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Sri Lanka lifts nationwide curfew as new PM makes his first cabinet appointments

Sri Lankan prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe (Centre) leaves parliament escorted by security personnel and aides in Colombo  (AFP via Getty)
Sri Lankan prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe (Centre) leaves parliament escorted by security personnel and aides in Colombo (AFP via Getty)

Authorities in Sri Lanka removed the nationwide curfew for 12 hours on Saturday amid fresh signs of political stability, as new prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe took charge of the administration.

The curfew was eased between 6am and 6pm on Saturday. Sri Lanka, which has been in the grip of a severe economic and political crisis, was placed under a 24-hour curfew last Monday after peaceful protests, which had been taking place for weeks over the government’s failure to prevent the crisis, turned violent.

The lockdown across the country was eased briefly on Thursday and Friday to allow people to purchase essential goods.

The new prime-minister-elect, who has served the country in the same role six times in the past, also made his first cabinet appointments on Saturday.

He has included at least four ministers from his predecessor Mahinda Rajapaksa’s political outfit, Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP), which is likely to draw flak as many will consider it a failure to remove the previous party fully from office.

Others given cabinet roles include GL Peiris, who held the post of chair of the SLPP before tendering his resignation last Monday.

Mr Wickremesinghe, who is a member of the United National Party, is set to launch a coalition government to run the country. The SLPP – which is also the party of the current president, Gotabaya Rajapaksa – has given its backing to the new prime minister.

Shortly after being sworn in, Mr Wickremesinghe said: “We are facing a crisis; we have to get out of it.”

On being asked if there was a possible solution to the crisis faced by the country, the PM-elect said: “Absolutely.” However, he is not considered a popular choice.

Religious leaders from the Buddhist and Catholic faiths have objected to Mr Wickremesinghe’s appointment as prime minister.

A senior Buddhist monk, Rev Omalpe Sobitha, said: “This decision has been taken totally disregarding the aspirations of the people who are protesting today. The protests can only get worse by this decision.”

The events come just days after the governor of Sri Lanka’s central bank, Dr Nandalal Weerasinghe, warned that the country’s economy would collapse completely if political stability was not quickly restored.

Sri Lanka has been gripped since the beginning of April by demonstrations, which turned violent last week as public anger against unaffordable living costs spilled onto the streets. At least nine people died and more than 300 were injured in the unrest.

With a depleted economy, Sri Lanka is nearing bankruptcy and has begun to default on its payments. The authorities have temporarily barred the repayment of $7bn that was due to be made this year in respect of foreign loans.

In order to come out of its current foreign debt of $51bn, Sri Lanka must repay around $25bn worth of foreign loans.