COLOMBO, Sri Lanka: Colombo, the commercial capital of Sri Lanka, was peaceful on Saturday after the president imposed a state of emergency in response to rising anti-government demonstrations.
The current emergency rules have not yet been made public, but prior emergency laws have granted the president wider authority to deploy the military, arrest individuals without charges, and disperse rallies. [L2N2WY1RR]
His office stated in a statement that “The President has made this decision owing to the public emergency situation in Sri Lanka and in the interests of public security, the preservation of public order, and the maintenance of critical supplies and services.”
Following the emergency declaration shortly before midnight, there were no immediate indications of late-night disruptions, and traffic continued as usual in Galle Face, a key district of Colombo that has been the location of several rallies and marches.
Despite the state of emergency, around 100 people gathered outside the Presidential Secretariat to hear anti-government statements. Passing cars honked their horns to show their support.
“This disaster will not stop the protests,” said Waheeda Lafir, a teacher who was delivering food to a group of tents that has been there for more than a month.
“The administration should resign since they brought this upon themselves.”
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa made the announcement, which was the second time in less than a month that he had declared emergency rule. Sri Lanka’s opposition and many western countries called it a bad move.
The U.S. ambassador to Sri Lanka, Julie Chung, tweeted that she was “concerned about another state of emergency.”
“Peaceful people’s voices need to be heard.”
On Friday, police fired tear gas at scores of protesters in front of the parliament, the latest in a month’s worth of violent anti-government demonstrations in response to shortages of imported food, gasoline, and medications.
UNICEF, a group that helps people who have been hurt by tear gas, said they were worried that children were among those hurt by the gas.
“Every adult must behave responsibly and avoid exposing children to any type of violence, especially during demonstrations,” the statement said.
The Sri Lankan economy has been severely impacted by the COVID-19 epidemic, increasing oil costs, and government tax cutbacks, the finance minister said this week, leaving the country with as little as $50 million in usable foreign reserves.
The government has requested a bailout from the International Monetary Fund.
There will be a virtual meeting with Sri Lankan officials starting on Monday, the IMF’s mission leader for Sri Lanka said on Saturday.
