South Africa Court Blocks Return of Ex-Zambian President’s Remains
Last update: April 23, 2026
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Legal battle between family and Zambian government delays funeral plans.
A court in South Africa has blocked the repatriation of the remains of former Zambia president Edgar Lungu, halting renewed plans for a state funeral and prolonging a dispute that has lasted nearly 10 months.
The decision marks another setback for President Hakainde Hichilema, whose government wants Lungu buried in Zambia, while his family prefers he remain in South Africa, where he died in hospital on June 5.
Zambia’s attorney general Mulilo Kabesha said earlier that a court had formally handed the remains to the government after the family did not pursue an appeal.
However, Lungu’s family quickly sought an urgent injunction, prompting the High Court in Pretoria to intervene and suspend the transfer.
The court ordered the Zambian government to return the remains to a private funeral home or another facility chosen by the family. Judge Rochelle Francis Subbiah said the order would remain in place until May 21.
The family has repeatedly resisted efforts to return the body to Zambia, arguing that Lungu would not have wanted his successor, Hichilema, present at his funeral. The disagreement has led to a prolonged legal standoff.
In response, the Zambian government previously attempted to stop his burial in South Africa while funeral arrangements were already underway.
CBI News reports that Lungu, who died at the age of 68, was a political rival of Hichilema and lost power to him in a landslide election in 2021.
Since then, his wife and children have faced corruption charges, which supporters claim are politically motivated.
In August, a Pretoria court ruled that Zambian law should apply and ordered the family to hand over the body, a decision they later challenged in court.
Even the official mourning period became a point of contention. An initial seven day national mourning period was extended by nine days and was meant to end on June 23, shortly after a planned state funeral.
Hichilema, however, ended the mourning period four days early, citing the family’s continued refusal to allow the body’s return.
The cause of death was not publicly disclosed, though Lungu had been receiving specialised treatment in Pretoria, according to his Patriotic Front party.
He had been suffering from recurring Achalasia, a condition that affects the oesophagus and makes swallowing difficult.
