Lankan crisis: Army chief seeks public support for peace; IMF ‘closely watching’

Amid the ongoing protests in Sri Lanka, the country’s Army chief General Shavendra Silva on Sunday (July 10) said that an opportunity to resolve the current political crisis in a peaceful manner is now available and sought the people’s support to maintain peace in the island nation, hours after embattled President Gotabaya Rajapaksa agreed to step down on July 13.

Thousands of irate anti-government protesters in Sri Lanka on Saturday stormed into Rajapaksa’s official residence in central Colombo’s high-security Fort area after breaking the barricades, as they demanded his resignation over the island nations worst economic crisis in recent memory.

Also read: Protesters set afire PM Wickremesinghe’s home; Gotabaya to resign

The protesters also torched the private residence of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe even after he offered to resign.

In a brief statement, Chief of Defence Staff Gen. Silva said that an opportunity has arisen to resolve the current crisis in a peaceful manner. He requested all Sri Lankans to support the armed forces and the Police to ensure that peace is maintained in the country, Colombo Gazette news portal reported.

The statement was issued following the violence seen at Galle Face and Fort on Saturday and near the private residence of Prime Minister Wickremesinghe. President Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Wickremesinghe have offered to resign following the incidents.

Thousands arrived from around the country and stormed the President’s House following a battle with the Police and Security Forces. Tear gas and water cannons were used while shots were also fired by the military to try and disperse the crowd.

Also read: Sri Lankan central bank raises key rates to curb inflation

However, people both young and old continued to push their way past the barricades and reached the President’s House. The public went inside the house and used the facilities, including the swimming pool.

#WATCH | As the economic crisis in Sri Lanka triggers nationwide unrest, protestors stormed the premises of the presidential palace in the capital Colombo, earlier today#SriLankaCrisis

(Source: Reuters) pic.twitter.com/zFAsj3qPhw

— ANI (@ANI) July 9, 2022

‘India treading with caution’

After the protests in the island nation on Saturday, India is “treading with caution” deciding to monitor how the current Sri Lankan political and military leadership handles the crisis, according to an Indian Express report.

Indian diplomats in Colombo were keeping a “close watch” on the ground situation – the Indian High Commission is located barely a few kilometres from the President’s residence, the report added.

Sources told the newspaper that in a “fluid situation” like this, the Indian strategic establishment does not want to take sides, but wants “rational actors” to take control of the situation so that there is “stability in the country and the region”.

The United States has urged Sri Lanka’s political fraternity to come forward and work quickly to achieve long-term economic and political solutions to address the people’s discontent.

“The United States calls on the Sri Lankan parliament to approach this juncture with a commitment to the betterment of the nation, not any one political party,” a US State Department spokesperson said on Sunday.

“We urge this government or any new, constitutionally elected government to work quickly to identify and implement solutions that will achieve long-term economic stability and address the Sri Lankan people’s discontent over the worsening economic conditions, including power, food and fuel shortages,” the spokesperson said.

102 people admitted to hospital

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Sunday said that it was “closely monitoring” the ongoing developments in Sri Lanka and hoped that the political crisis will be resolved soon to allow for the resumption of dialogue on an IMF-supported programme in the cash-starved country.

“We are closely monitoring the ongoing developments in Sri Lanka,” Peter Breuer, IMF Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka, and Masahiro Nozaki, IMF Mission Chief for Sri Lanka said in a statement on Sunday.

“We are deeply concerned about the impact of the ongoing economic crisis on the people, particularly the poor and vulnerable groups, and reaffirm our commitment to support Sri Lanka at this difficult time, in line with the IMF’s policies,” the IMF said in a statement, according to reports.

Meanwhile, the Colombo national hospital said 102 people had been admitted with injuries. Among them are 11 media personnel. The police’s special task force was accused of brutally assaulting two television journalists at the prime minister’s private residence protest. The attack triggered the backlash which resulted in the house being set on fire by the protesters.

(With inputs from agencies)