Sri Lanka politics

The vote on the 22nd Amendment to the constitution lays bare the declining grip of the Rajapaksas over the SLPP.

A constitutional amendment to curtail presidential powers – again – was a key demand of the protests that drove the previous president and prime minister from office.

For far too long Sri Lanka has been a stage with the Rajapaksas as the only meaningful actors. A democratic renewal may be all that can save the country in the long run.

The government is concerned about renewed protests against the unpopular former leader, while opposition figures worry Rajapaksa will try to find a way to re-enter politics.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe said his government will soon start negotiating debt restructuring with countries that provide loans to Sri Lanka.

Ranil Wickremesinghe's use of troops to dismantle protest camps in Colombo sends out a chilling message.

Hours after his swearing-in, he sent troops and police to force protesters out of the main protest sites in Colombo.

Parliamentarians will vote on Wednesday to decide who will succeed ousted President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who fled the island last week.

The economic crisis was made at home, a result of structural political and economic weaknesses. Any solutions have to start there.

He will remain in the post until Parliament elects a new president to serve out the remainder of Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s term, ending in 2024.

Gotabaya Rajapaksa has stepped down, but the task of cleaning up the country's economic mess has only just begun.