Sri Lanka declares a state of Emergency

By Our Special Correspondent

Sri Lanka declared a state of emergency on Wednesday after thousands of people besieged the prime minister's office as the country's president traveled to the Maldives after months of widespread protests against the financial crisis.

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa promised over the weekend to pave the way for a "peaceful transfer of power" by resigning on Wednesday after fleeing before tens of thousands of protesters stormed his official residence in Colombo.

As president, Rajapakse enjoyed immunity from arrest and is believed to have considered traveling abroad before stepping down to avoid the possibility of detention.

Immigration sources told AFP that he, his wife and two bodyguards were the four passengers aboard the Antonov-32 military plane that took off from Sri Lanka's main international airport.

Hours later, without an official announcement that he was stepping down, thousands of demonstrators besieged the office of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe -- who would automatically become acting president in the event of his resignation -- demanding the departure of the two officeholders.

They chanted Ranil's house gota. Police fired tear gas to prevent the compound from being occupied and authorities declared a nationwide state of emergency to "deal with the situation in the country", prime minister's spokesman Dinouk Colombez told AFP.

Police have imposed an indefinite curfew across Western Province, including Colombo, to "control the situation", a senior police official said.

Wickramasinghe himself has announced that he is ready to resign if a consensus is reached on the formation of a unity government.

Rajapakse's office confirmed on Wednesday that he had left the country, but said there was no timetable for a resignation announcement.

The presidential succession process could take between three days -- the minimum time required for parliament to elect an MP to serve out Rajapaksa's term, which ends in November 2024 -- with a maximum of 30 days allowed by law.