Sri Lanka’s opposition leader says the rich will pay more if he wins the presidential election

Associated Press

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Sri Lanka’s opposition leader says if he wins the presidential race he will renegotiate the International Monetary Fund economic reforms package to ensure that rich residents pay more taxes and poor ones see their conditions improve. The reforms were introduced after Sri Lanka defaulted on its foreign debt, plunging into an economic crisis. On Thursday, opposition leader Sajith Premadasa told The Associated Press that his party has already started discussions with the IMF to find ways to ease the tax burden on the people. The presidential election on Sept. 21 is seen as a referendum on the reforms initiated by President Ranil Wickremesinghe.