COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Protesters in Sri Lanka began retreating from government buildings they seized and military troops stepped up security at parliament Thursday, restoring a fragile calm to a country in both economic meltdown and political impasse.
Embattled President Gotabaya Rajapaksa fled a day earlier under pressure from demonstrators angered by the island nation’s economic collapse. But he failed to resign as promised – and further angered the crowds by making his prime minister acting leader.
Protesters want both men out and a unity government to deal with the economic disaster that has caused widespread shortages of food, fuel and other essential goods. But with the opposition fractured and confusion over who was in charge, a solution looked no closer after Rajapaksa’s departure. Adding to the turmoil, the president left the Maldives for Singapore on Thursday, according to an official who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.
Protesters accuse Rajapaksa and his powerful political family of draining money from the state coffers for years and his administration of hastening the country’s collapse through economic mismanagement. The family has denied allegations of corruption, but Rajapaksa has admitted that some of his policies contributed to the collapse.
Months of protests reached a frenzied climax over the weekend when demonstrators stormed the president’s home and office and the prime minister’s official residence. On Wednesday, they took over the office of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.
They initially vowed to hold on to those seats until a new government is appointed, but on Thursday the movement appeared to have changed tack.
Protest leader Devinda Kodagode told The Associated Press they planned to empty official buildings after the parliament speaker said he was exploring legal options for the country, given that Rajapaksa left without handing in his resignation letter, as was promised.
Protesters retreated from the presidential residence, some moving the red carpet they had rolled back into place when they left. Some are still jostling outside the president’s office.
“We don’t want to take over the building,” said Sanka Jayasekar, a 20-year-old protester leaving the presidential residence. “We just want to oust the Rajapaksa regime. Now Gota Rajapaksa (has) left the country, so he has no power in Sri Lanka, so we have regained our power, so we are leaving the building.”
Other protesters posted videos on social media urging their compatriots not to storm parliament after clashes outside the building on Wednesday.
Troops in green military uniforms and camouflage vests arrived in armored personnel carriers on Thursday to reinforce barricades around the Legislature.
Meanwhile, the government has announced a new curfew in the capital Colombo and its suburbs from noon to 5 am on Friday. It’s unclear what effect the curfew would have: some ignored the previous one, but many others rarely leave their homes due to fuel shortages.
Rajapaksa and his wife fled Sri Lanka early Wednesday for the Maldives, slipping away overnight aboard an air force plane. On Thursday, he headed to Singapore, according to the Maldives official.
It was not clear what Rajapaksa’s final destination would be. The official initially indicated he planned to travel to Saudi Arabia, but was later able to confirm only his first stop in Singapore, where the plane believed to be carrying him landed on Thursday night. Since Sri Lankan presidents are protected from arrest while in power, it is likely that Rajapaksa wanted to plan his departure while he still had constitutional immunity and access to a military aircraft.
On Wednesday, the protesters, undeterred by the barrage of tear gas, scaled the walls to enter the prime minister’s office as the crowd outside cheered in support and threw water bottles at them. Protesters took turns posing at his desk or standing on the roof terrace waving the Sri Lankan flag.
Amid the growing chaos, Wickremesinghe’s cabinet imposed a state of emergency, giving wider powers to the army and police. Defense leaders have called for calm and cooperation with security forces – comments that have angered some lawmakers who insist civilian leaders will be the ones to find a solution.
Assuming Rajapaksa resigns as promised, Sri Lankan lawmakers agreed to elect a new president from among themselves on July 20 to serve until the end of Rajapaksa’s term, which expires in 2024. That person could potentially appointed a new prime minister, who must then be approved by parliament.
The political stalemate threatens to worsen the bankrupt nation’s economic collapse, as the lack of an alternative government could delay an expected bailout from the International Monetary Fund. Meanwhile, the country relies on aid from India and China.
Shortages of essential goods are sowing despair among Sri Lanka’s population of 22 million. The country’s rapid decline was all the more shocking because before the recent crisis the economy was expanding with a growing, comfortable middle class.
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Associated Press writer Bharatha Mallawarachi contributed to this report.
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