Sri Lanka imposes emergency amid countrywide protests

Colombo: Sri Lankan government has imposed an emergency in Sri Lanka after the country was hit by a severe economic crisis causing shortages of essentials, sharp price rises and crippling power cuts.

The president of Sri Lanka declared a state of emergency on Friday after hundreds of protestors tried to storm his house over the country’s most painful downturn since independence from Britain in 1948.

The emergency has given absolute powers to the security forces of the country after the declaration of emergency by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. The military, after the imposition, has powers to arrest and detain suspects for long periods without trial.

The Sri Lankan President said in a proclamation that the emergency was declared for the protection of public order and the maintenance of supplies and services essential to the life of the community.

The 22 million population of Sri Lanka is facing severe food shortages, sharp price rises and crippling power cuts.

Dozens of human rights activists carried oil lamps and handwritten placards in Columbo while demonstrating at a busy intersection, earlier in the evening.

One placard read “Time to quit Rajapaksas,” while another said, “No more corruption, go home Gota.”

According to the Police, 53 protestors were arrested and two were wounded in the protest. However, local media claims that five news photographers were arrested and tortured by the police, a charge the government claims to investigate.

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