SA Court Allows Zambia to Repatriate Lungu’s Body ...

SA Court Allows Zambia to Repatriate Lungu’s Body for State Funeral

Zim Now Writer

A South African court has ruled that the body of former Zambian President Edgar Lungu can be returned to Zambia for a state funeral, despite opposition from his family.

Lungu, who died in June at the age of 68 after an undisclosed illness, had been living in South Africa. His relatives had wanted to bury him there privately, but the court’s decision requires them to hand over his remains to Zambian authorities.

The ruling, delivered by Judge Aubrey Ledwaba in Pretoria, stated that the Zambian government was entitled to repatriate the late president’s body. Lungu’s family, visibly distressed in court, had argued that he wished to avoid the presence of his successor, President Hakainde Hichilema, at his funeral.

The two leaders had a long-standing feud dating back to the 2021 election, when Hichilema defeated Lungu by a wide margin.

Initially, the family and the Zambian government had agreed to hold a state funeral, but tensions arose over the exact arrangements. When negotiations broke down, the family abandoned the plan and opted for a burial in South Africa instead. The government then sought legal intervention to reclaim the body.

Following the ruling, Zambian Attorney General Mulilo D. Kabesha stated that the judgment was not about political victory but about national interest.

He argued that a former president "belongs to the nation" and cannot be mourned solely as a private figure. Kabesha added that the case should serve as a lesson for those aspiring to lead a country, noting that the family still had the option to appeal the court’s decision.

Lungu, who served as Zambia’s leader from 2015 until his electoral defeat in 2021, had briefly stepped back from politics before re-entering public life.

His death and the dispute over his final resting place have added another chapter to the political tensions between him and his successor—tensions that appear to have endured even beyond his death.