Zambia rejects EU plea for release of opposition leader

By Francis Maingaila

LUSAKA, Zambia (AA) - Zambia is a sovereign state and rejects European Union pleas for the release of the country's main opposition leader after over a month in jail, said a top presidential aide Saturday.

Amos Chanda, President Edgar Lungu's press liaison, told reporters in Lusaka that the EU member state ambassadors to Zambia yesterday met Lungu at State House to discuss issues of mutual interest, including the possibility of dropping treason charges against Hakainde Hichilema and his co-defendants.

“But the president is of the view that dropping the treason charges against Hichilema at this stage is not possible because it would endanger the independence of the judiciary,” he said, adding that the law should be allowed to deal with his case.

According to Chanda, during the talks with EU diplomats Lungu claimed that some political players in Zambia are engaged in activities bent on damaging the country’s reputation abroad.

Last week the EU Parliament passed a motion pressing for Hichilema’s release and also calling for an investigation of his treatment. He was arrested on charges of treason on April 10.