Sri Lanka sentences 12 to death for killing MP during anti-government protests

International Desk

A Sri Lankan court has sentenced 12 people to death for the lynching of a lawmaker during anti-government protests in 2022. The Gampaha High Court announced the verdict on Wednesday.

Investigating officers told the court that the slain lawmaker, Amarkeerthi Athukorala (57), was killed by protesters in the town of Nittambuwa, near the capital Colombo.

According to the complaint, he opened fire in self-defense when protesters surrounded his car. The mob then caught him and beat him to death.

Athukorala tried to take shelter in a building to save his life, but a crowd of about 5,000 people surrounded him. Some of the crowd brutally beat him and his bodyguard to death.

The killings occurred during a period of unrest that began in May 2022, when anti-government protests erupted across Sri Lanka over acute shortages of food, fuel and medicine. The country was struggling to import essential goods due to a foreign exchange shortage.

A three-judge bench of the Gampaha High Court convicted 12 people based on a majority opinion. 23 other accused in the same case were acquitted. However, there is a possibility of appeal in the Supreme Court against this verdict.

It is worth noting that the death penalty has not been carried out in Sri Lanka since 1976. Although the country’s courts regularly impose the death penalty for serious crimes.

During the 2022 government-to-government movement, widespread violence was perpetrated against then-President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, leaders and activists of the ruling party, and members of parliament. During this time, the homes of about 75 members of parliament were arsoned and looted.

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his brother Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa were forced to resign in the face of the violent situation.

Earlier, protests erupted across the country in April 2022 after the country failed to repay $46 billion in foreign debt. Later, Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s successor, Ranil Wickremesinghe, reached a bailout deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in early 2023.

However, Wickremesinghe was defeated by leftist leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake in the presidential election held in September 2024. After coming to power, Dissanayake took steps to stabilize the economy while maintaining the austerity policies of the previous government.