Gotabaya Rajapaksa: Sri Lanka’s ousted former president returns

Sri Lanka’s former leader Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who fled abroad right after mass protests within July, has returned to the country.

Mr Rajapaksa had been staying in Thailand on a temporary visa for australia and flew at home via Singapore.

Several Sri Lankan ministers are reported to get met him at the airport.

Sri Lankans blame his federal government for the island’s most severe economic crisis in history. The collapse in foreign currency led to dire disadvantages of food and gasoline.

Protests began in April, carrying out a sharp increase in food and fuel costs.

Hundreds of thousands of people through all walks associated with life and all towns took part in the largely peaceful protests demanding the resignation of Mr Rajapaksa and his elder sibling Mahinda, the then prime minister which quit in May.

In Come july 1st thousands of people stormed his official home, and the disgraced president then fled on the military plane initial to the Maldives after which to Singapore, from where he sent in his resignation. That opened the way for veteran politician Ranil Wickremesinghe to become president.

Mr Rajapaksa’s return is a sensitive issue for that new government which usually does not want more protests and will must ensure his security.

“We are not in opposition to the return of Mr Rajapaksa. Any kind of Sri Lankan citizen can return to the nation, ” Father Jeewantha Peiris, a prominent protest leader, told the BBC.

“People came to the streets because of the supposed corruption against their government. We have zero personal enmity against him. ”

Other protesters say they will oppose any attempt by Mr Rajapaksa to rejoin politics or the govt.

“After he or she returns, we need to consider legal action towards him for the errors he committed because president and also file cases against their brother Mahinda Rajapaksa, ” another activist Rajeev Kanth told the BBC.

Sri Lankan press reports say the government has identified a home in central Colombo for Gotabaya Rajapaksa but it’s not crystal clear whether he will move straight there or to a secure army facility first.

A defence ministry spokesman told the particular BBC that Mr Rajapaksa “would be given security as a previous president”.

After Mr Wickremesinghe took over the presidency, rights organizations accuse the government of carrying out a crackdown on protesters. Dozens have already been detained by police in recent several weeks, with most given that released on bail.

Three pupil union leaders, that led the protests, have been in detention underneath the draconian Prevention of Terrorism Act.

Protesters accuse President Wickremesinghe of missing legitimacy and public support and also associated with protecting the Rajapaksa family. The government states it’s taking motion only against those who are suspected of breaking the law.

Troops destroyed the protest camping in front of the president’s secretariat in Colombo within the third week associated with July. Protesters also left the Galle Face area on Colombo’s sea front side last month.

In the past couple weeks, the government has efficient fuel supplies having a pass – only registered vehicles with a QR code can buy fuel at gas stations. But energy is still in demand along with queues outside a few filling stations.

Key food items can be found in shops, but prices are high since inflation is hanging around 65%.

Earlier this week the federal government reached a preliminary contract with the IMF to get a $2. 9bn (£2. 52bn) loan. It could be dependent on lots of circumstances, including fiscal reconstructs and restructuring Sri Lanka’s $51bn debt with its creditors.

The government also deals with challenges in convincing people about privatising key public sector units as part of the efforts to boost revenue. Trade unions might strongly oppose any job losses as a result of privatisation.

Sri Lanka’s opposition politicians state the situation is deceptively calm at the moment and if the fuel and food supplies are interrupted again then further protests can not be ruled out in the arriving months.