Sri Lanka’s main Opposition decides to offer conditional support to new government

Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB), Sri Lanka's main opposition party, said on Monday that it would offer conditional support to the new government led by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.

Sri Lanka’s main Opposition party, Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB), on Monday said it would offer conditional support to the interim all-party government headed by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe to help tackle the country’s crippling economic and political crisis.

Wickremesinghe, the United National Party (UNP) leader, was appointed as Sri Lanka's 26th prime minister on Thursday as the country had been without a government since Monday when President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's elder brother and prime minister, Mahinda Rajapaksa, resigned after violence erupted following an attack on anti-government protesters by his supporters.

"As a responsible political party, Samagi Jana Balawegaya believes saving the country from the current crisis is of the utmost importance," the SJB said in a statement.

"Accordingly, without taking any portfolio and on behalf of the betterment of the country, SJB in its parliamentary group discussion today decided to fully support the current government in its efforts at economic recovery," it said.

READ | Sri Lanka and beyond, a Chinese hand that feeds crisis

But the support came with certain riders.

"If the government groups try to accommodate defections from SJB or connect SJB parliamentarians for activities that are against the SJB principles, the parliamentary group has decided to unconditionally withdraw this support," it added.