Sri Lanka protesters reject PM’s invitation for talks

dpa Colombo Thousands of protesters in Sri Lanka who are calling for the government to step down amid a spiralling political and economic crisis continued...

dpaColombo Thousands of protesters in Sri Lanka who are calling for the government to step down amid a spiralling political and economic crisis continued their campaign on Thursday after rejecting an invitation to talks by Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa.The protestors ruled out talks with Rajapaksa, who sought to defuse the tensions with his invitation on Wednesday. They said they would continue to demand the resignations of the prime minister and President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, his brother.The protests held outside the president’s office entered their sixth consecutive day. Protesters are camping in the area and have organized food, water and sanitation facilities.Meanwhile nationwide, people continue to struggle with fuel and gas shortages. Thousands lined up in the hopes of buying supplies. Anger is growing at the government as people mark the traditional new year, events celebrated by the majority Buddhist as well as the minority Hindus.The protesters outside the president’s office also marked the new year, carrying out the customary rituals at their makeshift camp.Sri Lanka is preparing to open negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) next week, while expecting further assistance from India and China amid an unprecedented economic crisis.Politically, the government’s majority in the 225-seat parliament is under threat, with some of the ruling party members opting to become independent members.The main opposition party is preparing a no-confidence motion against the government. It is unclear how much support the government currently has, given the number of defections. When it was formed, the government had 151 lawmakers but 41 defected, although three have since returned. It would need 113 votes in order to remain in power.