Sri Lanka acting president declares emergency amid protests
2 years, 5 months ago

Sri Lanka acting president declares emergency amid protests

Associated Press  

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Sri Lanka’s acting president on Monday declared a state of emergency that gives him broad authority amid growing protests demanding his resignation — just two days before the country’s lawmakers are set to elect a new president. Ranil Wickremesinghe became acting president on Friday after his predecessor, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, fled abroad and resigned after months-long mass protests over the country’s economic collapse. Wickremesinghe’s imposition of the state of emergency came as protests demanding his resignation continued in most parts of the country, with some demonstrators burning him in effigy. Sri Lanka Bar Association said the emergency laws “must not be used to suppress any legitimate expression of opinion on the election to the president nor to suppress any dissent or disagreement on a particular candidate.” The association also stressed that these laws should not be used to “stifle peaceful protests and dissent or to make arbitrary arrests and detentions.” Sri Lanka for months has lacked funds to pay for imports of basic necessities such as food, fertilizer, medicine and fuel for its 22 million people.

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