BRE should understand that the objective of the BA’64 was not to surrender our sovereignty to the new state styled as Zambia but secure our rights to self-rule
by Saviour Silumesi Mumbela
The Barotseland Agreement 1964 was essentially meant to transfer her Majesty’s Britannic government’s obligations over Barotseland to the newly independent Republic of Zambia. Those obligations related specifically to development, finances and external relations. In other words, the new state inherited a protectorate whereby Barotseland retained her freedom to conduct her own local governance affairs as she deemed fit. Nonetheless, clear as the terms of the Barotseland Agreement were, the Zambian government had acted in bad faith. This is the reason the regime catastrophically chose not only to disregard its obligations under the Agreement, but even went ahead to mutilate it, unilaterally abrogate it and even went as far as forcefully attempted to grab the Barotseland territory and its people for its own possession as attested by the new Zambia’s municipal Constitution of 2016. As a consequence of successive Zambian regime’s perpetual deceptions, we, the Malozi, during the Barotse National Council of March 2012 accepted the repudiation of the now dead and buried Barotseland Agreement 1964. Since then, the Agreement between Barotseland and Northern Rhodesia, which gave birth to the now failed unitary state of Zambia, ceased to have effect. Therefore, They lost all rights to exercise any authority over Barotseland and they have been administering the territory illegally. In line with the law of contract, Article 60(3) of the Vienna convention states that, a material breach or violation by a party to the provision essential to the object or purpose of the treaty is a repudiation of the treaty that entitles the other party or parties to invoke the breach as grounds for terminating it. Therefore, the BRE and the Zambian regime should understand that any right they exercise is now null and void. For all intents and purposes, the Barotseland Agreement 1964 no longer have effect and the BNC being the only surviving Barotseland governance institution, following the onslaught by successive Zambian regimes. In line with the post Liminium doctrine we can no longer be obliged to honor an agreement that the other party has unilaterally abrogated. In the same manner that the abrogation reverted Barotseland to its original status prior 1964, the BNC of 2012 reverted Barotseland to its original status as a sovereign state, so that as people of Barotseland we should determine our political, culture, social and economic development as a separate entity from Zambia. Reverting to self-determination and self-rule is our God given right. I caution the BRE to stop their ill-fated program of restoring the dead and buried Agreement. The only remaining dialogue with the Zambian regime is on the disengagement process as dictated by the BNC. The embattled BRE you should understand that they have lost the right to represent the people of Barotseland, having turned their back against their wishes and aspirations as enshrined in the March 2012 BNC Resolutions. I, as representing the youths of Barotseland, will not take kindly to the BRE maneuvers aimed at trying to disrupt and derail the process towards the total independence of Barotseland. We, the youths of Barotseland revere the March 2012 BNC Resolutions and will not allow the BRE to trivialize them. The Resolutions stand out in the history of Barotseland next in significance only to the grand pizo which was called by Imutakwandu Mulena yo Muhulu Lubosi Liwanika la ma fuchi in 1906. Therefore, as a youth, I say that nothing can stand in our way and anything that stands in the way shall be uprooted and thrown out--root, trunk and branches. The Lord shall turn all stumbling blocks into stepping stones. The wind of Barotseland statehood is blowing and we have gone into high gear to that effect. May God bless Barotseland.