© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: Protesters celebrate after entering the Presidential Secretariat, after President Gotabaya Rajapaksa fled, amid the country’s economic crisis, in Colombo, Sri Lanka July 9, 2022. REUTERS / Dinuka Liyanawatte
By Devjyot Ghoshal and Uditha Jayasinghe
COLOMBO (Reuters) – Sri Lankans wandered past the ransacked presidential palace on Sunday as calm returned to the commercial capital Colombo, a day after protesters stormed the building and forced President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to declare a statement. father resigned.
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe also said he would step down to allow an all-party interim government to take over, with Rajapaksa expected to step down on July 13, according to the speaker of parliament.
The political turmoil could complicate efforts to pull Sri Lanka out of its worst economic crisis in seven decades, triggered by severe foreign currency shortages that have made imports of staples difficult. Essential goods such as fuel, food and medicine have stalled.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF), which is in talks with the Sri Lankan government for a $3 billion bailout, said it was closely monitoring events.
“We hope a resolution to the current situation will allow the resumption of our dialogue on an IMF-supported program,” the global lender said in a statement.
Frustration with the economic crisis flared up on Saturday when a huge crowd flooded the presidential palace, some taking the opportunity to frolic in its swimming pool.
A hospital official said about 45 people were admitted to a main hospital on Saturday, but there were no reports of any deaths.
On Sunday, astounded commoners got the chance to check out the colonial-era building. Members of the security forces, some with rifles, stood outside the compound but did not stop people from entering.
Among those watching was BM Chandrawathi, 61, a handkerchief seller, who had gone into a first-floor bedroom with her daughter and grandchildren.
“I’ve never seen a place like this in my life,” Chandrawathi told Reuters as he tried on a plush sofa.
“They enjoy the luxury while we suffer,” she said. “We are thugs. I want my children and grandchildren to see the lavish lifestyle they are enjoying.”
Nearby, a group of young people sprawled out on a four-poster bed and others jostled each other on a view treadmill, set up in front of a large window overlooking a manicured lawn.
‘HAPPY PROCESSING MACHINE’
The economic crisis developed after the COVID-19 pandemic hit a tourism-dependent economy and cut remittances from overseas workers.
It has been compounded by large and growing government debt, rising oil prices and a seven-month ban on chemical fertilizer imports last year that devastated agriculture.
Like most Sri Lankans, Chandrawathi said her family is struggling to make ends meet, battered by record inflation, a depreciating currency, intermittent power cuts and economic fuel shortages. year.
Strong inflation in the country of 22 million people hit 54.6% last month, and the central bank has warned that it could rise to 70% in the coming months.
Lounging on an ornately carved wooden sofa, Wasantha Kumara said he spent the night inside the president’s home, where part of the main sweeping staircase was damaged.
Nearby, a handwritten poster reads: “See as much as you like. Don’t vandalize or loot.” A broken vase lay beside it.
The pool’s water turned murky on Sunday and no one seemed to be swimming.
Kumara, a 33-year-old government employee, said he would love to see Rajapaksa keep his promise to step down on Wednesday.
“If he doesn’t go, I’ll keep coming here and I’ll keep sleeping here until he does,” he said.
Mahinda President Yapa Abeywardena on Saturday said Mr Rajapaksa’s decision to step down was made “in order to ensure a peaceful handover of power”.
Wickremesinghe, a six-time prime minister also seen by protesters as part of the ruling elite, also agreed to step down, his office said. A quarter of his home in the affluent Colombo suburb lies in ruins, after protesters attacked and set it on fire late Saturday.
Neither Rajapaksa nor Wickremesinghe were in their residences when the buildings were attacked.
Details of the transfer of power were not clear. The speaker outlined proposals from Saturday’s meeting of political parties, including for parliament to choose a powerful president within a week.
In a corner of a dark hallway at Rajapaksa’s official residence, sound engineer Sameera Karunaratne is sitting with two friends playing Sri Lankan pop songs on a large, polished piano.
“It’s a dream to go to a place like this,” said the 26-year-old. “We just came to see what was going on.”
