Maravi

Concerns surrounding Barotseland Agreement are real - Chipimo

Concerns surrounding Barotseland Agreement are real - Chipimo
By Bright Mukwasa
Sun 09 Jan. 2011, 04:01 CAT

CONCERNS surrounding the Barotseland Agreement are real and reflect the anger existing in rural areas of the country, says NAREP president Elias Chipimo Jr. Chipimo said the 1964 Barotseland Agreement was an important document as part of the country's history and could not be simply washed away.

"These concerns are real and reflect an anger and anxiety that exists in nearly all rural communities in Zambia," Chipimo told journalists during a media briefing in Lusaka yesterday.

He said there was need to carefully assess the issues being raised regarding what the Barotseland Agreement was planned to achieve.

Chipimo cited lack of leadership from the current regime for the controversy surrounding the Barotseland Agreement.

He said using the courts of law and state machinery to quell the uprising brewing in Western Province was not sustainable.

"We should not dismiss the voices that call upon us to re-examine our past," he said. "What is democracy if it cannot be expressed through matters such as these?"

Chipimo said serious discussion of the Barotseland Agreement could offer a viable alternative development planning mechanism for rural communities that could be extended to all areas where traditional authorities had a major role to play.

"If handled correctly, this could bring significant development benefits to these communities and serve as a way forward of preserving the positive aspects of our culture," said Chipimo.

Chipimo said the Barotseland Agreement offers a useful basis for commencing a debate about a viable means of incorporating chiefs and traditional authorities into development planning of the country. Chipimo said there was no need to fear restoring an old hope.

He said there must be a clear economic plan that incorporates rural communities as an integral part of the overall development and that traditional leaders must be party to the planning and implementation of all local programmes.

Chipimo said the recognition and respect of traditional leaders must not only be ceremonial.

"We therefore need to not only examine carefully the obligations set out in the Barotseland Agreement, but to extend its spirit and intention to all areas governed by traditional authorities," he said.

He said chiefs and traditional establishments at various levels should become a necessary part of the development delivery mechanism.

Labels: BAROTSELAND AGREEMENT, ELIAS CHIPIMO

posted by MrK @ 7:30 PM