Protesters tried to storm the house of Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in the capital over the government's handling of the worst economic crisis, demanding the president's resignation.

Sri Lanka Economic Crisis: Hundreds try to storm President Gotabaya's home, demands resignation

Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on August 12 appointed a 26-member Cabinet and a team of junior Ministers, following the ruling party’s resounding victory in the August 5 general elections.

Sri Lanka new cabinet: President Rajapaksa retains Defence Ministry | World News

Sri Lanka's top election official has expressed concern over the delay in enforcing the COVID-19 health guidelines for the August 5 parliamentary elections, warning that candidates and supporters were defying measures to contain the spread of the disease which could endanger public safety.

Mahinda Deshapriya, Chairman of the National Election Commission, said that the health guidelines for conducting the elections were announced on June 2 but they have not been legalised through a gazette notification.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/sri-lanka-turns-quarantine-centre-into-hospital-as-virus-spikes-312399" hreflang="en">Sri Lanka turns quarantine centre into hospital as virus spikes</a>

The guidelines have been sent by the health authorities to the Attorney General's Department, which would give a nod for them to be gazetted.

What we see now is candidates and their supporters campaigning shoulder to shoulder, they do not keep the required one metre distancing, they do not even wear face masks,&nbsp;Deshapriya said.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/who-says-sri-lanka-and-maldives-eliminate-measles-rubella-311616">WHO says Sri Lanka and Maldives eliminate measles, rubella</a>

The health guidelines require wearing face masks, frequent hand washing and maintaining one-metre distance. The number of people at poll campaign gatherings has also been reduced to a bare minimum.

The parliamentary elections in the country are scheduled for August 5 and the campaigning has been at a very low scale due to the COVID-19 pandemic compared to previous elections.

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on March 2 dissolved the Parliament, six months ahead of schedule, and called for snap polls on April 25. However, the election commission in mid-April postponed the elections by nearly two months to June 20 due to the coronavirus outbreak in the island nation.

The commission last month informed the apex court that the polls cannot be held on June 20 because of the coronavirus pandemic and the new date was decided following a unanimous decision reached between the members of the commission.

The election commission held several mock polls to put into practice health guidelines and on Monday extended the poll time by one hour in view of the pandemic.

There are over 16 million eligible voters in the country. The August 5 poll will elect a 225-member Parliament for a five-year term.

Deshapriya's comments came as Sri Lanka recorded its highest spike for a single day on Friday. As many as 300 cases were reported from a rehabilitation centre for drug addicts from the north central region of the country.

Sri Lanka has reported 2,454 COVID-19 cases with 11 deaths.

Sri Lanka's top election official has expressed concern over the delay in enforcing the COVID-19 health guidelines for the August 5 parliamentary elections, warning that candidates and supporters were defying measures to contain the spread of the disease which could endanger public safety.

Sri Lanka's top election official has expressed concern over the delay in enforcing the COVID-19 health guidelines for the August 5 parliamentary elections, warning that candidates and supporters were defying measures to contain the spread of the disease which could endanger public safety. Mahinda Deshapriya, Chairman of the National Election Commission, said that the health guidelines for conducting the elections were announced on June 2 but they have not been legalised through a gazette notification. Also read: Sri Lanka turns quarantine centre into hospital as virus spikes The guidelines have been sent by the health authorities to the Attorney General's Department, which would give a nod for them to be gazetted. What we see now is candidates and their supporters campaigning shoulder to shoulder, they do not keep the required one metre distancing, they do not even wear face masks, Deshapriya said. Also read: WHO says Sri Lanka and Maldives eliminate measles, rubella The health guidelines require wearing face masks, frequent hand washing and maintaining one-metre distance. The number of people at poll campaign gatherings has also been reduced to a bare minimum. The parliamentary elections in the country are scheduled for August 5 and the campaigning has been at a very low scale due to the COVID-19 pandemic compared to previous elections. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on March 2 dissolved the Parliament, six months ahead of schedule, and called for snap polls on April 25. However, the election commission in mid-April postponed the elections by nearly two months to June 20 due to the coronavirus outbreak in the island nation. The commission last month informed the apex court that the polls cannot be held on June 20 because of the coronavirus pandemic and the new date was decided following a unanimous decision reached between the members of the commission. The election commission held several mock polls to put into practice health guidelines and on Monday extended the poll time by one hour in view of the pandemic. There are over 16 million eligible voters in the country. The August 5 poll will elect a 225-member Parliament for a five-year term. Deshapriya's comments came as Sri Lanka recorded its highest spike for a single day on Friday. As many as 300 cases were reported from a rehabilitation centre for drug addicts from the north central region of the country. Sri Lanka has reported 2,454 COVID-19 cases with 11 deaths.

Lanka's election chief concerned over delay in enforcing COVID-19 health guidelines for polls

Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa recently claimed that 20,000 people who had gone missing during the country's civil war are presumably dead. Rajapaksa made the remark in a meeting with a United Nations envoy in Colombo.

His office said that death certificates would be issued for the missing.

This came after more than hundreds of families of the missing have been attending rallies demanding the whereabouts of their lost loved ones.

Some posited the idea that their relatives were still alive but captured by the security forces, a claim the government has repeatedly denied. The family members of the deceased hold daily vigils to protest.

<h6><img alt="Rajapaksa" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="cab0f486-feb0-4ff2-9da0-9462bb3fe52d" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/116889-untitled-design-25.jpg" /> 
Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa | Reuters 
&nbsp;</h6>

The war 
The Sri Lankan army and the Tamil Tiger rebels had been warring for 26 years until the inferno was extinguished in May 2009.

The war had made ethnic faultlines in the country visible, for the majority Buddhist Sinhalese wanted to fight the Tamil rebels demanding a separate state. According to the BBC, the war had taken the lives of 100,000 people and left more than 20,000 missing.

Majority of the missing people are Tamil.

At the time of the war, Rajapaksa was Sri Lanka's Defence Secretary and helped crush the rebel movement.&nbsp;

In the final stages of the war, the United Nations had thrown accusations of atrocities towards both sides.

The BBC reported that multiple accounts of Tamil forces being killed even after surrendering were spurring out. Even with mounting video evidence, the government denied partaking in any such activities.

Watch:&nbsp;Why are critics of the Rajapaksas living in fear

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/gravitas-why-are-critics-of-the-rajapaksas-living-in-fear-265803/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

If seen as an opponent to Rajapaksa and his brother Mahinda, businessmen, journalists and activists were taken into custody during the war and never seen again.

However, the government continues to deny any role in the disappearance, with Rajapaksa telling the BBC that all war crime allegations against him were ''baseless''.

<h6><img alt="Rajapaksa brothers" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="14dcd2e8-fd9c-49e8-9929-8d144f8f8cb8" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/116497-untitled-design.jpg" /> 
Rajapaksa brothers&nbsp;| Reuters</h6>

''Internal matter''? 
According to the government statement given to UN resident co-ordinator Hanaa Singer, all the missing were members of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).

"President Rajapaksa outlined his plans to address the issue of missing persons. He explained that these missing persons are actually dead," the statement said.

"The families of the missing attest to it. However, they do not know what has become of them and so claim them to be missing," he said.

Death certificates are utterly important in Sri Lanka, where families cannot access property deeds, inheritances, and bank accounts without it. 
Even though the UN and other organisations have demanded the Lanka government to initiate a crimes tribunal to shed light on human rights abuses in the country, no such action has borne fruits. Sri Lanka has constantly referred to the issue as a ''internal matter'' that should be handled domestically.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/sri-lanka-firmly-committed-to-saarc-gotabaya-rajapaksa-267154">Sri Lanka firmly committed to SAARC: Gotabaya Rajapaksa</a>

Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa recently claimed that 20,000 people who had gone missing during the country's civil war are presumably dead. Rajapaksa made the remark in a meeting with a United Nations envoy in Colombo.

Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa recently claimed that 20,000 people who had gone missing during the country's civil war are presumably dead. Rajapaksa made the remark in a meeting with a United Nations envoy in Colombo. His office said that death certificates would be issued for the missing. This came after more than hundreds of families of the missing have been attending rallies demanding the whereabouts of their lost loved ones. Some posited the idea that their relatives were still alive but captured by the security forces, a claim the government has repeatedly denied. The family members of the deceased hold daily vigils to protest. Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa | Reuters The war The Sri Lankan army and the Tamil Tiger rebels had been warring for 26 years until the inferno was extinguished in May 2009. The war had made ethnic faultlines in the country visible, for the majority Buddhist Sinhalese wanted to fight the Tamil rebels demanding a separate state. According to the BBC, the war had taken the lives of 100,000 people and left more than 20,000 missing. Majority of the missing people are Tamil. At the time of the war, Rajapaksa was Sri Lanka's Defence Secretary and helped crush the rebel movement. In the final stages of the war, the United Nations had thrown accusations of atrocities towards both sides. The BBC reported that multiple accounts of Tamil forces being killed even after surrendering were spurring out. Even with mounting video evidence, the government denied partaking in any such activities. Watch: Why are critics of the Rajapaksas living in fear If seen as an opponent to Rajapaksa and his brother Mahinda, businessmen, journalists and activists were taken into custody during the war and never seen again. However, the government continues to deny any role in the disappearance, with Rajapaksa telling the BBC that all war crime allegations against him were ''baseless''. Rajapaksa brothers | Reuters ''Internal matter''? According to the government statement given to UN resident co-ordinator Hanaa Singer, all the missing were members of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). "President Rajapaksa outlined his plans to address the issue of missing persons. He explained that these missing persons are actually dead," the statement said. "The families of the missing attest to it. However, they do not know what has become of them and so claim them to be missing," he said. Death certificates are utterly important in Sri Lanka, where families cannot access property deeds, inheritances, and bank accounts without it. Even though the UN and other organisations have demanded the Lanka government to initiate a crimes tribunal to shed light on human rights abuses in the country, no such action has borne fruits. Sri Lanka has constantly referred to the issue as a ''internal matter'' that should be handled domestically. Also read: Sri Lanka firmly committed to SAARC: Gotabaya Rajapaksa

Thousands missing in ethnic civil war are dead: Sri Lankan President Rajapaksa

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