Mozambique opposition leader returns from self-exile, police use tear gas on supporters

By Manuel Mucari and Custodio Cossa

MAPUTO (Reuters) -Mozambique opposition leader Venancio Mondlane returned from self-exile on Thursday, defiantly claiming to have won a hotly contested October election, but security forces later used tear gas to disperse supporters who had gathered to greet him.

The disputed Oct. 9 poll, which Mondlane says was rigged, has sparked demonstrations over the past few months in which hundreds of protesters have been killed in the southern African nation of 35 million.

"My return does not result from any political agreement. My return is a unilateral decision to be in Mozambique," he told reporters at Maputo airport upon his return.

"I’m here to prove that I didn't leave Mozambique out of fear," he said, ending a period of exile that began a few days after the vote, when Mondlane had said his life was in danger.

Mondlane's return could further exacerbate protests which have continued sporadically since the electoral commission declared victory in mid-October for the candidate of the ruling Frelimo party, extending its half-century in power.

The official winner of the presidential vote, Daniel Chapo, is to be sworn in next week, another potential flashpoint in Mozambique's political crisis.

Chapo and Frelimo deny accusations of electoral fraud.

Mondlane reiterated his view that he was the true winner of the election, despite officially only securing 20% of the vote.

"I, Venancio Mondlane, (am the) president elected by the Mozambicans," he said at the terminal, holding a Bible.

"Not by the Constitutional Council, not by the national commission of elections, but by the genuine will of the people".

TEAR GAS

Thousands of cheering supporters appeared near the airport to greet him, before riot police armed with tear gas moved in to disrupt the gathering. A Reuters witness said snipers were positioned on buildings around the air base.

Civil society monitoring group Plataforma Decide has said at least 278 people died in post-election violence, which has also hurt businesses and disrupted border access with neighbouring South Africa. Some people have fled to neighbouring Malawi and Eswatini to escape the violence.

Mozambique's top court confirmed in December Frelimo's election victory - despite multiple reports from observers that it was not free and fair - triggering a fresh round of protests.

Frelimo has ruled Mozambique since the end of the war against Portuguese colonial rule in 1975, clinging on throughout a 15-year civil war that killed a million people before a 1992 truce.

(Writing by Tannur Anders; Editing by Tim Cocks, Ros Russell and Gareth Jones)