#bartoseland

New Post has been published on http://www.international-arbitration-attorney.com/william-kirtley-behalf-bnfa-publishes-article-barotselands-bid-independence-zambia-jeune-afrique/

William Kirtley, On Behalf Of The BNFA, Publishes Article About Barotseland's Bid For Independence From Zambia In Jeune Afrique

Acting on behalf of Dugué & Kirtley’s client, the Barotseland National Freedom Alliance (BNFA), William Kirtley has published an article concerning Barotseland’s bid for independence from Zambia in the leading Francophone African news magazine Jeune Afrique.

The former British protectorate of Barotseland willingly chose to become part of Zambia pursuant to the Barotseland Agreement 1964, a treaty brokered by the United Kingdom that was intended to preserve Barotseland’s semi-autonomous status within an independent Zambia.

Although Kenneth Kaunda signed the treaty himself, as the first President of Zambia he would violate every provision of the Barotseland Agreement 1964 starting soon after Zambia’s independence, going so far as to modify the Zambian Constitution to remove all references to the Barotseland Agreement 1964, to “annulling” the British act of parliament granting sovereignty to Zambia since it referred to the Barotseland Agreement 1964, to expropriating Barotseland’s treasury, to changing the name of Barotseland to the generic “Western Region” and attempting to undermine Barotseland’s previously well-functioning institutions.

In 2012, the Barotseland National Council voted to accept Zambia’s abrogation of the Barotseland Agreement 1964, with the logical consequence that Barotseland had regained its independence, but rather than engaging in dialogue Zambia has increased repression in the former British protectorate of Barotseland, imprisoning many Barotseland activists on the charge of treason, while refusing Barotseland’s calls for the peaceful resolution of the issue of Barotseland’s legal status by way of PCA international arbitration in The Hague.  To date, approximately 10,000 Barotseland representatives have signed a PCA arbitration agreement designed to allow an independent and neutral arbitral tribunal in The Hague to decide upon the current status of the Barotseland Agreement 1964. The Zambian army has also increased its presence in Barotseland, while President Sata of Zambia has steadfastly refused to sign the PCA arbitration agreement and have the Barotseland issue settled peacefully under international law.

A copy of the article concerning Barotseland’s enlightened attempts to have the issue of its legal status settled by way of PCA arbitration in Jeune Afrique, rather than violence as Zambia appears to be seeking, was co-written by a French social scientist, arbitration lawyer Koralie Wietrzykowski and arbitration lawyer Christophe Dugué of the law firm Dugué & Kirtley. It may be found online at  http://www.jeuneafrique.com/Article/ARTJAWEB20140606174635/ and is also reproduced below.