Overseas Sri Lankans for Change (CHRI) said in a statement that they would refrain from sending dollars to Sri Lanka until the end of this regime and the emergence of a credible pro-people government in the country.
The announcement also states: First of all, as Sri Lankans living abroad, we express our opposition to the statement made by the President of Sri Lanka Gotabhaya Rajapaksa to the nation on 16.03.2022.
Also, Sri Lanka is currently mired in a severe economic crisis and the lives of the people have become unsustainable.
We believe that in such a moment the President of a country should make a more responsible intervention.
But the president’s speech stated that he was not responsible for any of this and that other parties and world conditions were the cause of the crisis.
Although the President said that this was a situation that had befallen every country in the world due to the covid epidemic, war and other causes, we have personally witnessed that the rest of the world has quickly managed the problems that have arisen as a result.
Therefore, the President’s claim that the covid epidemic and other world conditions are the cause of the crisis in Sri Lanka is a very false and irresponsible statement that misleads the people.
While acknowledging that managing the country’s economy is the responsibility of the government, the President should state to the country what the government’s solutions are. But it is ridiculous to simply wait for the country’s foreign exchange crisis to be resolved with remittances from expatriate Sri Lankans.
We know that this crisis did not arise due to non-arrival of tourists, non-repatriation of Sri Lankans abroad or negligence on the part of the people of the country.
It is the rulers of the country, including the current President, who have taken steps to keep the children and relatives of our families abroad who have sent dollars to the country, in gas queues, oil queues and without electricity.
We wasted that money, cheated and used it for their own benefit even when the country was collapsing by the politicians who were in power and still are.
Therefore, as Sri Lankans living abroad who have so far sent dollars to the country, we declare that we will refrain from sending dollars until the end of this regime and the emergence of a corrupt and pro – people government that we can trust.
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