2022 Sri Lankan protests

2022 Sri Lankan protests
Part of the Sri Lankan economic crisis
Sri Lankans protesting in front of the Presidential Secretariat in Colombo on 13 April
Date	15 March 2022[1] – 14 November 2022[2] (7 months, 4 weeks and 2 days)
Location	Sri Lanka
Caused by	Economic mismanagement by the government resulting in the 2019–present Sri Lankan economic crisis Shortages of fuel and essential items and power cuts High inflation and the rapid rise in the cost of living Authoritarianism, corruption and nepotism of the Rajapaksa family[3]
Goals	Resignation of Gotabaya Rajapaksa and the Rajapaksa administration Drafting of a new constitution
Methods	Political demonstrations, Internet activism, rioting, strike action, protests
Resulted in	Mass resignation of the Second Gotabaya Rajapaksa cabinet Resignation of Central Bank Governor Cabraal and appointment of Weerasinghe Over 50 MPs aligned with the SLPP government became independent in the Parliament Series of coordinated attacks on protesters by pro-Rajapaksa mobs, triggering multiple retaliatory attacks by protesters on the property of Rajapaksa loyalists and other Parliament members Resignation of Mahinda Rajapaksa as the Prime Minister and Wickremesinghe's appointment as his replacement Resignation of MP Basil Rajapaksa Gotabaya Rajapaksa resigns as President on 14 July and begins a self-exile, returns to Sri Lanka on 2 September Ranil Wickremesinghe elected as President by Parliament on 20 July Troops raid Galle Face and forcefully remove protesters from the Presidential Secretariat on 22 July Dinesh Gunawardena appointed as Prime Minister on 22 July
Parties
Protesters and opposition organizations: Many unorganized apolitical and nonpartisan protesters University students Various professions including private bus drivers, fishermen, hospital workers, etc. Buddhist, Christian, Islamic and Hindu clergies Military veterans, including disabled war veterans Sri Lankan diaspora mainly in Australia, United Kingdom, New Zealand and United States Political parties Black Cap Movement National People's Power Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna Samagi Jana Balawegaya Tamil National Alliance Frontline Socialist Party Government of Sri Lanka United National Party Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna Sri Lanka Police  Sri Lanka Army Pro-Rajapaksa partisans Avant-Garde PMC[4]
Lead figures
Largely unorganized and decentralized leadership Gotabaya Rajapaksa Mahinda Rajapaksa Ranil Wickremesinghe Dinesh Gunawardena
Casualties and losses
10 protesters dead,[a][5][6][7][8][9] 250+ injured[10][11] 600+ arrested[12] MP Athukorala[13] and his security officer killed[6] Chairman A.V. Sarath Kumara killed[14] 1 policeman killed,[15] 24 injured[16] 10+ arrested including MP Sanath Nishantha, MP Milan Jayathilaka[17]

The 2022 Sri Lankan protests, commonly known as Aragalaya (Sinhala: අරගලය, lit. 'The Struggle'), were a series of mass protests that began in March 2022 against the government of Sri Lanka. The government was heavily criticized for mismanaging the Sri Lankan economy, which led to a subsequent economic crisis involving severe inflation, daily blackouts, and a shortage of fuel, domestic gas, and other essential goods. The protesters' main demand was the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and key officials from the Rajapaksa family. Despite the involvement of several opposition parties, most protesters considered themselves to be apolitical, with many expressing discontent with the parliamentary opposition.^[18] Protesters chanted slogans such as "Go Home Gota", "Go Home Rajapaksas",^[19][20] and "Aragalayata Jaya Wewa" ("Victory to the struggle").^[21] Most protests were organized by the general public,^[22][23] with youths playing a major part by carrying out protests at Galle Face Green.^{[24][25][26][27]}

The government reacted to the protests with authoritarian methods, such as declaring a state of emergency, allowing the military to arrest civilians, imposing curfews, and restricting access to social media. The government violated the law and the Sri Lankan constitution by attempting to suppress the protests.^[28][29][30] The Sri Lankan diaspora also began demonstrations against the suppression of basic human rights in the country.^[31][32] In April, the government's ban on social media was perceived to have backfired; hashtags such as #GoHomeGota, which is believed to have been coined by an activist called Pathum Kerner in December 2021, had begun trending on Twitter internationally. The government's ban was lifted later that day. The Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka condemned the government's actions and summoned officials responsible for the blocking and abuse of protesters.^[33][34]

On 3 April, all 26 members of the Second Gotabaya Rajapaksa cabinet resigned with the exception of Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa. Critics said that the resignation was not valid as they did not follow constitutional protocol^[35][36][37] and several of the ministers who "resigned" were reinstated in different ministries the next day.^[38] Chief government whip Johnston Fernando insisted that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa would not resign under any circumstances.^[39] The protests, however, led to the removal of officials and ministers, including members of the Rajapaksa family and their close associates, and to the appointment of more qualified and veteran officials and the creation of the Advisory Group on Multilateral Engagement and Debt Sustainability.^[40]

In July 2022, protesters occupied the President's House in Colombo, causing Rajapaksa to flee and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe to announce his own willingness to resign.^[41] About a week later, on 20 July, Parliament elected Wickremesinghe as President.^[42] By November 2022, the protests had largely cooled off due to improvement in economic conditions. While the protests were mostly over, it was noted that it would take until 2026 for full economic recovery to be achieved.^[43][44]

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