COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Police in Sri Lanka fired live ammunition to scatter protesters on Tuesday, killing one person and injuring a dozen more, as the country sought rapid financial assistance from the International Monetary Fund to ease a worsening economic crisis.

Demonstrations have raged across the South Asian island country of 22 million people for weeks, voicing anger against the government’s mishandling of the economy that has led to shortages of essentials and prolonged power cuts.

Mihiri Priyangani, director of the Kegalle Teaching Hospital, said at least one protester was killed and 12 injured were hospitalized, including two in critical condition, after clashes broke out between demonstrators and police officers in the central town of Rambukkana.

The deceased person — the first fatality since the largely peaceful protests began last month — had most likely been shot, Priyangani told Reuters. “We are suspecting gunshot injuries but need a post-mortem to confirm the exact cause of death.”

Disturbances erupted after the police asked protesters to move away from a key railway line that they had blocked for hours, police spokesman Nalin Thalduwa said.

“To control the situation, police fired at the protesters,” Thalduwa told Reuters.