Sri Lanka – Protests erupted in Sri Lanka following a major economic crisis that culminated in Overthrow of the government In the year 2022, voters of the island nation will cast their votes on Saturday to choose from 38 candidates for the position of President.
This state located in the south of India has many voters Buddhist majority The country of 22 million people — which is roughly the size of West Virginia — is feeling dissatisfied with the country’s political culture, as the nation slowly recovers from its economic woes.
Reuters reports that the economy is one of the biggest issues, with inflation reaching its peak after the fall of 2022 due to a massive dollar shortage Up to 70%. It said inflation had eased and gross domestic product (GDP) was projected to grow “for the first time in three years.”
There is “considerable confusion” “across the island” and people are “unsure” about who to vote for.
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Supporters of presidential candidate Samagi Jana Balawegaya or United People’s Power and opposition leader Sajith Premadasa hold a banner during the final campaign rally ahead of the presidential election on September 18, 2024 in Colombo, Sri Lanka. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh)
“An entire section doesn’t even want to vote,” Vinod Moonesinghe, a voter, told Fox News Digital.
He predicted that “voter turnout could be lower” than in previous years because of disillusionment caused by a number of factors – dynastic politics, candidates surrounded by corrupt individuals and a general distrust of the political class after years of corruption and empty promises.
The top contenders among the 38 candidates include incumbent President Ranil Wickremesinghe of the UNP, right-wing opposition leader Sajith Premadasa of the newly formed SJB party, Anura Kumara Dissanayake of the socialist, Marxist-minded NPP and nationalist Namal Rajapaksa of the SLPP.
The current government led by Wickremesinghe has been in power since 2022 and has negotiated with creditors and achieved the Extended Funding Facility (EFF) program with the country’s major debtor. International Monetary Fund (IMF)
Supporters of Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe play carrom inside an election campaign office in Colombo, Sri Lanka, ahead of the presidential election on September 21. September 16, 2024. (Reuters/Dinuka Liyanawatte)
“We are the only party at the moment that is taking a nationalist stance,” Namal Rajapaksa, son of former SLPP (Sri Lanka Podujana Perumana) President Mahinda Rajapaksa, told Fox News Digital.
When asked how he would address the challenges his party has faced in its history, he replied, “We will pick up where my father’s tenure ended in 2015.”
He rejected criticism of his party Pro-China Global security is a matter of concern.
“No one will use Sri Lanka’s land, air or sea to attack another country,” Rajapaksa said, predicting that US-Sri Lanka trade would boom if they win.
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Rohan Gunaratna, a professor of security studies at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University, said relations with the United States would remain strong regardless of the outcome.
“The US-Sri Lanka (partnership) will not be affected by which candidate or party comes to power. Sri Lanka’s foreign policy is multi-faceted and it will work together with the East and West to build Sri Lanka.”
Presidential candidate Dilith Jayaweera, media mogul and business chief of the newly-formed Mawbima Janatha Party (MJP), told Fox News Digital that “the landscape of Sri Lanka has completely changed”. He said “traditional politicians” lack “management skills”.
He believes voters want new approaches to politics, including new candidates. He cited the protesters’ popular slogan “Reject all 225,” the number of seats in parliament, as an indication that people want new political figures.
National People’s Power leader and presidential candidate Anura Kumara Dissanayake addresses supporters during the last public rally before the election in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Wednesday, September 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayewardene)
“We stood for hours (in lines) during our worst economic crisis in 2022 and yes, Ranil Wickremesinghe has pulled us out of it, but he restructured the loans to pay later. But if the winner of this election doesn’t have a solid long-term plan, we will be back to square one,” another voter, Usama Ibrahim, told Fox News Digital.
According to recent opinion polls, the communist JVP party, which is part of the NPP coalition, appears to be gaining support. “Other traditional politicians have a culture of switching sides and, as we say, playing ‘musical chairs’ or jumping sides. So, we now consider many mainstream parties as two sides of the same coin,” taxi driver Nihal Fernando told Fox News Digital. He complained that since independence in 1948, the same political families have been in power and after three generations, “change is welcome.”
“Can things get any worse for a working class person like me?” he asked.
Supporters of President and independent presidential candidate Ranil Wickremesinghe wave the national flag during a public rally in Minuwangoda, Sri Lanka, Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh)
Senaka Seneviratne, a Sri Lankan who has lived in the U.S. for 30 years, told Fox News Digital that many in the diaspora want to see Sri Lanka prosper because they are “worried about their family members back home.” He said the general uncertainty about the election among diaspora members is no different from people in Sri Lanka, adding that some “may return home to vote.”
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“Many people are angry and frustrated. This anger and frustration is translating into voting for the JVP, who are completely new to holding political power,” Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu, executive director of the Center for Policy Alternatives and a political analyst, told Fox News Digital.
He said the JVP has not enjoyed the same popularity among minorities as Premadasa and Wickremesinghe did.
He said that during his two-year tenure “Wickremesinghe had restored some degree of political stability”. He added that if he did not win a majority, the presidential election could go to a “second round”.
Reuters contributed to this report.
