BANGUI, April 12 (Reuters) - More than 20 people were killed on Sunday when farmers and traders fought over cattle at a livestock market near the capital of Central African Republic, a hospital official said. The dispute centred on the ownership of cattle stolen by highway robbers over a week ago but later recovered from the bandits and brought to the market just outside Bangui. "Twenty-two corpses have been brought to the morgue. This is only a provisional tally as the injured are still arriving," said Joel Nganafei, an official at Bangui's community hospital. Central African Republic is one of the poorest countries in the world despite its vast natural resources. It has endured years of civil conflicts and banditry is rife. Fernand Koumanda, head of a cattle breeders' association, said the fighting started when some traders at the market claimed that they owned 56 of the 174 beasts initially stolen, enraging some cattle farmers. "I've just come from the hospital. The bodies and injured I've seen are horrific. Cracked heads, slit throats, bodies with arrows in them, others riddled with bullets, hacked by machetes. I've never seen anything like it in my life," said Bernadette Sayo, minister for social affairs. Health Minister Andre Nalke Dorogo appealed on national radio for doctors and health workers to go to the hospital as quickly as possible to try and save lives. (Reporting by Paul-Marin Ngoupana; Editing by David Clarke)
