Sri Lanka\'s ousted ex-president Gotabaya Rajapaksa returns home from Thailand
2 years, 3 months ago

Sri Lanka\'s ousted ex-president Gotabaya Rajapaksa returns home from Thailand

Deccan Chronicle  

Colombo: Sri Lanka's former president Gotabaya Rajapaksa was accorded a warm welcome as he returned to Colombo from Thailand amid tight security on late Friday, ending his 51-day self-imposed exile after fleeing abroad following months-long mass protests over the country's worst economic crisis. After being welcomed by lawmakers of the ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna party, Rajapaksa left the airport in a motorcade heavily guarded by armed soldiers. Local media reports on August 19 quoted Rajapaksa's Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna SLPP General Secretary Sagara Kariyawasam as saying that his party had requested the president to facilitate the former president's return and “ensure security and necessary facilities". After Rajapaksa was ousted, Sri Lanka's parliament elected then-Acting President and six-time former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe as the new Head of State.

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History of this topic

'Won't let anyone threaten India's security': Sri Lankan president's promise to PM Modi
Top News
1 week, 1 day ago

'Won't let anyone threaten India's security': Sri Lankan president's promise to PM Modi

Hindustan Times  

In a powerful display of commitment to defence cooperation, Sri Lanka on Monday officially assured New Delhi that it will not permit any force to use its territory to “threaten India's security” in any manner. Sri Lanka's President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi. This pledge was reiterated by newly elected Sri Lankan president …

‘Sri Lanka’s Territory Wouldn’t Be Used Against India’s Security Interests’: President Dissanayake After Meeting PM Modi
1 week, 1 day ago

‘Sri Lanka’s Territory Wouldn’t Be Used Against India’s Security Interests’: President Dissanayake After Meeting PM Modi

ABP News  

Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, during his maiden overseas visit to India, assured New Delhi that Sri Lanka's territory would not be used against India’s security interests. “It is a privilege to visit India on my first overseas trip as President and I am grateful to PM @narendramodi for supporting Sri Lanka during the economic crisis and for aiding …

Sri Lanka’s Dissanayake meets Modi: ‘Won’t allow our land to be used against India’s interests’
Trending News
1 week, 1 day ago

Sri Lanka’s Dissanayake meets Modi: ‘Won’t allow our land to be used against India’s interests’

Firstpost  

After holding a bilateral meeting with PM Modi in New Delhi, Sri Lankan President Dissanayake said: ‘I have given an assurance to the Prime Minister of India that we will not allow our land to be used in any way in a manner that is detrimental to the interest of India’ Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, on Monday, assured …

Sri Lanka president visits India in first overseas trip, to meet PM Modi later today
1 week, 1 day ago

Sri Lanka president visits India in first overseas trip, to meet PM Modi later today

Hindustan Times  

Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake was in India Monday for his first overseas visit as head of state, vowing to bolster ties between the neighbours. Leftist Anura Kumara Dissanayake came to power in Sri Lanka in September 2024. Leftist Dissanayake, who came to power in September on a pledge to fight corruption, is expected to meet Indian Prime Minister …

Sri Lanka President Dissanayake in India on his first foreign trip, to meet Modi today
Top News
1 week, 1 day ago

Sri Lanka President Dissanayake in India on his first foreign trip, to meet Modi today

Firstpost  

Sri Lanka President Dissanayake visits India to meet PM Modi, Jaishankar, and NSA Ajit Doval. The talks between PM Modi and Dissanayake will lead to a greater cooperation between New Delhi and Colombo, said External Affairs Minister Jaishankar, who met the Sri Lankan President on Sunday. Our conversations focused on strengthening Indo-Sri Lanka… pic.twitter.com/A5mkZ4TS1D — Anura Kumara Dissanayake December 15, …

Sri Lankan President Dissanayake meets PM Modi on his first foreign visit, thanks India for financial aid
1 week, 1 day ago

Sri Lankan President Dissanayake meets PM Modi on his first foreign visit, thanks India for financial aid

New Indian Express  

NEW DELHI: Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday in his first foreign visit after assuming office, ahead of going to China next month. In his meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Dissanayake thanked India for the $4 billion financial assistance and also acknowledged India’s support in Sri Lanka’s debt restructuring. President Dissanayake thanked …

Challenges before the new Sri Lankan Government
1 week, 2 days ago

Challenges before the new Sri Lankan Government

New Indian Express  

In 2024, Sri Lanka witnessed seismic political shifts. In the second half of this year, voters installed a hitherto untried president and a new government, with the fervent hope that the old order should give way to a better new order. It’s taken the rather conservative Sri Lankan voters 76 years to move away from feudal parties and experiment with …

How history has come full circle with Sri Lankan President Dissanayake's visit to India
Trending News
1 week, 3 days ago

How history has come full circle with Sri Lankan President Dissanayake's visit to India

New Indian Express  

Anura Kumara Dissanayake, Sri Lanka's newly elected president, is visiting New Delhi for the second time in just 10 months. But Delhi was keenly aware of Sri Lanka's changing political landscape and the possibility of Dissanayake becoming the island's next president, whenever an election was called. In recent years, India has made significant investments in Sri Lanka's infrastructure and will …

Sri Lankan President Anura Dissanayake to visit India in first overseas trip from Dec 15-17
2 weeks ago

Sri Lankan President Anura Dissanayake to visit India in first overseas trip from Dec 15-17

New Indian Express  

Sri Lankan President, Anura Dissanayake, will be making his first international visit since he came to power to India next week. During his visit, President Dissanayake will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Droupadi Murmu, Cabinet spokesperson Nalinda Jayatissa said on Tuesday. The December 15-17 visit is Dissanayake's first overseas visit since being elected the island nation's President in …

An overturning of Sri Lanka’s old political order
1 month ago

An overturning of Sri Lanka’s old political order

The Hindu  

The National People’s Power, led by Sri Lanka’s President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, has swept the Sri Lankan parliamentary polls with an astounding majority. There is another side to this story: Sri Lanka is Asia’s oldest electoral democracy, with universal suffrage going back to 1931, and its citizenry, in an awesome political swing, have not only given the new government an …

Sri Lanka’s Marxist-leaning president appoints his Cabinet after a resounding election win
1 month ago

Sri Lanka’s Marxist-leaning president appoints his Cabinet after a resounding election win

Live Mint  

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Sri Lanka’s new Marxist-leaning president swore in a 21-member Cabinet on Monday after his party secured a two-thirds parliamentary majority in last week’s election. Sri Lanka’s crisis was largely the result of economic mismanagement combined with fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, which along with militant attacks in 2019 devastated the important tourism industry. Sri Lanka’s economic …

‘Need a change’: Sri Lanka’s leftist win sparks hopes, bridges old divides
Trending News
1 month, 1 week ago

‘Need a change’: Sri Lanka’s leftist win sparks hopes, bridges old divides

Al Jazeera  

President Dissanayake’s party has won a two-thirds majority in parliament, including among Tamils and Muslims. Dissanayake’s National People’s Power won a landslide majority in Thursday’s parliamentary election, securing 159 seats in a house of 225 members – representing a comfortable two-thirds majority. They have shown they need a change from the old politics.” Vote for change According to political analyst …

Sri Lanka votes in parliamentary election
Top News
1 month, 1 week ago

Sri Lanka votes in parliamentary election

China Daily  

Updated: 2024-11-15 10:24 A woman walks out of a polling station with her daughter after casting her vote in Sri Lanka's capital Colombo on Thursday. THILINA KALUTHOTAGE / REUTERS COLOMBO — Sri Lankans were voting in a parliamentary election on Thursday that is key for the country's new president to follow through on promises of economic recovery. "I expect a …

Sri Lankan Parliamentary elections begin with issues of welfare, economic reforms at stake | WATCH
1 month, 1 week ago

Sri Lankan Parliamentary elections begin with issues of welfare, economic reforms at stake | WATCH

India TV News  

Colombo: Sri Lankans began voting on Thursday in a snap election to decide if the Indian Ocean island will give its new leftist president greater strength to help the poor as it recovers from a financial meltdown. "I think we are seeing the first signs of a positive political change in Sri Lanka after the president was elected and we …

Sri Lanka: Economic crisis, political change, and reconciliation | Interview with Ahilan Kadirgamar
1 month, 1 week ago

Sri Lanka: Economic crisis, political change, and reconciliation | Interview with Ahilan Kadirgamar

The Hindu  

Published : Nov 14, 2024 14:38 IST - 1 MIN READ On November 14, 2024, Sri Lankans began voting in the snap parliamentary election, the first major test of the ruling National People’s Power party led by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake. Having failed to secure 50 per cent of the vote at the September 21 presidential election, Mr. Dissanayake is …

Sri Lankans vote in parliamentary election
1 month, 1 week ago

Sri Lankans vote in parliamentary election

Deccan Chronicle  

Colombo: Sri Lankans on Thursday began voting in the snap parliamentary election, the first major test of the ruling National People's Power party led by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake.The voting is taking place at over 13,314 polling stations across the country. Sri Lankans on Thursday began voting in the snap parliamentary election, the first major test of the ruling National …

Sri Lanka votes today: President Dissanayake faces litmus test as NPP aims for majority control
Top News
1 month, 1 week ago

Sri Lanka votes today: President Dissanayake faces litmus test as NPP aims for majority control

Live Mint  

Sri Lankans are heading to the polls today for a crucial parliamentary election that will determine the future political landscape of the island nation. Dissanayake's Presidential Win in Sri Lanka In September, Anura Kumara Dissanayake won the presidential election, marking a significant shift away from the traditional political parties that have ruled Sri Lanka since its independence in 1948. Dissanayake’s …

Sri Lanka Leader Seeks to Bolster Power With Parliamentary Vote
Trending News
1 month, 1 week ago

Sri Lanka Leader Seeks to Bolster Power With Parliamentary Vote

Live Mint  

-- Sri Lanka holds its first parliamentary elections since the victory of its outsider leftist president, in a test of his ambitious pledges to combat corruption and rewrite an unpopular International Monetary Fund loan program. Anura Kumara Dissanayake called for early polls on the heels of his victory in the Sept. 21 presidential election, widely seen as a stunning rebuke …

Voting ends in Sri Lanka’s parliamentary election that’s key for its new Marxist-leaning president
1 month, 1 week ago

Voting ends in Sri Lanka’s parliamentary election that’s key for its new Marxist-leaning president

Associated Press  

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Sri Lankans voted in a parliamentary election Thursday that is key for the country’s new, Marxist-leaning president to consolidate his party’s power and follow through on promises of economic recovery. The biggest challenge for the NPP — which was founded in 2019 and is a relative newcomer on Sri Lanka’s political scene — is that many …

Sri Lankan president seeks party win in parliamentary election to help him push his economic reforms
Trending News
1 month, 1 week ago

Sri Lankan president seeks party win in parliamentary election to help him push his economic reforms

Associated Press  

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake is looking to consolidate his party’s power in Thursday’s parliamentary election to help him implement his election pledges to solve the country’s economic woes and foster good governance. The election comes at a decisive time for Sri Lankans, as the island nation emerges from its worst economic crisis, having declared …

‘We’ve tried everybody else’: What’s next for Sri Lanka’s turn to the left?
1 month, 1 week ago

‘We’ve tried everybody else’: What’s next for Sri Lanka’s turn to the left?

Al Jazeera  

Can the new leftist president repay debt without forcing austerity on Sri Lankans? Sri Lanka has seen it all: from the 2022 economic collapse, the mass protests that followed and the legacy of a 26-year civil war. As the newly-elected President Anura Kumara Dissanayake pledges to steer the island back on track, can he repay the country’s debt to the …

Sri Lanka Election: ‘Progress over corruption’, litmus test for Anura Dissanayake as voters head to polls on November 14
Trending News
1 month, 1 week ago

Sri Lanka Election: ‘Progress over corruption’, litmus test for Anura Dissanayake as voters head to polls on November 14

Live Mint  

Sri Lanka's new leftist leader, Anura Kumara Dissanayake, has gained unexpected support as he aims to expand his three parliamentary seats into a majority in Thursday's elections. Business leaders have speculated that Sri Lanka could adopt economic models similar to those of China or Vietnam under Dissanayake, whose party logo prominently features the hammer and sickle, symbolizing its communist ideology. …

Corruption is a Central Issue in Sri Lanka’s Upcoming Parliamentary Elections
1 month, 2 weeks ago

Corruption is a Central Issue in Sri Lanka’s Upcoming Parliamentary Elections

The Quint  

“The US, with India as its proxy, engineered Sri Lanka’s economic turmoil. As Sri Lanka struggled, India, backed by American funds, swooped in with a lifeline—offering a line of credit while China hesitated. Subramaniam resumed his deliveries, and suddenly, Sri Lankans found themselves indebted to India, blissfully unaware of the hidden puppeteers pulling the strings to undercut China’s influence in …

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake: A New Era of Reform Amid Economic Turmoil in Sri Lanka
2 months, 2 weeks ago

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake: A New Era of Reform Amid Economic Turmoil in Sri Lanka

The Diplomat  

National People’s Power leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake was sworn in as the ninth executive president of Sri Lanka on September 23. The growing support for Dissanayake, a center-left politician often wrongly labeled as a “Marxist” by the international media, is a reflection of Sri Lanka’s broader societal unrest. The political dynasty of the Rajapaksas was at the center of Sri …

Terms of Trade | Can the socially retrograde turn economically progressive?
2 months, 3 weeks ago

Terms of Trade | Can the socially retrograde turn economically progressive?

Hindustan Times  

The election of a Marxist-Leninist politician as the president of economically floundering Sri Lanka was a big news point this week. Had Dissanayake and his party taken a principled position against majoritarian ethnic politics in Sri Lanka, would they have managed to protect their political capital, which has been encashed to capture power in these elections? The Jats too realised …

Sri Lanka has entered a new dawn with its new president. What does the diaspora think of Anura Dissanayake?
2 months, 4 weeks ago

Sri Lanka has entered a new dawn with its new president. What does the diaspora think of Anura Dissanayake?

ABC  

For decades, Sri Lankan politics has looked like a revolving door through which the same parties and families have come and gone. Unlike many of Sri Lanka's past presidents, Mr Dissanayake has no political lineage and is from the socialist National People's Power party which he founded in 2019. For some of Sri Lanka's younger generation the election result "was …

Sri Lanka's New President Dissolves Parliament To Make Way For November Elections
3 months ago

Sri Lanka's New President Dissolves Parliament To Make Way For November Elections

News 18  

Sri Lanka’s new leftist president dissolved parliament on Tuesday and called a snap election as he prepares to renegotiate the bankrupt nation’s unpopular International Monetary Fund bailout programme. Despite being a marginal party, the support for the 55-year-old Dissanayake’s JVP surged after a 2022 economic meltdown that immiserated millions of ordinary Sri Lankans and the painful implementation of the IMF …

‘Don’t want to be sandwiched, especially between China and India’: Sri Lankan new President Anura Kumara Dissanayake
3 months ago

‘Don’t want to be sandwiched, especially between China and India’: Sri Lankan new President Anura Kumara Dissanayake

Hindustan Times  

Sri Lanka’s new President Anura Kumara Dissanayake said the country doesn't want to be sandwiched, especially between China and India, signaling a bold stance on his foreign policy. Sri Lankan new President Anura Kumara Dissanayake waves to supporters during a public rally in Dehiowita. As Sri Lanka navigates its place in an increasingly multipolar world, Anura Kumara Dissanayake, in his …

The Left turn in Sri Lanka
3 months ago

The Left turn in Sri Lanka

Hindustan Times  

The election of Anura Kumar Dissanayake, the leader of Janata Vimukti Perumuna, an outfit with Marxist leanings, as the ninth President of Sri Lanka, marks a new chapter in the island nation’s politics. In a way, the ascent of the JVP, which led two violent insurrections in 1971 and during 1987-89, and its eclipsing of the three mainstream parties that …

Sri Lanka Elections 2024: Chinese President Xi Jinping congratulates Sri Lanka’s new president Anura Kumara Dissanayake
3 months ago

Sri Lanka Elections 2024: Chinese President Xi Jinping congratulates Sri Lanka’s new president Anura Kumara Dissanayake

Live Mint  

Chinese President Xi Jinping congratulated new Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, soon after he was sworn into office on Monday, September 23. Anura Dissanayake defeated his closest rival, Sajith Premadasa of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya, in Sri Lanka Elections 2024. Anura Kumara Dissanayake did not support the implementation of the 13th amendment of the Sri Lankan Constitution, which devolves …

Anura Kumara Dissanayake: Who is Sri Lanka’s new left-wing president?
3 months ago

Anura Kumara Dissanayake: Who is Sri Lanka’s new left-wing president?

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Anura Kumara Dissanayake, a 55-year-old …

Sri Lanka election: Marxist Anura Kumara Dissanayake becomes president
3 months ago

Sri Lanka election: Marxist Anura Kumara Dissanayake becomes president

Associated Press  

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Marxist politician Anura Kumara Dissanayake was sworn in as Sri Lanka’s president on Monday after an election that saw voters reject an old guard accused of leading the country into economic crisis. Dissanayake, 55, who ran as head of the Marxist-leaning National People’s Power coalition, defeated President Ranil Wickremesinghe, opposition leader Sajith Premadasa and 35 other …

Marxist Dissanayake wins Sri Lanka’s presidential election as voters reject old guard
3 months ago

Marxist Dissanayake wins Sri Lanka’s presidential election as voters reject old guard

LA Times  

National People’s Power candidate Anura Kumara Dissanayake arrives at a polling station to cast his vote Saturday in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Marxist lawmaker Anura Kumara Dissanayake won Sri Lanka’s presidential election, according to data released Sunday by the Election Commission, as voters rejected the old political guard that has been widely accused of pushing the South Asian nation toward economic …

Marxist Dissanayake wins Sri Lanka's presidential election as voters reject old guard
3 months ago

Marxist Dissanayake wins Sri Lanka's presidential election as voters reject old guard

NPR  

Marxist Dissanayake wins Sri Lanka's presidential election as voters reject old guard toggle caption Eranga Jayawardena/AP COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Marxist lawmaker Anura Kumara Dissanayake won Sri Lanka’s presidential election, according to data released by the Election Commission Sunday, as voters rejected the old political guard that has been widely accused of pushing the South Asian nation toward economic ruin. …

Sri Lankans ousted Rajapaksa clan from power two years ago. Now they are back in the fray
3 months ago

Sri Lankans ousted Rajapaksa clan from power two years ago. Now they are back in the fray

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. “People will understand, you know, because if you look …

Vote count underway in Sri Lanka’s presidential election after years of turmoil
3 months ago

Vote count underway in Sri Lanka’s presidential election after years of turmoil

Associated Press  

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Voting ended in Sri Lanka’s presidential election Saturday as the country seeks to recover from the worst economic crisis in its history and the resulting political upheaval. They will show whether Sri Lankans approve of Wickremesinghe’s leadership of a fragile recovery, including restructuring Sri Lanka’s debt under an International Monetary Fund bailout program after it defaulted …

Two years after Sri Lanka’s president was ousted by protests – could it all have been for nothing?
3 months ago

Two years after Sri Lanka’s president was ousted by protests – could it all have been for nothing?

The Independent  

In the summer of 2022, Pali Abeywickrama and his friends marched to the presidential palace during Sri Lanka’s popular anti-government uprising. open image in gallery Protesters hold Sri Lankan flags as they stand on top of the office of PM Ranil Wickremesinghe in July 2022 Opposition leader Sajith Premadasa of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya party is at 32 per cent …

Protests ousted Sri Lanka’s last president. Ahead of new election, many are still waiting for change
3 months ago

Protests ousted Sri Lanka’s last president. Ahead of new election, many are still waiting for change

Associated Press  

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Two years ago, tens of thousands of Sri Lankans rose up against their president and forced him to flee the country. Days after Rajapaksa fled the country, Sri Lanka’s parliament replaced him with then-prime minister Ranil Wickremensignhe in a vote that many protesters saw as a victory for the status quo. Pathum Kerner, a 42-year-old physician …

Sri Lanka’s presidential election a test for current leader, 2 years after its economy hit bottom
3 months ago

Sri Lanka’s presidential election a test for current leader, 2 years after its economy hit bottom

Associated Press  

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Two years ago, food cart worker Fathima Shiyama had to wait in line, sometimes for days, to get cooking gas, fuel and other essentials. Fathima Shiyama, 48, prepares local delicacies at home, to be sold later from her food cart, in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024. A man sits next to election posters of …

Sri Lanka Presidential Polls: Perception Favours Anura, Numbers Sajith & Ranil, Namal Under No Pressure To Win
3 months, 1 week ago

Sri Lanka Presidential Polls: Perception Favours Anura, Numbers Sajith & Ranil, Namal Under No Pressure To Win

News 18  

Sri Lanka is a tear-drop shaped island nation in the Indian Ocean. Since Sri Lanka’s independence from the Great Britain in 1948, the country has fought two major civil wars sacrificing a lakh lives, went through a killer Tsunami in 2004, which claimed another 25,000 lives, and very recently a massive public unrest named ‘Aragalaya’, which forced the President to …

Ramification | Sri Lanka: First presidential election after economic crisis and all weather Colombo-Delhi ties
3 months, 1 week ago

Ramification | Sri Lanka: First presidential election after economic crisis and all weather Colombo-Delhi ties

Firstpost  

Irrespective of the outcome of the election, India, as it has done in the past, will continue to support Sri Lanka in its economic recovery President Ranil Wickremesinghe and Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena gesture as they arrive at the Election Commission in Rajagiriya to submit his nomination papers for the upcoming presidential election, scheduled for September 21, in Colombo, Sri …

Sri Lankans’ fury forced the powerful Rajapaksa clan out. Now its heir is running for president
3 months, 1 week ago

Sri Lankans’ fury forced the powerful Rajapaksa clan out. Now its heir is running for president

Associated Press  

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — When an uprising ousted Sri Lanka’s president, many saw it as the end of his powerful family’s hold on the island nation after more than 12 years of rule. Alan Keenan, senior consultant on Sri Lanka at the International Crisis Group, said the younger Rajapaksa’s bid for the presidency is a test run that would establish …

Sri Lanka: The country famed for pristine beaches and ancient temples hoping to rebuild tourism
3 months, 2 weeks ago

Sri Lanka: The country famed for pristine beaches and ancient temples hoping to rebuild tourism

The Independent  

Sign up to Simon Calder’s free travel email for expert advice and money-saving discounts Get Simon Calder’s Travel email Get Simon Calder’s Travel email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. open image in gallery A foreigner sits outside the Diary King home-made ice cream shop, in Galle, Sri Lanka August …

What’s at stake in Sri Lanka’s first presidential vote since its economic meltdown?
3 months, 2 weeks ago

What’s at stake in Sri Lanka’s first presidential vote since its economic meltdown?

Associated Press  

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Sri Lanka will hold its presidential election on Sept. 21 in a crucial vote that will decide the future of the South Asian nation still struggling to recover from its economic collapse in 2022, which provoked mass protests and forced the former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to flee the country and later resign. Almost 17 million of …

Sri Lanka president defends IMF bailout in campaign launch
3 months, 3 weeks ago

Sri Lanka president defends IMF bailout in campaign launch

Hindustan Times  

Sri Lanka had no option but to agree to an International Monetary Fund bailout that required tough austerity measures, President Ranil Wickremesinghe said Thursday as he launched his re-election campaign. Sri Lanka president defends IMF bailout in campaign launch An unprecedented economic crisis two years ago led to months-long food and fuel shortages, triggering street protests that forced Wickremesinghe's predecessor …

39 candidates are approved for Sri Lanka’s presidential election, the highest number ever
4 months, 1 week ago

39 candidates are approved for Sri Lanka’s presidential election, the highest number ever

Associated Press  

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Sri Lanka’s elections commission on Thursday accepted applications from a record 39 candidates to run in next month’s presidential election, which will decide the course of the country’s financial reforms to survive an unprecedented economic crisis. Unsustainable debt, a severe balance of payments crisis, the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the government’s insistence on …

Heir apparent to Sri Lanka’s powerful Rajapaksa family will run in September’s presidential election
4 months, 2 weeks ago

Heir apparent to Sri Lanka’s powerful Rajapaksa family will run in September’s presidential election

Associated Press  

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — The man who is considered the heir apparent to the powerful Rajapaksa family in Sri Lanka will contest the presidential election in September, his political party said Wednesday, in an apparent bid to regain his family’s lost power after a humiliating setback two years ago during an unprecedented economic crisis in the Indian ocean island nation. …

Rajapaksas’ party fields Mahinda’s son Namal in Sri Lanka’s presidential race
4 months, 2 weeks ago

Rajapaksas’ party fields Mahinda’s son Namal in Sri Lanka’s presidential race

The Hindu  

Sri Lanka’s ruling party helmed by the Rajapaksa clan, who were booted out of office by mass protests in 2022, on Wednesday named Namal Rajapaksa, son of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, as its candidate for the September presidential polls. After Mr. Gotabaya was forced to resign at the height of Sri Lanka’s crushing unprecedented economic crisis in 2022, its MPs …

Rajapaksas’ party decides against backing Ranil in presidential election
4 months, 3 weeks ago

Rajapaksas’ party decides against backing Ranil in presidential election

The Hindu  

The Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna — led by the once-powerful Rajapaksa clan which was deposed from power in 2022 — has said it will not back President Ranil Wickremesinghe in the presidential polls in September. On their party’s poll-time decision, SLPP General Secretary Sagara Kariyawasam said Mr. Wickremesinghe’s policies were not agreeable to members. Namal Rajapaksa, son of former President …

Sri Lanka will hold presidential election on September 21, its first since declaring bankruptcy in 2022
4 months, 4 weeks ago

Sri Lanka will hold presidential election on September 21, its first since declaring bankruptcy in 2022

The Hindu  

Sri Lanka’s presidential polls will be held on September 21, the Election Commission said on Friday. Some 17 million voters will have their first chance of electing the country’s leader, after a mass people’s uprising ousted former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa two years ago. His office announced making a cash deposit at the Commission for his candidacy as an independent, although …

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