The Constitution
The Republican Constitution has changed four times in 32 years. The country's first Constitution came with Zambia's independence from British colonialism in 1964. UNIP amended the document in 1973 in order to legitimatise one-party rule. In 1991, the Constitution was amended to re-introduce multi-party politics. The last amendment took place in 1996, after a Commission was appointed to review the document. The Constitution approved by the National Assembly on 2 August 1991 provides for a pluralist system of government. The Constitution provides for, among other things: the sovereignty of the nation; citizenship; the Bill of Rights; the executive arm of Government; Parliament; the Judicature; defence and national security; local government; the directive principals of State policy and duties of a citizen; the Human Rights Commission; and the House of Chiefs.

Fundamental human rights and freedoms
The Constitution sets out fundamental rights and freedoms of the individual and provides protection from discrimination on grounds of race, tribe, sex, marital status, political opinions, colour or creed.

The President
The President is bound by the Constitution to serve up to a maximum of two five-year terms. The President is elected by popular vote at the same time as elections for the National Assembly are held. Franchise is based on universal adult suffrage. Election rules and regulations are drawn by an electoral Commission which is empowered to limit and review constituency boundaries. The President exercises executive powers and is responsible for appointing Cabinet Ministers, High Commissioners, Ambassadors as well as service chiefs. The President is also the appointing authority of heads of parastatal organisations and boards. He is the Commander-in-Chief of the Defence Forces.

The Cabinet
The Zambian Cabinet (as at 3 July 1998) comprises: the President, Frederick Titus Jacob Chiluba, the Vice-President, Lt. Gen. Christon Tembo and 24 Cabinet Ministers.

Gender
Cabinet has two women Ministers: the Minister of Finance and Economic Development, Edith Nawakwi and Health Minister, Professor Nkandu Luo.

The National Assembly
Zambia has a unicameral legislature. Legislative powers are vested in the 158-member National Assembly. One hundred and fifty of these are directly elected by voters; the remaining eight are nominated by the Republican President.Out of 158 Members of Parliament, 15 are women. The Speaker of the National Assembly is Dr Robinson Nabulyato. He is the longest serving Speaker in the history of Zambia, having served for more than 20 years.

Results of last legislative election(1996)

Movement for Multiparty Democracy(MMD)	131
Nominated (from MMD)	8
Agenda for Zambia	2
Zambia Democratic Congress(ZDC)	2
National Party(NP)	5
Independent MPs	10
Total	158

UNIP boycotted the 1996 Presidential and Legislative elections over amendments to the Constitution that disqualified its President, Kenneth Kaunda. The 1996 Constitution restricts the Presidency to second generation Zambians. Kaunda was born in Zambia of Malawian parents. The next general election is due in 2001. Local government elections were scheduled for 1998, but the actual date has not been made known.

Judiciary
Judicial power is exercised by the Supreme Court, High Court, Magistrates' Courts and the Local Courts. There is also an Industrial Relations Court which handles and resolves labour disputes.
The Supreme Court of Zambia is the final Court of appeal. The judiciary is headed by the Chief Justice. Senior Resident and resident magistrates preside over Magistrate Courts. Local courts, with limited statutory power, deal largely with customary law.

Civil Society
The most influential non-government organisations include: Forum for Democratic Processes (FODEP), the Zambia Independent Monitoring Team (ZIMT), National Women's Lobby Group. Women for Change, Non-Governmental organisations Co-ordinating Committee (NGOCC), Zambia Civic Education Association (ZCEA), Law Association of Zambia (LAZ), Women in Law, the InterAfrica Network for Human Rights and Development (AFRONET), Zambia Association for Research and Development (ZARD), and the Legal Resources Foundation(LRF).

Human Rights Commission
Zambia has in place a Permanent Human Rights Commission (PHRC) headed by a female Supreme Court Judge, Justice Lombe Chibesakunda, which is provided for by the Republican Constitution. The PHRC was established in 1996 to oversee human rights issues in Zambia and serve as a watchdog against human rights abuses.
 

Important UN Instruments (Selected) Universal Declaration of Human Rights International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination International Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid International Convention against Apartheid in Sports Convention on the Rights of the Child Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women Convention on the Political Rights of Women Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons Convention relating to the Status of Refugees Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees