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The President declared a state of emergency to control food prices and prevent the stockpiling of some staple foods in the event of shortages.
The Sri Lankan parliament has approved the president to declare a state of emergency. The president stated that it is necessary to control food prices and prevent the hoarding of some staple foods in the event of shortages.
Opposition lawmakers said on Monday that no emergency declaration is needed because other laws can be used to maintain basic supplies, and strict emergency rules may be abused to stifle critics.
The state of emergency law enables the authorities to detain people without an arrest warrant, confiscate property, enter and search any premises, suspend the law, and issue orders that cannot be challenged in court. Officials issuing such orders are also exempt from litigation.
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa declared a state of emergency on August 30.
The constitution requires the approval of a 225-member parliament within 14 days, of which the ruling party has more than 150 seats. The resolution received 132 votes in favor and 51 votes against.
The government stated that it had tried its best to use normal laws, but its court case was delayed due to the pandemic.
Legislators of the ruling party stated that the state of emergency was declared only because other options did not work, and the government did not intend to use emergency provisions against opponents.
Sri Lanka has been in a state of emergency for most of the past 50 years because it has experienced two Marxist uprisings and decades of civil war.
The authorities are often accused of using rules to suppress opponents.
In recent weeks, there has been a shortage of necessities such as sugar, milk powder and cooking gas. The government says that the hoarders are artificially creating shortages.
The country is also facing a foreign exchange crisis triggered by a decline in tourism and exports, as well as a large number of loan repayments.
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