LUSAKA — The Editorial Board of the Journal of Southern African Studies (JSAS) has called on the Zambian authorities to reverse the cancellation of the passport of historian and academic Dr Sishuwa Sishuwa, describing the decision as a matter of concern for his freedom of movement and expression.

Sishuwa, a senior lecturer in history at Stellenbosch University and a member of the JSAS Editorial Board, was among six Zambian citizens whose passports were cancelled by the authorities on grounds of “national security”.

In a statement, the JSAS Editorial Board said it was “deeply concerned” by the decision and urged the Zambian government to rescind it.

“We urge the Zambian authorities to rescind the decision and respect our colleague’s right to free movement and freedom of expression,” the journal said.

The cancellation was published in Government Gazette Notice No. 1421 of 2026, which stated that the affected passports were no longer valid for identification, travel or official purposes and directed their holders to surrender them to the relevant authorities.

The government has cited national security but has not publicly set out specific security allegations against Sishuwa.

The move has also drawn criticism from Amnesty International, which has placed Sishuwa’s case within broader concerns over restrictions on dissent in Zambia following the country’s elections.

Amnesty’s Deputy Regional Director for East and Southern Africa, Vongai Chikwanda, said the arbitrary cancellation of passports amounted to a violation of the right to freedom of movement protected under Article 12 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

Amnesty has called for the passports to be restored, arguing that Zambia’s passport and citizenship legislation provides specific grounds for cancellation, including loss of citizenship, fraud or misrepresentation, certain convictions and death. The organisation said political criticism or opposition to the government is not, by itself, a stated ground for cancellation.

The rights group also described the cancellation of the six passports as part of a wider deterioration in Zambia’s human rights environment, citing arrests and intimidation of opposition figures, activists, journalists and human rights defenders.

Sishuwa is a historian whose academic work focuses on the political history of Southern Africa, and his passport cancellation has now drawn concern beyond Zambia’s political and human rights circles.