LUSAKA (Reuters) - Zambia opposition leader Hakainde Hichilema, arrested last week on suspicion of treason, was charged in a magistrate’s court on Tuesday with trying to overthrow the government.

FILE PHOTO - Hakainde Hichilema speaks during a live television debate in Lusaka, Zambia January 15, 2015. REUTERS/Rogan Ward/File Photo

Relations between the government and opposition have been raw since last August, when President Edgar Lungu’s Patriotic Front (PF) party beat Hichilema’s United Party for National Development (UPND) in a vote the opposition says was rigged.

Police in Africa’s No. 2 copper-producing country raided Hichilema’s house on April 11 to arrest him and he was initially charged with treason for obstructing Lungu’s motorcade.

In court on Tuesday, he was charged with treason in that “(he together with other persons did prepare or endeavored to overthrow by unlawful means the government” between Oct. 10 last year and April 8 this year.

The charge in the motorcade incident was changed to disobeying instructions from a police officer by failing to give way to a presidential motorcade and using insulting language.

The court directed that Hichilema should be allowed visits by his children and at least five other family members following an application by his defense lawyers, who said he had so far been allowed to see only his wife.

Dressed in a red coat and khaki shirt, Hichilema waved his party symbol to supporters in court and stood throughout.

The prosecution is expected to respond to the issues raised on Wednesday after which the magistrate will make a ruling. Hichilema and five others facing the same charges, who are all members of his party and include his driver, did not enter pleas as treason can only be tried in the high court.

Lungu has narrowly beaten Hichilema, an economist and wealthy businessman who goes by the nickname “HH”, in two presidential elections by a razor-thin margin.

Rising political temperatures in Zambia, a landlocked and impoverished southern African nation, has come against the backdrop of an economy hobbled by low commodity prices, mine closures, rising unemployment, power shortages, a widening budget deficit and diminishing foreign-currency reserves.

The political turbulence, however, does not appear to have closed the taps of international finance or aid. The presidency said on Tuesday Zambia was on the verge of a possible $1.2 billion program with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), saying it was expected to be sealed by the end of April.</s>Z?ambia opposition leader Hakainde Hichilema, arrested last week on suspicion of treason, was charged to court on Tuesday for allegedly trying to overthrow the Government. Hichilema’s arrest has raised political tension in Zambia and the new development is likely to worsen the situation. Relations between the government and opposition have been tense since last August, […]</s>LUSAKA, April 18 (Reuters) - Zambia opposition leader Hakainde Hichilema, arrested last week on suspicion of treason, was charged in court on Tuesday with trying to overthrow the government.

Hichilema's arrest has already raised political tension in Zambia and the new development is likely to worsen the situation.

Relations between the government and opposition have been tense since last August, when President Edgar Lungu's Patriotic Front (PF) party beat Hichilema's United Party for National Development (UPND) in a vote the opposition says was rigged.

Police raided Hichilema's house last Tuesday to arrest him and he was initially charged with treason for obstrcuting Lungu's motorcade.

In a court appearance on Tuesday, he was charged with treason on the grounds that he "together with other persons did prepare or endevoured to overthrow by unlawful means the government" between Oct. 10 last year and April 8 this year.

The charge in the motorcade incident was changed to disobeying instructions from a police officer by failing to give way to a presidential motorcade and using insulting language.

The court also directed that Hichilema should be allowed visits by his children and at least five other family members following an application by his defence lawyers, who said he was only allowed to see his wife.

Dressed in a red coat and khaki shirt, Hichilema waved his party symbol to supporters in court and stood throughout the deliberations despite the magistrate asking the accused to take their seats.

The two men are old rivals. Lungu has beaten Hichilema, an economist and wealthy businessman who goes by "HH", narrowly in two presidential elections, including the one last year by a razor-thin margin. (Reporting by Chris Mfula; Writing by Ed Stoddard; Editing by Alison Williams and Angus MacSwan)</s>ARREST OF ZAMBIAN OPPOSITION LEADER IS AN UNACCEPTABLE, INTOLERABLE POLITICAL MANOEUVRE BY THE LUNGU GOVERNMENT

The Africa Liberal Network (ALN) condemns in the strongest possible terms the recent arrest of the Zambian opposition leader, Mr Hakainde Hichilema, on charges of treason. This is the latest development in the ruling party’s attempts to silence dissent and opposition.

Hichilema, the leader of the United Party for National Development (UPND), a full member of the ALN and Zambia’s largest opposition party, was arrested in his home in Lusaka. Zambian police reportedly raided his home during the night, breaking down doors and tear-gassing the house. Mr Hichilema’s attorney states that he has been detained for committing treason by obstructing a motorcade of President Edgar Lungu. Treason is an unbailable offence in the country and carries a minimum jail term of 15 years and a maximum sentence of the death penalty.

“We urge the Zambian government to respect due process, the rule of law, and to immediately cease all arbitrary arrests of its political opponents. It is unacceptable for the governing party in a constitutional democracy such as Zambia to allow for politically-motivated issues such as this to occur.

As President of Africa’s largest political affiliation, I will encourage representatives and our member parties to submit questions to their respective national legislatures and other structures concerning this alarming matter. We will explore potential options to add pressure to President Lungu’s government and request satisfactory clarity.”

According to the opposition leader’s representatives, Mr Hichilema will take legal action to challenge the police action, the brutality of which left Mr Hichilema and his wife unwell.

This event follows previous unacceptable actions by the Zambian governing party, the Patriotic Front (PF). Manipulation of the voting, counting, and other mechanisms in favour of the PF was pervasive in the August 2016 elections, and legal challenges of the elections by the UPND have been blocked. Mr Hichilema and UPND vice-president Geoffrey Mwamba have also been previously arrested for unlawful assembly and sedition. PF supporters have on several occasions committed acts of political violence such as attacking UPND supporters and vandalising UPND property.

The Africa Liberal Network is Africa’s largest political affiliation, consisting of 45 member parties from over 25 countries. The following statement and remarks are provided by the newly-elected ALN President, Stevens Mokgalapa MP, the South African Shadow Minister for International Relations and Co-operation (Democratic Alliance).</s>LUSAKA, April 19 (Reuters) - Lawyers for a Zambian opposition party leader accused of trying to overthrow the government asked a court on Wednesday to throw out the case, saying the state charges are vague and ambiguous.

Hakainde Hichilema, the United Party for National Development (UPND) leader, was arrested last week in a police raid on his home.

He was initially accused of treason on the grounds that he had refused to give way to President Edgar Lungu's motorcade as it passed through Mongu, a town west of the capital Lusaka.

On Tuesday, Hichilema was charged in court with plotting with other people between October 10 last year and April 8 this year to overthrow the government by unlawful means.

The arrest has raised political tension in Zambia. The Southern African country has tradionally been relatively stable but relations between the government and opposition have been fraught since last August, when Lungu's Patriotic Front (PF) party beat the UPND in a presidential election marred by violence.

The opposition says the vote was rigged but Hichilema has so far failed in his legal challenge against the result.

Defence lawyer Keith Mweemba said on Wednesday that the treason charge was defective and bad at law.

"This court has power to quash the indictment and discharge the accused," Mweemba said.

The government has offered no further details on the alleged plot. Prosecutor Gemani Zimba said the state could still amend the charge to make it specific.

Magistrate Greenwell Malumani said a ruling would be made at a later date. Hichilema remains in detention.

Lungu has narrowly beaten Hichilema, an economist and businessman who goes by the nickname "HH", in two presidential elections by a close margin.

Human rights group Amnesty International said in its last annual report that the August presidential election was marked by increased political violence.

Authorities had repressed the right to freedom of expression and assembly, while police used excessive force to disperse meetings of opposition parties meetings, it said.

Hichilema and his UPND deputy Geoffrey Mwamba were arrested and charged with unlawful assembly and seditious practices in October after a party meeting, an action Amnesty called at the time a ploy to intimidate and silence the opposition. Hichilema and his deputy were granted bail after being charged with sedition.

The rising political temperature in Zambia, Africa's second-biggest copper producer, comes against the backdrop of an economy hobbled by low commodity prices, mine closures, rising unemployment, power shortages, a widening budget deficit and diminishing foreign-currency reserves. (Editing by Angus MacSwan)</s>The Zambian opposition UPND party called Thursday for the immediate release of its leader Hakainde Hichilema, who is due to appear in court next week on treason charges. The treason charges relate to Hichilema's convoy allegedly refusing to give way to President Lungu's motorcade on a main road in the west of the country at the weekend.

Start the conversation, or Read more at Vanguard.</s>LUSAKA, April 19 (Reuters) - Lawyers for a Zambian opposition party leader accused of trying to overthrow the government asked a court on Wednesday to throw out the case, saying the state charges were vague and ambiguous.

Hakainde Hichilema, the United Party for National Development (UPND) leader, was arrested last week in a police raid on his home.

He was initially accused of treason on the grounds that he had refused to give way to President Edgar Lungu's motorcade as it passed through Mongu, a town west of the capital Lusaka.

On Tuesday, Hichilema was charged in court with plotting with other people between Oct. 10 last year and April 8 this year to overthrow the government by unlawful means.

The arrest has raised political tension in Zambia. The Southern African country has traditionally been relatively stable but relations between the government and opposition have been fraught since last August, when Lungu's Patriotic Front (PF) beat the UPND in a presidential election marred by violence.

The opposition says the vote was rigged but Hichilema has so far failed in his legal challenge against the result.

Defence lawyer Keith Mweemba said on Wednesday that the treason charge was defective in law. "This court has power to quash the indictment and discharge the accused," Mweemba said.

The government has offered no further details on the alleged plot. Prosecutor Gemani Zimba said the state could still amend the charge to make it specific.

Magistrate Greenwell Malumani said a ruling would be made at a later date. Hichilema remains in detention.

"We have all the confidence that (party) president Hichilema and all other accused persons will be set free," UPND spokesman Charles Kakoma said. "The rulings in favour of the UPND defence team all point to that but we just have to wait for the courts to make the final verdict."

Lungu's spokesman Amos Chanda told Reuters: "President Lungu and the government have always had confidence in the judiciary and are of the view that the due process of the law should be allowed to run its full course in this matter."

Lungu has narrowly beaten Hichilema, an economist and businessman who goes by the nickname "HH", in two presidential elections. Human rights group Amnesty International said in its annual report that the latest one, in August, was marked by increased political violence.

Authorities had repressed the right to freedom of expression and assembly, while police used excessive force to disperse meetings of opposition parties meetings, it said.

Hichilema and his UPND deputy Geoffrey Mwamba were arrested and charged with unlawful assembly and seditious practices in October after a party meeting, an action Amnesty called at the time a ploy to intimidate and silence the opposition. The pair were granted bail after being charged with sedition.

The rising political temperature in Zambia, Africa's second-biggest copper producer, comes against the backdrop of an economy hobbled by low commodity prices, mine closures, rising unemployment, power shortages, a widening budget deficit and diminishing foreign-currency reserves. (Editing by Angus MacSwan and Mark Trevelyan)</s>Zambian prosecutors accused the main opposition leader, Hakainde Hichilema, of plotting to overthrow the government, according to charges read out in the magistrates court in Lusaka, the capital. Prosecutors allege that the leader of the United Party for National Development together with others planned to oust President Edgar Lungo's administration sometime between October 2016 and April 12, magistrate Greenwell Malumani told the court.

Start the conversation, or Read more at Bloomberg.</s>Zambian President Edgar Lungu will not intervene in the treason case against opposition leader Hakainde Hichilema, he told a public rally late on Friday. Hichilema was taken into police custody this week for allegedly refusing to give way to Lungu's motorcade as it passed through Mongo, 500 km west of the capital Lusaka, last Saturday.

Start the conversation, or Read more at Jerusalem Post.</s>Lusaka - The Zambian opposition UPND party called on Thursday for the immediate release of its leader Hakainde Hichilema, who is due to appear in court this week on treason charges.

The treason charges relate to Hichilema's convoy allegedly refusing to give way to President Lungu's motorcade on a main road in the west of the country at the weekend.

Hichilema's arrest has fanned political tensions in Zambia, where the United Party for National Development (UPND) refuses to accept last year's election result when President Edgar Lungu retained power.

Hichilema, known as "HH", has been denied access to lawyers, his party said, calling for supporters to protest outside court at the hearing due on Tuesday.

"We are demanding the immediate and unconditional release of HH as he has not committed any offence," UPND deputy Geoffrey Mwamba told a news briefing in Lusaka.

Police accuse Hichilema of putting the president's life in danger and "unreasonable, reckless and criminal" conduct in not pulling off a narrow road to make way for him.

Video footage showed vehicles travelling at high speed and nearly colliding as the presidential motorcade edged past Hichilema's convoy.

"Hakainde Hichilema has now been denied access to see his lawyers, which is a basic human right," party spokesman Charles Kakoma said in a statement.

Treason is a non-bailable offence in Zambia, with a minimum jail term of 15 years and a maximum sentence of the death penalty.

Hichilema and five party aides have also been charged with breaking the highway code and use of insulting language.

Hichilema was arrested after more than 100 armed police raided his house outside Lusaka early on Tuesday.

The UPND criticised the raid as "barbaric" after Hichilema's wife and children were trapped inside and choked by tear gas.

Hichilema has launched several legal attempts to challenge the result of the August election, which he lost narrowly.

He says that the vote was rigged and accuses Lungu of political repression in Zambia, which has been known for its relative stability.

The election campaign was marked by clashes between supporters of Lungu's Patriotic Front (PF) party and the UPND.

Hichilema, a wealthy self-made businessman, has run unsuccessfully for president five times.

The UPND called on supporters not to protest on Thursday as it said the government was seeking a chance to impose a state of emergency.

Some supporters at the press conference carried placards reading "Release HH before Zambia goes into flames".
Zambian opposition leader and presidential election runner-up Hakainde Hichilema is charged with treason and "trying to overthrow the government".