Sri Lanka President's Office to Reopen after Protesters Crackdown

Sri Lanka's besieged presidential office will reopen on Monday, days after violent anti-government demonstrators in the crisis-hit country.

"The office is ready for reopening from Monday," said a police official on Sunday. He told AFP that forensics experts had visited the office to gather evidence of damage by protesters.

"The siege of the secretariat, which lasted since May 9, has now been lifted," the official noted.

A week ago, Sri Lanka's Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe was sworn in as interim president before the chief justice following the resignation of Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

Western governments, the United Nations as well as human rights groups condemned Wickremesinghe for using violence against unarmed protesters who had announced their intention to vacate the site later on Friday.

On his part, Police spokesman Nihal Talduwa affirmed that protesters were free to continue their demonstrations at a designated site near the presidential office.

"They can remain at the official protest site. The government may even open a few more places for demonstrators in the city," Talduwa said Sunday.

The military operation to clear the secretariat building and its immediate surroundings came less than 24 hours after Wickremesinghe was sworn in and just before a new cabinet was appointed.

Earlier this month, protesters stormed Wickremesinghe’s home and set it on fire during a day of mass unrest, as Sri Lanka continues to struggle through its worst economic crisis since independence.