The Sri Lankan president has declared a state of emergency for the second time in five weeks, giving the security forces broad powers after a national strike demanding his resignation brought the country to a standstill.
A spokesman for Gotabaya Rajapaksa said he had cited strict laws to “ensure public order” after shops closed and public transport was cut off on Friday by unions accusing him of an unprecedented economic crisis that sparked weeks of unrest.
Earlier on Friday, police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse students trying to storm the national parliament, urging Rajapaksa to resign.
The state of emergency empowers security forces to arrest and detain suspects for long periods without judicial oversight. It also allows troops to be deployed to maintain law and order in addition to the police.
“The president is using his executive powers to invoke emergency regulations to ensure the maintenance of basic services and public order,” the spokesman said. He said the laws would take effect at midnight on Friday.
Rajapaksa had previously declared a state of emergency on April 1st, a day after thousands of protesters tried to storm his private home in the capital. This state of emergency was allowed to end on 14 April.
But since then, protests have escalated. The new declaration of state of emergency came when thousands of protesters remained in front of Rajapaksa’s coastal office, where they have been protesting since April 9, and smaller groups have tried to storm the homes of other key government politicians.
The 85,000 police force had stepped up security for all ruling party lawmakers.
But they were strained to the limit and had asked the security forces to reinforce them.
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