Kigali clears streets of hawkers, street children

Law enforcement agents have bolstered their efforts to rid Kigali's streets of hawkers and street children in a bid to improve security in the capital, the Rwanda News Agency reported on Monday.

It quoted the Kigali City Council official responsible for social affairs, Antoine Semukanya, as saying the activities of hawkers and street children had become a cause of public concern. He denied complaints that the security forces had used violence in dealing with the problem.

"We have had cases where defence forces have been beaten up by street children and hawkers," he said.

He said street vendors had refused offers to move into markets from which they could sell their wares. The city government was also taking the action, he added, so that it could collect taxes. Most traders, he said, evaded taxes by hawking their goods.