Hundreds of thousands of Sri Lankans marched upon the residence of Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa in the capital, Colombo, for the seventeenth consecutive day on Monday (April 25), loudly demanding the resignation of the government following the country's worst economic crisis in decades.

22 million people in the South Asian nation have struggled to pay for essential imports after a steep drop in foreign exchange reserves in two years led to a currency devaluation.

The soaring inflation, prolonged power cuts, along with fuel and medicine shortages, have led to countrywide protests.

Sri Lanka, which has $51 billion of external credit, has asked some creditors to restructure its debt and also approached China, Japan, and the Asian Development Bank among others for help.

The “Occupy Galle Face” movement reached its 17th consecutive day today. The protestors continue the protest by staying overnight in tents erected throughout the area and have named the area “GotaGoGama”. Several trade unions, civil society organizations, rights activists, and religious groups engaged in protest marches throughout the past two weeks, ending at “GotaGoGama” in solidarity.

Sri Lanka is suffering its most painful economic downturn since independence from British rule in 1948, with months of lengthy blackouts and acute shortages of food, fuel, and other essentials. The crisis has sparked countrywide protests, with angry demonstrators camped outside Rajapaksa’s office for more than three weeks.