With the declaration of a national emergency, which came into effect on Saturday, the President has extensive security powers. The armed forces also now have powers that the police usually have to arrest and detain people. The ban on going out was already checked nationwide on Saturday, and 664 people were arrested for violating it.
In the past few weeks, there have been mainly smaller protests across the country. Because in the island state south of India there is a great lack of fuel for power generation. There are currently hour-long power outages every day. Food prices have also risen sharply. The country is heavily indebted and desperately needs US dollars to import fuel, gas, food and medicines from abroad. Sri Lanka has asked India and China for help in sourcing food and fuel, and has also asked the International Monetary Fund for financial assistance.
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