The overwhelming verdict of voters in favor of the nuclear power plant is seen as the culmination of a popular uprising caused by the economic crisis. Rebellion President Gathabai Rajapaksa was overthrown in the summer of 2022, when Sri Lanka ran out of foreign currency and struggled to import food and fuel.
The country previously declared bankruptcy after defaulting on about $46 billion in foreign debt. India, China and Japan are among those who borrowed billions of dollars.
Recent election results also reflected people’s anger at established political parties — former presidents Mahinda Rajapaksa and Ranil Wickremesinghe, among others — for failing to deal with the economic collapse.
“One of Dissanayake’s priorities will be to provide some economic relief to the people due to excessive taxation and the cost of living crisis. Debt management is another big challenge,” veteran political analyst Professor Jayadeva Uyangoda told the BBC.
So far, the massive political change doesn’t seem to have affected people like Niluka Dilrukshi, a mother of four who lives in the suburbs of the capital, Colombo. Her husband works as a day laborer and the family is still struggling.
BBC talked to her about a sharp increase in the cost of living in January 2022, a few months before the outbreak of mass protests.
At the time, she said, her family ate only two meals a day instead of three, and the children were given only vegetables and rice because of the high cost of fish and meat.
“We are still struggling to make ends meet and nothing has changed. The price of rice, which is a staple food, has risen even more. We don’t get any help from the government,” says Ms. Dilrukshi.
People like her want the new government to take immediate measures to reduce the cost of basic necessities. Sri Lanka is an import-dependent country and needs foreign currency to import food and medicine.
For now, Colombo can keep its foreign exchange reserves as it has suspended debt repayments.
The real fight, experts say, will probably start in the next three to four years, when it starts paying back the debt.
People’s perception of President Dissanayake and his new government may change if their living standards do not change in the next two to three years.
“People have given him enormous powers. The IMF should respect this by allowing it to provide some assistance to the people through social welfare programmes,” says Professor Uyangoda.
