Politics Marxist Dissanayake sworn in as Sri Lanka's new president

Following his election as Sri Lanka's new president, Marxist politician Anura Kumara Dissanayake has called on his fellow countrymen to join forces to overcome the severe economic crisis.

"The deep-rooted crisis cannot be overcome by one government, one party or one individual alone," said the 55-year-old leader of the National People's Power (NPP) coalition in his inaugural speech in Colombo. "As I said before, I am not a magician." He had previously solemnly taken the oath of office. For many of the approximately 22 million inhabitants of the South Asian island state, the election was associated with the hope that the economy could stabilize again after the state bankruptcy two years ago and that prices for numerous products such as food would fall again. The crisis had triggered massive protests in the former civil war country.

President wants to respect democratic values

Dissanayake promised to respect democratic values and to win the trust of those who did not vote for him. He also emphasized the importance of international support for his country. "Apart from the geopolitical divisions, we want to maintain beneficial relations with other countries." India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi and China's President Xi Jinping congratulated him on his election. Dissanayake was declared the winner by the State Election Commission on Sunday. He had won the election on Saturday with a clear lead over opposition leader Sajith Premadasa.

His predecessor Ranil Wickremesinghe had been eliminated after the first round of vote counting together with the other candidates, after none of the candidates had achieved more than 50 percent, which would have been necessary for victory. After the first round, only Dissanayake and Premadasa remained. The president is elected for a five-year term. Despite a slow economic recovery, Dissanayake also wants to renegotiate the agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which granted the country an aid program of around three billion US dollars (approximately 2.7 billion euros). The disbursement of the loan is linked to strict conditions such as the implementation of certain reforms.

SDA