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regular-article-logo Friday, 26 April 2024

Sri Lankan President Rajapaksa invites Opposition to join unity govt

Stock trading halted, blue-chip index drops 5.92%

Our Bureau, PTI Colombo Published 04.04.22, 12:27 PM
Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. Facebook.

Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on Monday invited all political parties to join a unity Cabinet as part of the government's bid to tackle the raging public anger against the ongoing hardships caused by the island nation's worst economic crisis.

According to an official statement, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has invited all political parties to find solutions for the national crisis that has emerged .

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President Rajapaksa on Monday removed his brother and Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa from his post amidst the worst economic crisis that has plagued the island nation.

Basil had negotiated the Indian economic relief package to help Sri Lanka tackle the current foreign exchange crisis.

He has been replaced by Ali Sabry, who was until Sunday night the Minister of Justice.

Basil was scheduled to leave for the US to meet with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a possible bailout package to get over the unprecedented economic crisis.

Ajith Nivard Cabraal.

Ajith Nivard Cabraal. Facebook.

Sri Lankan central bank governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal said on Monday he submitted his resignation in the context of all cabinet ministers resigning.

Cabraal announced his resignation in a Twitter post.

In the context of all Cabinet ministers resigning, I have today submitted my resignation as Governor, Cabraal said.

He was blamed for his rigid stance on Sri Lanka seeking an economic bailout through an International Monetary Fund (IMF) structural adjustment facility.

Despite his opposition, the government in the last fortnight approached the international lender for support.

During his governorship, the Central Bank was accused of printing large volumes of money, triggering inflation.

On Monday, trading was halted on the country's stock exchange seconds after it opened when the blue-chip index dropped 5.92 per cent following a mass cabinet resignation in the face of the economic crisis.

On Sunday night, all 26 Cabinet Ministers submitted letters of resignation.

Speaking to reporters, Education Minister and Leader of the House Dinesh Gunawardena said the ministers handed over their resignations to Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa. He provided no reason for the mass resignation.

The government's invitation to all the Opposition parties came as mass public agitations mounted against the ruling Rajapaksa family for its mishandling of the economic situation triggered by the foreign exchange crisis and the balance of payment issues.

Widespread anger

The public thronged the streets asking the president to resign. The protests triggered the imposition of curfew after a state of emergency was declared by the President.

When the protests intensified, the government clamped a social media ban for 15 hours on Sunday.

The people defied the curfew to protest against long queues for fuel and gas and long hours without electricity.

The country is grappling with what is said to be its worst economic crisis since independence from the UK in 1948. It is caused in part by a lack of foreign currency, which is used to pay for fuel imports.

Sri Lanka faces power cuts as economic crisis worsens

People are languishing in long queues for fuel, cooking gas and endure power cuts lasting multiple hours.

Sri Lanka is currently experiencing its worst economic crisis in history. With long lines for fuel, cooking gas, essentials in short supply and long hours of power cuts, the public has been suffering for weeks.

Rajapaksa has defended his government's actions, saying the foreign exchange crisis was not his making and the economic downturn was largely pandemic driven with the island nation's tourism revenue and inward remittances waning.

Tear gas and water cannons for protesting students

Sri Lankan police fired tear gas and water cannons at hundreds of university students during a protest in the central province. The protest was held despite the curfew. The government's poor handling of the economic crisis where people currently endure long hours of power outages and scarcity of essentials has angered the public which planned country-wide protests on Sunday.

The government ordered internet service providers to restrict social media access, tightening curbs to prevent planned demonstrations calling for President Rajapaksa's ouster over soaring living costs and a foreign exchange crisis. The social media curbs were lifted in the second half of Sunday.

Defying curfew orders, lawmakers from Sri Lanka's principal Opposition party Samagi Jana Balawegaya staged an anti-government protest in Colombo against President Rajapaksa's move to impose a state of emergency and other restrictions.

"We will protect democracy in Sri Lanka, Opposition legislator Harsha de Silva said.

The Opposition lawmakers marched towards Colombo's Independence Square, chanting slogans and carrying placards that read: Stop Suppression and Gota go home." Police officials set up barricades leading up to the Independence Square, which was built to commemorate Sri Lanka's independence in 1948.

In Central Province, hundreds of students from the University of Peradeniya took to streets to protest against the present state of affairs in the country. However, police installed barricades close to the university.

University Students accompanied by their lecturers proceeded towards the Galaha Junction, and tensions boiled over when they attempted to remove the barricades set up by the police, News 1st channel reported.

Police and riot police used water cannons to disperse the crowd and thereafter fired tear gas, it said, adding that the situation is tense in the region.

In Western Province, a total of 664 people were arrested for violating the curfew and trying to stage an anti-government rally.

Opposition lawmakers, led by their leader Sajith Premadasa, had set off on a march towards the iconic Independence Square in Colombo, defying a weekend curfew imposed by the government on Saturday, ahead of the planned protest for Sunday.

"We are protesting the government's abuse of the public security ordinance to deny the public's right to protest, he said. The protest was organised by social media activists against the ongoing economic crisis and hardships heaped on people due to shortages of essentials.

A 53-year old man, who was protesting outside the private residence of President Rajapaksa over the long power cuts in the country due to the ongoing economic crisis, got electrocuted after he climbed a electricity pole, police said.

Sri Lanka blocks social media platforms after imposing emergency

Namal Rajapaksa, the sports minister and President Rajapaksa's nephew, told reporters that the social media blockade was useless as many people would use Virtual Private Network (VPN) to access social media sites.

The move was aimed at preventing masses from gathering in Colombo to protest the government's failure to provide relief to the public suffering from shortages of food, essentials, fuel and medicine amidst hours-long power cuts, the Colombo Page newspaper reported.

Later, the government lifted the ban it had imposed on social media platforms after declaring a nationwide public emergency.

The services of Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, TokTok, Snapchat, WhatsApp, Viber, Telegram, and Facebook Messenger were restored after 15 hours, according to an official. Meanwhile, former minister Wimal Weerawansa called for appointment of an all-party interim government to address the crisis.

He said the proposal has been presented to the President and the Prime Minister, and they received a positive response from both. Weerawansa said that he along with former minister Udaya Gammanpila, Vasudeva Nanayakkara, and Tiran Alles attended the meetings with the President and the Prime Minister.

Given the present situation in the country, we believe that the existing Cabinet of Ministers cannot function to address these crises. Therefore, we call for the Cabinet to be disbanded and reach for an all-party or multi-party agreement for an interim government, he told reporters.

Former cricket skipper Mahela Jayawardena said that certain people controlling the economy of Sri Lanka have lost the people's confidence and must stand down.

In a statement, he said these problems are man-made and can be fixed by the right, qualified people. "We then need a good team to give the country confidence and belief. There is no time to waste. It is time to be humble, not make excuses and to do the right thing," he said. Sri Lanka is currently experiencing its worst economic crisis in history. With long lines for fuel, cooking gas, essentials in short supply and long hours of power cuts the public has been suffering for weeks.

Rajapaksa has defended his government's actions, saying the foreign exchange crisis was not his making and the economic downturn was largely pandemic driven where the island's tourism revenue and inward remittances waning.

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