Year ender 2022: The year 2022 proved to be a roller-coaster for the world in many ways. As the world got some respite from the menace of COVID-19 this year, the launch of a full-fledged war by Russia against Ukraine affected several countries in some or the other way. Meanwhile, the world also witnessed some of the major political slugfests that made the headlines this year. As the year 2022 draws to a close, here's a quick roundup of some of the most notable political crises that caught the eyeballs globally.
Pakistan witnessed political and constitutional crisis
This year, Pakistan was the first country to witness a political as well as constitutional crisis. The situation emerged in the first week of April when National Assembly's Deputy Speaker Qasim Khan Suri dismissed a no-confidence motion against the then Prime Minister Iman Khan during a session in which it was expected to be taken up for a vote.
Later, Pakistan President Arif Alvi, following the advice of Khan, dissolved the National Assembly under Article 58 of the constitution. However, the Supreme Court of Pakistan took the suo moto cognizance of the development and termed the dismissal of the no-confidence motion and the dissolution of the National Assembly as unconstitutional. Subsequently, the country's top court ruled that the National Assembly must be reconvened by the speaker immediately by April 9 at 10:30 am.
The National Assembly reassembled on April 9 following the court's ruling, but the motion was not put to the vote right away. The session continued the whole day sans voting. On the same day, shortly before midnight, the speaker and the deputy speaker tendered their resignations.
Later on, in the wee hours of April 10, the National Assembly passed the no-confidence motion against Imran Khan, making him the first Prime Minister to be dismissed through a no-confidence motion. Following this, Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) leader Shehbaz Sharif, on April 11 took oath as the 23rd Prime Minister of Pakistan, bringing an end to political uncertainty in the nation.
Sri Lanka: The island nation's economic and political crisis
The unprecedented economic crisis in Sri Lanka also led to political turmoil in the country. According to various media reports, several years of mismanagement, corruption, poor policymaking, and overall lack of good governance were some of the reasons for the economic crisis in the country.
The Sri Lankan people called for the resignation of the then President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, accusing them of mismanaging the economy of the nation. Earlier in March, thousands of Sri Lankans protested near President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s private residence. They shouted slogans against the government and raised the demand that the President should "go home."
Amid the rising protests in the country, the entire 26-member government, with the exception of Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, resigned from their positions on April 3. However, a month later on May 9, the then Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa also resigned from the post amid rising calls by protesters to step down. Following this, a nationwide curfew was imposed to prevent clashes between protesting groups in Colombo and other parts of the country.
Later on May 13, Ranil Wickremesinghe was sworn in as the 26th Prime Minister of Sri Lanka. However, protesters continued to take the streets in the country. On July 9, President Rajapaksa had to flee his residence as protesters barged into the official residence. He, along with his wife and security officers, first travelled to Maldives then moved to Singapore on July 14. A day later, Sri Lankan Parliament Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena announced that he received the Rajapaksa's resignation from his post.
This completely ruptured the political system in the country. In an attempt to restore the system, Ranil Wickremesinghe took oath as Sri Lanka’s 8th Executive President. He became the president of Sri Lanka after winning a parliamentary vote held on July 20.
United Kingdom: Unprecedented turmoil rocked British politics
The nation that once had an empire that stretched across the globe saw three Prime Ministers within the span of two months and also lost the world's longest-reigning monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, on September 8. The turmoil at 10 Downing Street occurred after more than 50 Tory members resigned in July in protest of the seemingly never-ending string of scandals under the then Prime Minister Boris Johnson's leadership. Following this, Johnson tendered his resignation on July 7.
He was succeeded by another Conservative leader Liz Truss. After a tough contest against her rival candidate Rishi Sunak, the former UK foreign secretary Truss was sworn in as the country's new Prime Minister on September 6. She achieved the top post in the government through an internal Conservative Party election in which just 0.3% of registered voters were eligible to vote.
However, her tenure was very short-lived as it lasted just 45 days - the shortest tenure of any British Prime Minister in history. Truss was herself to blame for her doom as she immediately slashed taxes after coming to power. Her decision caused the value of the British pound to crash as the country was already facing a rising cost of living.
It should be mentioned here that Truss' failure paved the way for her rival candidate Rishi Sunak who finally took over as the country's next Prime Minister. Sunak, who also played a vital role in Johnson's downfall, became Britain's first Prime Minister of colour. He also faces the daunting task of reviving the country's fragile economy as Britain looks to be in a recession with inflation running at 15% mainly due to skyrocketing energy prices.
Brazil witnesses a slew of protests post General elections
Brazil continues to witness protests in several parts of the country after the incumbent President and far-right populist leader Jair Bolsonaro lost to his leftist rival and former national leader Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Bolsonaro's party has also challenged the outcome of the election as he lost narrowly. Lula da Silva received 50.9% of the votes in the tightest presidential election in the history of the country.
After the election on October 30, some of Bolsonaro's followers, who couldn't accept his narrow loss, blocked about 1,000 roads across the country for more than three weeks before the federal highway police started clearing the way. According to the federal highway police, demonstrators who were obstructing traffic used "terrorist" methods such as improvised bombs, fireworks, nails, stones, and barricades built from burned tyres.
In the last one month, the federal highway police of the country have detained more than 50 protesters. In several state capitals, Bolsonaro's supporters are still camping out in front of military installations, appealing the military to intervene. According to reports, most protests have turned peaceful now, but some of the tactics used by hardliners have started to worry the authorities.
Bolsonaro, who has long questioned the fairness of the electoral system in the country, didn't address the public for two days following his defeat and also not explicitly conceded.
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