Colombo, Sri Lanka – Police in Sri Lanka have fired tear gas and water cannon to disperse student-led protests near the country’s second-biggest city, Kandy, amid growing calls for President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s resignation over an economic crisis that has resulted in shortages of fuel, food and other essentials.
Hundreds of students defied a curfew to take part in Sunday’s protest, chanting “Go home, Gota”, referring to the president’s nickname, as they walked out of the University of Peradeniya and headed to the centre of Kandy.
