On July 21st, Ranil Wickremesinghe was sworn in as Sri Lanka's new president after the crisis-laden country's parliament elected him to finish up ousted Gotabaya Rajapaksa's term. A'ndre and Ryan look back at The Burn Bag's August 2021 interview with President Wickremesinghe, when he was the lone MP representing his political party, a year after his prior tenure as Prime Minister had ended. We profile the controversial new President, discussing the wily politician's lingering presence on Sri Lanka's political stage and a career filled with many highs and lows, highlighting attention to how Wickremesinghe managed to clinch the presidency despite being significantly unpopular with the Sri Lankan public and having no popular mandate.
The hosts then throw the program to Wickremesinghe's August 2021 interview, which took place during Sri Lanka's COVID lockdown last year. We believe that reflecting on the interview from nearly a year ago is invaluable in assessing how Sri Lanka's new president evaluates Sri Lanka's own political history. Key points that we recommend our audience pay attention to include Wickremesinghe's view on Sri Lanka's debt crisis, U.S.-China relations, and Sri Lanka's past civil conflict. Additionally, Wickremesinghe discusses the relationship between Sri Lanka's president and prime minister -- a relationship he often found himself at the losing end of in the past. Given Wickremesinghe's new executive powers and the protest movement's calls for significant political reform, it will be interesting for watchers to observe if Wickremesinghe's positioning changes.
You can listen to our miniseries, Sri Lanka: Debt, Development, and Democracy here:
Episode 1: Journalist Uditha Jayasinghe on the State of Sri Lanka's Political and Economic Landscape
Episode 2: Former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe on U.S.-China, Domestic Governance, and Political Turmoil
Episode 3: Tamil National Alliance MP Shanakiyan Rasamanickam on Post-War Reconciliation and Political Enfranchisement
Episode 4: State Minister of Regional Cooperation Tharaka Balasuriya on Economic Diplomacy, U.S.-China, and the UNHRC
Episode 5: Trade Expert Subhashini Abeysinghe on Sri Lanka's Debt Crisis and Economic Ties with China and the United States
Episode 6: (then)-U.S. Ambassador Alaina B. Teplitz on U.S.-Sri Lanka Relations
Additionally, you can listen to Dr. Sanjana Hattutowa's April 2022 assessment of Sri Lanka's political crisis and the #GoHomeGota protests here.