Media shouldn’t focus on new Zambian leader’s race


On Oct. 28, the president of Zambia, Michael Sata, died in a London hospital a little more than a month after his mysterious absence from a scheduled speech to the United Nations. Though the news of Sata’s death shocked most Zambians — his illness had been kept a secret — something else shocked the rest of the world: Guy Scott, the new interim president, is the first white head of state in Africa in 20 years. Scott’s race, as well as the misplaced fear of the return of “white rule,” has shifted international attention away from far more important issues in Zambia.

Scott, the vice president under Sata, will serve as the interim president until the general election, which must occur within 90 days of the president’s death. Though Scott was born in Zambia (which was the British colony of Northern Rhodesia at the time), his eligibility to run for president is hotly contested because of a constitutional requirement that candidates must be of Zambian descent; Scott’s father emigrated from Scotland in 1927 and his mother emigrated in 1940, both prior to Zambia’s liberation. Despite Scott’s lineage, as well as the fact that less than 0.3 percent of the population is white, Zambians have, for the most part, accepted Scott as just another Zambian.

Tweets, blogs and local newspapers displayed support for Scott in the days following his appointment by the Zambian cabinet to serve as interim president. Chiponda Chimbelu, a Zambian writer for the international online newspaper DW, referred to Scott as a “Zambian patriot.” During the Zambian struggle for independence, both Scott and his father fought for liberation. To many Zambians, the new interim president is considered a “fellow African,” despite his lineage. Nathan Phiri, a bus driver in the Zambian capital of Lusaka, even told Reuters that Scott “is a black man in a white man’s skin. The very fact that we accepted him as vice-president shows that we consider him as one of us.”

Scott’s race, however, has been the center of discussions about Zambia in nearly every country except Zambia itself. International media has primarily focused on the fact that Scott is the first white head of state since F.W. de Klerk, the last leader of apartheid South Africa who was defeated by Nelson Mandela in 1994 in the nation’s first general elections with universal suffrage. In fact, newspapers in Malawi and the United Kingdom — including the Malawi Nyasa Times and London’s The Independent — have even gone as far as to call Scott’s presidency a “return to white rule” in Zambia.

What much of the international media fails to realize, though, is that the frenzy caused by Scott’s appointment has overshadowed not only the death of Sata, but also more important issues facing Zambia.

Though Scott’s race doesn’t pose a threat to the political system of Zambia, his actions as interim president have already led to increased tension within his party, the Patriotic Front, and the country as a whole. Less than a week after the death of President Sata, Scott fired a member of his own party, Secretary General Edgar Lungu, who also served as acting president while Sata was still in the hospital. The following day, Scott released an official statement rescinding his removal of Lungu. Though the official reasons are unknown, the dismissal of Lungu has not only caused tension among party members, but also elicited protests throughout Zambia.

In addition to the recent political turmoil, Zambia continues to face many of the domestic issues traditionally associated with developing countries. As of 2012, 64 percent of Zambians were living below the poverty line, despite the country’s abundant natural resources and high literacy rates. This high poverty level prevents many children from continuing their education, instead pushing them towards lives of unemployment, crime and prostitution. Zambia is one of the top countries most highly affected by HIV/AIDS, with 13.5 percent of the adult population infected.

With the support that he has from fellow Zambians — as well as the extra attention brought by international media — President Scott has the ability to leave a legacy that lasts beyond his 90 days in office. This media blitz might be exactly what Zambia needs in order both to boost its image as a country that fosters cooperation among races, political parties and even countries and to bring renewed attention to the domestic issues plaguing Zambia and its neighbors.

The next few months will be telling to see exactly how much progress has been made in Zambia. The fears about “white rule” are understandable, given the historical context, but the situation in Zambia — how Zambians themselves treat each other, and how they have handled the transition — portrays a more hopeful outlook.

7 replies
  1. M2000
    M2000 says:

    Reverse racism alert, so it’s wrong for an African country to have a white leader that pals around with its people?

  2. Don Harmon
    Don Harmon says:

    “Media shouldn’t focus on new Zambian leader’s race?” Sorry, Maddi, the media focuses on whatever will get their material viewed, read or heard. That gains advertising sales for them, and it is the way they make a living. Count on that, rather than imagining them to be noble, altruistic and kindly, and you will have a more realistic view of the media.

  3. Don Harmon
    Don Harmon says:

    “Media shouldn’t focus on new Zambian leader’s race?” Sorry, Maddi, the media focuses on whatever will get their material viewed, read or heard. That gains advertising sales for them, and it is the way they make a living. Count on that, rather than imagining them to be noble, altruistic and kindly, and you will have a more realistic view of the media.

  4. Don Harmon
    Don Harmon says:

    “Media shouldn’t focus on new Zambian leader’s race?” Sorry, Maddi, the media focuses on whatever will get their material viewed, read or heard. That gains advertising sales for them, and it is the way they make a living. Count on that, rather than imagining them to be noble, altruistic and kindly, and you will have a more realistic view of the media.

  5. Don Harmon
    Don Harmon says:

    “Media shouldn’t focus on new Zambian leader’s race?” Sorry, Maddi, the media focuses on whatever will get their material viewed, read or heard. That gains advertising sales for them, and it is the way they make a living. Count on that, rather than imagining them to be noble, altruistic and kindly, and you will have a more realistic view of the media.

  6. Don Harmon
    Don Harmon says:

    “Media shouldn’t focus on new Zambian leader’s race?” Sorry, Maddi, the media focuses on whatever will get their material viewed, read or heard. That gains advertising sales for them, and it is the way they make a living. Count on that, rather than imagining them to be noble, altruistic and kindly, and you will have a more realistic view of the media.

  7. Don Harmon
    Don Harmon says:

    “Media shouldn’t focus on new Zambian leader’s race?” Sorry, Maddi, the media focuses on whatever will get their material viewed, read or heard. That gains advertising sales for them, and it is the way they make a living. Count on that, rather than imagining them to be noble, altruistic and kindly, and you will have a more realistic view of the media.

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