AFRICAN POLITICS
Crackdown in Zambia qualifies as a dictatorship, critics charge
Lusaka — Nearly a year after coming to power in a contested election, Zambian President Edgar Lungu is facing a growing chorus of criticism over his government’s crackdown on dissent. "Zambia eminently qualifies to be branded a dictatorship," the country’s religious leaders said in a rare statement on Friday, the latest sign that opposition to Lungu’s authority is spreading. At the heart of the tension is the arrest and continued detention of opposition leader Hakainde Hichilema, a rich businessman who has run for president five times, narrowly losing to Lungu last August. His United Party for National Development (UPND) unsuccessfully tried to contest what it called a stolen election, and in April Hichilema was arrested on treason charges after his convoy allegedly refused to give way to the presidential motorcade. He has since been moved to a maximum security prison and it is unclear when he will return to court. In the meantime, the authorities have kept up pressure on his suppor...
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