Sri Lanka’s ongoing economic crisis has led to mass protests demanding the president’s resignation and will likely end the Rajapaksa political dynasty. But the sociopolitical and economic transformations that protestors clamor for cannot happen unless the country moves away from its extant embedded ethnocracy.
About the Author
Neil DeVotta is professor of politics and international affairs at Wake Forest University. His essay “Sri Lanka: The Return to Ethnocracy” appeared in the January 2021 issue of the Journal of Democracy.
The surprising electoral defeat of President Mahinda Rajapaksa in January 2015 was reinforced by his failed comeback in August parliamentary elections.
Irresponsible leadership and ill-designed institutions have made this island republic prey to a bitter and violent ethnic conflict that is threatening to undermine democracy itself.
