Aragalaya

Protesters near the Kingsbury Hotel and near the Old Parliament buildings in Colombo. / July 9, 2022  

  Crowds gather around a building in Colombo, reflected in the architecture of power they had come to confront during the historic protests.  

People wait in a long queue in Galle, where the economic collapse turned daily survival into a public routine.

Security forces hold the ground below while protesters climb above them, turning a monument into a place of confrontation.

A crowd gathers in the smoke and pressure of Colombo, where private frustration became collective refusal. Moments before the protesters charged through the Police barricades and entered the Presidential Residence, after being tear gassed by the Police in Chatham Street. July 9, 2022.

Gota Go Gama at Galle Face, Colombo, became a focal point for mass protests in 2022. The demonstrations were driven by the country's worst economic crisis in decades, widespread power cuts, severe shortages of fuel, food, and medicines, and soaring inflation. Thousands of people gathered at Gota Go Gama to demand the resignation of President and his family, who held significant political power at the time.

Protesters near the Bank of Ceylon building and the Old Parliament buildings in Colombo — July 9, 2022.

At GotaGoGama in 2022, protesters demanded justice for war victims, accountability for the 2019 Easter attacks (a series of bombings targeting churches and hotels that killed over 250 people and injured hundreds), and action on the ongoing economic crisis.

DesA protester at 'Gota-Go-Gama,' with a lion statue in the background at a Galle Face roundabout near the waterfront in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

(Lion, a key symbol in Sri Lanka, which represents pride and heritage)
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Amidst heavy rainy night, in front of the Presidential Secretariat, Gotagogama at Galle Face, Colombo,

Photographs of murdered, tortured, and forcefully disappeared journalists in Sri Lanka.They were victims of state-sponsored terror for criticizing the Rajapaksa regime's corruption and killings.

The images were arranged from right to left: Lasantha Wickrematunge, Dharmeratnam Sivaram; Poddala Jayantha, Upali Thenakoon, Prageeth Ekneligoda; Aiyathurai Nadesan, Keith Noyahr, Nimalarajan; Lalith-Kugan, and finally Wasim Thajudeen.

The Presidential Secretariat, Galle Face, Colombo — July 9, 2022

The Presidential Secretariat stands as a symbol of political power during the historic protests that transformed Colombo and reshaped Sri Lanka's political landscape.

The 50 Days until Galle Gotagama is also symbolized by the lighting of pandams, representing a somber reflection on the country .

Gas cylinders lined up near the Galle International Cricket Stadium. As you enter the town of Galle, a queue of people and gas cylinders near the historic Galle Fort captures your attention a powerful reminder of the fuel and cooking gas shortages during Sri Lanka’s economic crisis, which profoundly affected daily life across the country.

During the Aragalaya movement, Galle echoed Colombo's spirit of resistance. Protesters rallied near iconic landmarks like Galle Fort and the bus stand, demanding economic justice, accountability, and systemic change.

The Bandaranaike statue at Gota Go Gama, Galle Face, Colombo.

It became a symbolic focal point during the 2022 protests as part of the wider movement against the Sri Lankan government's handling of the economic crisis.

The statue depicts S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike, Sri Lanka's fourth prime minister, who introduced the Sinhala Only Act in 1956, a policy that contributed to significant ethnic and political tensions in the country.

A protest village at Galle Face, named “Gotagogama” (“Gota Go Village”), became a powerful symbol of resistance as citizens gathered to demand the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his government.

At nearly 5:00 a.m. on August 23, 2023, following a Vesak night marked by heavy rain and strong winds, at Gota Go Gama in Galle Face, Colombo...

Through the mist, past the remnants of shattered university students' protest tents and broken Vesak lanterns, I saw the Lotus Tower

(The Lotus Tower, though a striking landmark in Colombo, has been criticized as a symbol of financial mismanagement and wasteful spending, with its $113 million cost funded by a loan from China. Many argue it diverted resources needed for essential sectors like healthcare and education.)

Ven. Omalpe Sobhitha Thera, Chief Sanghanayake of the Ramanya chapter, joined the Gota Go Gama protestors at the Agitation Site near Galle Face on April 12, 2022.

Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith joined the Gota Go Gama protestors at the Agitation Site near Galle Face on
April 30, 2022.