Kamala Harris declined to comment on the charges against former President Donald Trump, but Zambia’s president spoke up, saying the “law is universal no matter who is involved”.
The vice president was on the final leg of her trip to Africa and held a joint press conference with Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema on Friday when the two were asked to respond to Trump’s impeachment.
“I will not comment on an ongoing criminal case involving the former president,” Harris replied.
But Hichilema said the indictment shows the law extends “no matter who is involved.”
The Zambian Prime Minister said that “regulations create a platform or framework around which we, either as Americans or as Zambians, agree to govern ourselves” and “live within those boundaries”.
Vice President Kamala Harris declined to comment on the impeachment against Trump as she neared the end of her Africa trip, but Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema offered his own take on the matter
The vice president was on the final leg of her trip, holding a joint press conference with Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema on Friday when the pair were asked to respond to the indictment
Trump is the first former president to be indicted in a criminal case after a grand jury investigated hush money on his behalf during the 2016 presidential campaign
“In the case of a violation of the law, it doesn’t matter who is involved,” Hichilema added. “I think that’s what the rule of law means. That is universal.”
Trump is the first former president to be indicted in a criminal case after a grand jury investigated hush money payments made on his behalf during the 2016 presidential campaign.
Prosecutors in New York were investigating funds paid to porn star Stormy Daniels and ex-Playboy model Karen McDougal to stop the women from going public with claims they had sex with him.
Hichilema continued on Friday: “The impeachment against President Trump – what does this mean for the rule of law? Let’s remove names from your question.’
“Let us say what we have decided to govern ourselves in an orderly manner. [We] passed our constitutions – the bedrock law. Then secondary laws and other regulations create a platform or framework around which we, either as Americans or as Zambians, have agreed to govern ourselves and so live within those boundaries.’
“And when there’s a violation of the law, it doesn’t matter who is involved. I think that means rule of law. It’s universal,” he continued.
Hichilema also compared the situation to corruption in Zambia.
“And here, Vice President, we now have a scenario as we fight the corruption that drains resources from children and the sick – sometimes throwing in names and creating perceptions that are utterly inappropriate,” he said.
“Because violations of the law, if you take what is public property, you have broken the law and the name doesn’t matter.”
President Biden also declined to comment on the charges, repeating, “No comment, no comment, no comment.”
President Joe Biden speaks to reporters on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Friday, March 31, 2023 before boarding Marine One. Biden is en route to Mississippi to survey damage from a recent tornado. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
Although the streets outside the Manhattan courthouse were busy on Friday, there were no signs of large-scale protests. A few Trump supporters dropped by and quickly posed for photos while cops and reporters lined the sidewalks
“I’m not going to talk about Trump’s impeachment,” Biden said firmly as he exited the White House en route to Mississippi, where he was touring storm damage.
In his brief exchange with reporters, the Democratic president underscored the broader tactics his administration is attempting to employ when it comes to the indictment of the former Republican president by a Manhattan grand jury:
Lower the political temperature, stay out of active criminal affairs, focus on Biden’s agenda and priorities.
Trump, who is running for the White House again in 2024, called a Manhattan grand jury’s decision to indict him as “political persecution and election interference at the highest level.”
Meanwhile, Harris continued her travels in Africa, where she announced at a press conference in Zambia that she was calling on China to write off Zambia’s debt as she promised to send the country billions from the US.
Hichilema continued: “The impeachment against President Trump – what does this mean for the rule of law? Let’s remove names from your question.
US Vice President Kamala Harris, on the final leg of her week-long trip to Africa, has urged China to write off Zambia’s debt as she vowed to send the country billions from the US
The VP landed Thursday at a $1 billion airport in Lusaka built by Beijing, serving as a reminder of the enormous influence China has over the African state.
Harris said the Lusaka government has taken measures to strengthen its economy and should be helped with debt relief. She was speaking at the start of a two-day visit to Zambia on the final leg of her week-long trip to Africa.
The Vice President also took the time to visit her maternal grandfather’s home in Lusaka, where he lived as an Indian civil servant in the 1960s.
Zambia has been attempting to restructure its debt since becoming the first African country to default during the COVID-19 pandemic in late 2020. Its debt increased late last year, according to figures released by the Treasury Department this week. China is its largest bilateral creditor.
“We continue to reiterate our call to official bilateral creditors to allow Zambia significant debt reduction,” Harris said at a news conference when asked what the United States is doing to press China to restructure Zambia’s debt.
Harris is welcomed by Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema in Lusaka, Zambia on Friday
Harris arrives before departing from Julius Nyerere Airport in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Africa has become a focus for Washington as it seeks to position itself as a partner to countries in the region to compete with China, which has sought to expand its influence by funding infrastructure projects on the continent.
Harris said her visit to Zambia was intended to strengthen existing ties between the two countries and not counteract the Chinese presence in Africa.
‘Let me be clear. Our presence here is not about China. It’s about our independent understanding of the intertwined histories of our nations,” said Harris, who also spoke warmly of visiting her grandfather when he was working in Zambia as a child.
At the same briefing, Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema said delays in debt restructuring would hurt Zambia’s economic gains.
Good relations with the United States do not preclude good relations with China and vice versa, he added.
“When I’m in Washington, I’m not against Beijing. Likewise, when I’m in Beijing, I’m not against Washington,” he said.
When Harris arrived in Zambia on Friday, she landed at an airport twice the size with glittering new terminals.
It is not a symbol of promising local development but a reminder of China’s great influence. Beijing funded the project, one of many that has expanded its presence in a booming continent rich in natural resources and often generating goodwill among its citizens.
Harris said the Lusaka government has taken measures to strengthen its economy and should be helped with debt relief. She was on a two day visit to Zambia
Zambia has been trying to restructure its debt since becoming the first African country to default during the COVID-19 pandemic in late 2020. Pictured: National Assembly of Zambia
Harris and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff wave as they depart from Julius Nyerere Airport in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
The global rivalry between the US and China was a recurring backdrop to Harris’ trip, and nowhere was this more evident than in Zambia and her stop in Tanzania
The global rivalry between the United States and China was a recurring backdrop to Harris’ trip, and nowhere was this more evident than in Zambia and her previous stop in Tanzania.
In addition to the airport, China built a 60,000-seat stadium in Lusaka, as well as roads and bridges across the country. Zambia is on the hook for all development with billions of dollars in debt.
Tanzania is a major trading partner with China and has a new political leadership school funded by the Chinese Communist Party.
The developments have alarmed Washington, and President Joe Biden’s administration is concerned that Africa is slipping further into Beijing’s sphere of influence.
Harris downplayed the issue throughout her trip, preferring to focus on building partnerships independent of geopolitical competition.
However, she has acknowledged that the US has limited time to gain a foothold on the continent and told reporters earlier in the trip that there is a “window” that is “definitely open now” for American investment.
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris (L) and Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema (R) are seen during a news conference at the State House on March 31, 2023 in Lusaka
Harris addressed a news conference Thursday after her meeting with Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
The VP took a break for something much more personal on Friday amid the diplomatic whirlwind: a visit to the site of her maternal grandfather’s home in Lusaka.
Working with the newly independent Zambian government on refugee resettlement six decades ago, PV Gopalan lived at 16 Independence Ave., which Harris attended as a little girl.
The house no longer exists; rather, there is now an office building on the property. According to a White House official, the site was identified using lot numbers in public records and land surveys.
Harris said Friday it was “very special” to go back, and she described her grandfather as “one of my favorite people” with a lasting impact on her life.
“He believed in the nobility of public service, he believed in fighting corruption,” she said. “Those are things he talked about a lot, and I don’t think I realized until I was older how that subconsciously affected the way I thought.”
Officials at the US Embassy in Lusaka combed through public records, spoke with Zambian and Indian authorities and reached out to former Zambian government officials to pinpoint the exact location of Gopalan’s home.
Harris and Emhoff visit an office building that is recorded to be on the property where their grandfather PV Gopalan’s home was when he served as an Indian civil servant
Harris gestures as she talks over a photo of her from a visit to Zambia, where she posed on the rock in front of the National Assembly of Zambia on Friday
Harris family members also offered reminders of the home, which helped in the embassy’s search, the White House official said.
The confirmation came just in time for Harris’ week-long trip to Africa; The US Embassy identified the location as Harris was in Ghana a few days ago, the first stop on her visit to the continent.
The Zambian Ministry of Land confirmed through a public land document dated 9 March 1967 that 16 Independence Ave. was actually Gopalan’s home.
When Harris toured the site, US embassy official Elizabeth Norikane told the vice president that she had been looking for the exact location for a year.
Zambia has celebrated Harris’ childhood ties to the country. Driving into town from the airport, Harris was greeted by signs that read “Welcome back to Zambia.”