional and international observers largely described election day as calm, the Zambia Human Rights Commission called for accountability over people whose whereabouts remain unknown after the detentions and security operations surrounding the vote.