Colombo - Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa resigned Monday to make way for a unity government to try to find a way out of the country's worst economic crisis in history, but protesters said they also wanted his brother to stand down as president. The resignation came after weeks of protests demanding that he and his brother, the president, step down over the country’s worst economic crisis in decades.
Prime Minister resigned hours after clashes broke out in Colombo, where supporters of the ruling party stormed an anti-government protest camp and were beaten back by police using tear gas and water cannon.
Rajapaksa tweeted that he submitted his resignation to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.
The island nation is on the brink of bankruptcy and has suspended payments on its foreign loans. Sri Lankans for many months have endured long lines to buy scarce fuel, cooking gas, food and medicine, most of which come from abroad.
Shortages of hard currency also hindered imports of raw materials for manufacturing and worsened inflation.
As oil prices soar during the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Sri Lanka’s fuel stocks are running out. Authorities have announced countrywide power cuts because they can’t supply enough fuel to power stations.
The economic woes have brought on a political crisis, with the government facing widespread protests and a no-confidence motion in Parliament. Trade unions also called Monday for a general strike until the president and the rest of his ruling family leave.
The president has so far refused to resign, and Parliament must go through a difficult process if it attempts to oust him.
The resignation of the prime minister means that the entire Cabinet is dissolved.
On the streets of Colombo, the mood was jubilant but tense as cars, some dotting the national flag and others sounding their horns, drove along a seaside promenade where clashes had broken out earlier.
At least nine people were taken to Colombo's National Hospital for treatment relating to injuries or tear gas inhalation, a hospital official said, declining to be identified. Local media reported as many as 150 were injured throughout the day.
AP/Reuters