A group of prisoners are released in November 1977 after six years of incarceration. They were among the leaders arrested, put on trial and condemned to life imprisonment for their role in the failed insurrection in April 1971. The rebels, led by Rohana Wijeweera, decide to enter mainstream politics. In 1982 Wijeweera, the candidate of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna secures some 300,000 votes at the Presidential Election. It is a small number but big enough to create consternation in political circles. Ethnic riots in 1983.provide a convenient excuse for the government to pin the blame on the JVP. Wijeweera and the party go underground. From then until the final denouement in November 1989 it is a dangerous and bloody game of hide-and-seek.