On Thursday, as hundreds of student protesters continued their call for the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, they were met with police tear gas and water cannons. They endured this, and a monsoon downpour that followed, adding loudspeakers to amplify their chants and speeches expressing anger at the government.
University students march on fortified government areas of Colombo, Sri Lanka, where police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse them on Thursday, May 19, 2022. Atul Loke/The New York Times
Sri Lanka, an island nation of 22 million people, is facing a dire economic crisis, with depleted foreign exchange reserves driving up the price of basic items.
University students march on fortified government areas of Colombo, Sri Lanka, where police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse them on Thursday, May 19, 2022. Atul Loke/The New York Times
Lines for fuel at a gas station in Colombo, Sri Lanka on Wednesday, May 18, 2022. With no end in sight to the national economic crisis that led them to take to the streets, protesters in Sri Lanka are digging in against a president they blame for crashing the economy. Atul Loke/The New York Times
For weeks, the agitation had remained largely peaceful, with protesters creating a tent city outside the administrative offices of the president in the capital, Colombo.
University students march on fortified government areas of Colombo, Sri Lanka, where police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse them on Thursday, May 19, 2022. Atul Loke/The New York Times
But tensions flared after supporters of the governing Rajapaksa family marched on the camps of the protesters this month, dismantling and burning their tents, which unleashed a wave of anger and violence across the country.
A demonstrator at the “Gota Go” protest village in Colombo, Sri Lanka, May 20, 2022. With no end in sight to the national economic crisis that led them to take to the streets, protesters in Sri Lanka are digging in against a president they blame for crashing the economy. Atul Loke/The New York Times
Water cannons are used against university students demonstrating against the government in Colombo, Sri Lanka on Thursday, May 19, 2022. The dizzying pace of Sri Lanka’s economic collapse has brought desperation that many here describe as worse even than during the nation’s three-decade-long civil war that ended in 2009. Atul Loke/The New York Times
Water cannons are used against university students demonstrating against the government in Colombo, Sri Lanka on Thursday, May 19, 2022. Atul Loke/The New York Times
Tear gas is used to disperse university students demonstrating against the government in Colombo, Sri Lanka on Thursday, May 19, 2022. Atul Loke/The New York Times
A demonstrator throws back a tear gas canister during a protest march in Colombo, Sri Lanka, May 19, 2022. With no end in sight to the national economic crisis that led them to take to the streets, protesters in Sri Lanka are digging in against a president they blame for crashing the economy. Atul Loke/The New York Times
On any given day, particularly when the temperatures drop in the evenings, families arrive in large numbers to listen to speeches or to join in the chants and music.
© 2022 The New York Times Company