TE24 International Desk:
COLOMBO – Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa is set to relinquish power forever after fleeing protesters who were forced to storm his home and announced his resignation on Sunday. Saturday’s event
The unprecedented economic crisis that bankrupted the island nations of South Asia and the raging of corruption in the influential Rajapaksa dynasty was the culmination of months of anti-government protests. On Saturday, people gathered in the capital Colombo, calling on the government to take responsibility for the country’s financial mismanagement and food and fuel shortages.
After attacking the gate of the presidential residence, a crowd of protesters walked through the room and jumped from the noisy crowd into a pool in the courtyard. Others were seen laughing and relaxing in the royal bedroom of the palace. He insisted on Rajapaksa’s underwear.
After fleeing, Rajapaksa boarded a boat at the port of Colombo and was taken to waters south of the island, saying he would eventually surrender at the request of his resignation.
“To ensure a peaceful transition, the president has said he will resign on July 13,” parliamentary speaker Mahinda Abevardhan said in a statement issued in Daba. A seaside office near Rajapaksa also fell into the hands of protesters shortly after protesters stormed the president’s residence.
Rajapaksa’s first successor, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, has called for talks with political leaders and said he was ready to resign to pave the way for a united government.
However, protesters stormed the PM’s private residence and set it on fire after midnight. Footage shared on The Social Media shows a crowd cheering for the fire.
The fire broke out soon after Bikram Singh’s guards attacked several journalists outside the house. So far, no casualties have been reported in the fire, and police say Vikramasinghe and his family were missing at the time. The announcement of Rajapaksa’s resignation was intended to start a power struggle.
The United States on Sunday called on Sri Lankan leaders to take swift action for a long-term solution.
A US State Department spokesman said when Secretary of State Anthony Blinken visited Thailand, “I urge the Sri Lankan parliament to work for the betterment of the country, not the political parties, to come to this turning point.” Security forces of 4,444 people tried to disperse a large crowd that attacked Colombo earlier that day, injuring dozens of people.
A spokesman for a large hospital in Colombo said three people were being treated for gunshot wounds and 36 were suffering from shortness of breath due to the tear gas explosion. Sri Lanka has been suffering from a shortage of basic necessities, long-term power outages and runaway inflation for months due to the shortage of foreign currency.
The government has defaulted on 51 51 billion in foreign debt and is seeking bailouts from the International Monetary Fund.
Sri Lanka has already run out of tight fuel supplies and people unable to travel to other cities on the island to protest in the capital on Saturday. The 4,444 protesters have already held a month-long protest camp in front of Rajapaksa’s office and demanded his resignation. Camp
There was a scene of clashes in May when a group of Rajapaksa supporters attacked peaceful protesters gathered there.
Nine people have been killed and more than a hundred injured in violence against pro-government mobs and arson attacks on members of parliament. The
The riots erupted after the ongoing Sri Lanka cricket tour in Australia. The Pakistani team is also on the island in the next series. cricket officials said they had no plans to change the schedule, adding that the game was not affected by political unrest.
“The Australian Test is coming to an end and the Pakistan series is starting,” a cricket committee official told AFP.
“I have no objection to the staging of the game. In fact the fans are supporting us and there is no reason to postpone the date.”
