Sri Lanka's Marxist leader ends exile

Security has been tightened ahead of the elections

By the BBC's Frances Harrison in Colombo

The leader of Sri Lanka's influential Marxist party has returned from a 12 year exile to address thousands of his supporters in advance of general elections in early December.

Somawansa Amarasinghe, once a wanted man for his part in a bloody Marxist uprising in which tens of thousands of people were killed, returned with a warning that this time his party could not be crushed.

He was given a hero's welcome by die-hard supporters waving red flags, braving hours of pouring rain.

For many, it was the first glimpse of the rebel leader who spent years in exile, most recently in Britain.

Mr Amarasinghe is the only surviving politbureau member from the Marxist uprising in the late 1980s.

All his other colleagues were assassinated in a brutal military crackdown by the United National Party government which was in power at the time.

Controversial return

Mr Amarasinghe's return to Sri Lanka is deeply controversial.

The Marxists appear to be siding with President Kumaratunga

For many, he is a figure to be feared, and some opposition United National Party politicians have even called for his arrest.

They allege that his party was responsible for the murder of up to 6,000 people when he was among its top leaders.

But in his first public appearance, Mr Amarasinghe said the figure quoted for the number of people who had died in the Marxist uprising is 60,000.

That means, he said, that the then United National Party government must have killed ten times more people than the Marxists.

The JVP, or People's Liberation Front, which is the third largest party in Sri Lanka, once espoused a blend of ethnic nationalism and revolutionary struggle.

But in this election, it appears to be siding with the party of the President, Chandrika Kumaratunga, hence the fact that its legendary leader has been allowed to return home.