KAUNDA: UNSUNG HERO OF AFRICA’S FREEDOM STRUGGLE

On 28th April, 1924, one of Africa's liberation heroes - Kenneth Kaunda - was born in northern Zambia. Kaunda Day is officially commemorated on this date in Zambia, honouring both his birthday and his towering contribution to African freedom. Fondly known as KK and Super Ken, he was not only Zambia's founding president but a pan-African icon who gave the best of his 97 years of life to ensuring that every single inch of African land was free of colonialism. As President of Zambia, Kaunda led other African leaders to form the coalition of Frontline States, a collection of countries in southern and East Africa that had gained their independence in the early 1960s.

The group played a key role in mobilising resources and support for the armed struggle against racist and colonial regimes in Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), Namibia, Mozambique, Angola and South Africa. These efforts helped to ensure that, by the 1990s, most colonial regimes in Africa had collapsed or were on the verge of collapsing. The contribution of less widely known heroes such as Kaunda must never be forgotten.

Kaunda's bravery in the face of adversity carries lessons for the present. In 2023, when a popular coup in Niger deposed Western favourite Mohamed Bazoum, Burkina Faso and Mali rallied in defence of Niamey and showed solidarity amid Western-backed invasion threats from regional states.

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