Sri Lanka President pledges 'era of renaissance as leftists come in from the cold

As he was sworn in as Sri Lanka's new president yesterday morning, Anura Kumara Dissanayake heralded a "new era of renaissance" for the country.

- Hannah Ellis-Petersen

Many believe Dissanayake's election marks a significant political pivot for Sri Lanka, which has been ruled by a rotation of the same few parties and families for decades, leading to a continuing economic recession and deeprooted mistrust of traditional political leaders. Swathes of the population said it was the promise of change that brought them to vote for the leftist leader for the first time last weekend.

After being sworn in, Dissanayake wrote on X: "I promise to fulfil your responsibility to usher in a new era of renaissance for this country." As the head of Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), traditionally a staunchly Marxist party, Dissanayake had remained out in the cold for years, winning just 3.8% of the vote in the previous election. The JVP had been dogged by its past involvement in some of the worst violence in Sri Lanka's history, after it launched an insurrection in the 1970s and 80s against those it deemed to be capitalists and imperialists.