Urging reconciliation in Madagascar, former president Didier Ratsiraka has returned home, ending a nine-year exile in France.

Madagascan parties have signed an agreement allowing the return of Marc Ravalomanana whose 2009 ouster plunged the country into political paralysis.

Madagascan soldiers who declared a coup three days ago maintained their stand on Saturday, insisting they wanted an end to the country’s crisis.

Dissident Madagascan soldiers claimed on Wednesday they had taken power of the island as it voted in a constitutional referendum.

Madagascans go to the polls on Wednesday for the first time since the March 2009 coup to vote in a constitutional referendum.

One year after the overthrow of Madagascar’s president, the Indian Ocean island is facing stiffer political penalties and economic sanctions.

Madagascar’s army chief warned on Tuesday his troops would take control if leaders failed to resolve the political crisis within 72 hours.

At least 68 people died in a wave of rioting in Madagascar this week, as President Marc Ravalomanana accused his main rival of stoking unrest.