LUSAKA: Supporters of Zambia's ruling party beat up a group of civil society activists, opposition politicians and a cleric who had moved their protest against high food prices to a church on Friday after their planned demonstration was banned.

Around 60 people were inside a church in Lusaka's Matero slum area when about 100 bussed-in supporters of President Michael Sata stormed the premises and started assaulting everyone, including a cleric who is highly critical of the president.

The cleric was badly wounded during the assault at the Bible Gospel Church in Africa (BIGOCA), where the former and late president Frederick Chiluba used to worship, an AFP reporter witnessed.

The government's decision two weeks ago to scrap subsidies for staples like corn meal has sparked an outcry in the country where 60 percent of the population live in poverty, with an average income of $3.45 a day.

Two weeks ago, police arrested 31 university students who had been detained on the president's orders after they staged protests against the government's decision to remove food subsidies.

Sata swept to power in 2011 on a populist vote, promising to end poverty, but his new move could hit the poor the hardest and fuel inflation.

In 1990, then president Kenneth Kaunda's government was rocked by food riots, which led to his ousting.