South African High Court Orders State Funeral For Former Zambian President Edgar Lungu

The Pretoria High Court on Friday, 08 August, ordered that the body of former Zambian President Edgar Lungu be returned home for a state funeral, ending a nearly two-month dispute between his family and President Hakainde Hichilema’s government.

Lungu died on 5 June at Mediclinic Medforum in Pretoria while receiving treatment for oesophageal cancer.

The court ruled that he must be buried at Embassy Park in Lusaka with full military honours.

The decision was announced by Acting Judge President Aubrey Ledwaba, along with a full bench of judges. Said Ledwaba:

“This is a matter of national dignity… As a former head of state, President Lungu’s burial must reflect Zambia’s protocol and honour his service to the nation.”

The ruling came after a tense legal dispute between the Zambian government, led by Attorney General Mulilo Kabesha, and Lungu’s family, who wanted him buried privately in South Africa. They said this would respect the late President’s wish to keep his political rival, President Hakainde Hichilema, out of the ceremony.

Lungu, who served as Zambia’s sixth president from 2015 to 2021, was a divisive figure, and his death at 68 sparked controversy in line with his turbulent political career.

His widow, Esther Lungu, and lawyer Makebi Zulu claimed he had clearly expressed his burial wishes. Lungu said in her affidavit:

“My husband was clear: he wanted President Hichilema nowhere near his funeral or his body.”

The family cited past grievances, including the 2023 stripping of Lungu’s presidential benefits and alleged delays in approving his medical evacuation to South Africa, which they claim hastened his death.

The Zambian government, however, maintained that national law supersedes personal wishes

Kabesha argued that the burial of a former President is a state matter, as seen with President Kenneth Kaunda.

The government sought four key orders: a declaration of its exclusive right to repatriate Lungu’s body, the release of the body from a Pretoria funeral home to the Zambian High Commission, authorisation for a state delegation to accompany the remains, and the exclusion of the family’s authority over the burial process.

The court granted these requests but acknowledged the family’s concerns. Judge Ledwaba noted:

“While we respect the family’s sentiments, national protocol must prevail. We urge minimal involvement of President Hichilema to honour their wishes as far as possible.”

The court rejected an attempt by Zambian citizen Vincent Kafula to get involved in the case, saying he did not have the legal right to do so.

Kafula had argued that the disagreement was dividing the country.

The court ruled that Lungu’s body should be flown to Lusaka on a private chartered plane.

It will lie in state at his home and at a conference centre for the public to pay their respects before being buried at Embassy Park.

More: Sunday World