South Africa's ruling ANC condemned an attack on its supporters at the weekend as an act of "desperation and barbarism" and party officials blamed activists from the opposition Inkatha Freedom Party, according to Reuters. The unrest in volatile KwaZulu-Natal province came as South Africa prepares for elections expected in April. The African National Congress faces its most serious contest since apartheid ended in 1994, including a challenge from a breakaway party. Violence erupted on Sunday after the ANC held a rally in northern Zululand, a key electoral area for the party and the opposition IFP. ANC buses were stoned and a car carrying MP Prince Zeblon Zulu and two women was shot at, police said. All three were hurt, according to police. The ANC's parliamentary caucus condemned the attack on Prince Zulu as an act of "desperation and barbarism". "No amount of intimidation and cowardly attacks can subdue the will of our people or frustrate our election preparations in that province," it said in a statement. Party officials blamed the IFP, the second largest opposition party. The IFP denied it was responsible and its leader, Mangosuthu Buthelezi, said he was opposed to the violence and it would not be tolerated. "I believe the people of this country will resolve their problems through negotiations," he said at a rally on Sunday. Tensions between the ANC and IFP go back to the apartheid era when the two fought over control of KwaZulu-Natal, the traditional home of the Zulu tribe. Thousands were killed in clashes between them at the time. The ANC hopes to make inroads in the vote in the home province of party leader Jacob Zuma. That might make up for losses the ANC suffers at the hands of the newly established Congress of the People, established by ruling party defectors. The new party has accused ANC supporters of disrupting its meetings and engaging in low-level political violence.
