Colombo, Sri Lanka — The speaker of Sri Lanka’s parliament says President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has agreed to resign as of Wednesday.
Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena said in a televised statement on Saturday that he had informed Rajapaksa of a decision taken at a meeting of parliamentary party leaders to ask him to step down and he had agreed.
Rajapaksa will remain as president until Wednesday to ensure a smooth transition of power, Abeywardena added.
Earlier on Saturday, protesters stormed the private residence of Sri Lanka’s prime minister and set it on fire, hours after he said he would resign when a new government was formed, in the biggest day of demonstrations in which crowds also poured into the president’s home and office.
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe’s office said protesters stormed his home in Colombo on Saturday night. It is unclear if he was inside at the time of the attack. Government spokesman Mohan Samaranayake said there was no information on his movements.
Wickremesinghe said in a voice statement that he would resign when all parties agreed on a new government.
“Today in this country we have a fuel crisis, food shortages, here comes the head of the World Food Program and we have several issues to discuss with the IMF. Therefore, if this government leaves, there must be another government,” he said.
A man throws a teargas canister after being fired by police to disperse protesters in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Saturday, July 9, 2022. Sri Lankan protesters demanding the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa stormed his official residence on Saturday. Amita Tenakoon / AP
His decision came after the biggest protest to hit Sri Lanka so far, when tens of thousands of people broke through barricades and entered Rajapaksa’s residence and nearby office to vent their anger at a leader they see as responsible for the nation’s worst crisis .
Footage shows people in a joyful mood bathing in the residence’s garden pool. Some were lying on beds, others were making tea and drinking and making “announcements” from the conference room that Rajapaksa and Wickremesinghe should leave immediately.
Wickremesinghe said he had suggested the president have an all-party government, but said nothing about Rajapaksa’s whereabouts. The opposition parties in the parliament were currently discussing the formation of a new government.
Rajapaksa appointed Wickremesinghe as prime minister in May, hoping the career politician would use his diplomacy and contacts to revive the failing economy. But people’s patience ran out as shortages of fuel, medicine and cooking gas only increased and oil supplies dried up.
Many protesters accuse Wickremesinghe of trying to save Rajapaksa when he was under pressure to resign and every other member of his powerful political dynasty left the cabinet.
A man picks up a canister of tear gas to throw it away after police fired it to disperse protesters in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Saturday, July 9, 2022. Sri Lanka’s prime minister agreed to resign on Saturday, after party leaders in parliament demanded as well as the embattled president stepped down on a day when protesters stormed the president’s residence and office in a rage over the worsening economic crisis. Amita Tenakoon / AP
Private broadcaster Sirasa Television said at least six of its staff, including four reporters, were hospitalized after being beaten by police while covering the protest near Wickremesinghe’s home.
The Medical Council of Sri Lanka, the country’s top professional body, has warned that the country’s hospitals are operating with minimal resources and will not be able to cope with mass casualties from the riots.
The association said the president, prime minister and government will be held responsible if people die or are maimed. He urged the leaders to heed the cry of the people, resign and hand over the rule to a one-party government.
Leaders of political parties in parliament later met and decided to ask Rajapaksa and Wickremesinghe to step down, opposition lawmaker Rauf Hakim said on Twitter. He said a consensus had been reached that the speaker of parliament should take over as interim president and work for an interim government.
Sri Lanka’s economy is in a state of collapse, relying on aid from India and other countries as its leaders try to negotiate a bailout with the International Monetary Fund. The economic collapse has led to severe shortages of essential items, leaving people struggling to buy food, fuel and other essential goods.
The turmoil led to months of protests that nearly toppled the Rajapaksa political dynasty that had ruled Sri Lanka for most of the past two decades.
The president’s older brother resigned as prime minister in May after violent protests forced him to seek safety at a naval base. Much of the public anger was directed at the Rajapaksa family, with protesters accusing them of plunging Sri Lanka into chaos with mismanagement and allegations of corruption.
At the president’s office, security officials tried to stop demonstrators who climbed through the fences to escape across the lawns and into the colonial-era building.
At least 34 people, including two police officers, were injured in clashes as protesters tried to enter the residence. Two of the injured are in critical condition, while others have minor injuries, said an official at the Colombo National Hospital, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.
Thousands of protesters poured into the capital from the suburbs after police lifted the curfew. With fuel supplies scarce, many crammed into buses and trains to come into the city to protest, while others made their way on bicycles and on foot.
Protest and religious leaders called on Rajapaksa to step down, saying he had lost the people’s mandate.
“His claim that he was voted by the Sinhalese Buddhists is now invalid,” said Ven. Omalpe Sobita, a prominent Buddhist leader. He called on parliament to meet immediately to elect an interim president, but said Wickremesinghe did not enjoy the support of the people.
Last month, Wickremesinghe said the country’s economy had collapsed. He said negotiations with the IMF were complicated because Sri Lanka was now a bankrupt country.
In April, Sri Lanka announced it was suspending foreign loan payments due to a shortage of foreign currency. Its total foreign debt stands at $51 billion, of which it must repay $28 billion by the end of 2027.
Police imposed a curfew in Colombo and several other major urban areas on Friday night, but lifted it on Saturday morning amid objections from lawyers and opposition politicians who called it illegal.
US Ambassador to Sri Lanka Julie Chung on Friday urged people to protest peacefully and called on the military and police to “give peaceful protesters the space and security to do so”.
“Chaos and force will not fix the economy or bring the political stability that Sri Lanka needs right now,” Chung said in a tweet.
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