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Sri Lanka declared a state of emergency after a wave of mass anti-government protests forced President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to flee the country and seek refuge in the Maldives.
Thousands of angry people took to the streets demanding the removal of the head of state. Their outrage erupted amid the worst economic crisis Sri Lanka has experienced in decades. They gave the president a deadline, but when they saw that he was not backing down, they stormed the office of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, whom Rajapaksa named as his interim deputy.
Protesters demanded the removal of both officials. “Go home Ranil, go home Gota“, were their cries. The enraged crowd also forced their way into the main state television station, and for a while, took over the broadcasts, ordering only news related to the protest to be broadcast. Over the weekend, protesters stormed the presidential palace and went viral with footage of themselves bathing in the head of state’s pool.
From the Maldives, Rajapaksa called the speaker of parliament and told her that his resignation letter would be sent later in the day. He enjoys immunity from arrest and is believed to have wanted to leave before resigning so he could not be arrested when he was out of power.
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