Hundreds of Angolan refugees, eager to return to their home country now that peace prevails, have left a refugee settlement in Zambia to begin the long journey home under their own steam. The office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Zambia confirmed that Angolan refugees had left the Mayukwayukwa camp in the past several days.

Four prison wardens confronted Alfarson Sinalungu, a freelance journalist who writes for the privately-owned "Post" newspaper, on September 17, over an interview he conducted with convicted coup plotter Captain Jack Chiti. Chiti, who is on death row, is currently in Kabwe general hospital. Sinalungu told MISA-Zambia that the wardens accosted him at the hospital and accused him of being the author of a profile of Chiti that appeared in the 7 September edition of "The Sunday Post". In the article, Chiti explained in detail his involvement in the failed 27 October 1997 coup d'état against former president Frederick Chiluba, his subsequent torture, the harassment of his family and his views on Zambia's current political situation.

Zambia's ruling party, the Movement for Multiparty Democracy (MMD) has secured a majority in parliament, following its victory in three of the four by-elections held last Thursday. The crucial by-elections were preceded by sporadic clashes between supporters of the ruling party and the opposition parties.

Tensions ahead of four critical by-elections in Zambia have seen sporadic violence erupt between ruling party and opposition supporters in the run-up to the polls. The ruling Movement for Multiparty Democracy (MMD) is hoping to gain an outright majority in parliament, while the opposition is desperate to bolster its numbers after losing some of its legislators through floor-crossing and a court ruling stripping an MP of his seat.

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has arrested former president Chiluba's former economic advisor Donald Chanda for theft of K20 million. The ACC also arrested former Public Service Pensions Fund (PSPF) managing director Offman Gondwe for abuse of office.

Dr. Kenneth Kaunda has got a point. All is not well in the fight against corruption. This fight is certainly not being executed in an objective, effective and efficient way. The high hopes and expectations that were raised by a seemingly dedicated and resolved President are being called into question - and this not unfairly. The momentum and steam that was generated is being lost to what appears to be incompetence and a lazy approach to a matter that requires both skill and dedicated interest.

The lack of assets in rural households struggling with the impact of HIV/AIDS in Malawi and Zambia is making them extremely vulnerable to shocks such as last year's drought, a recent survey has found. The Malawi and Zambia surveys found that about 80 percent of rural households in the two countries could be "classified as 'asset poor' or 'very poor'".

Zambia's 120,000 striking public servants on last Thursday dismissed a government threat they would be sacked if they did not return to work, and called instead for the authorities to honour an agreement to pay their housing benefits. "There is total chaos in the country - let them just pay and the workers will go back to work," Civil Servants and Allied Workers Union of Zambia (CSUZ) secretary-general, Darrison Chaala, told IRIN. The government on Wednesday described the industrial action launched on 26 August as illegal. "I am, therefore, advising all striking workers to return to work forthwith or face the consequences of their illegal action," Vice-President Nevers Mumba said in a national address.

Embezzlement of public funds has continued unabated under President Mwanawasa's administration, Transparency International Zambia (TIZ) has observed. Launching the 2002 state of corruption report on Wednesday, TIZ board member Leonard Kalinde said they were concerned at revelations of ongoing misapplication of government resources meant for national development.

A leading election monitoring group has called for politicians to rein in their supporters after clashes between ruling Movement for Multi-party Democracy (MMD) and opposition militants in Zambia's North Western and Western provinces ahead of two by-elections this month. Alfred Chanda, head of the Foundation for a Democratic Process (FODEP), told IRIN on Tuesday: "We as FODEP and other election monitoring groups are hopeful that the violence will not continue until election day, but looking at the issue realistically, the violence is likely to continue."

Lung diseases cause a large proportion of childhood illnesses and hospital admissions in sub-Saharan Africa. A recent study in Zambia shows that most children in this category died from preventable or treatable infectious illnesses. The authors recommend that clarity and consensus are needed in guidelines for the management of childhood respiratory diseases in developing countries.

The Task Force on Corruption in Zambia last Thursday arrested former permanent secretary in the Ministry of Health Kashiwa Bulaya for alleged corruption. A press release from task force spokesperson Betty Mumba said Bulaya was being investigated in connection with a contract worth over 3 billion kwacha (about 600,000 US dollars) awarded to a Bulgarian company for the supply of nutritional supplements to the ministry.

A measles vaccination campaign in Zambia has been hailed as a "spectacular success" by the UN Children's Fund Representative, Dr Stella Goings.

Zambia's 120,000 public workers went on a nationwide strike on Tuesday aimed at forcing the government to honour a pay agreement it says it can no longer afford to implement. "We have officially started a countrywide strike because the government seems to be ignoring our demands, even after they signed a collective agreement," Civil Servants and Allied Workers Union of Zambia (CSUZ) secretary-general, Darrison Chaala, told IRIN.

The Zambian government has instituted criteria to determine which of the country's 200,000 HIV/AIDS patients will have access to free antiretroviral drug treatment, Xinhua News Agency reports. Under the new guidelines, HIV-positive people wishing to access the drugs must undergo voluntary HIV testing and counselling as well as a clinical test to determine their viral load.

"Today" newspaper editor Masautso Phiri and reporter Wilfred Zulu may face contempt of court charges following a 3 July 2003 application to the Lusaka High Court by lawyers representing Vice President Nevers Mumba. The charge is connected to an article published by the weekly in its 11 to 17 June edition entitled, "Is Chief Justice Sakala compromised on Nevers Mumba?" The article commented on a High Court case in which an opposition member of parliament, Edith Nawakwi, is challenging the legality of Mumba's 28 May appointment as vice president.

In the early hours of a cold morning, the streets of Lusaka are thronging with people rushing to work. I pass through a coffee shop on my way to the office and as I sip the hot brew my attention is drawn to two elderly women who work as sweepers for the Lusaka City Council (LCC). Eavesdropping in on their conversation, I soon discover that they are talking about the challenges that women continue to face in their pursuit of equality.

Lack of awareness of the disease and supplies for detecting HIV infection may mask prevalence levels in some areas of the country, UNICEF resident representative Dr. Stella Goings has said. Speaking at the regional workshop for peer educators held at Mulungushi International Conference Centre, Dr. Goings noted that most countries represented at the workshop were among those heavily affected by the HIV/AIDS infections.

Zambia this month signed a bilateral agreement with the United States not to extradite US citizens accused of war crimes to the International Criminal Court (ICC), a US embassy official told IRIN last Friday.

Government has called on the police to work closely with non governmental organisations (NGOs) dealing in child abuse to combat child trafficking for commercial sexual exploitation. Youth, Sport and Child Development Deputy Minister Gunston Chola said the problem of child trafficking required concerted efforts as it was a problem affecting many countries.