for the most weeks at number one, and you can't knock that and she has to be spoken of in the same category as people like stephanie graph. monica salish, margaret, i'm sorry, but you didn't have rattle over chris there. even though they had much longer decided to play for greater longer periods. what ashes done in such a short time is truly remarkable. ah, this is all it is here. these are the top stories, ukraine's 2nd largest city hockey is suffering constant bombardment by the russian military. entire areas have been reduced to rubble. most people of fled the mayor's warned. nowhere is safe and everyone should go under ground. grains. president says, there is nothing left of mario paul, after nearly a month of russian bombardment. but let me, as lensky says, 100000 civilians remain trapped in, in humane conditions with no food,

water power or medicine is accusing russia of blocking much needed aid by taking bus drivers in emergency personnel hostage stand on nancy, dean, or me. as of today, there are about 100000 people in marry are paul and inhumane conditions under a full blockade with no food, no water, and no medicine under constant shelling and constant bombardment for more than a week now we have been trying to organize, stable humanitarian corridors for mary apple residents. and almost all our attempts, unfortunately, are disrupted by the russian occupiers, by showing or deliberate terror. woman there or ingrained beggars, poor city of nurses on high alert for a russian attack, families have been boarding trains to evacuate, as russian worships remain off the coast. odessa is largely been spared from fighting, although a residential area was shelled over the weekend. the cleaning, the thought is, say hospitals and schools and among the targets. these pictures show a children's hospital in the city of several jeanette sky in the eastern,

han screech, and that was bombed by russia in the last 24 hours and 2 other world news now. the taliban has ordered girls schools in afghanistan to shut down just hours after reopening. a spokesman for the ministry of educations confirmed all secondary schools for girls will remain closed until further notice. 4 people have been killed in a stabbing and car ramming attack in the southern israeli city. basheba. the accused assailant was shot dead by an israeli bus driver. lines been identified as a former palestinian teacher. human rights watch as acute uganda security services of committing what it calls her rhythmic abuses against government. critics. the rights group says hundreds of opposition supporters have been targeted over the past 3 years, especially around last use in action. those are the headlines. the news is going to continue here on orders, year after inside story, susan,

goodbye. the highlands of fanny have long attracted to visitors, come here for the cool climate and to see bonnie's famous rice fields. but these fields and found them more than just a tourist attraction, they provided a lifeline for the thousands who lost their jobs when the travellers stopped coming because of coven 19 pandemic restrictions. broad financial hardship to many here valley. now as the island reopens for international travelers, some say they want more just to return it to the way things work before. community groups have how tall matures and workers learn how to cut. it used to be a tour guide, now he farms, cabbages, and at the end, i don't want to go back to tourism. i want to continue to be a farmer as the island to prepare to welcome visitors again. many say the pandemic has taught them valuable lessons. never forget long lines for scarce

fuel food shortages and power cuts. tr lanka is running out of dollars to buy essential goods will an international bailout save its economy. and is there a risk of defaulting on its depth? this is inside story. ah hello, welcome to the program. i'm adrian finnegan. sheila lanka is facing it's was economic crisis since independence in 1948 international ratings agencies. a warning that it's on the verge of defaulting on its debt. it's usable, foreign currency reserves are plunged below $1000000000.00 limiting, showing his ability to repay loans, and traders can't access dollars to buy imports. so what does this all mean visual

icons? well, it's been a shortage of everything from fuel to food supplies. we'll get to our panel to discuss these issues in just a moment, but 1st a report from august. here is victoria gate and p. soldiers at hundreds of petrol pumps shall anchors government as deploy troops after 3 elderly people died. while caring for hours to buy fuel in sweltering heat, shall anchors, foreign exchange reserves at dwindling rapidly. and it's struggling to pay for food fuel and medicines. it buys from abroad, with its currency plunging in value, life's become difficult for many lord, i was also going to log on the green lock. my income is down by half. when you look at the expenses, werent it? higher level. the government says its responding to complaints of stock piling and poor distribution among collector by the harry murray antonini on the need arose to get the military to supervise the distribution of fuel. the military has been deploy to help the public not to curtail their human rights mix up opposition.

parties and cities in groups have been holding protests around the country accusing the government of being responsible for the economic turmoil president go to buy a raja paxil last week asked for a bailout from the international monetary fund. he appealed to the nation to make temporary sacrifices, julia barbie thea hecky doc by limiting the use of fuel and electricity as much as possible the citizens to can extend the support to the country at this time. i hope that you'll understand responsibly to the life with you at the silencing time period. the i m f says the government's foreign debt burden of $51000000000.00 is unsustainable, and it has a $1000000000.00. so from bond that june july, many investors doubt colombo will be able to repay without a painful restructuring, victoria, gate, and beef, or inside story. well, let's examine what's tons for lancaster foreign debt burden into an unprecedented economic crisis. it's tourism sector a major foreign exchange. honor was battered by the easter attacks of 2019,

and the corona virus pandemic. and now 2 countries that are vital to its tourist market or at wal, russia and ukraine had been the 1st and 3rd largest source of visitors this year. a fail drive to become one of the world's 1st 100 percent organic farming nation also hurt food supplies. sure anchor was forced to import weiss the t crop. the nation's top export was devastated. was rank a once china, a major lender to restructure its debt and its secured a $1000000000.00 relief package from india. ah. all right, so let's bring in our guests. for today's discussion from columbia, we're joined by a niche under mel, executive director at head of research at verity research from new delhi, japan, jacob, associate professor at the department of international relations and governance studies at she's not a university. and also in colombo is bonnie fonseca,

a senior researcher at attorney at law with the center for policy alternatives. a warm welcome to you all. great to have you with us on inside story today at mission . let's start with you. how did sri lanka get into this mass? how far back to the problems go? can the current situation be traced to a single event or events or time? thank you, adrian. great to be on the so it's an important question because i think the causality of the current crisis is attributed in many ways. i personally think that there is a single point that can be attributed for the crisis. and it is the tax cuts that happened consequent to the presidential election in 2019 in pull, filling a promise of the presidential campaign manifesto. taxes were cut in

a weird that reduced government revenue by about 25 percent and reduced the tax base of the country by about 33 percent. and a few months later, that led to a critical ratings downgrade that effectively cost re lanka to lose access to international financial markets. it was, as it were, the black listing downgrade now after losing access to financial markets. as 3 lanka kept repaying its debt, it's reserves kept coming down and as its reserves kept coming down, the ratings kept going down. and. ringback it was a downward slide, which so luck i did not find a way to stem or stop. and the current situation is really the combination of that process into virtually 0 reserves. so i think if the breaking down break had not happened, so lanka would have continued the normal equilibrium of borrowing to repay its debt

. and if the pay stubs hadn't happened, which then caused it revenue to fall so much that interest cost on revenue. government revenue rose to 70 percent, or which is perhaps the highest in the world. lebanon had that in 2019 before it went into default. and so that explains really the rating downgrade in april 2020 vision. one of the changes that of sharon could defaulting olive step right now. so i think, you know, i use the word defaults to describe restructuring as well. but if i make a distinction between an orderly default, which comes through a negotiated process of restructure and a disorderly default where you don't pay because you can't bear, and you haven't negotiated an alternate event of the consent of your debt orders, i think the bench is of sri lanka, getting into a disorderly before it is of course, many close to that process. and the only way to avoid

a disorderly default now is to cause a great deal of pain to the local economy by withholding the dollars that come in through import exports and other means from paying for essential supplies of gas full and medication. so i think 3 lamps can avoid been disorderly default i yet for a few more months, but only at the at great cost and pin to the local economy and people. but come july wednesdays, the $1000000000.00 repayment. do i think that becomes a pivoting point, so sir lanka may need to engage quite quickly and proactively to start to negotiate and process to restructure that before the july international submarine. bond payment have been been dollars become still very. i know that you agree with bunch of what we just heard. let's talk the politics of it. to what extent you think rank

has problems or simply bad luck or down to economic management. we heard about about those tax cuts on the problems that they've caused. i mean, what responsible government would do that knowing that it's going to severely impact its ability to pay its way in thank you for having me in a timely discussion, considering the situation in the country. you talk about the political context and, and the reality that we need to recognize that sri lanka is i to breaking mind people on the streets, protesting essential goods are not a real over there. a hero is in every corner, and now we had 3 people who stayed in line to get for. and this all comes back to the lack of political leadership in the press and government. now we had the tax cuts in 2019, but we also had

a lot of policies or lack of planning. you turn in policies, for example, i guess talk about the fertilizer ban that happened. we don't really are planning pleased to address what the hardships would be faced by the people. so it's really coming to a lack of planned by the political leadership. and contrast this to the political rhetoric in 20192020. when these government promise, we says so explained and prosperity and promised to take no credit government in terms of sped delete economic growth. all of that was promised to be like trade and they got the majority in 20192020 elections. what has transpired after that is a complete opposite and even now when they complete careless factor in sri lanka, when we don't want to know in the power cost would have been,

we don't know if we would have been trailer diesel tomorrow because accuser so long is still lack of information coming from the government. so really, it's a government that promised so much, but he's unable to deliver and doesn't seem to be able to communicate for providing to what extent does the roger parks or family after shoulders some of the, at least some of the blame for this crisis isn't, is it wise to have major government portfolios spread among members of one political dentistry. i mean, this is the big worry that we had the precedent for being elected very soon. he appointed the prior, his brother, the prime minister, and now we have 2 other by the brothers in happy land. we have several others in government, in cabinet, as well as other positions in government. and the question is, when you have such

a large part entered in one family and remember this, it's not just the family, but they have really concentrated pass through constitution means as well as the constitution amendment response called the 20th amendment, which friday gregor passed to the executive presidency, so we have the most powerful executive presidency in this country in the history of sri lanka. and we also have family rules are very limited checks and balances, but it's also one family that seems to be making the decisions. but leaving a site expert who should be concerted, or shouldn't be part of that process. so a lot of issues and i would say the government, but also it's the family that needs to be blamed for the scarce drove and we heard the india, the true anchor has so secured a 1000000000 dollar relief package from india is india got a ride to shore anchors rescue. well, you know, should i go to a neighbor?

i don't think it has much of a choice in this matter. india will do what it can as best as it can. i mean, she has a very specific set of demands requests from india and i think it is already in the process of delivering much of this. i think there are some positive signs. i think it's just been announced that indian tourism to feel i'm sticking up. it's all to be, i mean, a light of what ought to set of order to receive from russia and ukraine, no longer be able to travel. the presence of indian to this is, i think, going to be a big b plus for the shrunken economy. but i think also on other matters and get assistance to ongoing infrastructure projects, indian credit lines, indian loans. i think all of this at the indian government will certainly be paying a great deal of attention to supporting too long and what we'll wait. okay. i'll

ask you another question, but it's related to something that i want 1st of all to put to initial or get back with you in just a moment. jovan mission, to what extent has chinese debt played a huge role in, in shoreline? because current predicament i remember at the time the chinese involvement drank was 1st announced that was dire warnings over the country, becoming indebted to china and those warnings ultimately proven to be correct. so thank you. and i think chinese debt is not the largest quantum of putting debt that sri lanka house to repay. and it also is not in the form of international submarine bonds where capital payments come as bullet payments. so consisting of about 23 percent of foreign debt rest says or 20 percent of the debt being with international summit in bonds. i would say

a chinese that cannot be considered to be the crux of the problem as the student can. we have a separate problem that the money that it borrowed from china and other places india included, were invested in projects that didn't have an adequate return. and that in general, compound and it's that problem. but in many ways it is the international summer in bonds that have been borrowed without you know, much concern for how well they have been invested either. and that are turning out to be critical for sri lanka in terms of it's that sustainability at the moment. okay, thanks for that. let me go back. been to, to germany, cuz i just wanted to to clear something up about china's role in showing because economy to establish what's in it for india. i think from, from what an issue we're saying that, but it's not financial incentives. here we're, we're talking more about perhaps geo political influence. india, of course,

concern about china's influence right throughout the region. doris, this is cheryl anchors, current crisis, going to mean that it will become a pawn in regional politics in this battle for influence between india and china. well, 1st of all, i think we need to get those things clear. i mean, the grant is right in saying that, you know, the cross of the problem might not be chinese loans for say, but i think there is a certain tendency to reckless economic policies, reckless political behavior that china encourages. i think that really is a problem that not just re lanka, but pockets on but all bunch of other countries around the world have faced as a result of chinese assistance, better initiative projects and so on. and india is sort of wanting, has always been on this front that there the lack of accountable to be there's

a lack of transparency for standards of the environment of labor management and swan that come with chinese assistance chinese investment. so these are the 2 aspects that need to be very clear. now in terms of india concerns from you to the fact i think 1st and foremost, india is what it really about this data we can make of hers. and the impact on the longer people right now. and i think my 2 panelists 80 though this quite well, you know, i mean, fund reserves are depleted, that hoarding. she don't can be as christ economy can still be is not good for india either in its neighborhood. i mean even argue in sibley the political instability. and i think what one of the said about, you know, the, the family, the radical, so family controlling or taking

a dominant role in politics. i think this is a matter of concern and also from a political point. and this is precisely the whole situation that the, you know, i mean, the chinese government ends up exploiting. and i think that really is a big concern. it's not just economic aspect of it. it's just sudden political behavior, a certain kind of politics that you know encouragement from china support from china in cottages. i think that movie is should be a concert. but i mean as ok, but probably as i see, you know that what are the dangers than forthright anchor of the coming further indebted to to india. oh, i think there are lots of dangers at the present moment. one needs to be looking at . but you know, where we are all set of very unprecedented non kind. so we'll have to see how

things play out. but the reason negotiations and the opening of the line of credit research a lot of questions as to what are the criteria, what was negotiated. so we haven't seen the public domain, what the criteria and with this is actually there is a concern where the asus have been sold off and these are really produced and concerns. and this is not an annuity. the says being there for a while in terms of the need to national on negotiation line of credit, these concerns are going to be taken on board. and there's also one, and i mentioned with the indian angle that also needs to be addressed that he's a political notion. india has been a friend of sri lanka has very much be supporting in the past in terms of a political solution addressing that question. so with these issues or so good grief in terms of the present conversations we're yet to see. so i think india has

a special place that has always had a space at her place, but we are in a very novel situations. we have to see what was actually negotiated before we can come in on this drug, or do you agree with that? i mean what, what, what sort of influence come in, they're bringing to bear politically and shrill anchor to ensure better economic management. you know, i think we've learned our lessons from too much political intervention in any of our neighbors. i think our primary concern at the moment is the situation in into longer. and frankly, the, the, i think the she lumpkins quite able to manage the politics of, you know, balancing india and china. i think they do this pretty well. they're pretty savvy at it. the problem really is a question of economy management and economic incompetence. and you know that,

and that's the solution that she's not going to have to find you know, it's not something that i do the chinese or the indians or the i'm this can help with, by giving loans. i mean, it's a, it's a domestic issue. so there are limits to what india can do in felucca. and i agree, i mean, in terms of the lines of credit and terms of management, there certainly should be transparency and should write to us for transparency on these whether it is from india or from china. initially it cannot be selected from if you want. ok, the initial touch on it, the linear be i like to come in on that. yeah. yeah. i think that that's a very important role to play. but in coming to that, let me just discuss the india and china dynamic a little bit. i think, you know, it is difficult to suspend the new that there hasn't been some element of

bilateral opportunism exercised by both china and india in sri lanka. time of difficulty, china was able to negotiate sweeping confessions and tax holidays of unprecedented proportion, and regular treat suspensions. the city that it has built in colombo lanka, india was able to in extremely short time, managed to get 3 long cut to lease out. you know, quite a valuable asset in terms of oil tanks in the trend commonly port. and both of these transactions really happened. as 3 lancaster difficulties started to emerge. and there was hope that i, the china, india would help bill sri lanka, out of the difficulty was facing with regard to its debt. now, we must understand that in india could also publish these transactions that we say or, or pick ground where the credit lines from india and where we've been talking about

right. there are none transparent. and so lincoln's are very worried. i don't think it should be only up to the silicon government to be transparent about these transactions. india could also, i think, proactively be transparent and showed good faith in that in what's being done. so i think we may need to keep in mind a lot that we are. we are sort of certainly not critiquing in the country. we understand the countries acton self interest, but it would probably be important to understand that that element of that, that is going on at the, at the same time as so like i've been assistant. so let me calculate i m f. yes, very, very, very quickly because we're running out of time. ok. so i maybe we can come by. i think, you know, when india initially gave credit to so long and said look, if you want us to roll over this credit with like you to get into a program with i m f,

it's as tying assistant to improvement in behavior. ok. but what you see now is that india is offering credit lines in a pick sort of forms without paying it to good behavior. and i think that's something that india can revise the way to approach. ok. but anyway, i've got about 30 seconds left on, i'm sorry, but is there any sort of lice at the end of the tunnel for the people of such rancor at the moment with all of the hardships of their currently enduring? well, adrian ankin wanting to say one of the 3 longer we have a very recently and community we've gone through the kid. so want to know me and many other challenges. so i think there's some more that we can get through this, but we mean, pretty good leadership. we need to plan, we need communication. but also, i think just at this very base where he find a mentor, find is that people just need to know what's going to happen tomorrow. and then

next week it's just come to darkness. and i'm just saying that because we do have just complete blackout. so we need some sort of information now, but i think people will come together, but we need leadership as well. great, thank you so much. i'm sorry to have to cut you short, but we are out of time. unfortunately, many thanks to you all. michelle bell chapman, jacob and bonnie fonseca for being on the program today. as always, thank you for watching. don't forget, you can see this program again any time by visiting our website at al jazeera dot com for further discussion. join us at our facebook page. that's a facebook dot com forward slash ha inside story. and you can draw the conversation on twitter or handle at a j inside story. for me, adrian finnegan, the whole team here though, how, thanks for watching. i'll see you again. bye. for now.

the 20th centuries 1st, genocide thought to have set the blueprint for the holocaust is too often overlooked. the sand will come in bury everything, but for some reason the sand refused to bury these people. they want this story to be taught over a century on the injustice still echoed down the generations and the path to reparation is nothin easy. one, namibia, the price of genocide, people and power analogies, era from the world's most populated region in depth stories from across asia and the pacific. diverse coaches and conflicting politics. $1.00 0, $1.00 east on al jazeera, when the news breaks, where it all started, early hours around 5 am very large explosions. people working up to walk, but never expect to men. well, when people need to be heard,

and the story told fine line or playing the role of bringing our differences together with exclusive interviews and in depth cooper, this is norma. this is tyler. al jazeera has teens on the ground to bring you more award winning documentaries and lied niece ah, a the battle for the suburbs, north of cheve ukraine says it's mounted or counter offensive and is retaken some of the suburbs. ah, roberson, this is how does the rely from doha. also coming up nowhere is safe in khaki is that the warnings in the.