Sri Lanka Emergency: There was criticism in the world for imposition of emergency, now the Sri Lankan government has given this clarification

Sri Lanka Emergency: The Sri Lankan government on Saturday defended the decision to impose emergency in the country, saying it was necessary to deal with the unprecedented economic crisis. However, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa is facing criticism from the opposition and foreign ambassadors for this decision, who say that it will give the security forces the right to take action against people who are peacefully protesting.

Emergency for the second time in a month

In a special cabinet meeting on Friday, the President had announced the imposition of emergency from Friday midnight. This is the second time in just a month that a state of emergency has been declared in the country. Rajapaksa had earlier declared a state of emergency on April 1 after a mass demonstration of people in front of his private residence. He, however, removed it on April 5.

Demand for resignation from the government 

This announcement came at a time when student activists have gheraoed the Parliament since Thursday night. The students blocked the main entrance of the campus demanding the resignation of the government for lack of essential commodities and its inability to tide over the current economic crisis. "Sri Lanka is currently facing its worst economic crisis and political instability since independence, due to a number of short- and long-term factors," the Government Information Department said in a statement on Saturday. The general perception is that to deal with this dire situation, a number of profound reforms are needed at the level of the political, economic and social fabric.

Emergency for peace in society

Explaining the reason for the need for emergency, the statement said, "Political stability and peace in the society are the two key conditions which are sought to build confidence and strength for the success of such programmes." Sri Lanka is facing its worst economic crisis since its independence from the British Raj in 1948. The crisis is partly due to the lack of foreign exchange. Due to lack of foreign exchange, the country cannot pay for the import of staple food items and fuel. This is the reason why there is a huge shortage of these items and the prices are very high.

This work will be done from May 9 to May 23

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his elder brother Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa stepped down amid mounting pressure to resign. Commenting on the ongoing conversation, Masahiro Nozaki, head of the IMF's Colombo mission, said, 'The IMF team will liaise with the economic team of Sri Lankan officials from 9 May to 23 May in a digital mission and ensure the continuation of the IMF-supported program of officials. Will continue the discussion on the request.

4 billion US dollars required

Sri Lanka needs at least $4 billion to deal with its growing economic crisis, and is in talks for financial assistance with international institutions such as the World Bank as well as countries such as China and Japan. Tamil National Alliance (TNA) MP for Jaffna district M A Sumanthiran blamed President Rajapaksa for Sri Lanka's current economic crisis and said the TNA favors that the current rulers should step down from the government completely and It should be handed over to the opposition.