Sri Lanka eyes trimming presidential powers amid unrest over economic crisis

Sri Lanka's air force members distribute tokens to people queueing for fuel due to fuel shortage, amid the country's economic crisis, in Colombo, Sri Lanka, June 27, 2022. REUTERS/Dinuka Liyanawatte

COLOMBO (Reuters) - Sri Lanka's government on Thursday proposed amending the constitution to trim presidential powers and beef up anti-corruption powers to help shore up stability and defuse unrest provoked by the country's worst financial crisis in decades.

The South Asian island of 22 million people is close to running out of fuel and has struggled for months to find enough U.S. dollars to pay for essential imports such as food, cooking gas and medicine.