Sri Lanka’s protest movement toppled a president. Then came the crackdown – By South Asia correspondent Avani Dias and Alex Barry Source : abc Sri Lankan protesters were triumphant, the power was finally in their hands and the world was watching. On July 9, as thousands stormed the president’s official residence – swimming in his pool, watching his TV and laying on his bed – Wimukthi Ranasinghe was there live streaming the mayhem to his followers on Facebook. As he toured the president’s palatial Colombo home with his phone, the 25-year-old’s videos started going viral. It was the peak of the protest movement’s power. After months of calls for his resignation, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa quit the presidency and fled the country. But in the weeks since, as the world’s gaze has turned away, the sense of triumph and impunity felt by protesters that day has curdled into a climate of fear. Since Mr Rajapaksa’s ...

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