Asia | All change

An upset in Sri Lanka propels an outsider into power

The new president leads a party with Marxist roots

Supporters of Sri Lanka's new president, Anurakumara Dissanayake, celebrate his victory in Colombo, Sri Lanka
Photograph: Getty Images
|Colombo

TWO YEARS have passed since Sri Lanka—crippled by covid-19, excessive borrowing and a series of policy blunders—defaulted on its debts. Inflation soared, the rupee plunged in value and fuel supplies ran out. Massive protests toppled the China-friendly president, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who promptly fled to the Maldives. Things are no longer so terrible. Leaders have tamed inflation, secured a bail-out from the IMF and reached agreement with the country’s creditors on restructuring its debts.

This article appeared in the Asia section of the print edition under the headline “All change”

From the September 28th 2024 edition

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