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Gotabaya Rajapaksa has resigned as president of Sri Lanka after fleeing to Singapore following mass protests in the country against his regime.
Rajapaksa handed in his resignation on Thursday July 14, according to Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena’s press office, adding that the resignation will be officially announced on July 15 at 7am local time.
Protesters in Sri Lanka’s capital, Colombo, earlier agreed to vacate government buildings amid ongoing negotiations with the country’s parliament speaker.
Rajapaksa left the country on July 13 without handing in his resignation. He first traveled to the Maldives and then to Singapore, where he reportedly submitted his resignation letter to the Sri Lankan High Commission there. He then traveled to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
The speaker of parliament has called for the original letter of resignation to be sent to Sri Lanka by the next available aircraft from Singapore.
Tensions in Sri Lanka remained high amid the state of emergency declared by the government. A heavy military presence was reported around parliament and other government buildings.
Radio Free Europe reports that Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, who is serving as acting president, told parliament he would resign and asked Abeywardena “to appoint a prime minister who is acceptable to both the government and the opposition.”
Mass protests erupted over the weekend, with demonstrators occupying the presidential palace and other official buildings.
Protesters accuse outgoing President Rajapaksa of corruption and gross mismanagement of the country’s economy of about 22 million people. He has denied the accusations of corruption.
Once Rajapaksa’s resignation is officially verified, parliament will convene on July 20 to elect a new president to complete his term, which ends in 2024.
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