Police curfew lifted amid protesters to hold mass rally

Police curfew imposed in parts of the Western Province last night (July 08) will be lifted at 8.00 a.m. today (July 09), Sri Lanka Police says.

Ahead of the mass protests planned for today, the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) announced last night that Negombo, Kelaniya, Nugegoda, Mount Lavinia, Colombo North, Colombo South and Colombo Central police areas will be under police curfew orders from 9.00 p.m. yesterday until further notice.

However, the move came under fire from various parties including the Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) and the Opposition. Calling the imposition of police curfew illegal, they pointed out that it is also a violation of the fundamental rights of the people of the country who are protesting against the incumbent President and the government.

Thousands of protesters demanding the resignation of Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa are set to converge on his official residence Saturday as the bankrupt nation struggles to buy daily essentials, inflation soars, and popular anger at the embattled leader mounts.

Civil-rights activists, religious leaders, artists and others, from across the South Asian island are walking toward an oceanfront protest site that has sprung up near the presidential palace in the capital, Colombo.