Sri Lanka declares state of emergency after riots

President Rajapaksa said the state of emergency would allow some tough laws to be activated so that security forces could proceed with the arrest of suspects. Before that, the police Sri Lanka arrested 45 people in connection with the riots on the night of March 31.

The moves come as Sri Lanka is facing its worst economic crisis since 1948 and security is being tightened in the capital Colombo to prevent a recurrence of violence.

Sri Lanka currently has only $2.31 billion in national reserves as of February and could go bankrupt. The country needs to repay an estimated $7.3 billion in domestic and foreign loans over the next 12 months.

Sri Lanka had to cut power for 13 hours a day due to lack of foreign currency to import fuel. Photo: Reuters

Protesters said that the inappropriate management of the country’s government caused Sri Lanka’s foreign exchange reserves to be rapidly depleted, severely affecting the import of essential goods. This situation has led to an increase in the prices of basic food items and shortages of essential goods such as cooking gas and fuel.

Although the Sri Lankan Government has declared a state of emergency to curb the skyrocketing prices of essential commodities due to shortages and hoarding, it has had little effect.

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