SACCORD Advises Stronger Laws To Tackle Tribalism

SACCORD Executive Director Boniface Chembe has addressed the issue of tribal politics, acknowledging that in the past political leaders have engaged in “campaigns based on tribe”.

Chembe advocated stronger laws to outlaw hate speech that borders on tribalism, laying blame at the door of politicians, stating  “Politicians should not be allowed to continue using tribalism to bring about tension and division in Zambia and blame it on something else. Our political leaders must refrain from doing that. It is on this basis that we actually believe that if we were to put in place much more stronger laws to outlaw hate speech that borders on tribalism, it will go a step further in helping reverse this particular spectre because it is a creation of our politics as opposed to the creation of anything else. Zambians interact with one another. It doesn’t matter which part of the country you come from; we eat together, we congregate together.”

In reference to recent comments made by President Lungu during a visit to Rwanda, Chembe also made clear that SACCORD sees no connection between National Registration Card identifiers and tribalism, explaining:  An NRC from our view is a unique Zambian document that traces one’s history that is part of our culture and cultural heritage. Therefore, it must be respected and must be celebrated as opposed to seeing it as a negative that is bringing about tension and division in our country. We have lived with this unique cultural aspect of ours since independence and it has been used well.”