Hichilema urges full military honours for Lungu burial

CHIPATA — President Hakainde Hichilema has renewed his appeal for former president Edgar Lungu to be buried with full military honours, a call that represents the government’s position.

The appeal lands in a burial dispute now running into its second year, with the former president’s body still unburied a year after his death.

The matter matters because Zambia’s sixth republican president remains unburied a year after his death, and the standoff over how and where to lay him to rest has become a proxy for the bitter rivalry between Lungu and Hichilema that defined the last decade of Zambian politics. Hichilema made the appeal at the burial of Ngoni Paramount Chief Mpezeni IV, holding the dignified send-off of a traditional leader up as the example the country should follow for its former head of state.

Lungu, who led Zambia from 2015 to 2021, died in a South African hospital on 5 June 2025 at the age of 68 after an undisclosed illness. One year on, his remains are still in South Africa. According to Africanews, a South African court ordered in May that the body be kept at a mutually agreed mortuary in Pretoria while the family pursues its bid to bury him privately in Johannesburg.

Hichilema said the country had a duty to bury Lungu with dignity and in keeping with the honours due a former commander-in-chief. The government has maintained throughout that Lungu is entitled to a state funeral in Zambia with full military honours, a position Hichilema repeated as he urged all sides to work together. This story is part of Kwacha News’s continuing politics coverage.

What happened

Speaking at the burial of Paramount Chief Mpezeni IV of the Ngoni people — an event attended by traditional leaders from across the region — Hichilema returned to the unresolved question of Lungu’s funeral. He framed the chief’s dignified burial as a model, and appealed for the former president to be laid to rest in the same spirit, with the full military honours the state says the law requires.

The appeal is the latest move in a dispute that has stalled for a year. The government and the Lungu family reached an agreement shortly after the death to hold a state funeral, but the family later reversed course, citing unresolved concerns over the funeral programme and Hichilema’s role in it. Lungu’s relatives have said he left instructions that Hichilema should not attend his funeral. The government, for its part, says a former president is owed a state send-off as a matter of law and public interest.

Hichilema has already ended the national mourning period for Lungu while the funeral row continued, a step reported by the African Press Agency. The renewed call for a military burial signals that the government still wants the matter resolved on its terms rather than the family’s.

The court papers demanded that the former president be buried in Zambia with full military honours, as mandated by Zambian law and in keeping with the public interest.

— Court filing in the burial dispute, reported by <a href="https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/court-order-stops-former-zambian-president-edgar-lungus-burial-in-south-africa-on-the-day-of-his-funeral">PBS NewsHour</a>

Background

The deadlock is rooted in the rivalry between Lungu and Hichilema, who contested several elections against each other before Hichilema won the presidency in 2021. The two men were political adversaries for years, and the animosity outlived Lungu. A South African court halted an attempt to bury him in that country on the day a private funeral had been planned, and the legal contest over the body has continued for months. The Washington Post set out why the feud left a former president unburied long after his death.

The dispute also carries weight for the 2026 election cycle. Lungu was the figurehead of the main opposition, and the question of his burial has kept the rivalry between the governing United Party for National Development and the Patriotic Front alive in public debate. Kwacha News has tracked the wider opposition realignment, including the parties that have endorsed Hichilema ahead of the vote, and the contested politics around the former president’s image, including a government warning over a fake AI video of Lungu.

Analysis from the Institute for Security Studies has argued that the saga, and the disarray in the opposition that followed Lungu’s death, has reshaped the political landscape before the 2026 poll. The think tank examined Lungu’s death and the perils of a weak opposition in Zambia, evidence that the funeral question is about more than protocol.

What to watch

The first thing to watch is whether the family responds to Hichilema’s latest appeal or holds to its position that the burial should be private and in South Africa. The two sides have agreed before and the agreement collapsed, so a fresh appeal does not guarantee a resolution.

The second is the South African courts. The body is held at a Pretoria mortuary by court order while the family’s legal bid proceeds, and the next ruling will shape whether the standoff moves at all. A decision that favours the family would harden the deadlock; one that favours the Zambian government could clear the path to a state funeral.

The third is the political read at home. With the 2026 election approaching, both the government and the opposition have an interest in how the former president is remembered. The decision point that matters next is the court’s, but the appeal shows the government wants the matter settled before the campaign intensifies.

Frequently Asked Questions

These are the questions readers have been asking about the Lungu burial dispute. Short answers follow, drawn from international reporting and court filings in the case.

What is the Lungu burial dispute?

In short, the dispute is the year-long standoff over how and where to bury former president Edgar Lungu, who died in South Africa on 5 June 2025. The answer, simply put, is that the Zambian government wants a state funeral with full military honours at home, while the family wants a private burial in Johannesburg. The key is that the disagreement is rooted in the rivalry between Lungu and President Hakainde Hichilema.

Why does Hichilema want full military honours for Lungu?

The answer is that the government says a former president is owed a state send-off by law. According to court filings reported by PBS NewsHour, the position is that Lungu should be buried in Zambia with full military honours, as mandated by Zambian law and in keeping with the public interest. Hichilema has repeated this stance publicly.

Why is Lungu still not buried a year after his death?

Simply put, the family and the government cannot agree. Evidence from the case shows the two sides reached an agreement on a state funeral, then the family reversed course over the funeral programme and Hichilema’s role. A South African court has since ordered the body kept at a mutually agreed mortuary in Pretoria while the family’s legal bid continues.

Where is Edgar Lungu’s body now?

The answer is a mortuary in Pretoria, South Africa. According to Africanews, a South African court ruled in May 2026 that the remains be kept at a mutually agreed facility while the family pursues a private burial in Johannesburg, blocking any move until the legal dispute is settled.

How does the dispute affect Zambian politics?

The key is that it keeps a decade-old rivalry alive before the 2026 election. Analysis from the Institute for Security Studies shows Lungu’s death and the burial standoff have weakened the opposition and reshaped the political landscape, so the funeral question carries weight well beyond protocol.

Sources

Africanews: remains of ex-president Lungu to be kept at a mutually agreed mortuary. PBS NewsHour: court order stops Lungu’s burial in South Africa. The Washington Post: why the feud left a former president unburied. African Press Agency: Hichilema ends national mourning amid funeral row. Institute for Security Studies: Lungu’s death and the perils of a weak opposition. Kwacha News coverage: opposition realignment ahead of 2026 and the warning over a fake AI video of Lungu.