President Hakainde Hichilema Crushes Hopes for Gay Rights in Zambia

According to Venus N Msyani, President Hakainde Hichilema has never supported homosexuality, yet there has been some hope for gay rights in Zambia under his administration. Compared to the previous administration, the United Party for National Development (UPND) has been less stringent on the issue.

On May 17, 2022, the Swedish and Finnish Embassies in Lusaka flew the rainbow flag, symbolizing the LGBTQI+ movement, to celebrate the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, and Transphobia. The new dawn administration tolerated this act, which would have likely strained relations under the previous Patriotic Front (PF) administration.

File:What are the reasons for the dramatic decline in anti-gay bias in the United States? Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images

On March 31, 2023, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris visited Zambia for two days and met with President Hichilema. She had previously met him in Washington D.C. shortly after he was elected. In March, a U.S. congressional delegation led by Senator Patty Murray of Washington, including Senators Chris Coons, Gary Peters, Catherine Cortez Masto, and Peter Welch, also visited Zambia and met with Hichilema. Given the Biden administration’s commitment to human rights, these visits have fueled hope for gay rights in Zambia.

Homosexuality remains a crime in Zambia, with harsh punishments recorded under the previous government. However, under Hichilema, no severe punishments related to homosexuality have been recorded, further boosting hope.

On August 18, 2024, Hichilema spoke at the Evangelical Fellowship of Zambia (EFZ) 60th anniversary at Bread of Life Church in Lusaka. He addressed the issue of homosexuality, stating, “I want to reinforce the message here, that this country shall remain a Christian country.” This statement received thunderous applause, prompting Hichilema to repeat himself for emphasis.

“Limbi tamumfile bwinobwino (maybe you have not heard me very well). This country Zambia, shall remain a Christian country,” he reiterated, again receiving a strong reaction from the audience. He continued, “Am I talking to someone here? And this country will not support negative and unnatural sexual practices, that is it. We must not be shy to say what we believe in. We are African, we don’t support those things. We are Christians, we don’t support those things. I thought I should say it loud and clear here.

EFZ, established in 1964, aims to empower and mobilize evangelical churches and mission agencies for the effective evangelization and transformation of Zambia. The audience’s reaction to Hichilema’s speech highlighted the organization’s strong opposition to homosexuality.

Time will tell if this stance will completely extinguish hope for gay rights in Zambia. Many defenders of these rights live in the diaspora, where exposure has led them to believe there is nothing wrong with gay rights. They argue that Zambia can remain a Christian nation while respecting gay rights, just as Christians coexist peacefully with other religious groups.

The growing population of Zambians in the diaspora, driven by injustice, lack of freedom of expression, unemployment, and high living costs, suggests that support for gay rights is increasing. This implies that hope for gay rights in Zambia remains alive despite the challenges.