A state of emergency has been declared in an Asian country, with social networking sites shut down and a curfew ordered.

Dozens of opposition MPs rallied despite the curfew order Sajid Premadasa On Sunday, he marched on Independence Square in front of an opposition leader’s house and in the center of the capital.

Their movement was stopped by the army.

Only those with written permission can be on the street. The curfew order began Saturday evening and will last until six in the morning. A police official has said that 664 people have been detained on charges of violating curfew in the western province, which includes the capital Colombo.

Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and WhatsApp are no longer available in the country

NetBlocks, which monitors Internet access, wrote on Twitter. This information was also confirmed by the local police. Restrictions have been imposed to prevent further protests.

Angry people set cars on fire on Thursday Kottapaya Rajapaksa Clashes broke out with police near the president’s residence. At least two dozen police officers were injured. 53 people involved in the protest were arrested on Friday. According to local media, five newspaper photographers were captured and tortured. The government has promised an inquiry into the matter.

The protests have spread to other parts of the country.

Following the movements, the president declared a state of emergency on Friday and ordered the army to take to the streets.

Protesters have demanded the departure of not only the president but also members of the Rajapakse family, which has been a major influence in the country. Mahinda, the brother of Gotabhaya Rajapaksa and the brother of the Prime Minister, and Basil are the finance ministers. Another brother and nephew were in the Sri Lankan cabinet.

The South Asian island nation has been facing unprecedented economic problems since independence in 1948, exacerbated by the corona virus epidemic and consequently a lack of revenue from tourism.

Experts say Sri Lanka, with a population of 22 million, is heavily in debt and urgently needs money to import fuel, natural gas, food and medicine.

The country is without electricity for several hours a day due to fuel shortages, and food prices have plummeted.

The Colombo leadership has relied on additional loans from India and China and has sought the help of the International Monetary Fund.

In this article we wrote more about the situation in Sri Lanka:

COVER: One of the protesters tried to set fire to a bus near the Presidential Palace in Colombo, the capital of Sri Lanka, on April 1, 2022, due to the severe economic crisis.MTI / AP / Eranga Jayawardene