Death and state funeral of Michael Sata

Michael Sata, the President of Zambia, died on 28 October 2014 in London at the age of 77, after suffering from an undisclosed severe illness.^[1] The state funeral took place on 11 November and was attended by nine heads of state, nine foreign representatives, two heads of multilateral organizations and two former African political leaders.

Death and state funeral of Michael Sata

Sata (centered) in 2013, the year before his death
Date	28 October 2014 (death) 11 November 2014 (state funeral)
Location	Lusaka, Zambia
Participants	Guy Scott Edgar Lungu

Illness and death

On 19 October 2014, Sata left the country for a medical check-up in the United Kingdom, leaving Defence Minister Edgar Lungu in charge in his absence.^[2][3] Sata's absence from public view, given that the fiftieth anniversary of the country's independence was four days away, speculated rumours on the status of Sata's health. Sata died at King Edward VII's Hospital in London on 28 October, with his wife, Christine and son Mulenga by his bedside. Vice President Guy Scott became acting president until a presidential by-election could be held, making him the first head of state of European descent in Africa since F. W. de Klerk in apartheid-era South Africa, and the first ever under a democratic system.^[4][5]

Funeral dignitaries

Country	Title	Dignitary
Kenya	President	Uhuru Kenyatta[6]
Madagascar	President	Hery Rajaonarimampianina[7]
Malawi	Vice President	Saulos Chilima[7]
Mozambique	President	Armando Guebuza[7]
Namibia	President	Hifikepunye Pohamba
South Africa	Deputy President	Cyril Ramaphosa[7]
Swaziland	Prime Minister	Barnabas Sibusiso Dlamini[7]
Tanzania	Vice President	Mohamed Gharib Bilal[8]
Zimbabwe	President	Robert Mugabe[7]

Government representatives

Country	Title	Dignitary
Angola	Speaker	Fernando dos Santos[9]
China	Minister of Housing and Urban-Rural Development	Chen Zhenggao[10]
Ethiopia	Speaker	Abadula Gemeda[9]
Ghana	Minister of Central Region	Aquinas Tawiah Quansah[11]
Sahrawi Republic	Minister of Foreign Affairs	Mohamed Salem Ould Salek[12]
South Africa	First Lady	Bongekile Zuma[9]
Tanzania	Speaker	Anne Makinda[13]
United Kingdom	Countess of Wessex	Sophie[7]
Zimbabwe	First Lady	Grace Mugabe[7]

Heads of multilateral organizations

Organisation	Title	Dignitary
African Union	Chairperson	Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma[9]
Southern African Development Community	Executive Secretary	Stergomena Tax[7]

Former leaders

Country	Title	Dignitary
Botswana	3rd President	Festus Mogae[14]
Nigeria	Head of State	Yakubu Gowon[7]

Reactions

Domestic

Sata's predecessor, Rupiah Banda, said that Sata "was more than a public servant. He was a passionate competitor, a man of conviction and determination. He was also a loving son, a husband, a father, and friend to me, despite everything we've been through, a friend. Above all, Michael Sata was a Zambian, in body, soul, and spirit. We have gone through this before as a country and we made it to the other side because we were united. Let this be a time that we set aside the ideas that separate us, and embrace the humanity and dignity that unites us as a country and defines us as a people."

Mark Chona, former special assistant to Kenneth Kaunda, Zambia's first president, said: "We are very devastated because he was a very hard working and committed president and leader. He was extremely passionate about anything he had decided to achieve."

International

The South African government (which Vice President Scott had previously irritated by calling "backwards") issued a statement that read: "President Sata belongs to the generation of leaders produced by Zambia during the colonial times and gallantly pursued the anti-colonial struggle. His death reminds the people of South Africa of Zambia’s immeasurable sacrifice and the sterling leadership role that Zambia played in ridding the African continent of the yoke of colonial domination and apartheid rule."

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta hailed Sata as an "outstanding son of Africa" and added: "He was gifted with unique, admirable abilities and strong values."

The Foreign Secretary of Zambia's former colonial power Britain, Philip Hammond, said: "[Sata] played a commanding role in the public life of his country over three decades...and finally as president."^[15]