A/HRC/61/50/Add.1 26. Zambia does not have a national human rights action plan. A national mechanism for reporting and follow-up was established in December 2018, but its progress has been constrained by – among other things – a lack of adequate human and financial resources.16 V. Main findings from the visit A. Christian declaration 27. In December 1991, the then President, Frederick Chiluba, declared Zambia a Christian nation, and this was incorporated into the 1996 Constitution. According to the Government, its constitutional reviews, since independence, have always benefited from people-driven and inclusive consultations. However, representatives of the main Church “mother bodies” (see para. 34 below) stated that they had not been consulted about putting forward the Christian declaration in the preamble to the revised 1996 Constitution, nor had they been in favour of it. The Catholic Church,17 in particular, had repeatedly opposed it.18 The point made was that “being a Christian nation comes in how you behave, not what you declare”, and that the principle of separation of State and religion must not be lost.19 Reportedly, only Pentecostal groups are very committed to the declaration.20 28. Before the adoption of the Constitution of Zambia (Amendment) Act 2016, discussions were under way about moving the Christian declaration into the operative part of the Constitution and removing the reference to the multi-religious character of the nation. This effort reportedly fell short by just one vote on the Silungwe technical committee of 2012. Similar discussions took place in the context of bill No. 10 of 2019. 29. During the country visit, many shared first-hand experiences of what they saw as a “huge real-life impact” from the Christian declaration, claiming that it had led to discriminatory practices and introduced divisiveness in what had previously been a more equal space. There are also other practices, beyond the preambular declaration, that underscore exclusively Christian justifications being given for national initiatives. The commitment to completing a National House of Prayer 21 was justified by reference to fostering national unity as a cornerstone of the country’s Christian values and principles. The Special Rapporteur underlines that inclusive national messages and statements by senior officials are highly significant in setting the tone for allowing all Zambians to maintain their strong unity in their diversities. 30. In contrast, the introduction in 2015 of the 18 October public holiday marking an annual National Day of Prayer, Fasting, Repentance and Reconciliation appealed to all who believe in God, not only to Christians; it “appealed to all Zambians to assemble at their respective place of worship and spend time in prayer and fasting to seek the face of God to avert the dangers that confront the nation”. 22 The President’s parliamentary speech on national values and principles made no reference to any one religion as such or to the Christian nation declaration.23 31. Interlocutors shared concerns that steps were under way to fast-track amending the Constitution before the general election to be held on 13 August 2026. The published views 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 6 United Nations country team submission for the universal periodic review of Zambia, July 2022. See https://scielo.org.za/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S025994222010000100014#:~:text=The%20declaration%20that%20Zambia%20was,his%20election%20to %20the%20presidency. See https://web.archive.org/web/20240910101129/https://www.christianitytoday.com/2002/02/oneafrican-nation-under-god/. See https://journals.unza.zm/index.php/ZJOCI/article/download/961/736/ and https://www.lusakatimes.com/2022/12/16/christian-nation-declaration-losing-meaning-clergyman/. See https://www.zambiancu.org/1zRead/Cheyeka-ZambiaChristianNation.pdf. This was announced in 2015, with work on it beginning in 2020 but discontinued by 2021. See http://zambiahighcommission.ca/wp/wp-content/uploads/18october.pdf. See https://web.archive.org/web/20250319115940/https://www.ovp.gov.zm/?p=8462 (February 2025). GE.26-02761