State of emergency declared as protesters reject premier Ranil Wickremesinghe acting as president and demand he and Gotabaya Rajapaksa resign
Sri Lanka
Wickremesinghe declared a state of emergency as protesters breached the prime minister’s offices and took over the state television broadcaster. He said he had given orders for police and military to do what was necessary to maintain order. In scenes reminiscent of the weekend, when protesters took over the president’s residential palace and offices, on Wednesday the crowds managed to breach the army barriers and stormed into Wickremesinghe’s offices. As the armed forces were overrun, people poured into the corridors and waved flags from the balconies.
Shanakiyan Rasamanickam, an MP from the Tamil National Alliance, called on the international community to intervene. “They can not just watch and wait until this descends into violence, they need to urge the prime minister to step down so someone who has the trust of the people can take over,” he said.Protesters also took over the offices of the Rupavahini state media centre in Colombo.
Protesters, activists and lawyers have called for the president to be prosecuted, along with various Rajapaksa family members, over alleged corruption and human rights abuses. However, while he is still president, Rajapaksa enjoys immunity from arrest. It is believed he will not officially resign until he reaches his final destination, which by Wednesday evening was reported by officials to be Singapore.
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