Sri Lanka’s ousted President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who returned home after seven weeks in exile following protests over economic hardships, could face legal action over forced disappearances of activists now that he has been stripped of constitutional immunity, a lawyer said Saturday. Rajapaksa flew to Colombo around midnight Friday from Thailand and was escorted under military guard to his new home in the capital. He has no pending court cases because he was protected by constitutional immunity as president. A corruption case against him during his time as a top defense official was withdrawn soon after he was elected in 2019. However, Rajapaksa will be served a summons next week to appear at the Supreme Court, where his immunity from testifying on the forced disappearance of two young political activists is challenged, said lawyer Nuwan Bopage, who represents the victims’ families. He said Rajapaksa fled the country when he was about to be served a summons in July. The disappearances took place 12 years ago soon after the end of the country’s long civil war when Rajapaksa was a powerful official at the Defense Ministry under the presidency of his older brother. At the time, Rajapaksa was accused of overseeing abduction squads that whisked away rebel suspects, critical journalists and activists, many of them never to be seen again. He has previously denied any wrongdoing. Rajapaksa escaped from his official residence when tens of thousands of people, angry over economic hardships when the country slipped into bankruptcy and faced unprecedented shortages of basic supplies, stormed the building on July 9. Days later, he, his wife and two bodyguards flew about a military plane to the Maldives. A day later he went to Singapore, and later Thailand. Sri Lanka has run out of dollars for imports of key supplies, causing an acute shortage of essentials like food items, fuel and critical medicine. The foreign currency shortage has led the country to default on its foreign loans. Sri Lanka’s total foreign debt exceeds $ 51 billion of which $ 28 billion must be repaid by 2027. Read: Sri Lanka’s ousted president Rajapaksa returns home The International Monetary Fund on Thursday agreed to provide Sri Lanka $ 2.9 billion over four years, subject to management approval that will come only if the island nation’s creditors give assurances on debt restructuring. Economic difficulties led to monthslong street protests, which eventually led to the collapse of the once-powerful Rajapaksa family that had controlled the affairs of the country for the most part of the last two decades. Before Rajapaksa resigned after fleeing, his older brother stepped down as prime minister and three other close family members quit their Cabinet positions. President Ranil Wickremesinghe, who took over from Rajapaksa, has since cracked down on protests and dismantled their main camp opposite the president’s office. Some protesters said they were not opposed to his return as long as he faces justice. “Whether he is president or not, he is a citizen of Sri Lanka and he has the right to live in this country,” said Wijaya Nanda Chandradeva, a retired government employee who had voted for Rajapaksa and then participated in protests to oust him. He said Rajapaksa should be given necessary protection if there is a threat to his safety. “I reject him because we elected him and he proved himself to be unsuitable,” said Chandradeva.   Bhavani Fonseka of the Center for Policy Alternatives, an independent think tank, said although Rajapaska is not going to be seen favorably, “the anger we saw in July has diminished. But there are still many questions about his role in the economic crisis and the call for accountability is still there.”

Sri Lanka’s former president, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who fled the country in July after tens of thousands of protesters stormed his home and office in a display of anger over the country’s economic crisis, has returned to the country after seven weeks. Rajapaksa flew into Colombo’s Bandaranaike international airport around midnight Friday from Bangkok via Singapore. On being welcomed by lawmakers in his party, Rajapaksa left the airport in a motorcade heavily guarded by armed soldiers and reached a government-owned house allocated to him as a former president, at the center of the capital, Colombo. On July 13, the ousted leader, his wife and two bodyguards left aboard an air force plane for the Maldives, before traveling to Singapore from where he officially resigned. He flew to Thailand two weeks later. Rajapaksa has no court case or arrest warrant pending against him. The only court case he was facing for alleged corruption during his time as the secretary to the ministry of defense under his older brother’s presidency was withdrawn when he was elected president in 2019 because of constitutional immunity. Read: Sri Lanka leader proposes 25-year plan for crisis-hit nation For months, Sri Lanka has been in the grips of its worst economic crisis, which triggered extraordinary protests and unprecedented public rage that ultimately forced Rajapaksa and his brother, the former prime minister, to step down. The situation in the bankrupt country was made worse by global factors like the pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but many hold the once-powerful Rajapaksa family as responsible for severely mismanaging the economy and tipping it into crisis. The economic meltdown has seen monthslong shortages of essentials such as fuel, medicine and cooking gas due to a severe shortage of foreign currency. Though cooking gas supplies were restored through World Bank support, shortages of fuel, critical medicines and some food items continue. The island nation has suspended repayment of nearly $7 billion in foreign debt due this year. The country’s total foreign debt amounts to more than $51 billion, of which $28 billion has to be repaid by 2027. On Tuesday, President Ranil Wickremesinghe, who took over after Rajapaksa resigned, and his administration reached a preliminary agreement with the International Monetary Fund for a $2.9 billion bailout package over four years to help the country recover.  Rajapaksa, a former military officer, was elected on promises to uplift the country’s economy and ensure national security after Islamic State-inspired bomb attacks killed some 270 people in churches and hotels on Easter Sunday 2019. He relinquished his American citizenship when he contested the election because laws at the time made dual citizens ineligible from holding political office. As a top defense official he is accused of overseeing human rights violations by the military during the country’s three-decade civil war with the now-defeated Tamil Tiger rebels who fought for an independent state for the country’s ethnic minority Tamils. In April, protesters started camping outside the president’s office in the heart of Colombo and chanted “Gota, go home,” a demand for Rajapaksa to quit, which quickly became the rallying cry of the movement. The demonstrations dismantled the Rajapaksa family’s grip on politics. Before Rajapaksa resigned, his older brother stepped down as prime minister and three more close family members quit their Cabinet positions. But the country’s new president, Wickremesinghe, has since cracked down on protests. His first action as leader included dismantling the protest tents in the middle of the night as police forcibly removed demonstrators from the site and attacked them. There is genuine fear among people who want to protest now, said Bhavani Fonseksa, with the independent think tank Center for Policy Alternatives. “Whether people will take to the streets to demonstrate again is still to be seen, especially since there’s been so much repression since Ranil Wickremesinghe came to power. Several protesters have been arrested so there is genuine fear,” she said. Dayan Jayatilleka, a former diplomat and political analyst, said the ruling SLPP party will welcome him back, but didn’t think his return would spark people to flood the streets again. “They will be sour — it is still far too early for him to return,” he said. “There is no way Gotabaya will be forgiven for his transgressions but I think now there is more bitterness than public rage that awaits him,” Jayatilleka added. For Nazly Hameem, an organizer who helped lead the protest movement, the former president’s return isn’t an issue “as long as he is held accountable.” “He is a Sri Lankan citizen so no one can prevent him from coming back. But as someone who wants justice against the corrupt system, I would like to see action taken — there should be justice, they should file cases against him and hold him accountable for what he did to the country.” “Our slogan was ‘Gota, go home’ — we didn’t expect him to flee, we wanted him to resign. As long as he doesn’t involve himself in active politics, it won’t be a problem.”

Ousted Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa is expected to return home more than seven weeks after he fled the country amid mass protests that demanded his resignation, holding him and his family responsible for the country's economic crisis. Rajapaksa currently does not face any current arrest warrants. A corruption case against him in his former role as secretary to the Defense Ministry was withdrawn when he was elected president in 2019 because of constitutional immunity. Some other investigations were also suspended. Officials familiar with arrangements for his arrival said Rajapaksa was expected to return from Thailand later Friday, while local media reported it would be Saturday. It was not possible to independently verify the timing. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter. Read: IMF agrees to provide crisis-hit Sri Lanka $2.9 billion Rajapaksa fled from the president’s official residence on July 9 when tens of thousands of people stormed the building and occupied it, along with several other key state buildings. On July 13, he fled to the Maldives on a military jet and a day later flew to Singapore, from where he announced his resignation. Two weeks later he arrived in Thailand on a diplomatic visa following a Sri Lankan government request. Rajapaksa was elected president in 2019 by an overwhelming majority on a promise to uplift the country’s economy and strengthen national security, after Islamic State-inspired bomb attacks on churches and hotels killed 270 people on Easter Sunday that year. However, policy blunders including drastic tax cuts which reduced national income and pushed down credit ratings, a ban on agrochemicals ostensibly to promote organic farming, and the release of scarce foreign currency to artificially control exchange rates led to the worst economic crisis in the country's history. Sri Lanka has suspended repayment of its foreign debts, which total more than $51 billion, of which $28 billion must be repaid by 2027. Read: Sri Lanka hopes to reach initial agreement with IMF for help The International Monetary Fund announced Thursday a preliminary agreement to extend $2.9 billion to Sri Lanka over four years, provided there are assurances from the country's creditors on loan restructuring. Months of street protest have dismantled the one-powerful Rajapaksa political family. Before Rajapaksa resigned, his older brother stepped down as prime minister and three more close family members quit their Cabinet positions. President Ranil Wickremesinghe, who succeeded Rajapaksa, has cracked down on protests, helping the Rajapaksa family and its supporters who were in hiding to return to public politics. Nuzly Hameem, who helped lead the protest movement, said the former president’s return shouldn’t be an issue “as long as he is held accountable.” “He is a Sri Lankan citizen so no one can prevent him from coming back. But as someone who wants justice for the corrupt system, I would like to see action taken — there should be justice, they should file cases against him and hold him accountable for what he did to the country.” “We didn’t expect him to flee, we wanted him to resign. As long as he doesn’t involve himself in active politics, it won’t be a problem," Hameem said.

Sri Lanka’s Parliament speaker says President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has resigned and Parliament will convene to choose a new leader after massive protests took over government buildings to force him out of office. Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeyweardana said Friday that the Parliament will convene Saturday to start the process of electing a new president. He expects to compete the process within seven days. Their new choice as president will serve the remainder of Rajapaksa’s term, which ends in 2024. That person could potentially appoint a new prime minister, who would then have to be approved by Parliament. Rajapaksa fled the country Wednesday amid mounting protests for him to resign. He arrived in Singapore on Thursday and the speaker said Rajapaksa's resignation was effective on that date. Also read: Protesters retreat as Sri Lankan president sends resignation “To be validated like this is massive,” said Viraga Perera, an engineer who has been protesting since April and estimated that he has spent 60 or 70 nights there in all. “On a global scale, we have led a movement that toppled a president with minimal force and violence. It’s a mix of victory and relief.” Protesters who had occupied government buildings retreated Thursday, restoring a tenuous calm in the capital, Colombo. But with a fractured opposition, a solution to Sri Lanka’s many woes seemed no closer. Abeywardana said he will ensure the process of electing a new president will be swift and transparent. “I request the honorable and loving citizens of this country to create a peaceful atmosphere in order to implement the proper Parliamentary democratic process and enable all members of Parliament to participate in the meetings and function freely and conscientiously," he said Friday. The protesters accuse Rajapaksa and his powerful political family of siphoning money from government coffers for years and his administration of hastening the country’s collapse by mismanaging the economy. The family has denied the corruption allegations, but Rajapaksa acknowledged that some of his policies contributed to the meltdown. Also read: Sri Lankan armed forces empowered to use force following clashes Months of protests reached a frenzied peak over the weekend when demonstrators stormed the president’s home and office and the official residence of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe. On Wednesday, they seized Wickremesinghe’s office. Images of protesters inside the buildings — lounging on elegant sofas and beds, posing at officials’ desks and touring the opulent settings — captured the world’s attention. The demonstrators initially vowed to hold those places until a new government was in place, but the movement shifted tactics Thursday, apparently concerned that any escalation in violence could undermine their message following clashes the previous night outside the Parliament that left dozens injured. “The fear was that there could be a crack in the trust they held for the struggle,” said Nuzly, a protest leader who goes by only one name. “We’ve shown what power of the people can do, but it doesn’t mean we have to occupy these places.” Devinda Kodagode, another protest leader, told The Associated Press they planned to vacate official buildings after the speaker said he was exploring legal options for the country in the wake of Rajapaksa’s departure. Visaka Jayaweer, a performing artist, described the bittersweet moment of closing the gate to the presidential palace after the crowds cleared out. “Taking over his residence was a great moment. It showed just how much we wanted him to step down. But it is also a great relief” to leave, she said. “We were worried if people would act out — many were angry to see the luxury he had been living in when they were outside, struggling to buy milk for their children.” The country remains a powder keg, and the military warned Thursday that it had powers to respond in case of chaos — a message some found concerning. Troops in green uniforms and camouflage vests arrived in armored vehicles to reinforce barricades around the Parliament, while protesters vowed to continue holding rallies outside the president’s office until a new government was in place. Rajapaksa and his wife fled Sri Lanka early Wednesday for the Maldives, slipping away in the night aboard a military plane. On Thursday, he went to Singapore, according to the city-state’s Foreign Ministry. It said he had not requested asylum. Since Sri Lankan presidents are protected from arrest while in power, it’s likely Rajapaksa wanted to plan his departure while he still had constitutional immunity and access to the plane. The protests underscored the dramatic fall of the Rajapaksa political clan that has ruled Sri Lanka for most of the past two decades. A military strategist whose brutal campaign helped end the country’s 26-year civil war, Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his brother, who was president at the time, were hailed by the island’s Buddhist Sinhalese majority. Despite accusations of wartime atrocities, including ordering military attacks on ethnic Tamil civilians and abducting journalists, Rajapaksa remained popular among many Sri Lankans. He has continually denied the allegations. The shortages of basic necessities have sown despair among Sri Lanka’s 22 million people. The country’s rapid decline was all the more shocking because, before the recent crisis, the economy had been expanding, with a growing, comfortable middle class. It was not immediately clear if Singapore would be Rajapaksa’s final destination, but he has previously sought medical care there, including undergoing heart surgery.

Protesters retreated from government buildings Thursday in Sri Lanka, restoring a tenuous calm to the economically crippled country, and the embattled president at last emailed the resignation that demonstrators have sought for months. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa fled a day earlier under pressure from protesters enraged by the island nation’s economic collapse. He emailed his resignation a day later than promised, according to an official. But with a fractured opposition and confusion over who is in charge, a solution to the country's many woes seemed no closer following Rajapaksa’s departure. And the president has further angered the crowds by making his prime minister the acting leader. Protesters have pressed for both men to leave and for a unity government to address the economic calamity that has triggered widespread shortages of food, fuel and other necessities. The tentative way the resignation unfolded only added to turmoil. An aide to the speaker of the Sri Lankan Parliament issued a statement that said the speaker had received the president's resignation through the Sri Lankan Embassy in Singapore, but there was no immediate official announcement. Also read: Sri Lankan president emails resignation, official says An announcement was planned for Friday after the authenticity and legality of the letter are verified, the statement said. As word of the resignation spread, jubilant crowds gathered near the president’s office to celebrate. Dozens of people danced and cheered and waved the Sri Lankan flag, and two men sang in Sinhalese on a small stage. The mood was festive, with people hooting and swaying to music while others chanted into a microphone that they wanted better governance. “To be validated like this is massive,” said Viraga Perera, an engineer who has been protesting since April. "On a global scale, we have led a movement that toppled a president with minimal force and violence. It’s a mix of victory and relief.” The protesters accuse Rajapaksa and his powerful political family of siphoning money from government coffers for years and his administration of hastening the country’s collapse by mismanaging the economy. The family has denied the corruption allegations, but Rajapaksa acknowledged that some of his policies contributed to the meltdown. Months of protests reached a frenzied peak over the weekend when demonstrators stormed the president’s home and office and the official residence of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe. On Wednesday, they seized Wickremesinghe's office. Images of protesters inside the buildings — lounging on elegant sofas and beds, posing at officials' desks and touring the opulent settings — captured the world's attention. They initially vowed to hold those places until a new government was in place, but the movement shifted tactics Thursday, apparently concerned that any escalation in violence could undermine their message following clashes the previous night outside the Parliament that left dozens injured. “The fear was that there could be a crack in the trust they held for the struggle,” said Nuzly, a protest leader who goes by only one name. “We’ve shown what power of the people can do, but it doesn’t mean we have to occupy these places.” Devinda Kodagode, another protest leader, told The Associated Press they planned to vacate official buildings after Parliament Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardana said he was exploring legal options for the country in the wake of Rajapaksa's departure. Visaka Jayaweer, a performing artist, described the bittersweet moment of closing the gate to the presidential palace after the crowds cleared out. “Taking over his residence was a great moment. It showed just how much we wanted him to step down. But it is also a great relief" to leave, she said. "We were worried if people would act out — many were angry to see the luxury he had been living in when they were outside, struggling to buy milk for their children.” Also read: Sri Lankan armed forces empowered to use force following clashes The country remains a powder keg, and the military warned Thursday that it had powers to respond in case of chaos — a message some found concerning. Troops in green uniforms and camouflage vests arrived in armored vehicles to reinforce barricades around the Parliament, while protesters vowed to continue holding rallies outside the president’s office until a new government was in place. The government announced another curfew in the capital of Colombo and its suburbs until early Friday. Some people ignored a previous curfew, but many others rarely leave their homes anyway because of fuel shortages. Rajapaksa and his wife fled Sri Lanka early Wednesday for the Maldives, slipping away in the night aboard a military plane. On Thursday, he went to Singapore, according to the city-state’s Foreign Ministry. It said he had not requested asylum. Since Sri Lankan presidents are protected from arrest while in power it’s likely Rajapaksa wanted to plan his departure while he still had constitutional immunity and access to the plane. The protests underscored the dramatic fall of the Rajapaksa political clan that has ruled Sri Lanka for most of the past two decades. As a military strategist whose brutal campaign helped end the country's 26-year civil war, Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his brother, who was president at the time, were hailed by the island’s Buddhist Sinhalese majority. Despite accusations of wartime atrocities, including ordering military attacks on ethnic Tamil civilians and abducting journalists, Rajapaksa remained popular among many Sri Lankans. He has continually denied the allegations. The shortages of basic necessities have sown despair among Sri Lanka’s 22 million people. The country’s rapid decline was all the more shocking because, before the recent crisis, the economy had been expanding, with a growing, comfortable middle class. It was not immediately clear if Singapore would be Rajapaksa's final destination, but he has previously sought medical care there, including undergoing heart surgery. Sri Lankan lawmakers have agreed to elect a new president from their ranks on July 20 who will serve the remainder of Rajapaksa’s term, which ends in 2024. That person could potentially appoint a new prime minister, who would then have to be approved by Parliament.

Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa flew into Singapore from the Maldives on Thursday evening, the Straits Times reported. The Singaporean newspaper said Rajapaksa arrived on board a Saudi flight, which landed at Singapore's Changi airport at 7:17 pm local time (1117 GMT). Also read: Sri Lankan leader leaves Maldives, protesters leave offices It is not clear how long he will stay in Singapore or if he has another destination in mind, the newspaper added. Rajapaksa left Sri Lanka for the Maldives on Wednesday, just hours before his resignation was expected to be announced, amid a severe economic crisis that has sparked protests in the country. Also read: Sri Lanka protests: One dead and 84 injured, say hospital officials Sri Lankan Speaker of Parliament Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena confirmed on Wednesday that a new president will be elected on July 20 through a vote in parliament.

The sight of crowds gathering and overrunning the security cordon at the Presidential Palace, torching the PM’s residence and generally taking over the streets have warmed many hearts as they are archetypal scenes of “people’s power” movements anywhere. Even in Bangladesh, when Ershad was overthrown in December 1990, the vice president's residence was attacked and trashed. But before it went further, political parties backed by the army reined the crowds in. In Sri Lanka the situation is much more desperate and the crowd control of the political variety is missing. The people are far more desperate and the economic conditions –the main trigger- much worse than feared. In Bangladesh which has a long history of military takeovers, the arch villain Gen. Ershad of 1990 was an army man who was arrested and taken in. The army was also not interested in taking over. The balance of power between the civil and military forces was positive and Bangladesh went into a new phase of electoral politics with the Neutral Caretaker Government phase that lasted from 1991 to 2007. In fact the movement was against the prevailing military regime, and conducted by separate political factions coming together to achieve a common objective. In Sri Lanka the entire polity has lost credibility. The scenario is therefore different and the most significant marker is the absence of credible political options. Do they exist in Sri Lanka today ? The Rajapaksa mess The Rajapaksas have basically considered Sri Lanka their family business. And it was not on governance that they based their claim but defeating the Tamil insurrection. It was a military victory that made them who they are and the pride they claim is shared by the SL army as well. At this point of time, the army had not deserted them and when the Prez Rajapaksa couldn’t fly out, it was an army plane that flew him to sanctuary in the Maldives.  But does the army want to move in?  Going by current statements, it’s not a yes.  But… Read:Did eco-activist Vandana Shiva ruin Sri Lankan agriculture? The last week’s events The events have begun to peak in the last few weeks till it’s now very much out of control of the police and the armed forces have been forced to get involved.  It had been on for some time. On May 11, an army spokesperson strongly refuted any takeover by it. “When there is a dangerous situation in the country, powers are given to the military to deal with it," Kamal Gunaratne, the secretary of Sri Lanka's defence ministry, told a press conference in response to the claims. Don't ever think that we are trying to capture power, the military has no such intentions." “Gunaratne was a top field commander in the final battle that defeated Sri Lanka's separatist Tamil Tigers movement in 2009, ending a decades-old civil war.  His superior at the time was Gotabaya Rajapaksa, now serving as the nation's president.” ( Indian Express  May 11 ) But the situation is changing rapidly  and on July 10, NDTV reported that the Sri Lankan Army chief General Shavendra Silva had sought people's support to maintain peace as Sri Lanka battles a super crisis. General Shavendra Silva requested Sri Lankans to support the armed forces and the police as the public ransacked the Presidential palace. Following the protests, President Rajapaksa informed Parliament Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena that he will step down on July 13, while Prime Minister Wickremesinghe said he would resign as soon as an all-party government was ready to take over. The Speaker would become the acting President after Mr Rajapaksa resigns. Later, an election among MPs will be held to elect a new President, reports said. On 13th July the situation reached a point when civil and police forces could no longer sustain law and order.  The media reported that the Sri Lanka army took over state TV and radio stations. As the police crumbles and given the situation unable to go beyond tear gas, the army is increasingly moving in to fill the gap. Whether this will mean a total take over or not depends a lot on how the parliament manages to establish itself. Until now they haven’t.  The parliament however also knows that the army is pro-Rajapaksa, having fought the Tamils under him, with professional links and connections. The army hasn’t liked stepping in, whatever bit it has but circumstances have pushed it to do so. Will circumstances push the army beyond a point of its own reluctance? 

Before he fled Sri Lanka on Wednesday amid a crushing economic crisis, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa was the last of six members of the country’s most influential family still clinging to power. Rajapaksa, his wife and two bodyguards flew to the city of Male, the capital of the Maldives, according to an immigration official who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation. His departure comes four days after massive crowds broke into his official residence and occupied his seaside office, and he pledged to leave the country. Protesters also stormed the residence of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, who has said he will leave once a new government is in place. Read: Sri Lanka's new president to be elected on July 20: speaker Here is a closer look at the rise and fall of Rajapaksa: A FAMILY AFFAIR For decades, the powerful land-owning Rajapaksa family had dominated local politics in their rural southern district before Mahinda Rajapaksa was elected president in 2005. Appealing to the nationalist sentiment of the island’s Buddhist-Sinhalese majority, he led Sri Lanka into a triumphant victory over ethnic Tamil rebels in 2009, ending a 26-year brutal civil war that had divided the country. His younger brother, Gotabaya, was a powerful official and military strategist in the Ministry of Defense. Mahinda remained in office until 2015, when he lost to the opposition led by his former aide. But the family made a comeback in 2019, when Gotabaya won the presidential election on a promise to restore security in the wake of the Easter Sunday terrorist suicide bombings that killed 290 people. He vowed to bring back the muscular nationalism that had made his family popular with the Buddhist majority, and to lead the country out of an economic slump with a message of stability and development. Instead, he made a series of fatal mistakes that ushered in an unprecedented crisis. TAX CUTS DRAIN GOVERNMENT FUNDS As tourism plunged in the wake of the bombings and foreign loans on controversial development projects — including a port and an airport in the president’s home region — needed to be repaid, Rajapaksa didn’t listen to economic advisers and pushed through the largest tax cuts in the country’s history. It was meant to spur spending, but critics warned it would slash the government’s finances. Pandemic lockdowns and an ill-advised ban on chemical fertilizers further hurt the fragile economy. The country soon ran out of money and couldn’t repay its huge debts. Shortages of food, cooking gas, fuel and medicine stoked public anger at what many saw as mismanagement, corruption and nepotism. THE END BEGINS The family’s unravelling began in April, when growing protests forced three Rajapaksa relatives, including the finance minister, to quit their Cabinet posts and another to leave his ministerial job. In May, government supporters attacked protesters in a wave of violence that left nine dead. The anger of the protesters turned against Mahinda Rajapaksa, who was pressured to resign as prime minister and took refuge on a heavily fortified naval base. But Gotabaya refused to go, triggering chants in the streets of “Gota Go Home!” Instead, he saw his savior in Wickremesinghe, a seasoned opposition politician who he brought in to steer the country out of the abyss. Ultimately, however, Wickremesinghe lacked the political heft and public support needed to get the job done.

Sri Lanka's president acknowledged Monday that he made mistakes that led to the country's worst economic crisis in decades and pledged to correct them. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa made the admission while speaking to 17 new Cabinet ministers he appointed Monday as he and his powerful family seek to resolve a political crisis resulting from the country’s dire economic state. Sri Lanka is on the brink of bankruptcy, with nearly $7 billion of its total $25 billion in foreign debt due for repayment this year. A severe shortage of foreign exchange means the country lacks money to buy imported goods. People have endured months of shortages of essentials like food, cooking gas, fuel and medicine, lining up for hours to buy the very limited stocks available. “During the last two and a half years we have had vast challenges. The COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the debt burden, and some mistakes on our part,” Rajapaksa said. “They need to be rectified. We have to correct them and move forward. We need to regain the trust of the people.” Also Read: Sri Lankan Cabinet reshuffled to counter economic crisis He said the government should have approached the International Monetary Fund early on for help in facing the impending debt crisis and should not have banned chemical fertilizer in an attempt to make Sri Lankan agriculture fully organic. Critics say the ban on imported fertilizer was aimed at conserving the country's declining foreign exchange holdings and badly hurt farmers. The government is also blamed for taking out large loans for infrastructure projects which have not brought in any money. “Today, people are under immense pressure due to this economic crisis. I deeply regret this situation," Rajapaksa said, adding that the pain, discomfort and anger displayed by people forced to wait in long lines to get essential items at high prices is justified. The Cabinet appointments follow weeks of protests over shortages of fuel and food and demands that Rajapaksa, his politically powerful family and his government resign. Much public anger has been directed at Rajapaksa and his elder brother, Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa. They head an influential clan that has held power for most of the past two decades. Thousands of protesters occupied the entrance to the president’s office for a 10th day on Monday. Also Read: Sri Lankan protesters mark new year near president’s office The president and prime minister remain in office, but some other relatives lost their Cabinet seats in what was seen as an attempt to pacify the protesters without giving up the family's hold on power. Many senior politicians and those facing corruption allegations were excluded from the new Cabinet in line with calls for a younger administration, though the finance and foreign affairs ministers retained their positions to assist with an economic recovery. Most of the Cabinet resigned on April 3 after protests erupted across the country and demonstrators stormed and vandalized the homes of some Cabinet ministers. Opposition parties rejected an offer by President Rajapaksa to form a unity government with him and his brother remaining in power. Opposition parties have failed, meanwhile, to gain a parliamentary majority. Last week, the government said it was suspending repayment of foreign loans pending talks with the International Monetary Fund. Finance Minister Ali Sabry and officials left for talks with the IMF on Sunday. The IMF and World Bank are holding annual meetings in Washington this week. Sri Lanka has also turned to China and India for emergency loans to buy food and fuel.      

Sri Lanka's President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has granted a general amnesty to 512 prisoners serving minor sentences to mark the 72nd Independence Day which falls on Feb. 4, the President's Media Division (PMD) said in a statement on Monday.