By Afra Laffar

Picture credits – Ushan Gunasekera.

It was the 31st of March 2022. Sri Lanka was experiencing a 13-hour power outage due to the lack of fuel to generate electricity. The island nation had been under severe electricity rationing since February. 

The government was unable to import essentials – including fuel – as foreign reserves had depleted to almost zero. Sri Lanka was already in a considerable amount of debt and the global recession as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated the issue. By April 2022, the nation’s external debt amounted to over $50 billion, causing an unprecedented economic crisis. In addition to this, other factors that escalated the crisis were:

• A significant drop in the revenue generated by tourism that accounted for 12% of the country’s GDP
• Detrimental policy decisions – including tax cuts – taken by the government
• An overnight ban on the import and use of chemical fertilizers in an attempt to ensure the country’s agricultural sector was entirely organic
• Increased money printing by the Central Bank to finance deficits 
• Delay in pursuing an IMF programme

With empty shelves at supermarkets and grocery stores, a pharmaceutical shortage, massive queues to purchase gas and fuel, and a severe shortage of foreign exchange, the nation was on the brink of collapse. The people had had enough. A non-partisan protest was scheduled to be held on the 3rd of April 2022 against the government headed by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, accused of corruption and mismanagement which plunged the country into its worst economic crisis since achieving independence in 1948. However, on the 31st of March 2022, a group of protesters surrounded the president’s private residence at Mirihana, demanding his resignation. A curfew was imposed and lifted the following morning; the stage was set and this protest was only the beginning of what was to come. 

The people were riled up. In an attempt to curb the people’s protest, a state of emergency was declared on the 2nd of April and curfew was imposed. This was followed by a social media ban. It was through social media that plans were underway and protests were organized island wide to express displeasure at the government. The government’s attempts to suppress the people’s freedom of expression was met with condemnation by foreign diplomats, celebrities, and the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL). Regardless, peaceful protests were held in many parts of the country in violation of the curfew imposed. As activists and protesters were taken into custody by the police to intimidate protesters, lawyers showed up in numbers to represent the accused. Many cabinet ministers resigned from their posts and there were calls for an interim government to help resolve the crisis. The governor of the Central Bank, Ajith Nivaard Cabraal, whose policies directly resulted in rapid inflation tendered his resignation as well. Meanwhile, the opposition refused to work with President Rajapaksa. The people’s cry was loud and clear; they wanted the president to step down.

A cabinet reshuffle and a split in the government ranks resulted in a political crisis. Protests erupted over the following weeks. On the 9th of April, people rallied in their numbers towards the Presidential Secretariat as their demand calling for the resignation of the president intensified. The demonstrations continued for days as people braved the heavy rain and sun and camped in front of the Presidential Secretariat refusing to leave until the president had resigned. The area was named ‘GotaGoGama’ and various branches were set up in other parts of the country where people gathered to express their displeasure at the president and his government. The Sri Lankan diaspora around the world followed suit as anti-Rajapaksa protests were held in various parts of the world.

As the situation worsened, protests intensified. Demonstrations took place in front of the Parliament and Temple Trees, the official residence of the Prime Minister. Clashes between the protesters and the police were frequent and a protester was shot dead by the police for demanding fuel. Trade Unions across all sectors staged a one-day token strike in support of the ongoing public protests. The President declared another state of emergency. As the country was at a standstill, after much reluctance, Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa tendered his resignation on the 9th of May. Chaos followed, and people flocked towards Galle Face in support of the anti-government protests. A police curfew was imposed in Colombo and thereafter extended to the rest of the island. The attacks on the people’s protest by the former Prime Minister’s supporters triggered massive backlash and caused widespread retaliation against Rajapaksa loyalists. Houses and offices of former government ministers were torched and set ablaze as the forces were unable to contain the violence that spread across the island and the military was deployed to bring the situation under control. 

An economic crisis, political stalemate, and social unrest; Sri Lanka has sought assistance from the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and various international allies for urgent funds to pay for food and fuel. The IMF is expected to result in serious policy changes that may further burden the population of the South Asian nation already reeling from soaring cost of living and severe shortages of essential goods. There have been mixed feelings about the newly appointed Prime Minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe. In his address to the nation, the Prime Minister warned of 15-hour power cuts and an impending period of famine stating that the crisis will worsen before it gets better, on the nation’s road to recovery. Meanwhile, the protests demanding accountability from those responsible for plunging the nation into this crisis continue.

Afra is a practicing Attorney-at-Law and an avid reader. A lawyer by day and a writer and by night, she primarily focuses on current affairs, features and the occasional review.

The post A Shortage of Everything; Abundance of Chaos appeared first on ChoKoLAAte Blog.

Sri Lanka’s economic crisis has now increased to a point where people have to go without meals on  some days. This includes the young children of Sri Lanka, who are being deprived of the nutrition they  need at an early age.

In the status quo of Sri Lanka, it is estimated by the UN that 2.3 million children are in need of  healthcare and humanitarian assistance! How can we expect the future generation to be strong and  healthy when they are starving with no food! 

The Sri Lankan food harvest has already decreased by more than 30%, and it has been predicted to  further drop in the future by about 40% – 50%. Considering how agriculture is one of our main sources  of food, we can understand why people and children around the country have to go with only one meal  a day, maybe even no food at all! Furthermore, Sri Lanka’s economy is far from self-sufficiency. Our  reliance on imports from other countries also led to this lack of food, as we now have no foreign reserve exchanges to import essential food. 70% of households have reported that they are reducing their  consumption of food in order to save more for their family. We can see from this that people are being  ridden of their necessary food, leading to high malnourishment.  

People are also unable to afford some food, due to the high inflation rates. The Governor of the Central  Bank of Sri Lanka stated that food inflation is predicted to rise to 70% from 50% in a few months. This  signifies a huge change in the prices of food, putting the finances of families into dire states, as well as  risking their ability to eat 3 meals a day. 

Malnourishment in Sri Lanka was already high, at 1.0, in 2020! That is considerably high, taking into  account world standards, and it is growing higher day by day. Sri Lankan children are suffering the most  in this period of starvation. 56,000 children under the age of five are not being provided with the  necessary food for them to grow, leading to poorly built bodies and early deaths. 

Child malnourishment diseases in Sri Lanka are now deadly due to the lack of medicine in the country. It  has been confirmed that 25 life-saving medicines for children are facing a possible stockout in the  coming months. Kids who have a disease and must be rushed to the hospital might not be able to get  the medicines they need to be cured. This immediately puts the health of children at risk, so diseases  caused due to malnourishment are now deadly. 

The government has been suggesting solutions to curb this rising problem. Growing fruits and  vegetables in your backyard will save you from having to buy these from the market. Furthermore,  rather than buying small quantities of expensive fish, you can buy large quantities of low-price fish for  the same price, thus allowing you to eat more. However, many slum-dwellers and under-privileged  people are unable to do this because most of them don’t have gardens, and sometimes, they can’t even  afford to buy small quantities of cheap meat anyway. 

UNICEF has stated that it requires US$25.3 million to attend to the perils of the most vulnerable and  badly affected children and their families by ensuring continued access to essential services and support. Therefore, Sri Lanka’s only hope seems to be UNICEF and donations from other countries. 

There is one more possible short-term solution – helping each other out. As a humanitarian effort,  privileged Sri Lankans should make it their duty to provide small quantities of food to their surrounding  neighbours who are facing poverty and starvation. By rising together as one to help each other battle  this malnourishment, we can curb this problem and come out of dark times. 

Sri Lanka must try and curb this streak of starvation before our future generation becomes too  malnourished to make a brighter future. 

Yash Nanayakkara, 13 years old 

Asian International School

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