Stellenbosch University Supports Sishuwa Sishuwa

Stellenbosch University Supports Sishuwa Sishuwa

Letter of Support for Dr Sishuwa Sishuwa and Condemnation of State Harassment by the Zambian Government

We, the undersigned members of the global academic community brought together by our shared fellowship at the Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study (STIAS), Stellenbosch, South Africa, write to express our profound solidarity with Dr. Sishuwa Sishuwa, a Senior Lecturer in the History Department at Stellenbosch University, South Africa, and a Fellow of STIAS.

We have gotten to know Dr Sishuwa and his work well when we were all part of a cohort of STIAS fellows last year. We urgently call international attention to the severe state-sponsored harassment, intimidation, and infringement of fundamental rights directed against Dr. Sishuwa – and five other people who we do not know personally but with whom we also stand in solidarity – by the Zambian government.

Dr. Sishuwa is an internationally respected historian, public intellectual, and political analyst whose rigorous scholarship and sharp commentary have contributed immensely to the understanding of African history, politics, and democracy. While Dr. Sishuwa has been actively calling the government to fulfill its responsibilities, he has only always done so because of his love for his nation and motherland, wanting nothing but the very best for his country. It is deeply tragic that his uncompromising commitment to academic freedom and constructive civic critique has been met with state hostility. In an alarming escalation, the Zambian government has recently revoked Dr. Sishuwa’s passport.

We unequivocally denounce these actions by the Zambian government, which constitute a flagrant violation of both domestic and international law. Weaponizing state documentation to silence independent analysis is an authoritarian tactic designed to stifle dissent and terrorize intellectuals. These actions directly breach the right to freedom of expression, the right to academic freedom, and the universal right to nationality as enshrined in Article 15 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.

The weaponization of state power against an academic not only threatens Dr. Sishuwa’s personal safety, livelihood, and ability to travel for his essential work, but also sends a chilling message to researchers, journalists, and citizens across Zambia and the broader region. Intellectual rigor and critical dissent are the bedrock of any democratic society; they must be protected, not criminalized.

We demand that the Zambian government immediately: validate Dr. Sishuwa Sishuwa’s passport and restore his citizenship unconditionally;
cease all forms of harassment, intimidation, and judicial or administrative persecution against him; and, uphold its constitutional and international obligations to respect freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and academic freedom.

We stand firmly with Dr. Sishuwa in his defense of truth and democratic principles, and we urge university bodies, international human rights organizations, and diplomatic missions to join us in monitoring his situation and demanding justice.

Sincerely,
Paul Onanuga Federal University Oye-Ekiti, Nigeria

Vicki Carstens University of Connecticut, USA

Astrid S Widding Stockholm University, Sweden

Heike Becker University of the Western Cape, South Africa

Kepa Ruiz Mirazo University of the Basque Country, Spain

Anna Triandafyllidou Toronto Metropolitan University, Canada

Isaac N. Mwinlaaru University of Cape Coast, Ghana

A. Haroon Akram-Lodhi Trent University, Canada

Alex Ezeh Drexel University, USA

Bruce B. Janz University of Central Florida, USA

Lucia D’Ambruoso University of Aberdeen, Scotland, UK

Antuela Tako Nottingham Trent University, UK

Hylton White University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa

Peter Cole Western Illinois University, USA/Wits, South Africa

Sara Pugach Cal State Los Angeles, USA

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