"We want Gota" Protest held in Colombo supporting President Gotabaya Rajapaksa pic.twitter.com/xShQG3ti7F

— NewsWire (@NewsWireLK) April 8, 2022

Around 100 protesters in Colombo have organized a rally in support of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

The Sri Lankan rupee has plunged to a record low and lags behind even Russia’s rouble, as a political and economic crisis grips the island.

The rupee now trades at over 300LKR to 1USD, a 32 per cent fall so far this year making it the worst performing currency in the world.

The fall comes as anti-government protests continues whilst embattled president Gotabaya Rajapaksa struggles to hold on to power.

The embassies of the European Union, Australia, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland and the United Kingdom in Sri Lanka stressed the “extreme urgency of situation” on the island and called for “in-depth discussion with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on the reforms needed to bring the Sri Lankan economy back to a sustainable path”.

In a statement released this morning, the missions of the states also called on “all parties to explore constructive and democratic ways out of the current crisis” as anti-government protests continue in the South.

Shritharan Sivagnanam, an MP from the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), appealed to the Sinhala youth in the island to make an effort towards understanding the Tamil situation and protest for it along with the ongoing demonstrations against the dire economic crisis. 

Addressing Parliament this week, Tamil National People's Front (TNPF) leader Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam called on Sinhalese protesters to use this 'golden moment' to restructure Sri Lanka's unitary state and recognise the Tamil speaking nation. 

Following the resignation of Ali Sabry, after holding the position of Finance Minister for a day, Sri Lanka's government has now appointed a new secretary to the Finance Ministry, Mahinda Siriwardena, and new Central Bank governor, Dr Nandalal Weerasinghe.

As Sri Lankans continue to protest against the Rajapaksa regime across the island and demand the President's resignation; Tamils in Mullaitivu and Trincomalee are to continue to demand the demilitarisation of their homeland.

Kalimuthu Subbamma, a Tamil mother who was searching or her forcibly disappeared son, passed away earlier this week, having never found the whereabouts of her loved one or received justice for his abduction.

Affectionately known as Kamala, she was one of several mothers protesting in her hometown of Vavuniya, demanding answers over the fate of their disappeared loved ones.

Speaking in parliament, Tamil National Alliance (TNA) MP, M.A. Sumanthiran slammed the Sri Lankan government’s failure to establish a functioning cabinet following a wave of resignations, including by the newly appointed finance minister who resigned within 24 hours.

Sri Lanka is in crisis. Protests have spread across the South, demanding the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. It marks a remarkable turnaround in popularity, with demonstrations from the same electorate that less than two years ago delivered Rajapaksa a two-thirds majority in parliament. The speed in which protests have spread and the fury in which they arose, have led the South to believe this is a moment of revolution that offers an opportunity for a definitive break from the island’s turbulent past. Tamils, however, are sceptical.