Sri Lankan President Flees, Protesters Storm PM's Office
2022-07-14
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1Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa fled for the Maldives Wednesday to escape a major anti-government uprising in his country.
2The president placed Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe in control of the country before leaving, angering protesters further.
3Police deployed outside the prime minister's offices used tear gas against a large crowd of activists.
4But the protesters climbed over barriers and entered the area.
5Some entered the office.
6Others waved the national flag from the top of the building.
7"We need both ... to go home," Supun Eranga, a 28-year-old government worker told Reuters.
8"Ranil couldn't deliver what he promised during his two months, so he should quit. All Ranil did was try to protect the Rajapaksas."
9Standing next to a broken door to the office, college student Sanchuka Kavinda added,
10"No matter what, everyone in this crowd will be here until Ranil also steps down."
11Wickremesinghe, as acting president, appeared on television to declare a state of emergency and an immediate curfew.
12He said a committee of police and military chiefs will return order and security to the country.
13He also said he would not leave office until a new government was in place.
14It was not clear when that would happen as the opposition is still trying to form a government.
15Parliament speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena says he spoke to Rajapaksa on the phone.
16He reported the president said his official resignation letter would arrive later Wednesday.
17The Parliament is expected to meet on Friday to name a new president sometime next week.
18A top ruling party official told Reuters that Wickremesinghe was the party's first choice, although no decision had been made.
19An attempt by Wickremesinghe to stay in power would anger the protesters.
20They say he is a close ally of the Rajapaksa family, which has controlled the country since 2004.
21"An MP [member of parliament] with one seat is appointed as PM [prime minister]. Now the same person is appointed as acting President," opposition leader Sajith Premadasa said on Twitter.
22The tweet called the political process a "Rajapaksa style of democracy."
23"What a tragedy," Premadasa wrote.
24Sri Lanka has been run by the powerful Rajapaksa family for almost 20 years.
25D.A. Rajapaksa was a lawmaker in the 1950s and '60s.
26His son, Mahinda Rajapaksa, served as prime minister and president from 2004 to 2015.
27Gotabaya Rajapaksa, a younger brother, became president in 2019.
28He brought Mahinda back as prime minister and appointed other family members to important government positions.
29After several weeks of anti-government protests that turned violent, Mahinda resigned in May and was replaced by Wickremesinghe.
30Government officials said the president's brothers, Mahinda and former finance minister Basil Rajapaksa, remain in Sri Lanka.
31Wickremesinghe, whose private home in Colombo was burned on Saturday, had offered to resign as prime minister.
32But he did not repeat that offer after he became acting president on Wednesday.
33If he does go, the speaker would be acting president until a new president is elected.
34The voting is to take place on July 20.
35Economists say the crisis in Sri Lanka comes from years of poor leadership and corruption.
36They also say it comes from other troubles, such as growing debt, the effects of the pandemic and terror attacks that hurt the tourism industry.
37The World Food Program said that nearly nine out of 10 families in Sri Lanka are decreasing their food consumption.
38The government has been seeking help from the International Monetary Fund and neighboring India and China to pay for food and fuel.
39And the country has $51 billion in foreign debts that it cannot repay.
40Madusanka Perera is a laborer who came to Colombo the first day protesters began their occupation of government buildings.
41He lost his job, and his father, a driver, cannot do his because of fuel shortages.
42He told the Associated Press, "Not only Gotabaya and Ranil, all 225 members of Parliament should go home... family politics have ruined our country."
43"I'm 29 years old - I should be having the best time of life but instead I don't have a job, no money and no life," he added.
44I'm Jill Robbins.
1Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa fled for the Maldives Wednesday to escape a major anti-government uprising in his country. 2The president placed Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe in control of the country before leaving, angering protesters further. 3Police deployed outside the prime minister's offices used tear gas against a large crowd of activists. But the protesters climbed over barriers and entered the area. Some entered the office. Others waved the national flag from the top of the building. 4"We need both ... to go home," Supun Eranga, a 28-year-old government worker told Reuters. "Ranil couldn't deliver what he promised during his two months, so he should quit. All Ranil did was try to protect the Rajapaksas." 5Standing next to a broken door to the office, college student Sanchuka Kavinda added, "No matter what, everyone in this crowd will be here until Ranil also steps down." 6Wickremesinghe, as acting president, appeared on television to declare a state of emergency and an immediate curfew. He said a committee of police and military chiefs will return order and security to the country. 7He also said he would not leave office until a new government was in place. It was not clear when that would happen as the opposition is still trying to form a government. 8New leader to come 9Parliament speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena says he spoke to Rajapaksa on the phone. He reported the president said his official resignation letter would arrive later Wednesday. 10The Parliament is expected to meet on Friday to name a new president sometime next week. A top ruling party official told Reuters that Wickremesinghe was the party's first choice, although no decision had been made. 11An attempt by Wickremesinghe to stay in power would anger the protesters. They say he is a close ally of the Rajapaksa family, which has controlled the country since 2004. 12"An MP [member of parliament] with one seat is appointed as PM [prime minister]. Now the same person is appointed as acting President," opposition leader Sajith Premadasa said on Twitter. The tweet called the political process a "Rajapaksa style of democracy." 13"What a tragedy," Premadasa wrote. 14Family rule 15Sri Lanka has been run by the powerful Rajapaksa family for almost 20 years. D.A. Rajapaksa was a lawmaker in the 1950s and '60s. His son, Mahinda Rajapaksa, served as prime minister and president from 2004 to 2015. 16Gotabaya Rajapaksa, a younger brother, became president in 2019. He brought Mahinda back as prime minister and appointed other family members to important government positions. 17After several weeks of anti-government protests that turned violent, Mahinda resigned in May and was replaced by Wickremesinghe. Government officials said the president's brothers, Mahinda and former finance minister Basil Rajapaksa, remain in Sri Lanka. 18Wickremesinghe, whose private home in Colombo was burned on Saturday, had offered to resign as prime minister. But he did not repeat that offer after he became acting president on Wednesday. If he does go, the speaker would be acting president until a new president is elected. The voting is to take place on July 20. 19Economic crisis 20Economists say the crisis in Sri Lanka comes from years of poor leadership and corruption. They also say it comes from other troubles, such as growing debt, the effects of the pandemic and terror attacks that hurt the tourism industry. 21The World Food Program said that nearly nine out of 10 families in Sri Lanka are decreasing their food consumption. The government has been seeking help from the International Monetary Fund and neighboring India and China to pay for food and fuel. And the country has $51 billion in foreign debts that it cannot repay. 22Madusanka Perera is a laborer who came to Colombo the first day protesters began their occupation of government buildings. He lost his job, and his father, a driver, cannot do his because of fuel shortages. 23He told the Associated Press, "Not only Gotabaya and Ranil, all 225 members of Parliament should go home... family politics have ruined our country." 24"I'm 29 years old - I should be having the best time of life but instead I don't have a job, no money and no life," he added. 25I'm Jill Robbins. 26Hai Do adapted this story for Learning English based on reporting from the Associated Press and Reuters. 27_____________________________________________________________________ 28Words in This Story 29deliver - v. to do what you say you will do 30tourism - n. the business of providing hotels, restaurants, entertainment, etc.. for travelers 31consumption - n. the use of something