Sri Lanka to vote in first poll since economic collapse

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00:00July 2022, protesters take over Sri Lanka's presidential palace, the climax of a popular

00:07revolt known as the Aragalaya movement that deposed then-President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

00:13The uprising was triggered by an economic collapse that saw the country run out of foreign

00:17currency as Sri Lankans were forced to wait in line, sometimes for days, for essential

00:22goods amid widespread shortages.

00:26Inflation hit 70% as the rupee lost nearly half its value, GDP shrank by more than 7%.

00:33The memory of the crisis hangs heavy over this year's presidential election.

00:37Do not choose those who have sold and made us bankrupt.

00:43Remember politicians are not the owners, we the people are the owners.

00:48In the meantime, Sri Lanka has experienced a modest recovery.

00:52Inflation is now in the single digits and its economy is projected to grow for the first

00:56time in three years.

00:59But it remains hobbled by $46 billion of foreign debt, payments on which have been frozen ever

01:04since the government defaulted in 2022.

01:08Current President Ranil Vikramasinghe has overseen a $25 billion debt restructuring process.

01:14He's also managing a $2.9 billion IMF bailout.

01:18The debt loan comes with austerity conditions that have resulted in severe hardship as higher

01:23taxes and energy costs hit Sri Lankan wallets.

01:27The mood in the country is that there has to be change.

01:30There's also the concern that the change must not lead to a repeat of what happened in 2022.

01:40Vikramasinghe is urging voters to give him a new mandate so he can complete reforms he

01:45says are needed to set the country on a sustainable economic path.

01:49He's facing a serious challenge though from Marxist parliamentarian Anurag Kumar Desanayake

01:55who wants to renegotiate the terms of the IMF bailout.

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