Sri Lanka’s deposed president, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, returned to Colombo on Friday, ending his exile in Thailand, seven weeks after having had to flee the country, plagued by protests of protesters holding him responsible for the country’s economic bankruptcy. His escape lasted seven weeks. Sri Lanka’s ousted president, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, returned to Colombo on Friday (September 2), ending his exile in Thailand.Gotabaya Rajapaksa, 73, was met at Colombo’s main airport, an official said. airport, by ministers with garlands of flowers, seven weeks after having had to flee the country, plagued by demonstrations by protesters holding him responsible for the economic bankruptcy of the country. He had fled Sri Lanka in July, taking refuge in first in the Maldives, then in Singapore where he announced his resignation. >> To read again: “In Sri Lanka, “political renewal will not be easy” after the departure of the president “His 28-day visa having expired without possible renewal , he had since been in Thailand, where local authorities had asked him not to leave his hotel for security reasons, keeping him virtually under arrest. “He lived in a Thai hotel as a virtual prisoner and was of willing to return,” the defense official, who requested anonymity, told AFP. “We have just created a new security division to protect him after his return,” the official continued, “the unit is made up of elements of the army and police commandos.” Trouble with the law Gotayaba Rajapaksa had a 90-day visa to stay in Thailand, but he chose to return with his wife, a guard of the body and another aide, the official said. The Sri Lankan Constitution guarantees bodyguards, a vehicle and accommodation to former presidents. Human rights defenders have said they welcome his return and have assured that they will work for his arrest “for the crimes he has committed”. “We will be able to bring him to justice,” Tharindu Jayawardhana, spokesperson for the Young Journalists Association of Sri Lanka, told AFP.>> To read also: “Cornered by the economic and political crises, Sri La nka at a standstill””We have already asked the inspector general to reopen the criminal investigations which were set aside” when he became president, added the spokesman. “We have listed 21 cases targeting him.” Having resigned halfway through his five-year term, Gotayaba Rajapaksa, 73, lost the immunity guaranteed to him by his duties. He could therefore be prosecuted. Gotayaba Rajapaksa, who renounced his American citizenship to run for president in 2019, is also being prosecuted in California for his alleged role in the murder of journalist Lasantha Wickrematunge and the torture of Tamil prisoners. The police deployed plainclothes officers in addition to armed guards at a government residence in Colombo assigned to him. Security at his private home has also been tightened, officials said. Historic economic crisis The country of 22 million people has been ravaged for months by a historic economic crisis, marked by severe shortages of food, fuel and medicine. , for lack of foreign currency to finance imports. Gotabaya Rajapaksa, elected in 2019 promising “horizons of prosperity and splendor”, saw his popularity rating decline as the crisis worsened. He fled the island on July 13, four days after his official residence was stormed by tens of thousands of protesters exasperated by months of deprivation. Ranil Wickremesinghe, who succeeded him, had declared a state of emergency and promised to crack down on troublemakers. In mid-August, through Basil, his younger brother and former finance minister, Gotabaya Rajapaksa had asked President Wickremesinghe to arrange for him to e return safely to the island. The South Asian island defaulted on its $51 billion foreign debt in mid-April. The International Monetary Fund on Thursday announced conditional aid of $2.9 billion dollars to clean up its finances. The IMF board has yet to ratify the deal. “This is a milestone in the history of our country,” President Ranil Wickremesinghe said. “The beginnings will be difficult,” he added. , “only our commitment counts now, because we must not only reach the objectives set, but also exceed them”. With AFP