Uditha Jayasinghe, Alasdair Pala

COLOMBO, (Reuters) – The president of Sri Lanka urged citizens to refuse what he described as attempts to incite racial or religious discordance. This was after clashes broke out across the country regarding the government’s response to a severe economic crisis.

8 people died in street protests last week. The resignation of the elder brother to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa as Prime Minister and a curfew failed to quell public outrage. To protect public property and to endanger lives, the government ordered soldiers to fire on anyone.

The Rajapaksa Dynasty has been blamed by the Sri Lankans for their economic collapse that left them with just $50 million of reserves. This has stalled most imports, leading to huge shortages in fuel and cooking gas.

The family’s southern ancestral home was set ablaze by protesters earlier this week.

“This is the time for all Sri Lankans to join hands as one, to overcome the economic, social & political challenges,” Rajapaksa said on Twitter (NYSE:).

“I urge all #Srilankans to reject the subversive attempts to push you towards racial & religious disharmony. Promoting moderation, toleration & coexistence is vital.”

The reason for the President’s warning was not immediately known. But, Sri Lanka is a country with a history of ethnic tensions that has been bloody and long.

Rajapaksa was resigned on Monday as prime Minister. He and Mahinda Rajapaksa were key positions in the government when a 26 year civil war came to an end in 2009, after security forces defeated militants of the Tamil minority.

In this 22-million country, Sinhalese Buddhists make up the largest group. There are also Hindu, Christian, and Muslim minorities.

Two shooting incidents occurred on Tuesday night according to police, one of which was in Rathgama (south), and the other that left four victims.

Nalin Thalduwa stated, “The situation has calmed down.”

Police and military were present in Weerakettiya (a southerly town where the Rajapaksas live), and patrolled the streets. Shops and businesses were closed due to curfew.

Video footage taken by local media on Monday showed the flames in the family’s ancestral home. Numerous attacks against the homes and electoral offices of politicians were also documented.