COLOMBO: Sri Lanka has been plunged into political fermentation, with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa under pressure to abdicate as demurrers escalate over an profitable extremity.
The islet nation of 22 million people is passing acute dearths of food, energy and other rudiments — on with record affectation and crippling power cuts — which have foisted wide misery in the most painful downturn since independence from Britain in 1948.
The South Asian country, which surfaced from a ruinous civil war in 2009 only to be rocked by Islamist bombings in 2019, has also been hard hit by the Covid-19 epidemic, which torpedoed its vital tourism sector.
Russia’s irruption of Ukraine has dealt a new blow to the tourism assiduity as the two European countries represented Sri Lanka’s first and third biggest sources of callers in January.
Then’s how the extremity has unfolded
March 31 President’s home hovered
Hundreds of protesters, rallied by unidentified social media activists, try to storm the home of chairman Rajapaksa, demanding his abdication in a night of violence and wrathfulness at the profitable extremity.
Police fire gash gas and water cannon and at least one man is critically injured.
The capital is placed under curfew.
April 1 State of exigency
As demurrers spread, Rajapaksa declares a state of exigency, giving security forces sweeping powers to arrest and detain suspects.
The state of exigency is for the” protection of public order and the conservation of inventories and services essential to the life of the community”, Rajapaksa says in a proclamation.
April 2 Colors stationed, curfew
Sri Lanka declares a 36-hour civil curfew and deploys colors.
The order takes effect at dusk and was to be lifted on the morning of April 4, police say — a period that covers planned massanti-government demurrers.
April 3 Cabinet resigns
The government briefly blocks access to social media before the ban is lifted following a ruling by the country’s Human Rights Council.
Nearly all of Sri Lanka’s press also resigns from their positions at a late- night meeting, leaving Rajapaksa and his family Mahinda — the high minister — insulated.
April 4 Further adoptions
Rajapaksa offers to partake power with the opposition under a concinnity administration led by him and Mahinda, but is rebuffed.
Heavily fortified security forces look to quell further demonstrations.
Trading is halted on Sri Lanka’s stock exchange.
The governor of the central bank, who had defied mounting calls to seek an IMF bailout, also announces his abdication.
Former Sri Lankan justice Test captain Mahela Jayawardene joins calls for government leaders to abdicate.
April 5 President loses maturity
Rajapaksa’s problems consolidate as finance minister Ali Sabry resigns just a day after he was appointed.
Rajapaksa also loses his administrative maturity as former abettors prompt his abdication and demonstrations continue for a fifth straight day. He lifts the state of exigency.
Source: The International News
