Colombo: At least 45 people were arrested after violence erupted overnight when hundreds tried to storm President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s house in Colombo to protest the ongoing economic crisis.
in the incident, as many as 10 people have been injured – one severely so after police fired tear gas to stop protesters attacking their bus.
Police said at least five of their personnel were also injured in clashes that resulted in police vehicles set on fire and another overturned.
On Thursday, hundreds of people gathered to protest the Rajapaksa government’s handling of the country’s finances, which has exacerbated Sri Lanka’s foreign exchange woes.
The country has $51 billion in foreign debts, of which $4 billion is due this year; this includes a $1 billion international sovereign bond due in July. Sri Lanka has only $2.31 billion in reserves and current debt is 119 per cent of GDP.
The crisis has triggered shortage of fuel, electricity, food, and other essential commodities – and a surge in prices for what is left. State-run hospitals have stopped conducting surgeries as they have run out of essential life-saving medicines. Schools have cancelled exams because of a lack of paper.
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