Zambian ex-leader Kaunda calls for peace after disputed elections

Zambia's first President Kenneth Kaunda on Thursday called for peace in the aftermath of the disputed general elections which have caused violence and tribal attacks in certain parts of the country.

Kaunda, who ruled Zambia since independence from Britain in 1964 to 1991, called on people to maintain peace during the post-election period by continuing to love each other.

The 92-year-old Kaunda said at Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa that the future of Zambia was in God's hands, according to a statement released by the Zambian Embassy in Ethiopia.

The former Zambian leader made a stopover in Ethiopia on his way to Equatorial Guinea where he has been invited to attend a conference together with 30 other former African leaders to discuss the future of Africa.

Zambia's August 11 general elections have been followed by pockets of violence in which supporters of incumbent President Edgar Lungu and his main challenger Hakainde Hichilema have been attacking each other.

Attacks flared after Lungu was declared winner of the presidential election.

While the opposition leader's supporters have been accused of attacking ruling party supporters in the party's strongholds, the opposition party has also complained that its supporters were being attacked.

The two leaders have since called on their supporters to remain calm although Lungu has refused to meet the opposition leader to discuss what was happening in the country.

Hichilema has challenged the declaration of Lungu in the Constitutional Court, forcing the government to cancel its plan for Lungu's inauguration this week.

Lungu was declared winner after getting 1,860,877 of the votes while Hichilema got 1,760,347 votes. Endit