A South African court ruled that Zambia’s government may repatriate the body of former President Edgar Lungu for a state funeral, overriding his family’s opposition to burial in their adopted homeland, the BBC reported.
The Pretoria High Court decision prompted visible distress among relatives, with Lungu’s elder sister Bertha weeping openly as Judge Aubrey Ledwaba declared the Zambian state “entitled to repatriate the body of the late president” and ordered the family to “immediately surrender” his remains.
The ruling culminates a bitter two-month dispute following Lungu’s death in June at age 68 from an undisclosed illness. While the family sought private interment in South Africa, Zambian authorities insisted on a national funeral, citing the former leader’s status as “father of the nation.”
Initially, both parties agreed to a state funeral in Zambia, but negotiations collapsed over specific arrangements, prompting relatives to pursue interment in South Africa. Attorney General Mulilo Kabesha framed the verdict as “what makes good sense” rather than a governmental victory.
“When you are the father of the nation, you can’t restrict yourself to your immediate family,” Kabesha stated.
He praised the “sound judgment” while acknowledging the family’s right to appeal.
The court’s intervention reflects the extraordinary tensions surrounding Lungu’s legacy. His family had explicitly barred current President Hakainde Hichilema from attending funeral proceedings, citing the bitter political rivalry between the two leaders.
Lungu governed Zambia from 2015 until his 2021 electoral defeat, when Hichilema secured a landslide victory. After initially retiring from politics, Lungu later re-entered public life, intensifying friction with his successor.