Colombo: Leaders of Sri Lanka’s protest movement said on Sunday (July 10, 2022) that they would occupy the residences of the president and prime minister until they eventually step down, on which day the two men left the country in political limbo. agreed to resign.
Thousands of protesters stormed the home and office of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and the prime minister’s official residence on Saturday, as demonstrations turned into violence over his inability to recover from the devastating economic crisis.
According to the speaker of parliament, Rajapaksa will step down on July 13, while Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe also said he would step down to allow an all-party interim government to take power.
“The president has to resign, the prime minister has to resign and the government has to go,” playwright Ruwanthi de Chiquera told a press conference at the main protest site in Colombo.
Along with other leaders who helped coordinate the movement against the government, he said until then the crowd would not come out of the official residences of the President and the Prime Minister.
Although peace returned to the streets of Colombo on Sunday, eager Sri Lankans ransacked the Rashtrapati Bhavan throughout the day. Members of the security forces, some with assault rifles, stood outside the premises but did not stop people from entering.
“I’ve never seen a place like this in my life,” said 61-year-old handkerchief seller BM Chandravati, with her daughter and grandchildren, while trying out a plush sofa in a first-floor bedroom.
“They enjoyed super luxuries when we were suffering. We were hoodwinks. I wanted my kids and grandchildren to see the luxurious lifestyle they were enjoying.”
Nearby, a group of young men lay on four-poster beds and others took turns pushing and shoving on treadmills set up in front of large windows overlooking the manicured lawn.
Economic Crisis
Political chaos could complicate efforts to lift Sri Lanka out of its worst economic crisis in seven decades, triggered by a severe foreign exchange crunch that has halted imports of essential commodities such as fuel, food and medicines. .
The financial slowdown that developed after the COVID-19 pandemic hit a tourism-dependent economy and reduced remittances from foreign workers.
It has been ravaged by large and rising government debt, rising oil prices and a seven-month ban on imports of chemical fertilisers last year.
There has been heavy rationing of petrol and long lines have formed in front of shops selling LPG. The government has asked people to work from home and close schools in an effort to save fuel. Headline inflation of 22 million hit 54.6% in the country last month, and the central bank has warned it could rise to 70% in the coming months.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that any government in power “must act quickly to try to identify and implement solutions that will bring back the prospect of long-term economic stability, to the discontent of the Sri Lankan people”. which is so powerful and understandable”.
“We would urge the Sri Lankan Parliament to approach the country with a commitment to the betterment of the country, and not to any one political party,” he told a news conference in Bangkok.
India, Sri Lanka’s huge neighbour, which has provided nearly $3.8 billion in aid during the crisis, said it was watching the events closely.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF), which is in talks with the government for a possible $3 billion bailout, also said it was monitoring the events closely.
“We look forward to a resolution to the current situation that will allow the resumption of our negotiations on the IMF-backed programme,” the global lender said in a statement.
Where is President Rajapaksa?
Rajapaksa, who has not appeared in public since Friday, has not said anything directly about his resignation. Wickremesinghe’s office said he would also step down, although neither he nor Rajapaksa could be contacted.
Parliament Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abhaywardene said on Saturday that Rajapaksa’s decision to step down was taken “to ensure a peaceful transfer of power”.
Constitutional experts say that if the president and prime minister resign, the next step would be to appoint the president as acting president and vote for a new president within 30 days to complete Rajapaksa’s term in parliament .
Disappointment over the economic crisis boiled over on Saturday when a massive crowd of protesters forced armed guards to enter the colonial-era presidential palace and take over it. Furniture and artifacts were vandalized, and some took the opportunity to have fun in its swimming pool.
He then proceeded to the President’s Office and the Prime Minister’s official residence. Late in the evening, the protesters set fire to Wickremesinghe’s private house.
Neither Rajapaksa nor Wickremesinghe were in their homes when the buildings were attacked.
Around 45 people were brought to the main hospital on Saturday, but no casualties were reported in the peaceful takeover, a hospital official said.