Zambia Tackles Rising Tide of Hate Speech

The arrest of an opposition leader for spreading racial and political vitriol online to spark tribal tensions signals the intent of the Government to combat a recent increase in hate speech.

Officers of the Zambia Police Service (ZPS) on Sunday, 29th of January, apprehended Chilufya Tayali, leader of the Economic and Equity Party (EEP), and Christopher Kapita, a Lusaka taxi driver. The pair were arrested, respectively, for the alleged offenses of hate speech and giving false information to a public officer.

The basis for the allegations against Mr. Tayali, 48, stem from repeated and various inflammatory rants that were posted on social media platforms between 1st and 29th of January 2023. Mr. Tayali had been insulting various tribes, and accusing others of being used, online.

Godfrey Chilabi, ZPS Assistant Public Relations Officer, informed the press that the arrest was “in connection with the recent remarks he allegedly made and posted on various social media platforms where he mentioned some traditional chiefs and some Commanders from the Defence and Security wings.”

In his posts, Mr. Tayali accused the Bemba people of selling their votes, and referred to some Bembas as “useful idiots”. The Bemba ethnic group is the largest in Zambia, believed to comprise around 36 percent of the national population. President Hichilema is Tonga, whose people make up roughly 15 percent of Zambia’s population.

Mr. Tayali has also called the UPND government “highly tribal”, and accused President Hakainde Hichilema of having “a few” Eastern and Northern politicians “just being used” as tokens of national political unity. He also branded politicians born in the North as sell-outs.

President Hichilema’s UPND party have been in power since 2021, taking over from the Patriotic Front. Ex-President Lungu’s party were accused of repeated abuses of their power through the police – on one occasion teargassing supporters of Mr. Hichilema, on another falsely claiming a permit was required for Mr. Hichilema and his campaign team to enter the Mbala district. On election day, social media platforms appeared to be shut down across the country.

The UPND won 59% of the vote, and Mr. Hichilema was declared President. Since his election, President Hichilema has focused on addressing abject poverty, poor infrastructure and a lack of reliable law enforcement in order to drastically improve the standard of living for Zambian people across the nation. In December 2022, President Hichilema formally abolished the death penalty in legislation that also prevented its reinstatement, a move the UN described as a “historic milestone” for Zambia’s protection of human rights.

President Hichilema this month made a two-day visit to Angola to discuss the “shared goals” of democracy and accountability. Mr. Hichilema addressed Angola’s National Assembly, where he commended Angola for its free and fair 2022 elections, saying, “Having held peaceful, free and fair elections in August 2022, Angola joins other SADC countries in contributing towards enhancing peaceful and democratic governance in our region”. He concluded his address by encouraging further advancement of Angolan democracy and international diplomacy: “We must, therefore, be each other’s partner, guardian, as well as accountability partners in our shared pursuit for socio-economic and democratic progress”.

The EEP describes itself as a party that “believes in the dignity of a human person and equality of all human beings including those considered marginalized”. Tayali has been a divisive figure in the past, and was arrested last October for striking an on-duty female police officer in the face with a kettle while in custody. He was issued a warning in April 2022 for attempting to incite a military mutiny.

Online figures have recently ramped up tribal tensions, directly contravening the mantra of founding President, the late Kenneth Kaunda, of “One Zambia, One Nation”. The UPND has issued statement in the past condemning the use of tribalism for political gain, including on the 28th of January 2023. UPND Chairman for Energy, Charles Kaisala, called it “embarrassing if not shameful for Zambians, especially those who aspire to lead this country to use tribalism for political expediency.”

 Mr Kaisala added, “We know that the opposition are having challenges and painful sleepless nights to pick out issues of substance to decampaign President Hakainde Hichilema because of his focus on removing the shame of poverty Zambians have been subjected to in the last ten years.”

In March, Zambia will host the US-initiated Democracy Summit, whose key themes will be defending against authoritarianism, addressing and combatting corruption, and advancing respect for human rights.