Limiting Electoral Violence in Zambia 2011-2016

Electoral violence is a persistent problem in Zambia. This book is a case study of the usage,importance and impact of Public Diplomacy (PD) and Smart Power (SP) by the UnitedStates Agency for International Development (USAID/Zambia) and Friedrich-EbertStiftung (FES) in Zambia by means of collaborating with local NGOs - the Foundationfor Democratic Process (FODEP) and the Southern African Centre for the ConstructiveResolution of Disputes (SACCORD) to help elections take place among poor, uneducatedvoters without resorting to violence.General and by-election periods have for more than five decades generated an increasedintensity of electoral violence by hired impoverished youth political cadres who areincreasingly becoming more daring and lethal, capable of damaging property, inflictinginjuries on victims or causing death.There is a growing urgent need for special-tailored programmes that target instigators andperpetrators of electoral violence - more definitely needs to be done besides efforts byinternational organisations. It is up to citizens, local NGOs and especially political partiesand responsible public institutions to act in order to limit electoral violence in Zambia.