By Mast Reporter
MY OVERALL observation is that human rights stand at the crossroads as the country gets close to the general elections, says United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur Irene Khan.
And Khan commended the government during a meeting with President Hakainde Hichilema at State House yesterday for its willingness to address numerous challenges.
Khan is the first special rapporteur to visit Zambia.
She has been in the country since the 19th of this month to assess the country’s state of freedom of expression and opinion.
Meanwhile, Hichilema has regretted the fact that Zambia has not had a visit from a special rapporteur in a long time.
The President said a visit by a special rapporteur in the past few years would have helped create a comparative analysis of the human rights situation in the country.
“The aspect that you have come to review has to do with the freedom of expression and the other things that constitute the body of human rights. I think it is important that that is spelt out from the outset as you continue doing your work,” he said.
“This government is open to conversations around freedom of expression aspect of the human rights. And we want to regret the fact that there was no such visitation for many years in our country, which I think would have been very useful if there was a visitation like yours, say, four years ago. I think it would have created a good comparative analysis of what the situation was back then and what the situation is now.”
Hichilema also emphasised that fundamental freedoms were not isolated.
“These freedoms are not isolated; they are intertwined because, for example, a restriction on the freedom of movement, or basically physical assault on the citizens who for example may be expressing themselves… I think it is important that as we work together, the UN… that we can look at the broader angle of human rights that need to be basically advanced, further developed,” he said.
Khan was in the country on a 10-day fact-finding mission.
