Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, April 10: A massive anti-government street protest demanding Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s resignation has turned into an all-night vigil as thousands thronged Colombo’s iconic seafront on Sunday in the largest agitation yet since public protests erupted against the government’s “failed” response to the country’s deepening economic crisis.
Sri Lanka facing its worst economic crisis since gaining independence from the UK in 1948 and people have been protesting for weeks over lengthy power cuts and shortage of gas, food and other basic goods. Since mid-day Saturday, the protesters from all walks of life marched into Galle Face where Rajapaksa’s secretariat is located. By evening, the main Galle Road was completely blocked with protesters bringing the traffic to a standstill. “We are still here,” a participant at the site had a social media posting by 6 am on Sunday. They claimed that mobile phone signals had been jammed in the area.
Eyewitnesses said a section of the protesters had remained for the all-night vigil. They were chanting ‘Go home Gota’, urging the President to resign. “This is not a joke, we are here because we have no electricity, gas, fuel and medicine,” a protester told reporters. “They must go, they have no solutions,” another said, adding that they have no political lean
Demonstrators marched towards the Colonial-era Presidential Secretariat, the most powerful office in the country, loudly chanting slogans asking President Rajapaksa to resign. They held posters sharply criticising him and the ruling clan, calling them “thieves”, asking them to “go home” and even “go to jail”.
The past few weeks have witnessed a surge in public protests across Sri Lanka, as citizens struggle to access and afford essential food items, cooking gas, and fuel amid shortages and record inflation. The Rajapaksa administration is facing unprecedented public outrage, including from its own support base, for “mishandling” the severe economic downturn facing the island nation.
“They have just ruined our country. We don’t want them in government anymore. They are thieves,” an angry protester said. A huge contingent of youth was at the venue, attired in black and holding banners, including one asking for the “protection of people’s sovereignty’. Many of them wore black headbands that read “Go home Gota.” “My children’s future is in question. What do we even have in this country to give us hope? This is enough. The Rajapaksas must go,” said an elderly lady straining her voice as she joined the chorus of chants.
Adding another dimension of resistance to the ongoing citizens’ agitations, families of the victims of the Easter terror attacks of April 2019 walked from suburban Negombo to Colombo, covering about 40 km by foot and two churches that were attacked in the serial blasts, demanding justice. For months now, they have been urging authorities to expedite the investigations, while Sri Lanka’s Catholic church stepped up the pressure — locally and internationally — on the Rajapaksa government and President Gotabaya, who came to power barely six months after the incident, promising national security.
Archbishop of Colombo Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, who has earlier accused the government of “conspiring” to come to power, told protestors: “Everyone must get on the streets till the government leaves, these leaders must go.” A Sinhalese language placard held by a protestor on Saturday, outside St. Anthony’s Shrine in Colombo — attacked on Easter Day in 2019 — read “Mastermind #Gotagohome.”
The massive protest was meant to draw a million people to demand the Rajapaksa family’s resignation. The mass scale street protests began after a gathering opposite Rajapaksa’s private home was tear gassed on March 31 when several people were arrested and later granted bail. Since then, the protesters have surrounded the homes of parliamentarians at different places.
The government has accused the Opposition parties, mainly the Janatha Vikmuthi Peramuna (the People’s Liberation Front), for organising the demonstrations. “The call for the President’s resignation is unconstitutional and the Opposition parties were accused of driving the island into anarchy,” the government said. Party sources said talks on methods to end the current political and economic impasse would be held on Sunday. The 10-party alliance of the ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) coalition is due to meet President Rajapaksa to discuss the formation of the all-party interim government.
The main Opposition Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) said they are to meet to take forward the process of moving a no-confidence motion against the government. The SJP has started taking signatures of MPs for the no-confidence motion. President Rajapaksa and his elder brother, Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, continue to hold power in Sri Lanka, despite their politically powerful family being the focus of public ire.
While Sri Lanka is scheduled to start talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on April 11 for a possible bailout, including assistance on restructuring foreign debt, the former
Prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe on Sunday slammed the incumbent government for not making timely interventions. He said that it would take a long time for any meaningful relief to come even if the government approaches the IMF. The government, meanwhile, has decided to send a delegation to the IMF soon. “I don’t think that the government has enough resources left in the reserves and now they seek to borrow from the leading export companies to pay the bills. The line of credit for fuel extended by India will last till the second week of May,” he said, adding that Sri Lanka will be in serious trouble afterwards.
Accusing the incumbent government of plunging the country into a deep economic and political crisis with its “incompetence in dealing with the financial challenges,” Wickremesinghe said the utter failure of the government had led to a situation where the people were standing in long queues. “It (economic crisis) never happened in our time…when our government was here there were no queues of the people to buy the basic necessities. There should have not been any reason for the people to come on the streets. But it’s all happening because of the incompetence of the Gotabaya Rajapaksa government in the country,” he said.
Wickremesinghe also stated that when he was the PM in 2019 the country’s economy was in healthy status with capital surplus but the incompetency of the current government has brought the people on the streets. “The dire economic situation has led to the political crisis, and what is happening is a disaster to the country. For two years, this government ignored all the signs of the looming economic issues. I remember when I left the office in 2019 we had a surplus budget and there was enough money to pay (for our imports),” the former PM said.
He said India has helped Sri Lanka to the maximum. “We will have to see the outcome of the support of India while New Delhi is still helping in non-financial ways,” said Wickremesinghe. He charged that the government was not looking after the economy while suggestions were made for going to the IMF in 2020 and 2021. “The government did not go to the IMF on the advice of the central bank and the treasury and the people are now paying the price,” he said.
The President, however, 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.