Protesters reject new Sri Lankan leader

 

‘He’s not our president’: Protesters reject new Sri Lankan leader

Protesters hit the streets as parliament elects Ranil Wickremesinghe as the crisis-hit country’s new president.

A protester waves a Sri Lankan flag during a protest against newly elected President Ranil Wickremesinghe, amid the country's economic crisis, in Colombo, Sri Lanka

Colombo, Sri Lanka – Anti-government protesters have returned to the streets of Sri Lanka’s capital and say they will continue their weeks-long uprising after parliament voted in acting leader Ranil Wickremesinghe as the country’s new president.

Hundreds of protesters gathered at the GotaGoGama site in Colombo on Wednesday, where only last week they had celebrated Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s resignation as president.

Addressing the crowds, protest leaders refused to accept six-time Prime Minister Wickremesinghe, 73, as the new head of state, holding him partly responsible for the country’s unprecedented economic and political crisis.

“As you know, the parliament elected a new president today, but that president is not new to us, it is not the people’s mandate,” Wasantha Mudalige, the leader of Inter University Student Federation, told the crowds.

“We managed to kick out Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who secured 6.9 million votes, but Ranil Wickremesinghe has now secured that seat from the back seat,” he added. “Ranil isn’t our president … the people’s mandate is on the streets.”

Protesters have also accused Wickremesinghe of making deals with the powerful Rajapaksa family to outmanoeuvre political rivals. Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s appointments of Wickremesinghe as prime minister in May and then acting president after he fled the country in July further angered protesters, who want the country’s ruling elite to go.

Protesters set Wickremesinghe’s personal residence on fire and occupied his office during protests last week.

At the protests on Wednesday, speaker after speaker – including Buddhist monks, Catholic clergy, students and artists – refused to endorse the parliament’s choice.

“Ranil Wickremesinghe should know that millions in the streets are much bigger than 134,” said artist Jagath Manuwarna, referring to 134 lawmakers who voted for Wickremesinghe.

While celebratory firecrackers were heard in some parts of the country last week when Sri Lankans heard Rajapaksa had resigned days, no such celebrations greeted Wickremesinghe’s appointment, with just dozens of his supporters seen celebrating on the streets.

Many Sri Lankan protesters were also left unimpressed with Wickremesinghe’s main rival at the election today, Dullas Alahapperuma, as he has no experience of governance in a heavily indebted country desperate for an International Monetary Fund bailout.

 Sri Lankans have been protesting for weeks amid an unprecedented economic meltdown that has brought the country to the brink of bankruptcy and increasingly unable to pay for food, fuel and medicine.

Cricket Sri Lanka

 

Cricket is ‘mental healing’ for many in crisis-hit Sri Lanka

Sport becomes a welcome distraction for Sri Lankans looking for a break from the effects of the economic crisis in the country.

Australia's cricket captain Pat Cummins take a selfie with fans after defeating Sri Lanka by 10 wickets in a Test match in Galle, Sri Lanka

The sport of cricket has become a welcome distraction for Sri Lankans looking for a break from the effects of the economic crisis in the country – long lines to buy fuel and cooking gas and school and work disrupted because there is little access to public transport.The cricket-crazed South Asian island nation is facing its worst economic crisis in recent memory, enduring acute shortages of food, fuel and medicine. The government has shut schools and universities and has limited fuel supplies.“Yes, there is a problem in the country – people have become poor and helpless with all kinds of problems. We have been living a monotonous life and sometimes spent five, six, seven days in fuel lines,” said Ujith Nilantha, who watched the first test between Sri Lanka and Australia with his 10-year-old son last week in the southern city of Galle.“There is no happiness for children, and we can’t provide what the child needs. When we watch this [cricket] it brings a mental healing,” added Nilantha, whose livelihood in the tourism sector has been disrupted after arrivals fell with the energy crisis.

Nilantha said he had planned to suggest his son play cricket, an expensive game by Sri Lanka’s standards, but his life changed quickly with the economic crisis and his plans were shattered.

“We love cricket but we can’t spend all our time on cricket, with the employment problems and all of that. But I expect to get some relief from the pressures by watching cricket.”

‘Only have cricket in times of sadness’

Cricket, a legacy from British colonisers, has become part of the local culture in Sri Lanka as in many South Asian and Caribbean nations. It has been looked upon as a unifying factor in a country torn apart by racial, religious and political discord.

Even a bloody quarter-century civil war did not hamper the progress or the following of the sport in Sri Lanka.

The now-defeated Tamil Tiger rebel group which fought for an independent state silenced their arms for the 1996 World Cup final, when Sri Lanka beat Australia to win the title.

Teenager Theekshana Nethumaksila was at the scenic cricket ground in Galle, having travelled from the neighbouring city of Matara by train.

People wait to buy fuel at a fuel station in Colombo

The 16-year-old Nethumaksila is scheduled to sit for public exams this year but is unable to prepare properly because the schools are closed.

“We only have cricket in times of sadness,” he said. “We come here to watch cricket to get it off our minds.”

Before going ahead with the tour, the Australian cricket team had to contemplate whether it was ethical to travel to Sri Lanka and play when local people were struggling even for basic needs.

The tour involved a three-game Twenty20 International (T20I) series, won by Australia, and a five-match One Day International (ODI) series, won 3-2 by Sri Lanka.

The Australian team’s decision to go ahead with the tour earned them admiration from fans who turned up at the fifth one-day match last month dressed in yellow – the colour of Australia’s ODI uniform – to thank them for entertaining them and sending a positive message about Sri Lanka to the world.

Some of the Australian players returned the favour. Led by captain Pat Cummins, many used social media to say they appreciated the outpouring of support they had received from the Sri Lankan fans.

Australia won the first Test match by 10 wickets, leaving Sri Lanka with a chance to square the series when the tour concludes with the second Test starting on Friday, also at Galle.