According to reports reaching Africa Daily News, New York the ex-president of Sri Lanka, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, has returned to the country after earlier fleeing following massive demonstrations in July.
Mr. Rajapaksa traveled back home through Singapore after spending some time in Thailand on a temporary visa. He reportedly met a few Sri Lankan ministers at the airport as he returned.
Sri Lankans blame their government for the island’s worst economic crisis in history. A collapse in foreign currency led to dire shortages of food and fuel.
The Harshest economic disaster in the history of the Sri Lankans has been attributed to his rule by citizens. Extreme food and gasoline shortages resulted from the collapse of international currencies.
Following a substantial spike in the price of food and petrol, protests broke out in April which led to him escaping the country.
The generally peaceful demonstrations clamoring for the ousting of Mr. Rajapaksa and his older brother Mahinda, the former prime minister who resigned in May, drew hundreds of thousands of participants from all corners of communities.
After throng of people flocked his official residence in July, the ousted leader fled using a military jet to Singapore, where he submitted his resignation. Thereafter, he moved to the Maldives. Ranil Wickremesinghe, a seasoned politician, was thus given the opportunity to assume the presidency.
The government has noted that Mr. Rajapaksa is susceptible to attacks since there may be a surge of outrage following his return – thus the will be a need to mount security around him.
‘We are not opposed to the return of Mr. Rajapaksa. Any Sri Lankan citizen can return to the country,” Father Jeewantha Peiris, a prominent protest leader, told said
‘People came to the streets because of the alleged corruption against his government. We don’t have any personal enmity against him.’
Citizens who participated in the protest reiterated that any attempt made by Mr. Rajapaksa to engage in politics will be thwarted.
“After he returns, we need to take legal action against him for the mistakes he committed as president and also file cases against his brother Mahinda Rajapaksa,’ another activist Rajeev Kanth told the reporters.
According to Sri Lankan news outlets, the government has found Gotabaya Rajapaksa a home in the heart of Colombo, although it’s questionable if he intends to travel there right away or first to a safe military base.
According to defense ministry spokesperson, Mr. Rajapaksa ‘would be given security as a former president’.
Rights organizations claim that since Mr. Wickremesinghe assumed office, the government has placed restrictions on dissidents. Police have recently apprehended dozens of people, the majority of whom have since been granted bail.
According to the draconian Prevention of Terrorism Act, three student union officials who organised the protests have been remanded in custody.
In addition to being accused of lacking validity and widespread support, protesters also charge President Wickremesinghe with shielding the Rajapaksa family. Only individuals believed to have breached the law, according to the administration, are subject to prosecution.
According to Sri Lanka’s political opponents, the current state of affairs is seemingly cool and collected; however, if the country’s fuel and food supplies are snipped off once more, further protests cannot be tamed in the near future.
