Sri Lanka, Nov. 30 -- A State of Emergency has been declared in order to provide the legal safeguards and provisions necessary to manage the prevailing disaster situation and to enable a speedy and efficient recovery process, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake stated.

President Dissanayake assured that the state of emergency will be used solely to facilitate disaster management and effective rebuilding of the country, and not for any form of repressive action.

The President made these remarks in a special statement to the nation.

Furthermore, the President said it is the responsibility of the government to manage the crisis, restoring normalcy and also bringing affected areas to a condition better than before.

"When natural disasters ...