The Wickremesinghe administration should respect fundamental rights, including peaceful protest, says Human Rights Watch.

Mentioning the Sri Lankan President’s warning yesterday (23) that he will declare a state of emergency and deploy security forces in the event of major protests, the HRW says, “Without respect for human rights, including the right to peacefully protest, Sri Lankans cannot hold politicians accountable, whether for mismanagement or corruption. It is essential that Sri Lanka’s international partners, including the United States and European Union, press the government to fulfill its human rights obligations as an essential step towards addressing the crisis.”

The full statement of the HRW is as follows :

The dramatic fuel shortages that accompanied mass protests in Sri Lanka earlier this year may have eased, but for millions of Sri Lankans the economic crisis is worse than ever.

This month, the United Nations renewed a humanitarian appeal, stating that 28 percent of the population faces food insecurity and that the poverty rate this year has doubled.

Food price inflation was over 85 percent in October, and acute shortages of foreign currency mean that many imports, including essential medicines, are scarce or unobtainable. Meanwhile, authorities have cracked down on peaceful protest. President Ranil