Brian Mundubile and running mate Makebi Zulu face charges after their August 27 arrest. Detained campaigner Patrick Mwansa alleges he was denied treatment for facial cuts and a hand fracture; the detainees’ bail application returns to court on 5 November.
Zambian police arrested Tonse Alliance opposition leader Brian Mundubile and his running mate, Makebi Zulu, on 27 August and subsequently charged them with treason and seditious practices, Human Rights Watch said. Its findings also describe opposition campaigner Patrick Mwansa’s allegation that he suffered facial cuts and a hand fracture but was denied medical attention.
The detentions followed President Hakainde Hichilema’s reelection on 13 August. Security forces raided Mundubile’s home in Lusaka the following day. Human Rights Watch says authorities later closed and cordoned off courts from 24 August to 28, preventing challenges to the presidential result. Police described the closures as an intelligence-led preventive measure.
A family member told Human Rights Watch that Mwansa had still not received medical treatment after his September 6 transfer to a maximum-security prison in Kabwe. His family said they had found him with a broken finger and swollen face after searching for him following the raid.
In an earlier statement on 21 August, police spokesperson Chipo Kaitisha rejected rumors that Mwansa had died in custody. She said he was alive, in good health and receiving family visits under established procedures, Mwebantu said.
Human Rights Watch documented 14 apparent enforced disappearances in August 2026: cases in which authorities refused to disclose a detained person’s situation or whereabouts. It also documented 61 cases in which detainees, relatives or lawyers alleged beatings or other violent abuse during arrest, detention or both. Its evidence includes court records and interviews with detainees, relatives and lawyers. Witnesses identified military personnel through their uniforms and vehicles.
Officials said the app failed and triggered radiation warnings over Lviv-region loudspeakers. The Air Force suspected hostile interference, denied a radiation threat and directed residents to official updates after false radiation, chemical and street-fighting alerts in Kyiv.
The organization says the government has not disclosed a national arrest total or the charges against those arrested. It identified 18 people charged with treason, including 2 also facing sedition charges. A charge sheet it reviewed alleges that Mundubile and Zulu declared an opposition election victory during a livestream on 14 August. The government alleges that the declaration was intended to raise discontent or disaffection among Zambians.
A Lusaka court ordered the immediate release of 43 opposition election monitors on 10 September, ruling that their arrest was unjustified. They had been detained on 14 August. Their lawyer told Human Rights Watch that their whereabouts were unknown for 8 days while police denied holding them. When he gained access, he saw serious injuries, including broken bones; the monitors said the military had abused them.
The lawyers had sought habeas corpus, a court procedure for testing whether detention is lawful. The ruling found the monitors’ arrest unjustified; the accounts of abuse remain allegations by detainees and their representatives.
Zambia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation rejected as inaccurate a United Nations rapporteur’s September 2 call to release political detainees. The ministry said opposition membership does not put a suspect beyond the law. It said the government respects legal protections and that courts are open to test them.
Human Rights Watch says detainees are entitled to prompt notification of charges, access to lawyers if charged, judicial review of detention, adequate medical care and communication with their families. Its deputy Africa director, Ashwanee Budoo-Scholtz, called for authorities to halt the crackdown, provide lawyers and care, release everyone arbitrarily detained and ensure accountability for security-force abuses.
Zambian Eye said on 29 October that Mundubile, Zulu, Mwansa and the other applicants were seeking constitutional bail—release pending trial on constitutional grounds. Human Rights Watch describes treason as nonbailable under ordinary rules. The applicants seek unconditional release or reasonable conditions ensuring they attend trial; the state opposes release, arguing that they could use their influence to flee.
The Lusaka High Court set 5 November as the next date after giving the state time to respond to the applicants’ submission. The court warned that it would deliver its ruling if the parties failed to proceed.
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