Sri Lanka imposes state of emergency
PBC News: Sri Lanka’s president has declared a state of emergency, giving sweeping powers to security forces, a day after hundreds tried to storm his house in anger over an unprecedented economic crisis.
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa invoked the tough laws on Friday allowing the military to arrest and imprison suspects for long periods without trial as demonstrations calling for his resignation spread across the South Asian nation.
On Thursday hundreds of protesters clashed with police and military outside President Rajapaksa’s residence in a suburb of the capital, Colombo.
Police arrested 53 people and imposed a curfew in and around Colombo on Friday to contain sporadic protests that have broken out over shortages of essential items including fuel and other goods.
The island nation of 22 million people is in the midst of its worst economic crisis in years with rolling blackouts for up to 13 hours a day as the government scrambles to secure foreign exchange to pay for fuel imports.
Police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse crowds near the president’s residence on Thursday, after they torched several police and army vehicles.
One official said at least two dozen police personnel were injured in the clashes, but declined to comment on the number of protesters who were hurt.
Tourism minister Prasanna Ranatunge warned such protests would harm economic prospects.
“The main issue Sri Lanka is facing is a forex shortage and protests of this nature will hurt tourism and have economic consequences,” Ranatunge said.
The UN representative in the country, Hanaa Singer-Hamdy, called for restraint from all groups involved in the clashes.
“We are monitoring developments and are concerned by reports of violence,” she said on Twitter.
Trading on the country’s stock market was suspended for a third consecutive day on Friday after the main blue-chip index fell 10% from the previous close.
