Community Action as Constitutional Enforcement in Zambia: A Doctrinal Analysis of Protests, the Bill of Rights, and Immigration Governance

This article advances a doctrinal and theoretical analysis of community action and protest asconstitutionally sanctioned mechanisms of enforcement within Zambia’s legal order. It argues that,under the Constitution of Zambia (Amendment) Act No. 2 of 2016, civic participation transcendspolitical expression and assumes a juridical function rooted in popular sovereignty andconstitutional supremacy. Focusing on immigration and customs enforcement—domainscharacterised by expansive executive discretion—the article demonstrates that community protestsoperate as a supplementary enforcement layer that both constrains administrative excess andshapes constitutional meaning. Through engagement with statutory frameworks, Zambianjurisprudence, and common law doctrines, the article develops a theory of “diffused constitutionalenforcement” and evaluates its implications for constitutionalism, legality, and state accountability.