Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa fled his official residence in Colombo on Saturday minutes before it was stormed by a crowd of protesters, who accuse him of being responsible for the deep economic crisis the country is going through and want to expel him from the can.
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, who is next in line to succeed if Rajapaksa steps down, immediately called an emergency government meeting to discuss a “quick exit” from the crisis.
In a statement, he invited political party leaders to join the meeting and also called for Parliament to be convened.
“The president has been escorted to a safe place,” a defense source told AFP. “He is still the president, he is protected by a military unit,” added this source, according to which the soldiers guarding the official residence fired into the air to dissuade protesters from approaching until Rajapaksa was evacuated.
Local television networks showed images of hundreds of people climbing through the gates of the presidential palace, a colonial-era building located by the sea and a symbol of power in Sri Lanka.
Some protesters livestreamed videos on social media showing a crowd wandering inside the palace.
Government officials claimed to be ignorant of Rajapaksa’s intentions after he fled. “We are awaiting instructions,” he told the AFP a high official. “We still don’t know where he is, but we do know that he is with the Sri Lankan Navy and that he is safe.”
runaway inflation
Tens of thousands of people had previously taken part in a demonstration in Colombo to demand the resignation of Rajapaksa, who is believed to be responsible for the unprecedented crisis affecting Sri Lanka, causing rampant inflation, as well as severe shortages of fuel, electricity and food.
The UN estimates, among other things, that about 80% of the population skip meals to deal with shortages and rising prices.
Colombo’s main hospital reported that 14 people received treatment after being hit by tear gas during the demonstration.
According to the authorities, some 20,000 soldiers and police had been sent to Colombo to protect the president.
On Friday, law enforcement officials imposed a curfew in an attempt to dissuade protesters from taking to the streets.
However, this measure was lifted after opposition parties, human rights activists and the country’s Bar Association threatened to sue the police chief.
Still, the curfew was largely ignored by protesters, some of whom even forced railway authorities on Saturday to take them by train to Colombo to take part in the demonstration, officials told AFP.
The United Nations urged the Sri Lankan authorities and the protesters to ensure that Saturday’s meetings were held peacefully.
In May, nine people had been killed and several hundred injured during the unrest in the country.
In April, Sri Lanka declared default on its $51 billion foreign debt and began bailout negotiations with the International Monetary Fund.
This crisis, of an unprecedented magnitude since the country’s independence in 1948, is attributed to the covid-19 pandemic, which deprived this South Asian island of foreign exchange from the tourism sector and has been aggravated by a series of bad political decisions, according to economists.
#9Jul #SriLanka
Video footage of Sri Lankan protesters taking over the President’s office in Colombo???? Buddi U Chandrasiri pic.twitter.com/mJibrHDfLO
– Report Now (@ReporteYa) July 9, 2022
????????#SriLanka – Protesters surround the presidential palace in Sri Lanka.pic.twitter.com/QKkp0ucWpF
— DATOWORLD (@Datoworld) July 9, 2022
#9Jul #SriLanka @ CyberRealms1: The president of Sri Lanka arrived at the airport to leave the country, before the wave of massive protests pic.twitter.com/TYZAX3AzVe
– Report Now (@ReporteYa) July 9, 2022
#Srilanka: The presidential palace has been completely taken over by the people, people even bathe in the pool and lie on the bed of the still president Gotabaya Rajapaksa. They demand his resignation due to the serious economic crisis. pic.twitter.com/Mr2wKlPV3M
— Rooster Arellano (@Galoecuador) July 9, 2022
#9Jul #SriLanka
Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has resigned and fled after protesters surrounded his home as the country’s economic crisis worsens. pic.twitter.com/NxiIU0Bj7f– Report Now (@ReporteYa) July 9, 2022