Amnesty International has called on Zambia to release the journalist MacPherson Mukuka and drop all charges against him, after he was detained over a social media post.
The organisation said authorities should end what it described as attacks on journalists and comply with the country’s obligations on freedom of expression.
What are Zambia’s obligations?
Freedom of expression is protected under Article 20(1) of the Zambian constitution, which covers holding opinions and imparting information.
Civil society groups have argued that a clawback provision in Article 20(2), permitting restrictions deemed reasonably required for national security, conflicts with Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Zambia is a party.
Is this an isolated case?
It is not. Amnesty condemned the arrest of a Zambian journalist in 2024 over an article critical of government officials. In June 2025 the Committee to Protect Journalists raised concerns after a High Court order blocked the broadcast of an investigative documentary about Chinese investment in the country.
What is the case against MacPherson Mukuka?
Zambian journalist MacPherson Mukuka was arrested and detained in connection with a social media post in which he shared a private conversation. Amnesty International has publicly urged Zambian authorities to release him and drop all charges, arguing that the case forms part of a pattern of pressure on journalists in the country. Freedom of expression is guaranteed by Article 20(1) of Zambia’s constitution, though a clawback clause at Article 20(2) allows restrictions considered reasonably required on national security grounds. Rights organisations contend that provision is inconsistent with Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which Zambia has ratified. The Committee to Protect Journalists and Amnesty have raised repeated concerns about press freedom in Zambia since 2024.
What is the wider picture?
Press freedom monitors have reported that legal and regulatory pressure, rather than outright censorship, has become the dominant method of constraining journalism internationally. Cybercrime and telecommunications statutes drafted in broad terms are frequently the vehicle.
Comparable cases have been recorded across several jurisdictions this year. In Tunisia a journalist was placed in pretrial detention under telecommunications law after criticising a judicial decision. In Pakistan, monitoring group Freedom Network reported that expanded use of an amended cybercrime law had increased cases against journalists and deepened self-censorship.
Zambian authorities have said investigations are conducted according to national law.
How do these cases usually proceed?
Prosecutions of this kind often turn on pretrial detention rather than conviction. Journalists may be held for weeks or months while a case is prepared, then released without trial, a pattern rights groups argue functions as a deterrent regardless of outcome.
Amnesty has asked that Zambian authorities allow media to report on matters of public interest without fear of reprisal. It has not published a timeline for the case, and no trial date has been reported.
Rights groups have previously criticised Zambia’s media laws and its broader human rights record, while successive governments have maintained that restrictions are lawful and narrowly applied.
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Sources for this report
The Redline News Desk
The Redline News desk files and edits world reporting. Every story carries the sources it was built from, and corrections are published on the story itself.
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