July 18, 2022

 Sri Lanka’s Prime Minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe, has been elected as president to replace the former president, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who was forced out of office amid anger over a spiralling economic crisis.

Wickremesinghe, who has been prime minister six times but never president, won an overwhelming victory in parliament this Wednesday, where MPs voted for the new president in an unprecedented secret ballot.

However, there has been fierce resistance and protests on the streets against a Wickremesinghe presidency because many fear he will not instigate the systemic change being demanded by the protest movement.

Also, less than an hour after he was declared president, a court order was issued prohibiting anyone from congregating within a 50 metre radius of an area where anti-government protesters have been camped out for months.