Capping months of economic and political turmoil in Sri Lanka, thousands of protestors on July 9 stormed the Presidential Palace in Colombo finally ousting Gotabaya Rajapaksa from power.
Sri Lanka has been grappling with its worst financial crisis since its independence in 1948 as it ran out of foreign exchange to pay for imports, leading to crippling shortages of food, medicines, fuel, and electricity.
Here’s how cartoonists in Sri Lanka and India are viewing the latest developments.
Cartoonist Awantha Artigala highlighted the power of protests by ordinary citizens in ousting the powerful Rajapaksa clan from power.
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his brother Mahinda Rajapaksa have been blamed for economic mismanagement, which drove Sri Lanka into crisis.
While Mahinda Rajapaksa had resigned as prime minister in May, Gotabaya had held on to his post in the face of widespread outrage and protests. After his residence was stormed, Gotabaya Rajapaksa has finally agreed to resign on July 13.
A cartoonist from the Sri Lankan portal Sinhala Adaderana made a reference to the viral photographs and videos of protesters wandering through the Presidential Palace, some even taking a dip in the pool.
Cartoonist Selvan of the Tamil daily Virakesari mocked Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s escape from the Presidential Palace. While his whereabouts are still unknown, the BBC quoted sources as saying that the president was on a “naval vessel in Sri Lankan waters”.
Cartoonist Sameera Kalugampitiya noted how popular Gotabaya Rajapaksa had been for years. The Rajapaksa regime’s disregard for human rights, war crimes and militarisation had drawn international criticism but did little to dent their popularity at home.
In India, cartoonists Alok and Satish Acharya reflected on the rise and fall of the Rajapaksas.
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