Calm returns to Zambian capital after riots

LUSAKA, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- Calm has returned to some parts of Lusaka, the Zambian capital, following riots by some residents who protested moves by authorities to stop them from trading in undesignated places following a cholera outbreak, the police said on Friday.

Police fought running battles with residents of Kanyama, one of the slums in the city after police sealed a place they had turned into a trading place.

Police spokesperson Esther Mwaata-Katongo said the situation in most areas where there were disturbances has been contained.

She said some people have been picked up although she could not give the number, saying a comprehensive statement was expected to be issued.

"Police is on top of things," she said.

Some residents told local media that it was unfair for the authorities to stop them from conducting their businesses as it was the only source of income.

Authorities closed markets in the city and stopped trading on the streets following an outbreak of cholera which has claimed the lives of 65 people in the city.

Minister of Home Affairs Stephen Kampyongo urged the residents to be calm as the government was doing everything possible to find alternative places where they will be conducting their businesses.

While acknowledging that the government was mindful that most people's livelihoods in the city depended on trading in markets, the Zambian minister said the government was not going to compromise the health of the people. Enditem