Protesters celebrate after entering the office building of Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on 13 July. (Adnan Abidi / Reuters)
Sri Lanka has been shaken by economic protests that have forced its president to flee and caused chaos in the South Asian country.
Here’s a brief guide to what’s going on.
Why do people protest? According to analysts, an economic crisis that has gripped Sri Lanka has been going on for years, with a series of government decisions exacerbating external shocks.
Over the past decade, the Sri Lankan government has borrowed large sums of money from foreign lenders to finance public services. This era of indebtedness has coincided with a series of hammer blows to Sri Lanka’s economy, from both natural disasters and heavy monsoons to man-made disasters, including the government’s ban on chemical fertilizers that they decimated the crops of the farmers.
Faced with a massive deficit, Rajapaksa cut taxes in a doomed attempt to stimulate the economy. But the measure was counterproductive and affected government revenue.
What has happened in recent days? Protests have escalated in Sri Lanka since March, when public anger erupted in the streets over rising food costs, fuel shortages and power cuts as the country struggled to pay off debt.
Over the weekend tens of thousands of protesters gathered in front of the president’s office and residence before breaking security cords. Spectacular images showed protesters swimming in the president’s private pool.
Sri Lankan armed forces took Rajapaksa to a naval ship minutes before protesters stormed his residence, a senior military source told CNN on Sunday. Then, on Wednesday, he fled the country with his wife and landed in the Maldives.
Who is in charge now? Rajapaksa was due to officially resign on Wednesday, officials said, following an emergency meeting convened by Parliament Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena. Wickremesinghe posted on Twitter that he was resigning “to ensure the continuity of government, including the safety of all citizens.”
But he fled the country before officially resigning. He then appointed Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe to take over the role of president.
What comes next? Protesters want the whole government to resign, and there is no sign of a halt to the riots unless that happens.
“We want to warn President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, the Prime Minister and this whole government that the 13th is the last day for you to come to power,” the organizer of the protest, Father Jeevantha Peiris, said on Tuesday.
“Protest dinners are already approaching Colombo at the same time. If this change does not materialize tomorrow, the popular struggle that led to this revolution will be demonstrated again, shown through protests, strict actions and popular power.