Emergency has been declared in Sri Lanka. The decision to impose emergency was taken a day after hundreds of people stormed the Rashtrapati Bhavan, troubled by the unprecedented economic crisis. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa issued a gazette yesterday declaring a state of emergency in the country with immediate effect.
The military has been allowed to arrest and detain suspects without trial in the wake of nationwide protests against the president.
Earlier, on Thursday, people gathered outside the presidential residence to protest over the government’s failure to address the current economic crisis. Ten people, including journalists, were injured when the protesters clashed with the police.
Sri Lanka’s economy has been devastated with the tourism sector being badly affected due to the Kovid epidemic. Due to the depletion of foreign exchange reserves in Sri Lanka, there has been a shortage of food, fuel, electricity and gas.
