CEYLON: The Che Guevarist Uprising

Guerrilla fighting broke out in Ceylon last week and quickly engulfed much of the island. The rebels were members of a Maoist organization called the People's Liberation Front. Their target was the strongly leftist government of Mrs. Sirimavo Bandaranaike, which is not leftist enough for their tastes.

The harshness of Mrs. Bandaranaike's response showed how seriously she regarded the threat. She adjourned Parliament, ordered a 24-hour curfew and sent out her 13,000-man police force and 11,000-man army to crush the uprising. Armored units swept the road between Colombo and Kandy, and air force planes bombed a bridge and textile factory that...

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