Sri Lankan crisis: Military calls for political resolution to ‘current conflict’ to maintain law and order

International

pti-PTI

Colombo,
July
13:
Sri
Lanka’s
military
and
the
police
on
Wednesday
requested
the
Speaker
of
Parliament
to
call
an
all-party
leaders’
meeting
and
inform
them
of
the
steps
they
will
take
to
ensure
a
political
resolution
to
the
“current
conflict” in
the
run
up
to
the
appointment
of
a
new
president.

In
a
statement,
Chief
of
Defence
Staff
General
Shavendra
Silva
made
“a
special
appeal”
to
the
people,
especially
the
youth,
to
support
the
three
forces
—
Army,
Navy
and
Air
Force
—
and
the
police
to
maintain
law
and
order
in
the
county.
He
urged
protesters
not
to
vandalise
state
or
private
property.

“We,
the
tri-forces
commanders
and
the
Inspector
General
of
police
have
requested
the
Speaker
(Mahinda
Yapa
Abeywardena)
to
call
an
all-party
leaders
meeting
and
inform
us
of
the
steps
they
will
take
to
ensure
a
political
resolution
to
current
conflict
in
the
run
up
to
the
appointment
of
a
new
president,”
Silva
said
in
a
televised
address
flanked
by
the
heads
of
Air
Force,
Army,
Navy
and
Police.

“Until
these
decisions
are
made
and
a
new
president
is
elected,
we
appeal
to
the
public
to
support
the
military
and
police
to
maintain
peace
and
law
and
order,”
he
said.

Sri
Lanka
is
witnessing
an
escalating
political
crisis
and
a
fresh
wave
of
protests
triggered
by
the
fleeing
of
embattled
President
Gotabaya
Rajapaksa
from
the
country.
Defying
the
emergency,
thousands
of
protesters
waving
Lankan
flags
surrounded
the
building
of
the
Prime
Minister’s
Office
earlier
in
the
day.

The
police
fired
tear
gas
on
protesters
who
broke
through
a
barricade
and
stormed
the
prime
minister’s
office,
calling
for
his
resignation
as
well
as
that
of
the
president.

Sri
Lankan
President
Gotabaya
Rajapaksa
to
leave
for
Singapore:
Reports

Embattled
President
Rajapaksa
fled
to
the
Maldives
on
a
military
jet
in
the
morning,
hours
before
he
was
supposed
to
quit
in
the
face
of
a
public
revolt
against
his
government
for
mishandling
the
economy
that
has
bankrupted
the
country.

From
the
Maldives,
the
73-year-old
leader
appointed
Prime
Minister
Wickremesinghe
as
the
Acting
President,
citing
Article
37(1)
of
the
Constitution
that
allows
a
premier
to
“discharge
the
powers,
duties
and
functions
of
the
office
of
president”
when
the
president
is
ill
or
“absent”
from
the
country.

Speaker
Abeywardena
has
said
President
Rajapaksa
has
informed
him
over
telephone
that
he
will
resign
today
as
promised.
He
said
the
vote
for
the
new
president
will
take
place
on
July
20.

Wickremesinghe
has
declared
a
state
of
emergency
in
the
country
and
a
curfew
in
the
Western
province
has
been
imposed
as
protesters
gathered
near
his
office
at
Flower
Road
in
Colombo.