Gotabaya Rajapaksa: Sri Lanka president and wife flee on military jet to Maldives in middle of night
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has fled Sri Lanka in the middle of the night with his wife and bodyguards, just hours before he was set to resign following historic protests in the country that have seen his home being occupied.
Mr Rajapaksa left in a Sri Lankan air force plane for Maldives’s Male city in the middle of the night on Wednesday, an immigration official confirmed to the Associated Press on the condition of anonymity.
The president arrived in Male at around 3am local time (10pm GMT), BBC reported. He was received by a Maldivian government representative at the Velana airport and taken to an undisclosed location under police escort, the report said, quoting Maldivian officials.
Mr Rajapaksa is expected to be in the Maldives on transit before flying to another destination which is yet to be known. He is likely to send in his resignation letter only after reaching his final destination on Wednesday evening, Sri Lanka’s The Morning News portal reported, citing highly placed government sources.
It was earlier reported that he had missed “four flights” at Colombo’s international airport just a day earlier when immigration staff refused to go to the VIP suite to stamp his passport to allow him to fly to the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The country’s prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, acting as president, declared a state of emergency on Wednesday after Mr Rajapaksa fled the country, a move that could inflame tensions given there are growing calls for Mr Wickremesinghe to step down as well.
Protesters on Wednesday marched to the prime minister’s office, following the news of Mr Rajapaksa fleeing, asking him to resign.
“The prime minister as acting president has declared a state of emergency (countrywide) and imposed a curfew in the western province,” Wickremesinghe’s media secretary Dinouk Colombage told Reuters.
Mr Wickremesinghe said he would step down on the same day protesters stormed the presidential palace, but says he will now serve as president until a replacement is chosen.
Thousands of protesters stormed Mr Wickremesinghe’s office on Wednesday after seizing other government buildings in recent days.
Groups could be seen scaling the wall and entering the office as crowds roared in support, cheering them on and waving the Sri Lankan flag. Police used tear gas to try to disperse the crowd but failed, and more and more marched down the lane and towards the office.
Mr Rajapaksa had agreed to resign on Wednesday under pressure after the presidential palace in Colombo was stormed by angry protesters who were seen jumping into the pool of the lavish residence and rummaging through the kitchen and closets.
Protesters continued to remain there after three days and more were seen arriving on Wednesday morning.
They have also burned the prime minister’s private home as anger continued to grow against the Rajapaksa family which has ruled Sri Lanka for most of the past two decades. Protesters have squarely blamed the family for the country’s biggest economic crisis since its independence.
As the economy plunged and protesters came to the streets demanding basics such as fuel and electricity, the powerful political dynasty’s removal from many official posts has remained central to the demands. Sri Lankans wanted them to take responsibility for bringing the country to this state.
Experts said Sri Lanka’s economic crisis is the result of several factors, including global inflation and handling of the economy over the decades.
Mr Rajapaksa had clung on to power even as his younger brothers Mahinda and Basil had resigned earlier in May and June as prime minister and finance minister respectively, following months of unrest.
His decision to finally step down after the storming of his house had come as a welcome step as protesters sought a complete overhaul of Sri Lanka’s political system.
But there is currently no end to the crisis in sight.
