Sri Lankan protesters savour luxuries of presidential residence

COLOMBO • They did flips into the pool. They lounged on canopied beds. And, on wide-screen television sets, they watched cricket and news footage of their fellow protesters who had massed in Sri Lanka's capital and joined them in storming the presidential residence and secretariat.

After months of growing economic deprivation, shortages of fuel and food, and increasingly desperate protests, the scenes in Colombo offered rare moments of levity, as demonstrators who literally occupied the seats of executive power took a moment to appreciate the luxuries.

In the official residence of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who fled to an unknown location last Saturday, the protesters swam in the clear blue water of an outdoor pool, while others crowded around the edges. Some found a gym, where they watched as one man did curls on a bench. Others rested on the grass of well-manicured gardens.

On Sunday and yesterday, demonstrators as well as the curious public continued to crowd onto stairways and snap selfies in the vast foyers of the colonial-era residence.

A few people cooked curries and snacks for the protesters, while others showered in the bathrooms or posed for photos at desks.

Carrying Sri Lankan flags while chanting denunciations of Mr Rajapaksa and his powerful family, they piled onto beds and sofas to celebrate the news that the President had been asked to step down and to ponder what might come next for their country.

On Sunday, as army guards quietly patrolled the halls of the presidential mansion, some visitors admired the fine artwork, the chandeliers and the elaborately painted ceilings.

Others sprawled across the President's canopied bed, or peeked into the teak armoires or the cabinets in a kitchen where a man cooked rice in a large wok.

The damage, if any, seemed minimal, aside from some graffiti urging the President to resign, some plastic bottle debris, several curtains pulled down and a few paintings slightly askew.

The protesters helped pick up trash from the mansion, sweep the floors and water the plants.

Ms Deepa Ranawara, her husband and their two children were among those enjoying the festive atmosphere.

Not typically activists, the family of four walked 24km to and from their home to the mansion on both Saturday and Sunday, leaving Ms Ranawara struggling to stand because her legs were in such pain.

"People have suffered too much," she said. "Never in my wildest dreams did I think this could happen in Sri Lanka."

She and her husband took out a bank loan two years ago to open a corner store selling the basics - milk, sugar, rice and eggs - to supplement his income painting cars and pay for their daughter's tutoring as she prepared for all-important final exams.

Now, months into Sri Lanka's worst economic crisis, the couple are struggling to repay the loan and restock the shelves. The dearth of fuel means that taking a rickshaw to the warehouse to pick up more supplies would wash out any profit.

"We eat maybe two times a day now," Ms Ranawara said. "We don't even think about fish or meat."

Meanwhile, millions of rupees in cash left behind by Mr Rajapaksa when he fled his official residence in the capital was to be handed to the court yesterday, police said.

Protesters discovered 17.85 million rupees (S$69,500) in crisp new banknotes but turned them over to the police following last Saturday's storming of the presidential palace.

"The cash was taken over by the police and will be produced in court today," said a spokesman for the police.

Official sources said a suitcase full of documents had also been left behind at the stately mansion.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, NYTIMES