Sri Lanka’s acting president declares state of emergency amid protests
LA TimesSri Lanka’s acting president Monday declared a state of emergency that gives him broad authority amid growing protests demanding his resignation two days before the country’s lawmakers are set to elect a new president. Ranil Wickremesinghe became acting president Friday after his predecessor, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, fled abroad two days before and resigned after months-long mass protests over the country’s economic collapse. Wickremesinghe’s move to impose a state of emergency came as protests demanding his own resignation continued in most parts of the country, with some protesters burning him in effigy. World & Nation Sri Lankan power family falls from grace as economy tanks With one brother president, another prime minister and three more family members Cabinet ministers, it appeared that the Rajapaksa clan had consolidated its grip on power in Sri Lanka.