Police fired tear gas at hundreds of student protesters in Sri Lanka on Sunday, while soldiers occupied checkpoints in the capital Colombo to enforce a curfew. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa had declared a state of emergency, initially only until Monday. This was intended to curb public outrage triggered by a massive economic crisis in the island state. Access to Twitter, Facebook, Whatsapp, Youtube and Instagram has been blocked nationwide. Netblocks, a global watchdog group, confirmed the blackout, which went into effect after midnight on Sunday.
Lakshman Kiriella, MP for the opposition Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) party in Kandy, Sri Lanka’s second largest city, told the news agency Reuters, the police used tear gas to evict students who were protesting near the university. “The students flouted the curfew,” Kiriella explained.
In Colombo, SJB politicians and their supporters gathered near Independence Square on Sunday – despite the curfew. They chanted “Go home, Gota, go home,” a reference to the president’s nickname, while supporters of another opposition coalition, Jathika Jana Balawegaya, gathered in a town on the outskirts of the capital to protest rising inflation, food shortages and power outages protest. The police broke up the demonstrations.
Western and Asian diplomats are monitoring the situation
Western and Asian diplomats in Sri Lanka said they are monitoring the situation and expect the government to allow citizens to hold peaceful demonstrations. Demands for Rajapaksa’s resignation are growing louder, he governs the country together with three brothers who occupy important ministries.
In the country, people have problems getting to work and stocking up on everyday necessities. Markets and shops are closed. Buses and trains do not run. Hardly any fuel has been available for weeks, and if it is, then at horrendous prices. Sri Lankans are also grappling with rising inflation after the country sharply devalued its currency last month ahead of talks on a loan program with the International Monetary Fund.
What is possibly the country’s worst economic crisis has its origins in wrong decisions, including those made by past governments. Huge budget and current account deficits have been accumulated. Then the pandemic broke out shortly after the current Rajapaksa government cut taxes to boost private consumption. In addition, there was an unsuccessful conversion to organic farming. Groceries became more expensive, and the hole in the state treasury widened.
Tour groups are stuck in the country
Sri Lanka is considered by many visitors to be a dream destination, gentler than India, with beautiful beaches and Ayurvedic hotels. You need the tourists, which is why the entry requirements were only recently relaxed. Tourism Minister Prasanna Ranatunga has now warned that the protests would hurt the economic outlook. “The main problem Sri Lanka is facing is the shortage of foreign exchange and protests of this kind will hurt tourism and have economic consequences,” Ranatunga said.
Now we hear from tour groups that are stuck in the country. In the hotels outside of Colombo that have a generator, you hardly notice the unrest. But the streets are dark and unusually quiet, and employees need special permission to venture outside the facility. Guests were asked on Saturday not to leave the hotels during the curfew.
The government lifted the social media ban on Sunday afternoon. Youth and Sports Minister Namal Rajapaksa, a nephew of the President, said he would “never condone social media blocking”. He called on the authorities to “think more progressively and reconsider this decision” – which could be a sign of dissent within the ruling family.
The Department of Energy, meanwhile, said 6,000 tons of diesel from Indian Oil Corporation and another 12,000 tons of diesel from the Indian government are on their way under a newly agreed credit line. Deliveries are scheduled to arrive on Wednesday and Thursday. The times when the power goes out would then drop from up to 13 hours to less than two a day.