Government Commits To Reforming Public Order Act

The Ministry of Justice has acknowledged that the colonial-era Public Order Act is unsuitable in its current form and requires amending to ensure citizens retain the ability to exercise their democratic rights.  

Speaking during a stakeholder meeting in Lusaka on Thursday, Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Justice Mwenya Bwalya said public discussions over social, economic and political issues were vital to the proper functioning of government.

The Public Order Act would therefore be reviewed, she said, in order to balance this discourse with the rule of law and protection of human rights. 

The Public Order Act was first introduced during British rule in Zambia in 1955 and became a source of controversy under the previous Patriotic Front government. The government would regularly use the act to break-up and disperse meetings by opposition political parties.

United Party for National Development leader Hakainde Hichilema regularly spoke out against the act while in opposition, and in November 2021 committed to reviewing the act in order to safeguard Zambia’s democracy. 

During Thursday’s meeting MacDonald Chipenzi of the GEARS Initiative said he hoped the government would deliver on its promise as the act requires serious attention.