Sri Lankans Vote in Presidential Election Amid Economic Recovery

Sri Lankans are voting in a crucial presidential election. The outcome will decide how the country recovers from its worst economic crisis and political turmoil.

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Sri Lankans have started voting in a crucial presidential election that will shape the future of the country. This election comes after Sri Lanka faced its worst economic crisis, which led to serious political instability.

There are 38 candidates running for president, but the main race is between three figures. The first is the current president, Ranil Wickremesinghe. 

He is a liberal leader who took office in 2022. He’s known for leading the country through its difficult economic recovery. The second candidate is Anura Kumara Dissanayake, a member of parliament who has a Marxist viewpoint. Lastly, there is opposition leader Sajith Premadasa, who promises change.

Sri Lanka has around 17 million eligible voters. Final results are expected by Sunday. The outcome will reveal if the people of Sri Lanka approve of Wickremesinghe's leadership and the steps he has taken to revive the economy.

Under Wickremesinghe's leadership, the government has been working to restructure the country's debt. Sri Lanka defaulted on its debts in 2022, which means it could no longer pay back the money it borrowed.

 At the time of the default, the country owed a total of $83 billion (US dollars). Recently, Sri Lanka managed to restructure $17 billion of that debt with help from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The government has passed an important milestone in its debt recovery. On Thursday, the government announced it had reached an agreement with private bondholders. This was the last major hurdle in the debt restructuring plan.

Even though the government has made progress in fixing the economy, people are still struggling. Living costs are high, and taxes have increased. Both Premadasa and Dissanayake have criticized Wickremesinghe's approach. 

They believe the deal with the IMF has caused too much pain for ordinary people. They have promised to renegotiate the agreement to make it less harsh.

Wickremesinghe, however, has warned that making changes to the IMF deal could be risky. The IMF has promised Sri Lanka a loan of $3 billion to help the country stay stable. Wickremesinghe says that if the terms of the deal are changed, it could delay this much-needed aid.

Sri Lanka’s economic collapse was caused by several factors. One major problem was excessive borrowing by the government. The government spent money on large projects that did not make a profit. 

The COVID-19 pandemic also worsened the situation, causing the economy to shrink. In addition, the government used up the country’s foreign reserves to support the value of the Sri Lankan rupee. This left the country with no money to buy essential goods from other countries.

The crisis led to severe shortages of food, medicine, cooking gas, and fuel. Many Sri Lankans had to wait in long lines just to get basic necessities. This sparked protests that eventually became violent. 

Protesters took over government buildings, including the president’s house and office, as well as the prime minister’s office. This forced then-president Gotabaya Rajapaksa to flee the country and resign from his position.

Political Unrest

In July 2022, Ranil Wickremesinghe was elected by parliament to finish Rajapaksa’s term as president. Now, he is running for another term in hopes of continuing the progress made in the country’s recovery. 

However, many people remain unhappy with him. They accuse him of protecting members of the Rajapaksa family, who they believe were responsible for the economic disaster. Wickremesinghe was elected with the support of Rajapaksa's allies in parliament, who continue to back him.