'The system is the threat, not ethnicities': How the battle against the corrupt political elite unified a fractured Sri Lanka

At a church in Rajagiriya, a suburb of Sri Lanka’s capital Colombo, dozens of volunteers are cooking food on an open fire.

The shortage of cooking gas or the rocketing cost of food has not stopped them from satisfying the hunger of others.

“The unity I see at community kitchens makes me happy. No one should go hungry no matter what their faith is,” Jayanthi Kumar, who oversees many soup kitchens run by the Voice Foundation tells The New Arab.

“Churches are usually attended by the people of one faith. Now they are a meeting point for people of different ethnicities,” she adds.

"The protests made me feel that finally Sri Lankans were realising that it was not ethnicities, but corrupt leaders and the corrupt system which is a threat"

Outside the community kitchen are men, women and children from different backgrounds and ethnicities, waiting patiently in line to get some lunch.

The worsening economic crisis in the country has spared no one.

In Sri Lanka – a nation that has seen a separatist war and racial clashes even after gaining independence from the British in 1948 – a growing crisis is bringing communities together.

Ethnic tensions have persisted between Buddhists who make up 75 percent of the country's 22 million population, and the minority Tamil and Muslim communities for years.

But when they united for the first time in 74 years, it spelt the end for the country's eighth executive president, who was forced to resign, less than three years into his five-year term.

"The protests made me feel that finally Sri Lankans were realising that it was not ethnicities, but corrupt leaders and the corrupt system which is a threat," Buwanaka Perera, a protester told The New Arab.

"It was an opportunity for people to learn about other faiths. They would spread their knowledge after going back to where they came from."

Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who was the defence secretary when Sri Lanka won a three-decade-long war against LTTE separatist rebels, was elected as President in 2019.

“It is no secret that the majority who voted for me were Sinhalese,” Rajapaksa, who received 6.9 million votes at the presidential polls, once said in a national address.

He came to power promising national security in the aftermath of the Easter Sunday attacks that targeted Catholics in April 2019 but soon became unpopular as his decisions pushed the country into chaos.

Minority Muslims came under heavy scrutiny after the bombings.

When the first uprising took place outside Rajapaksa’s private residence on March 31, his office claimed it was led by “extremists” calling for an “Arab Spring”.

"Everyone has to work to alleviate the public suffering induced by the corrupt system"

Since April, Sri Lankans have been camping outside the President's Office in Colombo calling for a change in governance, as the economic crisis hit home.

Leaders from all religious faiths have often been at the forefront of the protests, resembling a sense of unity among the people.

"Everyone has to work to alleviate the public suffering induced by the corrupt system," Fr. Sarath Iddamalgoda of the Christian Solidarity Movement told The New Arab. 

"We are convinced that this struggle must continue with unity."

At the main protest site, clergymen of all faiths share an umbrella to take cover from the heat, while some clear the way for Muslims to offer their daily prayers.

Protesters have organised events to mark the New Year Festival celebrated by Sinhalese and Tamils and had previously organised Iftars – the evening meal to end the daily fast for Muslims during the month of Ramadan.

Now, Sri Lanka's police have instructed protesters to vacate the protest site as it is taking place on state-owned property.

But protests are continuing as people are sceptical about Ranil Wickremesinghe, the country's new President, who was elected by legislators after Rajapaksa’s sudden resignation.

Wickremesinghe, who lost the elections in 2020, entered parliament through his party's sole bonus seat and became prime minister and then president in two months.

Many see the six-time prime minister, who is yet to outline a clear plan for Sri Lanka's economic recovery, as an ally of the deposed Rajapaksas.

Since his ascension to the top seat, many activists have been arrested, a move that many say is a witch-hunt to suppress dissent.

"They are trying to intimidate the protesters. We want a complete overhaul of the political system. We will continue our protests," Afzal Hussain, a protester told The New Arab.

"We are facing this situation due to structural issues like budget deficits, the COVID-19, and Easter Sunday bombings that affected tourism, and also mismanagement"

Sri Lanka is facing a severe shortage of foreign reserves, which has affected imports and forced the country to default on some of its foreign loans.

While income levels remain stagnant, ordinary Sri Lankans are facing food inflation of 90 percent, three-hour power cuts, exorbitant transport fares, and spending hours or days in queues for cooking gas and fuel.

"Over five million people (in Sri Lanka) have reported skipping meals to get by," the World Food Programme, the food assistance branch of the United Nations has said.

Some economic experts say it will take until 2030 for Sri Lanka to achieve sustainable economic recovery.

“The government needs to restructure its debt, boost exports, and establish a social protection scheme,” Dr Priyanga Dunusinghe, a lecturer in economics at the University of Colombo said.

He added that the support of the International Monetary Fund would be crucial for Sri Lanka in moving forward.

“We are facing this situation due to structural issues like budget deficits, COVID-19, and the Easter Sunday bombings that affected tourism, and also mismanagement,” Dr Dunusinghe noted.

Sri Lanka is yet to heal the wounds of its three-decade-long war and multiple riots that have resulted in the loss of innocent lives.

But the crisis seems to be uniting communities, heralding a sense of hope for the future.

“The younger generations have realised that they have been duped by politicians who saw minority communities as enemies,” Dr Jehan Perera, the executive director of the National Peace Council told The New Arab.

“Playing the ethnic card is not going to easily allow politicians to obtain votes like how it used to in the past."

Hassaan Shazuli is a journalist based in Sri Lanka. His writing focuses on a variety of issues, including society and politics.

Follow him on Twitter: @hassaan_shazuli