The Non Governmental Organisations’ Coordinating Council (NGOCC) condemns in the strongest terms the detention of the over 40 youths by the Zambia Police on Wednesday, March 12 and the subsequent stripping of young girls of their T – Shirts during the Youth Day celebrations, for merely demanding the immediate release of the final draft constitution.
As an organisation, we are deeply concerned with the increased levels of intolerance of divergent views and attempts by the Party in Government to stifle fundamental rights of expression and assembly as enshrined in the Republican constitution. The detention and stripping of the youths on Youth Day is not only barbaric but rather undemocratic and an assault on our hard earned democracy. The stripping was at most against the fundamental human rights of the young girls and boys.
The youths who were detained for wearing T-Shirts with messages demanding for the release of the constitution had and have every right to protest and demand for the immediate release of the final draft constitution. It is totally unacceptable for the Patriotic Front (PF) Government to now resort to using state agencies to intimidate citizens from demanding that which is rightly theirs. We urge all Zambians not to be intimidated in their quest for a new people driven constitution.
The constitution belongs to the Zambian people and the PF Government will not succeed in intimidating citizens on their demands for the constitution. The correct thing for the PF Government to do is to immediately give the Zambian people what is due to them – a people driven constitution. We urge the police to remain professional and desist from being used.
With regards to the stripping of the young girls, NGOCC requests the Inspector General of Police Ms Stella Libongani to immediately institute investigations so that the officers who assaulted the young girls can be brought to book. As a woman herself, we believe that Ms Libongani will not preside over a police service which abuses the rights of girls and women. NGOCC will in the meantime, conduct its own investigations to get to the bottom of the stripping of the young girls.
It is becoming abundantly clear that the PF is determined to deny the people of Zambia a people driven constitution.
We would like to assure the PF however that no amount of intimidation or propaganda will stop the Zambian people from demanding a new constitution.
for/NGOCC
Beatrice Grillo
CHAIRPERSON
No. 1
I remember during RB’s MMD, women used to match with bear bra-less chests.
What could that Grillo have done if those “youths” decided to match naked or in G-strings? In fact I would encourage the mothers to those “girls” match bare to State house in demand of constitution. That’s what makes African men move, kubafulila. Patricia Chisanga should in front.
Awe imwe BaKapokola mwimfula, ine ndaifulila!! Sata missed the show…. mwe
I believe deciding not to wear something and having someone forcefully take something you are wearing are two different things.
NGOCC SHOULD BE CONDEMNING THE SPONSORS OF THOSE YOUTH AND NOT THE POLICE OR WHATEVER. MAYBE NGOCC IS AMONG THE SPONSORS OF ANARCHY. THE YOUTH SHOULDN’T ALSO LET POLITICIANS USE THEM FOR THEIR BENEFIT. THEY SHOULD BE CHALLENGING POLITICIANS ABOUT THEIR LIVELY HOOD. IT IS ALSO THE DUTY OF THE YOUTH TO ATTEND THE YOUTH DAY SO THAT THEY LISTEN WHAT THE GOVT HAS IN STALL FOR THEM AND GRAB THOSE OPPORTUNITIES.
NGOCC and Action Aid should go a step further and sue the Police through Attorney General for malicious confinement and harassment of the youths.
Has the PF refused to release the constitution? The answer is NO. The only assumption taken is that since other governments did not manage so will the PF. Yes, even me I need the constitution that will reflect the will of the Zambian people. The process is not yet concluded. Therefore for our youths to wear those T.shirts imply that they have declared war with government.Violence always starts with such careless excitements and thereafter spread to others. If anything that was a wrong place for demanding a new constitution. We have only one Zambia and the police have a duty to protect my country. We should not allow lawlessness just because I dont like SATA and create the impression that Zambia is in a crisis. Youths of Zambia stop being used by people like Beatrice,HH or even SATA himself
Bullshlt! They have every right to wear what they want.
This is just an attempt to suppress freedom of expression in Zambia!
This Umwaume chap belongs to stone age politics. Even UNIP which became a brutal regime later would not publicly agree with you.
In a democracy, freedom of expression brings peace. Suppression is allien to democracy. You are in the wrong dispensation my friend.
For you it is OK for those civilian PF cadres to wear military fatigues in public? And the Army and ZNS were just watching sheepishly. We are at a cross roads, really. This is what i spoiling the good things PF is doing in infrastructure development. You give good food while insulting sections of the people you are feeding. Opposition parties and CSOs are Zambian organisations which should be respected. Competition does not mean animosity and abuse of laws.
WAR! rephrase this meaning in your post. there is no war in zambia, dont mislead pipo. war against who.if i argue against you, it does not mean there is war.
What about the guy who painted himself green and had inscriptions on both his chest and back reading ” I LOVE PF AND SATA”.Why was he not picked and washed clean of the graffiti on his body?
That is physical assault on innocent citizens, why did the police undress those people? Do they know anything about freedom of expression?
#Umwume don’t bring your rubbish here. we know you’re a PF shushushu. so don’t talk rubbish here. you pf liers. how much money has been spent by your pf liers on the constitution process. your pf has lied to the Zambian people to enact the constitution in 90 days. what war has been started by those girls? would u be happy if it was your sister being stripped by your illiterate pf police? shame on you.
Umwume is useless, you should be ashamed, we don’t pay taxes for police to harass us, they are supposed to protect and serve, not harass others because they are not PF, Zambia is a country of diverse views , let everyone be treated fairy, mr Jere and her colleagues will face the music, there ending won’t be good all these violations.we keeping track , we won’t forget.
Arresting and stripping naked those young people by Police, whether male or female, for wearing T-Shirts with a popular message is disgusting, illegal and barbaric. DR JERE PhD, instructed the Police to do that in a democratic country in the 21st Century? Was he even aware that he was in Australia when he was studying? It seems he never learnt anything about policing in a modern democratic country all that time he spent in that progressive country. So he just spent time singing without observing how policing is done in a democracy? And Ms Libongani – are you really comfortable in your heart of hearts to abuse your office by implementing imaginary laws? You have really messed up you personal testimony. We salute past IGs such as Mateo, Dr Malama and many others. Bad record.
Suppression of freedom of expression (by using the Police Force) in PF government is typical of the colonial government. Africans were supposed to smile even when they were not happy. Zambia @ 50
STOP RECYCLING YOUR LEADERS.
I think this wholesale condemnation of the police service ,while welcome, may not yield results. We need to go a step further and start gathering information about individual police officers who participated in dehumanising the innocent but brave girls. We need to identify (names) of these losers who are pretending to be keeping peace and order. This is Zambia and not Sudan.