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Sri Lankans protest against economic crisis

STORY: Protesters including, elderly women, sat in the middle of the road on cylinders, demanding government to provide them with cooking gas. They said they were kept waiting for hours in queues since morning and despite that they were not getting cylinders even till afternoon.

Hit hard by the pandemic, rising oil prices and tax cuts by the populist government, Sri Lanka is in the throes of its worst economic crisis since independence from Great Britain in 1948.

"They eat food but what about us? Only God is there for us, no one else. The police, the politicians, no one is good for. Everyone is bad. Tell them to give us gas cylinders or else we will stay here only," said a protester, Marzukiya.

Meanwhile, some protesters gathered outside prime minister's office with posters demanding arrest of former Prime Minister, Mahinda Rajapaksa.

Sri Lanka lifted a nationwide curfew for 12 hours on Saturday, further easing tight curbs as new Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe sought to form a government after clashes with anti-government groups killed at least nine people.

"We know very clearly Ranil Wickremesinghe is a member of that family. He's a family member and a very good friend of Rajapaksa family. So, we never believe he will do the justice for the people," another protester Vimal Jaisurya said.