High court orders repatriation of ex-Zambian leader Edgar Lungu's body
Lungu, Zambia's head of state from 2015 to 2021, died in South Africa on June 5 while receiving medical treatment.
The high court halted plans for Lungu to be buried in Johannesburg on June 25, hours before a private ceremony was due to start.
Zambia's government had approached the court arguing that Lungu should be given a state funeral and buried at a designated site in the Zambian capital Lusaka, like all other presidents since independence from Britain in 1964.
Lungu's family said he did not want incumbent President Hakainde Hichilema, a long-standing political rival and his successor, at his funeral.
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High court orders repatriation of ex-Zambian leader Edgar Lungu's body
The Pretoria high court on Friday ordered the repatriation of former Zambian president Edgar Lungu's body for a state funeral, siding with Zambia's government over his family who wanted him buried in South Africa, not in the presence of his successor. Lungu, Zambia's head of state from 2015 to 2021, died in South Africa on June 5 while receiving medical treatment. The high court halted plans for Lungu to be buried in Johannesburg on June 25, hours before a private ceremony was due to start. Zambia's government had approached the court arguing that Lungu should be given a state funeral and buried at a designated site in the Zambian capital Lusaka, like all other presidents since independence from Britain in 1964. Lungu's family said he did not want incumbent President Hakainde Hichilema, a long-standing political rival and his successor, at his funeral.
