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Sri Lanka protesters plan to occupy president and PM's residences until they quit
"The president has to resign, the prime minister has to resign and the government has to go," said playwright Ruwanthie de Chickera at a news conference at the protest site, flanked by other leaders helping coordinate the movement against the government, Reuters reported Sunday.
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People play cards inside the official residence of Sri Lanka's Prime Minister, in Colombo on July 10, 2022, a day after it was overrun by anti-government protestors.
(AFP/Arun Sankar)
L
eaders of the protest movement in Sri Lanka who have forced the president and prime minister out of their official residences said on Sunday they will occupy the buildings until the two quit office.
"The president has to resign, the prime minister has to resign and the government has to go," said playwright Ruwanthie de Chickera at a news conference at the protest site, flanked by other leaders helping coordinate the movement against the government, Reuters reported Sunday.
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe plan to step down, the country's parliamentary speaker said on Saturday, bowing to intense pressure after a day of protests in which demonstrators stormed the president's official residence and set fire to the prime minister's home in Colombo.
Pope Francis on Sunday expressed solidarity with the people of Sri Lanka who "continue to suffer from political and economic instability" and appealed for peace in the country.
"Together with the bishops of the country, I renew my appeal for peace, I implore those in authority not to ignore the cry of the poor and the needs of the people," the pontiff said in his Angelus message, speaking from his balcony in St. Peter's Square.
Frustration with the economic crisis boiled over on Saturday in Sri Lanka, when a huge crowd of protesters surged passed armed guards into the presidential palace and took it over. Protesters stormed the building and forced the president to agree to resign.
Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Sunday that Russia's restriction on Ukrainian grain exports may have contributed to Sri Lanka's turmoil and voiced fear it could spur other crises.
