OVER 660 SRI LANKANS ARE ARRESTED FOR PARTICIPATING IN RIOTS

Tue 17 May 2022:

The Sri Lankan authorities have arrested over 660 people for participating in riots on May 9 and 10, Sri Lankan media outlet news First reported on Tuesday, citing police.

A total number of people arrested due to the violent clashes, which took place on May 9-10, has increased to 664, with 206 already released on bail, according to the report.

Over the past 24 hours, 258 people have been arrested, of which 67 were released on bail, the report says, adding that 43 have been remanded.

On the morning of May 9, clashes broke out in Sri Lanka between supporters and opponents of the ruling party Sri Lanka People’s Front. The unrest in the country’s capital began after several thousand supporters of the ruling party, brought by buses from the countryside, attacked the opposition’s campsite, and later clashed with them at a rally near the residences of the prime minister and the president of the country.

Police used water cannons and tear gas to disperse the crowds. Nine people, including two police officers, were killed and more than 240 injured in the riots, according to the police.

Sri Lanka’s economic crisis, unparalleled since its independence in 1948, has come from the confluence of the COVID-19 pandemic, rising oil prices and populist tax cuts by the Rajapaksas.

The chronic foreign exchange shortage has led to rampant inflation and shortages of medicine, fuel and other essentials, bringing thousands out on the streets in protest.

Protests have been continuing for more than a month against Rajapaksa and his government as long queues for fuel and gas add to anger against the powerful clan.

The president’s elder brother, Mahinda Rajapaksa, quit as prime minister on May 9 after a wave of violence triggered by an attack on anti-government protesters by ruling party supporters.

There is an acute shortage of food and basic necessities, including fuel and gas, with many parts of the island nation facing continuous power blackouts. Sri Lanka’s external debt is estimated at $51 billion.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

FOLLOW INDEPENDENT PRESS:

TWITTER (CLICK HERE)
https://twitter.com/IpIndependent