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Sri Lanka Eyes New IMF Agreement as Current Programme Nears Completion, Says Deputy Finance Minister13 Nov 2026 By Lankanewspapers.comSri Lanka's Deputy Finance Minister indicated the country will likely seek a new IMF agreement after the current programme ends.Sri Lanka's existing IMF Extended Fund Facility, secured in 2023, is worth approximately USD 2.9 billion.A successor IMF deal would require continued structural reforms, revenue measures, and public debt sustainability targets.Sri Lanka is likely to enter into a fresh agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) once its current programme concludes, Deputy Finance Minister has indicated, signalling the government's intention to maintain a structured relationship with the global lender beyond the existing arrangement.Extending the IMF PartnershipThe Deputy Finance Minister made the remarks amid ongoing discussions about the country's economic recovery trajectory, suggesting that Sri Lanka's engagement with the IMF would not end with the conclusion of the present bailout programme. The statement points to the government's recognition that sustained fiscal discipline and international financial support remain critical to the island nation's long-term economic stability.Sri Lanka entered its current IMF Extended Fund Facility in 2023, securing approximately USD 2.9 billion in support following the country's worst economic crisis in decades, which saw severe shortages of fuel, medicine, and other essential goods, alongside record inflation and depleted foreign reserves.A Signal of Continued Fiscal DisciplineThe prospect of a follow-up agreement underscores the government's commitment to maintaining the reform agenda set in motion under the existing programme. Analysts have noted that a successor arrangement would likely come with its own set of conditions, including continued structural reforms, revenue enhancement measures, and targets around public debt sustainability.Sri Lanka's current IMF programme is an Extended Fund Facility worth approximately USD 2.9 billionThe programme has required significant fiscal adjustments, including tax reforms and expenditure controlsA new agreement would signal continued international confidence in Sri Lanka's reform pathFor ordinary Sri Lankans, the prospect of another IMF agreement is likely to invite mixed reactions. While many acknowledge the necessity of international oversight to prevent a return to economic crisis, concerns persist over the impact of austerity-linked conditions on the cost of living and public services.Broader Economic ContextSri Lanka has been gradually stabilising its macroeconomic fundamentals over the past two years, with foreign reserves recovering, the exchange rate stabilising, and inflation cooling from its crisis-era peaks. However, public debt remains elevated, and the government continues to navigate a complex debt restructuring process with bilateral and commercial creditors.The Deputy Finance Minister's comments suggest the government views continued IMF engagement not as a burden, but as a necessary anchor for economic credibility and investor confidence.Further details on the scope, timing, and conditions of any prospective new IMF programme are expected to emerge as the current arrangement progresses toward completion. Officials and economic observers will be closely watching upcoming IMF review outcomes for further indications of Sri Lanka's fiscal direction.
'Riots' in France: How anti-government protests spiraled out of controlFrench officials blame far-left radicals and ‘delinquents’ for last month’s rioting and looting. A heavy-handed police response is adding to the grievances fueling an anti-government groundswell.By Layli Foroudi, Juliette Jabkhiro and David Gauthier-Villars November 14, 2026“It’s the only way to make ourselves heard.”!Smashed windows and ransacked shops. Bloodied teenage protesters. A city hall on fire.Such scenes shocked France as rioting erupted last month during nationwide protests over high living costs and strained public services.Government officials have repeatedly blamed far-left radicals and “opportunistic delinquents,” who they say took advantage of mostly peaceful demonstrations to attack symbols of state authority and capitalism across France.But the authorities’ heavy-handed response – including thousands of arrests, police beatings and curbs on marches – has added to the volatile mix of grievances fueling an anti-government groundswell that shows no sign of abating before next year’s presidential election, Reuters found.Reuters journalists reviewed dozens of videos of the violence, attended the court hearings of 26 people accused of taking part and interviewed over 50 government officials, police officers, attorneys, protesters and witnesses to understand how a movement that began in September with small protests over conditions in state schools spiraled into some of the worst civil unrest in years.Police tactics have faced scrutiny since the start due to the life-changing injuries suffered by some young people, including blown-off hands and lost eyes. United Nations and other human rights experts have also raised concerns about the arrest of nearly 7,000 minors during sometimes-violent school blockades, which they said was disproportionate.Images of riot police baton-charging teenagers fanned support for the students from a diverse array of protesters – including parents, teachers, left-wing politicians and trade unionists – who joined their marches.“We have rights,” said Emilie Berthier de Grandry, 42, who has attended four demonstrations in Paris with her 15-year-old son, Aaron, dressed in an inflatable shark costume. “We’re not going to let ourselves be pushed around.”Nationwide demonstrations on October 17 also brought a resurgence of so-called yellow-vest protesters, an anti-establishment movement that faced off against President Emmanuel Macron’s government in 2018-2019 over high fuel prices.The violent outbursts were so intense that day that police lost control of entire neighborhoods to rioters and looters in France’s three largest cities: Paris, Marseille and Lyon. Every week since then, people have taken to the streets across France to voice their anger at police and the government.While the protests after October 17 were calmer, clashes erupted when police sought to disperse demonstrators as marches wound down. Officers repeatedly fired tear gas and charged groups of protesters who pelted them with bottles, paving stones and mortar-style fireworks. On October 24, far-right gangs entered the fray saying they wanted to protect businesses and clashed with protesters in several cities, authorities said.The Interior Ministry, which oversees the police, said internal watchdogs have launched 161 investigations into allegations of officer violence against protesters since September.Responding to Reuters questions, the Interior Ministry said force is used in accordance with applicable laws and regulations.The minister, Laurent Nunez, has expressed regret for injuries caused by explosive weapons used in crowd control, including stun grenades. But he has resisted calls to ban them, saying security forces must be able to defend themselves.Nunez has acknowledged security lapses, telling lawmakers that authorities didn’t anticipate the scale of the October 17 violence.He credits a massive security operation – including the deployment of 70,000 police officers and paramilitary gendarmes – for maintaining public order at subsequent protests. But he says security forces still face “a great deal of violence” at demonstrations, including a petrol-bomb attack that injured three gendarmes in Paris on Halloween.The unrest comes at a difficult time for Macron, who won’t be standing for election again in April. Strained public finances leave him little room to meet protesters’ demands, and his centrist party no longer has the majority needed to pass major legislation.Macron has promised to both “listen to the anger” and “impose respect of the Republican order.”The government has sought to appease protesters with proposals to improve education and the decision to bring forward a planned minimum-wage increase. Student leaders and major trade unions say the moves don’t go far enough and have vowed to keep up the pressure. AN ORCHESTRA HIT WITH TEAR GASOn October 17, protesters started gathering in Paris’ Place de la Republique hours before a march was due to start at 2 p.m.Sousaphone in hand, Maël Roth arrived at about 11 a.m. for a warm-up session with the Orchestre du Nouveau Monde, a 400-piece classical orchestra that planned to perform in support of the marchers. The musicians were playing “The Avengers” theme song when the first clouds of tear gas wafted into the square about an hour later, the 20-year-old told Reuters.At first, he said, they assumed it wasn’t aimed at them and kept playing. But within 30 minutes, tear gas canisters were landing at their feet.Reuters video shows riot police using tear gas around that time to drive back a group of protesters who tried to march down Rue du Faubourg du Temple, a street leading off the square.Elodie Aldila, who works at a patisserie on the street, welcomed the protection. Other businesses in the area were ransacked later that day.Roth, however, didn’t see why the musicians couldn’t remain in the square. Their aim was to “make people feel good,” he said. “It was tough to feel … like we’re not legitimate.”A huge crowd of mostly peaceful demonstrators soon filled the square again. But by then, the orchestra had packed up and left.POLICE OVERWHELMEDAs tensions built through the afternoon, bands of protesters spread into surrounding streets, smashing storefronts, erecting barricades and setting fire to cars and bicycles.Around 4 p.m., police wielding batons beat a man to the ground after a heated exchange on the edge of the square, video verified by Reuters shows. Rumors of the man’s death spread on social media, further inflaming tensions. The rumors later proved unfounded.An internal police watchdog is investigating the incident, the Interior Ministry said.As night fell, looting spread in Paris and other cities. Some 3,000 businesses were ransacked over 24 hours, from luxury boutiques to supermarkets.Addressing lawmakers last week, Nunez said an “unprecedented” mix of challenges unfolded simultaneously that day, overwhelming security forces.More than a half million people demonstrated around the country on October 17 – 110,000 in Paris alone, Nunez said. They included thousands of “ultra-left” activists, who he said confronted police from the start and tried to stage unauthorized marches toward seats of power.He didn’t elaborate on the activists’ suspected affiliations. French officials use the term ultra-left to describe a variety of groups, including anarchists and antifascists, who they say are willing to use violence.As word spread about the unrest on social media, people with no affiliation to such groups joined in the looting, Nunez said.When you face this kind of violence—repression to such an extreme degree—you’re forced to respond with violenceTitouan Malin, an 18-year-old medical studentIn interviews with Reuters, three police officers and an intelligence official familiar with investigations into the violence said they couldn’t confirm Nunez’s assertions about the central role played by ultra-left groups. They said more investigation was needed to understand what happened.“There is a body of circumstantial evidence but no certainty,” said Eric Moulin, a regional representative of the UNSA Police union in Marseille.Asked about the assertion, the Interior Ministry referred Reuters to Nunez’s previous remarks.Nunez and other officials have said rioters are using tactics promoted on ultra-left online platforms to provoke a police response. They include forming “black blocs,” in which activists wear all-black clothing and conceal their faces, to attack businesses and public buildings, they said.HARDENED OFFICERS ‘SCARED OUT OF THEIR MINDS’In Marseille, black-clad protesters broke into the city hall and toppled a bust of Marianne, a symbol of the French republic. Another group hurled rocks and steel bars at police at the Old Port, forcing around 45 officers to retreat to their vehicles and leave, verified videos show.“Some of my colleagues who were inside the police vans said they felt so threatened they reached for their service weapons,” Moulin said. “These are tough, hardened men, yet they confided in me that they were scared out of their minds.”In Limoges, municipal police took cover inside the 19th-century city hall; rioters set it on fire. The officers escaped unharmed.The Lyon tourism office was also torched.Prosecutors are investigating charges of attempted murder against a 34-year-old carpenter suspected of helping start the Limoges fire. The city’s mayor, Guillaume Guerin, told French TV the man is on a security watchlist for alleged ties to the ultra-left and was “most likely the mastermind of the operation.”The suspect’s lawyers said they had no such information. They urged the mayor to respect the presumption of innocence, saying the evidence against their client is weak.Prosecutors didn’t answer Reuters questions about the case.4,900 SUSPECTS ARRESTED, MOSTLY YOUNG MENJustice Minister Gerald Darmanin instructed prosecutors to deliver “an extremely firm judicial response” to the violence, including pre-trial detention and expedited trials for many accused.Over 4,900 suspects have been taken into custody since October 17, Darmanin told French TV on November 3. Some 2,290 were referred for prosecution and 404 handed prison sentences so far. Few details have been released about the suspects, though Darmanin said most are young men aged 18-25.The Tribunal de Paris, France’s biggest courthouse, had to open two extra courtrooms for fast-track trials, which are reserved for people accused of low-level offenses. The schedule was so packed that some hearings Reuters observed had to be pushed back because the judge hadn’t had time to review the case file.A union of French judges and prosecutors said it believes the justice system is being “instrumentalized” by the government. The Justice Ministry didn't respond to a request for comment.To avoid a repeat of the October 17 violence, the government reinforced police with troops at subsequent demonstrations, imposed curfews and banned numerous marches.Rights groups including Amnesty International have warned of a slide toward “authoritarianism.” Officials said they were upholding the rule of law.Some researchers who study French social movements and policing have argued that the government’s heavy-handed response is perpetuating the cycle of violence.“Escalation happens when black blocs provoke with violence, and law enforcement are ordered to respond with violence,” said Fabien Jobard, a sociologist at the French National Centre for Scientific Research who specializes in policing.In this way, he said, groups are able to demonstrate that police are violent and attract support.Titouan Malin, an 18-year-old medical student, said he started volunteering as a medic at protests after seeing how police treated demonstrators on October 17.“When you face this kind of violence—repression to such an extreme degree—you’re forced to respond with violence,” said Malin, who wore a white helmet and had a gas mask hanging around his neck as he watched for clashes during one of Paris’ biggest marches on November 5.“It’s the only way to make ourselves heard.”!
மாவீரர்களே, உங்களுக்கு எங்கள் வீர வணக்கம்! மாவீரர் நாள் கவிதை.( அரசவைப் புலவபுதுவை இரத்தினதுரை)மாரிமழை பொழியும், மண்கசியும் ஊர்முழுதும் வாரியடித்து வெள்ளம் வான்பாயும் கார்த்திகையில் பூமி சிலிர்த்துப்போய் பேறடையும்- துயிலுமில்லச் சாமிகளுக்கான சந்தனநாள் வந்தடையும்.மாவீரச்செல்வங்கள் மண்கிழித்து வெளிவந்து சாவீரச்செய்தி சாற்றி உறவுரைத்து பேசும் நாள்.விழியில் பொலபொலன்று நீர்த்தாரை வீசும் நாள்.தமிழீழம் விடியும் என நம்பிப் பாடும் நாள்.விதைத்த பயிர்கள் நிமிர்ந்தழகாய் கூடும் நாள்.தமிழர் குலம் குதிக்கும் நாளிதுதான்,குன்றிக் குரல் நடுங்கி குற்றேவல் செய்த இனம் இன்றிந்த நிமிர்வுக்கு இட்ட முதல் விதைப்பு.சாவைக்கொடுத்தேனும் தமிழ்வாழ்வு என நிமிர்ந்து பேசும்படியான புதுவாழ்வின் புலர்வுதினம்.புனிதர்களின் துயிலுமில்லம் விழிசொரியும் உறவுகளால் விளங்கும்.உள்ளுறங்கும் பிள்ளைகளின் வாய்கள் பேசுவது காதுவிழும்.பள்ளிகொள்வோர் எம்மைப் பார்ப்பதையும் விழியுணரும்.நாமழுதால் சிரிக்குமொலி நாற்திசையும் எதிரொலிக்கும்.தாயழுதால் அம்மா தளராதே எனுமொற்றைச் சொல்லே துயிலுமில்லச் சூழலிலே கேட்டிருக்கும்.பூச்சொரிந்து, நெய்விளக்கில் பொறியேற்றி, விழிசொரிந்து, கார்த்திகையில் அந்நாள் கலங்கி, வெளியில்வர பூத்திருக்கும்,நம்பிக்கைப் பூ…!!!
