S.Africa police arrest opposition leader over protest

CAPE TOWN, Sep 10 (Reuters) South Africa police arrested the country's main opposition leader in connection with a protest she led against drug lords wreaking havoc in Cape Town's poor districts, a party official said.

Democratic Alliance (DA) councillor Grant Pascoe said party leader and Cape Town mayor Helen Zille was arrested after she went to a police station to inquire about the arrest of a religious leader who had participated in the protest.

''She and other marchers were given three minutes to disperse from the station because police said it was an illegal gathering.

Immediately police arrested 15 people including (Zille),'' Pascoe told Reuters yesterday.

State radio said Zille was later released from police custody after being charged with contravening the Gatherings Act. It said she would appear in court on Tuesday.

Police were not immediately reachable for comment.

''The last time I was taken in like this was under apartheid,'' the tough-talking white mayor said in remarks broadcast on the radio.

''It was a completely peaceful march. We had permission for it. It was within the law and it is a completely wrongful arrest and malicious prosecution.'' Cape Town is the only major city not controlled by President Thabo Mbeki's African National Congress (ANC). A DA-led coalition has governed the coastal resort city since the 2006 municipal elections, taking over from the ANC.

Zille has warded off several ANC attempts to unseat her.

The DA elected Zille as its new leader in May, and she vowed to guard democracy against what she called the ''racial'' politics of the ANC.

REUTERS TB RN0437