PLAYERS in the tourism industry in Kisumu yesterday assured tourists that normalcy has returned to the lakeside city following a spate of killings.

The Lake Victoria Tourism Association said: "We want to assure that calm has returned to Kisumu after two days of riots." In a statement signed by LVTA chairman Daniel Okumu and Phelix Obuya, the association said security has been beefed up in the town.

"During a successful training on safety and security in the tourism industry organised by the ministry of Tourism, we were assured all is well in Kisumu," said the statement.

The LVTA said all tourism sites in the region are safe and all measures have been put in place to ensure safety of all tourists. Riots rocked Kisumu on Monday and Tuesday last week following the killing of local ODM chairman Shem Onyango Kwega by two armed gangsters.

Prime Minister Raila Odinga on Friday held a meeting with provincial security chiefs and asked police not to use live bullets during demonstrations.

The tourism industry in the region is reeling from the effects of post election violence which rocked Kisumu following the disputed 2007 general election.