Mihir Sharma, Columnist

Sri Lanka Shows the Folly of Fringe Theories

Promoting organic farming and heedlessly printing money, the country’s ruling clan has conclusively demonstrated why some ideas should remain on the shelf.

April 17, 2022 at 11:30 PM UTC

By Mihir Sharma

Mihir Sharma is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist. A senior fellow at the Observer Research Foundation in New Delhi, he is author of “Restart: The Last Chance for the Indian Economy.”

Oddball policies have led to widespread suffering and protests.
Photographer: Ishara S. Kodikara/AFP/Getty Images/AFP

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Cranks are considered cranks for a reason. That is the lesson from Sri Lanka, which has halted payments of its foreign debt and warned that it may default.

The country’s ruling dynasty — led by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his brother, Prime Minister (and former president) Mahinda Rajapaksa — have lost most of their cabinet and parliamentary majority. Earlier this month, a newly appointed finance minister tried to resign after less than 24 hours, saying the pressure was too much for him. (He was replacing Basil Rajapaksa, another brother.)