Unprecedented shortages of food and fuel along with record inflation and blackouts have inflicted widespread misery in Sri Lanka’s most painful downturn since independence from Britain in 1948.
Anger over the economic crisis and the government’s handling of the situation has led to weeks of unrest and calls for the president, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, to step down from power. On Monday, his brother, the prime minister, Mahinda Rajapaksa, resigned and parliament was dissolved as political turmoil intensified and the ruling party further lost its grip on power.
