Zambia's President dies

LUSAKA (AFP) - President Levy Mwanawasa, a trenchant critic of Robert Mugabe who won praise for his handling of Zambia's inflation-prone economy, died Tuesday 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 over two years at the end of June.

Announcing seven days of national mourning, acting head of state Vice-President Rupiah Banda told state television and radio that Mwanawasa died at 10:30 local time (0830 GMT).

"In order to prepare for the funeral, I suspend business of the house until further notice. Members will be informed as to when the House will resume business," said Amussa Mwanamwambwa, the Speaker of the National Assembly.

Zambia's 158-member parliament was adjourned indefinitely.

Mwanawasa, who was regarded as a champion of democracy in Africa, was in a serious car crash 15 years ago and had battled health problems for some years. He suffered his second stroke in Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt on the eve of an African Union summit there at the end of June.

After initially receiving treatment in Egypt, he was flown to France where he underwent surgery on Monday after a rapid deterioration in his condition.

As Zambia's third president, Mwanawasa won praise for keeping the lid on once-rampant inflation and public spending. The International Monetary Fund's deputy managing director Takatoshi Kato in June commended Mwanawasa "for implementing prudent macroeconomic policies."

Economic growth is running at over six percent. His government also steadily built up Zambia's international reserves to more than a billion dollars.

Mwanawasa won the respect of Western governments after being one of the first leaders to speak out against Mugabe, likening the state of his southern neighbour's economy to the Titanic in a speech last year.

In his role as Chairman of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), Mwanawasa hosted an extraordinary summit in Lusaka in April in a bid to break the political deadlock between Mugabe's ruling party and the Zimbabwean opposition led by Morgan Tsvangirai.

A furious Mugabe boycotted the Lusaka summit with his government saying the meeting had been "clearly sponsored by the British government."

After Tsvangirai announced his withdrawal from a run-off election against Mugabe in June, Mwanawasa slammed the region's "scandalous" silence on Mugabe. Tsvangirai on Tuesday described Mwanawasa as a good friend, comrade and champion of democracy.

"Sadly he has left us at this most trying time. His passing on is a sad day to the Zimbabwean people," the Movement for Democratic Change leader said in a statement. French President Nicolas Sarkozy paid tribute to Mwanawasa's "political courage." His death was "a huge loss for democracy, of which he was an ardent defender all his life," Sarkozy added in a statement.