Sri Lanka economic crisis: President intervenes, urges all political parties to come together

"Considering this a national need, the time has come to work together for the sake of all the citizens and future generations," President Gotabaya Rajapaksa said.

New Delhi: A day after Sri Lanka's Cabinet of Ministers resigned following protests over a deepening economic crisis, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on Monday (April 4, 2022) called for a unity government to help the debt-laden country.

"The president invites all political parties representing in the parliament to come together to accept ministerial portfolios in order to find solutions to this national crisis," Rajapaksa's media office said in a statement.

"Considering this a national need, the time has come to work together for the sake of all the citizens and future generations," the statement added.

Sri Lanka's Cabinet of Ministers resign

Sri Lanka's Cabinet of Ministers, including the prime minister's son, resigned Sunday night following protests over a deepening economic crisis in the country.

I have informed the sec. to the President of my resignation from all portfolios with immediate effect, in hope that it may assist HE & PMs decision to establish stability for the people & the govt of #LKA. I remain committed to my voters, my party & the people of #Hambanthota.

— Namal Rajapaksa (@RajapaksaNamal) April 3, 2022

Speaking to reporters, Education Minister and Leader of the House, Dinesh Gunawardena said the Cabinet Ministers handed over their resignations to Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa. He, however, gave no reason for the mass resignation.

36-hour curfew lifted

A 36-hour curfew, which was imposed in Sri Lanka in the wake of the political unrest, has been lifted on Monday. All public transportation, including trains, Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB), and private buses, resumed their services after a nationwide curfew imposed by the government on Saturday was lifted.

Protesters defy nationwide curfew, hold demonstrations

Widespread public protests were seen throughout the evening on Sunday in spite of the imposition of a curfew. Sri Lankan police fired tear gas and water cannons at hundreds of university students during a protest in the central province.

The enraged public has been demanding the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and has been protesting over the government's poor handling of the economic crisis where people are currently enduring long hours of power outages and scarcity of essentials.

Sri Lanka govt lifts block placed on social media platforms

On Sunday afternoon, the Sri Lankan government lifted a block it had placed on social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter and Whatsapp hours earlier. Telecommunications Regulatory Commission Chairman Jayantha de Silva said the measure was carried out on instruction from the Defence Ministry and aimed to "maintain calm".

The developments come after Rajapaksa declared a state of emergency on Friday, following protests over the economic hardship faced by the people of the country.

Cause behind Sri Lanka's ongoing economic crisis

Critics say the roots of the crisis, the worst in several decades, lie in economic mismanagement by successive governments that amassed huge budget shortfalls and a current account deficit.

The crisis was accelerated by deep tax cuts Rajapaksa promised during the 2019 election campaign and enacted months before the COVID-19 pandemic, which wiped out parts of Sri Lanka`s economy.

(With agency inputs)