Mr Mushaima called on the government to be responsive to the demands of protesters Saturday, February 26, 2011
Bahrain opposition figure returns
Mr Mushaima called on the government to be responsive to the demands of protesters A prominent Bahraini opposition leader, Hassan Mushaima, has returned to his country from self-imposed exile in the UK.
The return of the senior Shia figure comes after the government dropped charges against him as one of several concessions made to protesters.
He was greeted by a crowd of supporters waiting at the airport to receive him.
Meanwhile, thousands of demonstrators marched in the capital, Manama, as protests continue for a 13th day.
Mr Mushaima is known for his strong opposition to the ruling Sunni dynasty, and was sentenced in absentia last year on charges of trying to overthrow the government.
He was welcomed by supporters at the airport, where he told the BBC that he wanted genuine democratic reform that could turn Bahrain into a constitutional monarchy.
"We want a real constitution. They've promised us (one) before and then did whatever they wanted to," Mr Mushaima told reporters at the airport.
The BBC's Owen Bennett-Jones said that Mr Mushaima's Haq Movement has a significant following in Bahrain's Shia community and his return could make a difference to the political situation.
Shia account for about 70% of the country's 525,000 people.
Mid-East unrest: Bahrain 
King Hamad, 61, has been in power since 1999Population 800,000; land area 717 sq km, or 100 times smaller than Irish RepublicA population with a median age of 30.4 years, and a literacy rate of 91%Youth unemployment at 19.6%Gross national income per head: $25,420 (World Bank 2009)Country profile: Bahrain Resentment boils over Global concerns over Bahrain 'Hope and fear'
Mr Mushaima has a reputation as being a radical, and in the past he has named members of the royal family as being corrupt and called for the king to be subject to the rule of law.
Meanwhile, opposition protesters marched from the capital's landmark Pearl Square to the prime minister's office, calling for him to resign.
Many waved Bahraini flags and chanted: "The people want the fall of the regime".
The government's decision to drop charges against Mr Mushaima is one of the concessions that it has offered the opposition in the hope of securing its participation in a process of national dialogue.
The cabinet has also been reshuffled, with four ministers being removed.
The question now is whether the government is willing to offer enough to heal the deepening rifts in Bahraini society, our correspondent says.
Bahrain - home to the US Navy's Fifth Fleet - is the first Gulf country to be thrown into turmoil by the wave of unrest sweeping the Arab world.
On Friday, the Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen visited Bahrain and described the country as a critical long-time ally.
This article is from the BBC News website. � British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/world-middle-east-12587902
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