Anger over Sri Lanka’s dire economic crisis has been simmering for months, with many blaming at the feet of the ruling Rajapaksa family for widespread shortages and runaway inflation.
On Saturday, anger boiled over as hundreds of thousands of protesters gathered around President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s residence, mobs stormed the house and stormed the office near him.
While a top defense source told AFP that Rajapaksa is “still president”, other officials said his departure raised questions about whether he intended to remain in office.
Here are the profiles of some prominent members of his powerful clan, with scenes of protesters clapping at the presidential pool and Rajapaksa’s exact whereabouts unknown:
‘the Terminator’
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, 72, assumed office in 2019, wielding executive power over Sri Lanka during the Covid pandemic, which analysts say helped trigger the current economic crisis.
Unlike his charismatic brother Mahinda, who was the head of the Rajapaksa clan and was prime minister until May, Gotabaya rose to power with little political experience.
Instead, he came from a military background, having been in charge of the army and police during Mahinda’s presidency from 2005 to 2015.
In 2009, he led a brutal government crackdown that crushed separatist Tamil rebels after decades of civil war.
The bloody final week of the conflict ended with – according to UN estimates – the deaths of about 40,000 civilians, who were placed in so-called no-fire zones, which were then bombed by the armed forces.
He denies allegations that he was behind the death squad that kidnapped and “disappeared” dozens of opponents.
Dubbed “The Terminator” by his own family, he fears enemies for his anger.
leader
Mahinda Rajapakse, 76, is the head of the clan. He was the President for a decade and before that in 2004 he was the Prime Minister.
Mahinda was once loved by the Sinhala-Buddhist majority for crushing the Tamil rebels in a military offensive that ended the civil war.
He refused an international investigation into alleged atrocities committed during the war. A series of local inquiries have failed to lead to either a proper war crime investigation or prosecution.
Critics say that Mahinda also did little to bridge the post-war partition with the Tamils of Sri Lanka. The community is barred from remembering its war casualties and remains largely marginalised.
During Mahinda’s presidency, Sri Lanka also moved closer to China, borrowing nearly $7 billion for infrastructure projects – many of which turned into white elephants mired in corruption.
The centerpiece – and biggest flop – was the Hambantota deep-sea port that was to be leased to China for 99 years in 2017 after Colombo failed to keep up with loan repayments for its construction.
Mahinda Rajapaksa resigned as prime minister in May and had to be rescued by the military after thousands of protesters stormed his residence in Colombo.
‘Mr. Ten Percent’
Then there are other family members, including 71-year-old Basil Rajapakse, whose nickname is “Mr. Ten Percent”. BBC Interviews regarding commissions allegedly drawn from government contracts.
Subsequent administrations failed to substantiate any allegations that he siphoned millions of dollars from state coffers. All cases against Gotabaya were dropped when he became president.
Basil was made finance minister when Gotabaya became president, but was released from prison in mid-April as the president tried to save his government. After this he has resigned from the Parliament.
Also outside the door was 79-year-old Chamal, another brother who was in charge of irrigation. His son Shashindra was involved in a disastrous ban on chemical fertilizer imports.
Mahinda’s eldest son Namal, 36, who ran the sports ministry and was known as a future leader before the crisis, was also dropped.
‘Rajapakse brand’
With only Gotabaya in power, Namal pointed out AFP The family was only going through a “bad patch” in May.
Akhil Berry of the Asia Society Policy Institute said at the time that even after Mahinda’s resignation, “the Rajapaksa brand still has support among the Sinhalese population”.
“While most of the blame can now be placed on Rajapaksa, his successor will inherit the mess, leaving room for Rajapaksa to remain politically relevant,” he said. AFP,
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