Kaunda dies aged 97
STRUGGLE icon Winnie Madikizela-Mandela with Zambia’s former President Kenneth Kaunda in Lusaka in March, 2008. Kuanda died yesterday aged 97 after being admitted to Maina Soko Medical Centre earlier this week, where he was receiving treatment for pneumonia. He will be remembered for his contribution in the fight against apartheid in South Africa. |
LUSAKA: Kenneth Kaunda, Zambia’s founding president and liberation hero, has died aged 97 at a military hospital in Lusaka where he was being treated for pneumonia, his son Kambarage said on Wednesday.
Kaunda ruled Zambia from 1964, when it won its independence from Britain, until 1991, and afterwards became one of Africa’s most committed activists against HIV/Aids. The former president had been feeling unwell and had been admitted to the Maina Soko Medical Centre in Lusaka earlier this week.
Although Zambia’s economy fared badly under him, Kaunda will be remembered for standing against apartheid in South Africa.