Barotse nationalists call for release of secessionists

Barotse nationalists have called for the unconditional release of four Namibian Caprivi secessionists detained in the western Zambian town of Mongu, ‘The Post’ newspaper reported on Monday. Barotse Patriotic Front President Mutangelwa Imasiku said every Lozi was entitled to be in Barotseland and did not have to necessarily be a Zambian. Imasiku said the four men, who had fled Botswana earlier this month where they had been given political asylum, feared persecution from the Namibian government and were in western Zambia to seek shelter from fellow Lozis. Caprivi was part of the pre-colonial Barotseland empire. Secessionist agitation in western Zambia has increased in recent years.