COLOMBO (UCAN): Sri Lankan security forces demolished the main anti-government protest camp at the Presidential Secretariat in the capital, Colombo, on July 22, evicting activists in a pre-dawn assault that raised international concern for dissent under the crisis-wracked country’s new president, Ranil Wickremesinghe.
Troops and police Special Task Force commandos wielding batons and armed with automatic assault rifles charged on people blockading the secretariat, with hundreds of soldiers removing barricades and tents outside the colonial-era building, while the last remaining protesters were battered and chased away by baton charges.
Wickremesinghe was elected by legislators on July 20 to replace ex-president Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who fled to Singapore and resigned after demonstrators chased him from the palace.
Wickremesinghe swore in his political rival, Dinesh Gunawardena, as the country’s new prime minister on July 22. The two men have been schoolmates and friends since the age of three but lead ideologically opposed political parties. He also replaced the foreign minister with Rajapaksa’s personal lawyer, Ali Sabry.
Hours after Wickremesinghe—a six-time prime minister who had earlier extended a state of emergency—was elected, he warned protesters that occupying state buildings was illegal and that they would be evicted unless they left on their own.
The peoples’ wish is system change, and parliament should be dissolved. It has no public mandate
Basantha Samarasinghe
The remaining protesters—far fewer than the thousands who overran several government buildings earlier this month—have been calling for Wickremesinghe to also quit. They accuse him of protecting the Rajapaksa clan who have dominated politics for much of the last two decades.
Hundreds of activists demonstrated at a nearby designated protest site against the military action, demanding the new president resign and dissolve parliament to allow fresh elections.
“Don’t attack peaceful protesters, instead listen to us,” said one 26-year-old student, Dimmithu. The activists insisted they would continue their struggle.
“The peoples’ wish is system change, and parliament should be dissolved. It has no public mandate,” said Basantha Samarasinghe, a 45-year-old businessperson and trade union leader.
Police said in a statement that security forces acted to clear protesters who were “illegally occupying” the presidential compound, with nine people arrested, two of whom were injured.
Wickremesinghe later met with several Colombo-based diplomats and US ambassador, Julie Chung, tweeted that she expressed “grave concern over the unnecessary & deeply troubling escalation of violence against protesters overnight,” adding, “This is not the time to crack down on citizens.”
The European Union said freedom of expression was essential for Sri Lanka to transition from its chaos.
“Hard to see how restricting it severely can help in finding solutions to the current political and economic crises,” the EU delegation in Colombo said.
Human Rights Watch said more than 50 people were injured in the crackdown and called on authorities to release the detained and prosecute those responsible for the violence.
“This action sends a dangerous message to the Sri Lankan people that the new government intends to act through brute force rather than the rule of law,” the rights group said in a statement.
