Whereas, in recent years, Sri Lanka has undergone a political, economic, and humanitarian crisis causing millions of Sri Lankans to live in dire conditions, with the World Food Program estimating that 17 percent of the population is experiencing food insecurity and severe shortages of medicine and fuel; Whereas the crisis in Sri Lanka stems from factors such as corruption, financial mismanagement, and failures in the rule of law, further exacerbated by the Government of Sri Lanka entering into expensive projects involving predatory lending by entities associated with the People’s Republic of China; Whereas, beginning in March 2022, tens of thousands of Sri Lankans participated in largely peaceful protests lasting more than 100 days, leading to the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and the appointment of Ranil Wickremesinghe as the new President of Sri Lanka; Whereas the Wickremesinghe government, citing economic constraints, indefinitely postponed local elections scheduled for March 9, 2023, in violation of the Constitution of Sri Lanka; Whereas, on February 20, 2023, thousands of largely peaceful protestors demonstrated against the decision to postpone local elections, to which the Sri Lankan police responded by firing tear gas and water cannons; Whereas the Government of Sri Lanka continues to repress dissent and protest, conduct surveillance and harass members of civil society, and use the Prevention of Terrorism Act to target political opposition members of ethnic and religious minority groups, activists, and journalists; Whereas the Government of Sri Lanka continues to participate in and facilitate the illegal appropriation of land in the North and East, areas of historical habitation of Tamil speaking peoples and various ethnic and religious groups