Zambia’s Mwanawasa, staunch critic of Mugabe, dies

PRESIDENT Levy Mwanawasa, a trenchant critic of Robert Mugabe who won praise for his handling of Zambia’s inflation-prone economy, died yesterday in hospital in France aged 59.

Mwanawasa, who had been receiving treatment at the Percy Military Hospital near Paris, never recovered after suffering his second stroke in a little more than two years at the end of June.

Acting head of state vice-president Rupiah Banda announced seven days of national mourning.