Zambia’s record of 25 years of peaceful elections appears to be under threat. With less than a month to go before the country goes to the polls on August 11, 2016, for national elections, the Electoral Commission of Zambia has suspended campaigning, after reports of hundreds of injuries and many deaths at political rallies. The latest related deaths were reported on July 9th.

In cities around Zambia, election posters of the two leading candidates, President Edgar Lungu (Patriotic Front) and Hakiande Hichilema (UPND) hang in tatters or are singed. Despite pledges from leaders of all political parties to refrain from violence, the conduct of their supporters has not always reflected their pledges. Political parties have hired unemployed youth to brandish weapons, marking territory for one party over another.

It was in this context that, on July 12, 2016, Martin Luther King III, a human rights advocate and son of the late American civil rights leaders, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Coretta Scott King, addressed Zambian political party youth at a national conference against electoral violence.

A former elected official himself, King urged the youth to “never allow any election to be seen as a zero sum engagement, where the winner wins all and the loser loses all.” He added that “all leaders bear a responsibility to encourage their supporters to respect the rules of the game,” and called on the young political leaders to “reject the use of violence as a political tool.”

The event was organized by NDI as part of its youth conflict mitigation initiative. With help from NDI’s Zambian partners, Young Women in Action (YWA), the Council of Churches of Zambia (CCZ) and the Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI), the event was designed to provide young leaders with anti-violence training and a platform on which to speak against electoral violence.

“Conflict prevention must be rooted on sturdy, resilient, participatory and inclusive governance systems.  However, institutions and systems alone are inadequate; a more comprehensive response should include the fostering of a culture of democracy and peace.” - Martin Luther King III

Over the past month, two hundred party youth representing various parties from Eastern, Southern, Copperbelt and Lusaka provinces have put aside their differences to stand together against conflict. Through joint radio broadcasts, meetings on nonviolence and other joint activities, Zambian youth are crossing political lines to vie for peace.

Speaking in the Zambian capital of Lusaka, King and Benard Wakoli, national youth leader of the Ford-Kenya party, discussed a strategy for peace with the gathered youth leaders. Twenty-four youth elected by their political party peers as “peace ambassadors,” discussed the actions they are taking in the name of peace and identified ways to continue working peacefully across political divides after the election.

King urged the young party members to “...use every opportunity and avenue to advocate for youth-sensitive policies, and for expanded political space that provides respect for freedom of association, freedom of movement, freedom of the press and access to information, such that young people can become more aware of their rights and opportunities to participate in decision-making and civic life.”

The Zambian Political Party Youth United Against Violence program is made possible through a grant from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

While in Lusaka, King also met with civil society, religious and business leaders and spoke at the Human Rights Commission meeting on the Public Order Act.

Published July 13, 2016