Anger is raging in Sri Lanka over the country’s biggest economic crisis since its independence in 1948, with much of it directed at the island’s all-powerful Rajapaksa family.
Hundreds of protesters attempted to attack the residence of Gotabaya Rajapaksa, the incumbent president and one of four politically engaged brothers, late Thursday. During a night of unrest, one person was hurt and 45 people were detained.
– ‘The Chief’ –
A 76-year-old Mahinda Rajapaksa, is the group’s charismatic leader and the incumbent prime minister. He previously held the position in 2004, and then from 2005 until 2015.
Three years ago, Gotabaya elevated him to the position of Prime Minister for the second time.
The Sinhala-Buddhist majority adores Mahinda for smashing separatist Tamil rebels in May 2009, following a violent military onslaught that concluded a decades-long civil strife.
According to UN estimates, the brutal last weeks of the civil war resulted in the deaths of roughly 40,000 people who were herded into so-called no-fire zones, which were then bombarded by Sri Lankan military forces.
Rajapaksa has rejected the toll and has resisted a foreign investigation into alleged crimes. A succession of local investigations have resulted in neither a serious war crimes inquiry nor charges.
Sri Lanka also drew closer to China under his reign, borrowing about $7 billion for infrastructure projects, many of which turned out to be white elephants riddled with corruption.
Critics believe he also did nothing to heal the schism between Sri Lanka’s Tamils and the government following the conflict. The community is prohibited from remembering its war dead and is severely marginalised.
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, 72, was Mahinda’s top deputy throughout his term as head of state, holding the key office of secretary to the defence ministry with day-to-day supervision of the military forces and police.
He denies being behind murder squads that kidnapped and “disappeared” scores of opponents in infamous white vans.
His enemies dread him for his quick temper, which has earned him the moniker “The Terminator” from his own family.
He presided over Sri Lanka’s spiralling economic catastrophe as president.
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, 72, was Mahinda’s top deputy throughout his term as head of state, holding the key office of secretary to the defence ministry with day-to-day supervision of the military forces and police.
He denies being behind murder squads that kidnapped and “disappeared” scores of opponents in infamous white vans.
His enemies dread him for his quick temper, which has earned him the moniker “The Terminator” from his own family.
He presided over Sri Lanka’s spiralling economic catastrophe as president.
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, 72, served as Mahinda’s chief deputy as head of state, holding the key office of secretary to the defence ministry, with day-to-day control of the military forces and police.
He denies being behind murder squads that kidnapped and “disappeared” scores of opponents in infamous white vans.
His enemies dread him for his quick temper, which has earned him the moniker “The Terminator” from his own family.
He presided over Sri Lanka’s spiralling economic catastrophe as president.
Due to a significant lack of foreign cash, which was required to pay off Sri Lanka’s debt, the government was compelled to restrict large swaths of imports, resulting in acute shortages of essentials.
Sri Lanka’s hugely tourism-dependent economy was damaged first by the Easter Sunday Islamist attacks of 2019, and subsequently by Covid.
Many analysts, however, believe that the Rajapaksas’ economic incompetence is partly to blame, citing years of chronic budget deficits and ill-advised tax cuts.
Basil Rajapaksa, 70, is a political strategist who oversaw the economy under Mahinda before becoming finance minister.
In a BBC interview, he was dubbed “Mr. 10%” in reference to the commissions he reportedly received on government contracts.
Subsequent governments were unable to establish that he stole millions of dollars from public coffers. Since Gotabaya became office, all charges against him have been dismissed.
Chamal Rajapaksa, 79, served as speaker of parliament during Mahinda’s presidency and is a former shipping and aviation minister. He presently has the irrigation portfolio and is second in the defence department behind Gotabaya, who is also the defence minister.
He was a police officer before becoming a personal bodyguard for Sirimavo Bandaranaike, the world’s first female prime minister.
Namal Rajapaksa, 35, is the eldest son of Mahinda and the scion of the family line.
He was only 24 when he entered parliament in 2010, and he is currently the Minister of Sports and Youth.
Namal had considerable authority throughout his father’s decade in office, despite the fact that he held no portfolio.
A former opposing administration accused him of money laundering and other forms of corruption, which he rejects.
