World’s largest human rights gathering cancelled due to alleged Chinese pressure
RightsCon 2026, the worlds largest annual gathering of human rights and democracy activists has been cancelled at the very last minute, allegedly due to pressure from the Chinese government. The gathering, set to put together thousands of activists from around the world was to be held in Zambia this year, marking the first time the event was to take place in sub-Saharan Africa. Due to this chocking development, it may be yet another setback to African countries being selected to host such events.
The summit, set to start next Tuesday (May 5), organized by Access Now, was abruptly cancelled on April 29, as thousands of people from every continent was to begin their travel to the capital of Lusaka. The explanations from the Zambian government, which has already started to “evolve”, made it clear other reasons was likely behind the cancellation.
At first, the reason given, by the technology and science minister, was to allow for “pending administrative and security clearances” of some speakers, and it was merely a postponement. Later the very same day, the Zambian government said its cancellation was “necessitated by the need for comprehensive disclosure […] relating to key thematic issues proposed for discussion during the Summit.” Later, an official statement said the action had been taken to “ensure full alignment with Zambia’s national values, policy priorities, and broader public interest considerations.”
It should be noted the same government had openly welcomed the proposed hosting of the summit in Lusaka, and in writing, promised to assist with ensuring visas for participants. They had even advertised the event themselves. In fact, just a month before a government official welcomed the event and emphasized “its alignment with Zambia’s national development agenda.”
Strange indeed.
Already foreign influence into Zambian decision making and its own national sovereignty appear obvious, which was later confirmed when media, in an article by journalist Mwenya Mofya, stated that insiders had said that the real reason for its cancellation was pressure from the Chinese government. Specifically, the participation of Taiwanese delegates who may – quite naturally – voice criticism of the CCP. The venue to host the event had been extensively refurbished with financial aid from China, and at the time the government said it was a “gift from […] China” with “no strings attached.” Not surprisingly, that was, as this development shows, not even remotely true, as often with “gifts” from the PRC government.
Just weeks ago, on April 14, the EU Parliament held an event on EU- and foreign prisoners and detainees in China, at which Safeguard Defenders; Peter Dahlin was a speaker. Apparently the Chinese government tried to have the event cancelled repeatedly (to no avail). A story on this event will be made available next week on this website.
Safeguard Defenders’ Peter Dahlin said it was “yet another clear-cut piece of evidence that China’s much vaunted global ‘non-interference’ in domestic affairs is merely a tool to deflect any possible criticism of its own actions, and the idea that this is anything other than a smoke-screen should be put to rest once and for all.”
Tied to RightsCon, Lusaka was to host the 2026 World Press Freedom Day, organized by UNESCO. There is no word yet if UNESCO will cancel the event, which it should, as the Zambian government’s actions are antithetical to the very idea of freedom of information and the press. Safeguard Defenders have reached out to UNESCO’s press office with an inquiry what steps they are taking in light of these events, and if it will cancel its event.
Human Rights Watch also reported that a “leading Zambian academic, Sishuwa Sishuwa, [said] that Zambian authorities may have been worried that delegates to the summit, mostly human rights activists, “would have put the country under scrutiny” for its human rights record. He said that “Zambia has seen severe restrictions on the rights to peaceful assembly, free speech, and freedom of association, the arrests of government critics and political opponents on a variety of charges such as criminal libel, sedition, unlawful assembly, and the broadly expanded laws on hate speech."
While Zambia does not maintain an extradition treaty with China, nor a mutual legal assistance treaty (MLAT), extraditions can still take place under Zambia’s extradition law. Both countries are part of the the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC) and the UN Convention against Corruption (UNCAC), which, while international treatises, can be used for bilateral judicial cooperation between the two.
It is strongly advised that human rights defenders working on issues related to China, or other issues to which the Chinese government may take offense, do not travel to Zambia, as this act of appeasement by the Zambian government to pressure from China renders the Zambian government fully untrustworthy.
