Looking back at the recent revolutionary upheaval in Sri Lanka---- Unfortunately,
the independent media covered the events only marginally, so we had to drawexclusively from corporate sources and notice the context that the official presshad not covered. ---- What actually happened? ---- In June 2022, a small group ofsocial activists started meeting to stir up the people against the hatedPresident Rajapaksa. The group bet on a massive agitation campaign and tried tofind allies among students, workers, trade unions and political parties, yet themovement did not allow itself to be used for the campaign of any politician.Among the main triggers of discontent were massive corruption leading to thetheft of public finances, an oligarchic style of governance, soaring prices andthe unavailability of basic food and medicine. The last straw was the coronaviruspandemic and the government's effort to switch to organic fertilizers. However,this move was not motivated by the pursuit of carbon neutrality, but by costsavings. Importing fertilizers from abroad was too expensive.In early July, the people of Sri Lanka took to the streets to demand theresignation of the government. Hundreds of thousands of people clashed with thepolice, who did not stand a chance in the face of the crowd. Demonstrators seizedwater cannons and with their help fought their way into the presidential palace.The president fled the country at the last minute. The bath in the presidentialpool was then a symbolic confirmation of the huge class differences, when someprotesters saw the pool for the first time in their lives. However, thedemonstrators did not start looting the palace - on the contrary, they made itaccessible to the people. They began an occupation and used the president'shoarded supplies for a grand picnic. It was supposed to last until the governmentmeets all the demands of the protesters.Power at that moment passed into the hands of the prime minister, who immediatelyannounced a curfew. People reacted to this without much hesitation - after thepresidential palace, they also occupied the prime minister's palace. Thegovernment responded by passing a lightning law strengthening the powers of therepressive forces. However, the international community reacted to this. Forexample, a union leader who had a key role in organizing the protests wasreleased on bail under UN pressure. However, the repression continues. Forexample, one resident described a situation where he was threatened by the policefor providing a bottle of water to one of the protesters.Perspectives and lessons learnedEvents in Sri Lanka show that the underprivileged class can very quickly reversesocial conditions. You just need to strike at the right time in the right place.In a situation where fuel or energy prices rise sharply, an outburst of socialanger can come completely unexpectedly, for example in the Czech Republic. Giventhe marginality of the anarchist movement in the Czech Republic and its weakmobilization potential, this would probably happen outside collectives that liketo protect themselves by class struggle.The capture of the presidential palace may give Sri Lankans the confidence theyneed to push their demands more boldly. The people of the country already knowthat they are not powerless, that bosses and politicians are not untouchabledeities but flesh and blood people who run away when they see their shoes run.https://www.afed.cz/text/7718/sri-lanka-ridit-stat-jako-firmu-nedopada-dobre_________________________________________A - I N F O S N E W S S E R V I C EBy, For, and About AnarchistsSend news reports to A-infos-en mailing listA-infos-en@ainfos.ca
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