SA judge stops burial of former Zambian president during funeral ceremony

A South African judge stopped the burial of former Zambian president Edgar Lungu while his funeral service was in progress, intensifying a dispute between his family and the Zambian government.

Lungu died on June 5 while receiving medical treatment in South Africa. President Hakainde Hichilema, Lungu’s political rival, wanted to host a state funeral for him in Zambia.

However, Lungu’s family refused to allow his body to be repatriated, insisting he would not have wanted Hichilema at his funeral. In response, the Zambian government filed a lawsuit to prevent the burial from taking place in South Africa.

Mourners gathered

While Lungu’s widow and mourners gathered in the church, a Gauteng High Court judge ruled that, following an agreement between both parties, the respondents had agreed not to go ahead with the funeral or burial of the late president.

He set the court date for August 4. The national broadcaster, SABC, aired the decision and broadcast live footage of mourners attending the service for Lungu, who served as president from 2015 to 2021.

The adjournment “is extending the pain, the grief, that the family and the people are going through”, Zambian lawmaker Chanda Katotobwe, part of the delegation present at the memorial service, told SABC News.

The cause of the former president’s death at age 68 was not announced.

He had been receiving specialised treatment in a clinic in Pretoria, his Patriotic Front party said.