It’s a legal requirement to bury all Presidents at Embassy Park – HH

It’s a legal requirement to bury all Presidents at Embassy Park – HH

President Hakainde Hichilema has reaffirmed that Zambian law and tradition require all former presidents to be interred at Embassy Park in Lusaka. He stressed that this provision is not a matter of preference, but of statute and national practice, which the state is duty-bound to uphold.

Speaking during a public engagement, Hichilema explained that Embassy Park was established as the official burial ground for the nation’s heads of state, beginning with the late President Levy Mwanawasa, and subsequently hosting Kenneth Kaunda, Frederick Chiluba, Michael Sata, and Rupiah Banda. He described the site as a symbol of Zambia’s collective memory, a place where the sacrifices and contributions of past leaders are honoured, and where future generations can learn the country’s history.

The reaffirmation comes against the backdrop of controversy surrounding the burial of former president Edgar Lungu, whose family members have expressed resistance to a state-led burial at Embassy Park. Some relatives have argued for a more private arrangement, citing personal preference. The matter has escalated into a political dispute, drawing in opposition figures and fuelling public debate on the balance between family rights and state authority.

Hichilema emphasised that while he empathises with grieving families, the state cannot compromise on the legal and symbolic duty attached to the office of president. “This is not about liking or disliking a person. It is about preserving our national identity and the continuity of our institutions,” he said, adding that allowing exceptions would erode the sanctity of the precedent and weaken the symbolism of Embassy Park.

The President also argued that national unity and historical continuity are at stake. He noted that the law mandating presidential burials at Embassy Park was enacted not only as a legislative measure but as a national covenant to honour the highest office in the land. He reminded citizens that leadership is temporary, but institutions and traditions outlast individual lives. “We must protect the dignity of the presidency, not for ourselves but for future generations,” Hichilema said.

Meanwhile, Vice President Mutale Nalumango and other senior government officials have echoed the President’s stance, warning that undermining the legal requirement would set a dangerous precedent. Nalumango stressed that the burial of presidents carries a unifying national character and should not be subjected to private disputes. “This is a matter beyond family choice. It is about the Zambian people, whose history is written in these grounds,” she said.

Embassy Park itself has long been both a revered and contested site. For many Zambians, it is a national shrine, while for critics, it represents state control over private grief. The ongoing Lungu dispute has sharpened these tensions, with political actors on both sides attempting to frame the debate either as a defence of family autonomy or as an assertion of state legitimacy.

Despite this, Hichilema reiterated that government would enforce the law. “Presidents are not buried as individuals but as institutions. Their resting place is therefore a national matter, not a private one,” he concluded.