Zambia's President Hakainde Hichilema has come out fighting after a bruising month that saw him come under attack by stone throwers as he was trying to make a speech.
Video clips of him crouching and then being whisked away from a rally in the Copperbelt province shocked Zambians and many people, irrespective of their political affiliation, condemned what happened.
But with nine months to go until elections and a run for a second term, the president is under pressure.
On Tuesday, in his first press conference for 18 months, Hichilema set out to defend his record and laid out his achievements on the key issues of the economy and power generation.
"This level of hatred is shocking, you can see and even touch the venom," he said, while appealing for Zambians to love each other.
