"Today, 200 years after the beginning of our struggles for independence, we are in a similar situation"

• Raúl affirms at a rally in Quito

Jorge Martín Blandino

"I feel very excited and happy," Raúl affirmed in the evening of Monday, August 10, addressing some 30,000 people in Quito and describing his unforgettable and intense visit to Ecuador, the first by the Cuban president to that Central American sister nation.

Raúl, Chávez and Zelaya were received with a standing ovation as they arrived at a rally in the Atahualpa Olympic Stadium, a veritable fiesta of the people, who were enthusiastically celebrating their resounding victory in the April elections.

Correa welcomed Cuba, Venezuela and Honduras with cheers of "Viva!" and did the same for Fidel, Che and Raúl, seconded by the voices of the men and women who filled the capital stadium.

Chávez spoke first, combining music, poetry and remarks full of patriotic and revolutionary spirit and denouncing the aggression being suffered by the peoples of the continent, thrilling the crowd.

Zelaya was next, once again exposing the abuse to which his people have been subjected since the reactionary coup d’état in Honduras, and expressing thanks for the solidarity they have received.

Correa then invited the Cuban president to take the microphone. Raúl noted that Ecuador, particularly Quito, had the honor of having initiated the American independence movement, quickly followed by Venezuela, Argentina, Colombia and many other places on the continent.

He reflected on the fact that, given the ebb and flow of history, 200 years after those independence struggles began, we are today living in a similar situation, with our peoples facing serious challenges and dangers.

Raúl mentioned the growing popular movement for social justice and real sovereignty, the counterpart of which is the desperate attempts of national oligarchies and their foreign masters to turn back the achievements of the peoples.

As examples, he mentioned the actions of reactionary forces in Venezuela and Bolivia and more recently against Honduras, and warned that these will persist as the forces of the people continue becoming stronger. "The installation of United States military bases in Latin America is not a coincidence, nor is it to combat — as they say —drug trafficking or the guerrilla fighters," he affirmed.

He briefly summed up all of the acts of aggression suffered by the Cuban people since 1959, and said that the Revolution would not have been able to sustain itself without the decided support of the great majority of people.

He concluded by congratulating President Correa for his decision to place himself at the service of his compatriots and reaffirmed Cuba’s decision to support the Ecuadorian people.

President Correa resumed the emotional day by thanking his people for the victory attained and reaffirming his commitment to continue working for the benefit of his poorest compatriots. "Not one step backwards! Ever onwards to victory! Venceremos! he concluded.

INAUGURATION CEREMONY

At close to noon, the Cuban president and his accompanying delegation arrived at the seat of the National Assembly, where President Rafael Correa Delgado’s inauguration ceremony took place. The event was attended by eight other heads of state and government, as well as vice presidents and other prominent political figures from many nations and international agencies.

It was a moving and symbolic ceremony. Correa’s speech at the opening of his second mandate was both an assessment of achievements to date and a clear exposition of the main objectives and tasks of the Citizens Revolution he is leading.

"Very serious, moving and persuasive," was Fidel’s description of Correa’s speech, in a message he sent that included an embrace for the Ecuadorian people. In transmitting that message at the rally, Raúl added that he was convinced that Correa’s speech would go down in history.

Almost immediately afterward, the heads of state and government and general secretaries of international agencies present were taken to the Palace of Government to attend a lunch given by the Ecuadorian president. Before entering the beautiful building, Raúl greeted the people who had spontaneously gathered there.

MEETING WITH CHAVEZ

In the afternoon, the Cuban president met with Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez Frías. Their fraternal, warm exchange focused on issues linked to the close relations between the two countries and the international situation.

FIRST PLACE: THE CHAPEL OF HUMANITY

"This is the first time I’ve come to Ecuador and this is the first place I am visiting," were Raúl’s words to Pablo Guayasamín, son of that beloved friend of Cuba, Oswaldo Guayasamín, and president of the foundation that bears the name of that exceptional Ecuadorian painter.

Immediately, the Cuban president and the rest of his delegation paid tribute to the great artist and fighter for the rights of the poor, at the foot of the "Tree of Life" where the artist’s ashes are held, and very close to those of the revolutionary writer Jorge Enrique Adoum and of Emilo Verdruga, a grandson of Guayasamín who died in an airplane accident.

At the entrance to the residence where the artist lived, Raúl was received by his widow, Marujita, and a large group of sons and daughters, grandchildren and other relatives. "How good it is to have you here, visiting the same places Fidel did seven years ago," several of them said as they greeted him.

For more than an hour, they toured the Chapel of Humanity, a veritable hymn in tribute to human beings, particularly the poor and their endless struggle for life. A resounding cry denouncing oppression and injustice is present in each work of art by this extraordinary man, who one day said, "I wept because I had no shoes until I saw a boy who had no feet."

TRIBUTE TO MARTI IN THE "HALFWAY POINT OF THE EARTH"

The busy morning schedule continued with a brief visit to the so-called City of the "halfway point of the Earth." There, on the line that marks the equator at zero latitude, stands a 30-meter-high tower, a monument containing a museum of the ethnic groups and nations that populate Ecuador.

A few meters from this original monument, the most visited site in the country, is the José Martí Plaza, where the delegation paid tribute to Cuba’s national hero, together with representatives from the Cuban embassy staff, internationalist workers, and their families, with whom the Cuban president chatted for a few minutes.

Translated by Granma International

Now the Citizens Revolution is of everyone

• Affirms Rafael Correa during re-inauguration ceremony in Ecuador
• Sends an embrace to Fidel

QUITO, August 10. —Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa began his second constitutional mandate from today to 2013 with the express will of intensifying the Citizens Revolution and prioritizing the poor, youth and indigenous peoples.

"The Citizens Revolution has arrived and is now that of everyone," Correa affirmed during his vibrant and improvised speech at the end of an official ceremony in the National Assembly, attended by heads of state participating in summits of the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) and the Bolivarian Alternative for the Peoples of Our America (ALBA).

The 46-year-old president, who has been leading the country for the past 31 months after his broad popular triumph in the November 26 elections, is initiating a new four-year term on the 200th anniversary of the independence of Ecuador, after winning the elections in April.

Referring to his government’s international policy, Correa emphasized Ecuador’s support in the OAS General Assembly for the repeal of the infamous resolution that excluded Cuba in 1962, and asked Cuban President Raúl Castro to pass on an embrace for the leader Fidel Castro and for all the people on the island.

In the same context, he reiterated the demand for the expulsion and trial of the usurpers of power in Honduras and the restoration of Manuel Zelaya, the legitimate constitutional president, to his post. Zelaya was present at the ceremony.

"A few days ago the last foreign soldier stationed in our country left Ecuadorian soil," Correa stated in reference to the former U.S. Manta base, adding: "Thus we have recovered the territorial sovereignty that submissive governments handed over in the past.

He strongly criticized Colombia’s decision to allow the installation of seven bases with U.S. troops in its territory and stated that hopefully these would not stimulate the Bogotá government’s warmongering policies and be utilized to combat progressive governments in the region, rather than to combat drug trafficking.

Rafael Correa was reelected within a new constitutional framework in the April, 2009 elections, after Ecuadorians approved a new constitution in September, 2008. (PL)

Ecuador creates two new ministries

QUITO, Aug. 13 (Xinhua) -- Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa on Thursday signed a decree to create two new ministries -- the Ministry of Telecommunication and Information and the Ministry of Labor Relations.

During a ceremony at the Carondelet Palace, Correa appointed Jorge Glass as minister of telecommunication and information, and Richard Espinosa as minister of labor relations.

Correa said the new ministries would incorporate many state institutions.

The Telecommunication Ministry will be in charge of formulating state policies on telecommunication and information and of coordinating the public and private institutions in scientific and technological research.

The ministry will administrate the National Mail Company, the National Council of Radio and Telecommunications and the National Council of Telecommunications, the president's juridical secretary Alexis Mera said.

It will also promote the use of Internet and information technologies, the secretary added.

The Ministry of Labor Relations will administrate the National Technical Secretariat of Human Resources and Remunerations.

Mexico offers to mediate between Colombia and Venezuela and Ecuador

Mercopress, August 14, 2009

Mexican president Felipe Calderón on an official visit to Colombia offered his country’s mediation in the conflict between Bogotá and neighbouring Ecuador and Venezuela.

Calderón also underlined Mexico respects Colombia’s sovereign decision to allow US troops in seven Colombian bases, which has become the latest contention issue in the region.

“We are willing to offer our mediation efforts as long as both sides are willing”, said Calderón on Thursday the last of his two day visit to Colombia.

From Colombia he flies to Uruguay, with the official agenda beginning Friday.

Calderón recalled that Mexico holds the pro tempore chair of the Rio Group and played a similar role between Presidents Alvaro Uribe, Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez and Ecuador’s Rafael Correa during the last summit of the group in Dominican Republic.

Calderon and Uribe signed an agreement to increase bilateral cooperation in fighting organized drug gangs crime. This includes the training of 11.000 Mexican police officers for combating drug trade and organized crime.

Another aspect of the agreement is the exchange of intelligence, information gathering, exchange of evidence and cooperation in court trials.

Colombia is the world’s main producer of cocaine which is mostly shipped to the north and introduced in the United States by the Mexican cartels.

Mexico is currently suffering an upsurge of drug gangs related killings and shootings as well as kidnappings, similar to those experienced by Colombia in the last two decades.

Calderón revealed that during the recent North American leaders summit, (US, Canada and Mexico), President Barack Obama was quite emphatic that the US has no interest “in establishing new military bases in the region” and recalled that cooperation with Colombia in combating drugs and terrorism is contemplated in existing agreements.

The Uribe administration decision to allow US troops to operate from Colombia bases was denounced by several leaders of the region mainly Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez who fears they could be used “for an attack on Venezuela”. He went further and said that “war drums” are sounding in South America.

The issue will be addressed in an extraordinary meeting of the Union of South American Nations, Unasur convened for August 28th and hosted by Argentina in Bariloche.

At this week’s Unasur summit in Quito participants could not agree on a declaration condemning Colombia for signing the agreement with Washington.

Ecuador wants citizen committees to defend gov't

By JEANNETH VALDIVIESO (AP) – August 13, 2009

QUITO, Ecuador — Ecuador wants to create local citizen committees that would defend the government and its "revolution" — sparking criticism that the president aims to control opponents in a system reminiscent of Cuba or Venezuela.

Citizen Participation Minister Doris Soliz told Ecuador TV on Thursday that local citizen groups are needed to defend against coups like the one that recently deposed Honduran President Manuel Zelaya, or against outside agitators, noting U.S. military plans to use Colombian bases.

"The great challenge in this new phase of the revolution is to create in each home a revolutionary committee, in each neighborhood a committee to defend the national government ... and to prepare for those who wish to destabilize us," President Rafael Correa said during his inauguration Monday to a second, four-year term.

Neither Correa nor Soliz provided details on how the committees would be governed or exactly what they would do, though Soliz said they would not be armed.

Critics say the neighborhood groups could evolve into Cuban-style community groups used to monitor and repress "counterrevolutionary" activities.

Venezuela has "communal councils" that decide how to spend government funds for community projects. President Hugo Chavez tried to give the groups intelligence-gathering duties last year, though he later withdrew his decree under protest from critics.

"What they want to do is control us in our neighborhoods, in our families, to know what we are doing and thinking to throw us in prison," said Lucio Gutierrez, former Ecuadorean president and an opposition candidate who lost to Correa in April.

Gutierrez said he will promote "democracy" and "liberty" committees to oppose Correa's neighborhood groups

Spain's Repsol sees 2009 Ecuador oil output drop

By Eduardo Garcia

QUITO, Aug 13 (Reuters) - Spain's Repsol-YPF (REP.MC) sees its Ecuadorean oil production declining by 9,000 barrels a day (bpd) in 2009 to about 44,000 bpd but says it plans further investments in the OPEC member country.

"Fifty-three thousand bpd was the average production for last year," Carlos Guerrero, the company's Ecuadorean production manager, told reporters on Thursday. "This year we're estimating production at 44,000 bpd."

He told reporters the decline was due to the aging of fields operated by Repsol as the production manager of an investment consortium including other companies.

"One should take into account the natural decline of our fields is around 20 percent. That is to say, in a natural manner, our production is falling between 800 to 1,000 bpd per month."

In a report handed to reporters, Repsol said its average 2008 output was 53,917 bpd.

In 2009, Repsol is investing more than $60 million in its production operations in Ecuador, he said. Depending on circumstances, it plans to drill three or four new wells this year, Guerrero said.

Next year, in line with a current agreement with the government, Repsol plans to invest more than $120 million and drill 20 wells, he said.

But he added that the 2010 investment plans could change depending on the terms of a new contract under negotiation with the government. He said Repsol expects to sign the new contract by March 10, 2010.

Ecuador is negotiating with foreign oil companies for new contracts. It is pressing companies to surrender their profit-sharing arrangements with the government in exchange for flat-free contracts.

Ecuador's total current oil output is about 486,000 bpd, a substantial share of which is pumped by foreign oil companies.

Repsol pumps oil in Ecuador as part of an investment consortium that includes China's Sinochem.

Ecuador's Vice President Lenin Moreno told Reuters last week that the government would take charge of foreign oil companies' operations if the companies fail to raise output, stressing the administration's hard-line as it seeks to renegotiate contracts.

Since taking office in 2007, Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa, a leftist ally of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, has pressed to boost state revenue from the oil sector but has repeatedly said he would not nationalize.

Under a new constitution, Correa has widened authority over key "strategic" sectors such as mining and oil.

Ecuador registers first trade deficit since 2002

Ecuador's trade balance was negative in the first half of 2009 for the first time in seven years, as oil exports fell 60 percent on lower oil prices.

Ecuador's central bank says the country had a deficit of $721 million in the first half of 2009, down from a $2.4 billion surplus in the same January-June 2008 period.

Total exports fell 41.8 percent, while oil exports fell 60 percent over the same period in 2008 from $6.7 billion to $2.7 billion due to the global financial crisis.

Ecuador relies on oil exports for 40 percent of its national budget.

The central bank says non-oil exports like shrimp, banana and flowers fell 6 percent in the first half of 2009 over the same 2008 period, from $3.4 billion to $3.2 billion.

Ecuador reinforces border with Colombia

August 13, 2009

Ecuador says it has reinforced its northern border with Colombia amid a tense dispute over Bogota's plans to open seven military bases to US troops.

Ecuadoran officials say the 1,200 soldiers were dispatched to Esmeraldas province to support the 10,000 security forces already patrolling the border area due to increased drug, weapons and fuel trafficking in recent months.

"The mission is to restore public safety," said Lieutenant Sergio Torres, an "Operation North" commander on Wednesday. Captain Jose Mino, another commander, said illegal activity in the border area had increased by 20 to 30 per cent.

The troops will be in the area for at least a month, according to Ecuavisa television.

The announcement came as top Colombian military commander Freddy Padilla said talks between Bogota and Washington over US access to Colombian bases for counter-drug operations could be finalised as early as this weekend.

Ecuador and Venezuela have led opposition to the plan, with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez warning on Monday that the "winds of war" were beginning to blow in the region because of the accord.

About 7,000 Ecuadoran soldiers and 3,541 policemen are deployed along the 720-kilometre border with Colombia, where insurgent groups, paramilitaries and drug traffickers are known to operate.

Quito has undertaken an ambitious plan to modernise its armed forces, after Colombia staged a cross-border raid into Ecuadoran territory in March last year to destroy a rebel camp, after which Ecuador cut ties with Bogota.

The modernisation has included the purchase of speedboats, helicopters, six unmanned aerial vehicles, 24 Brazilian Super Tucano combat aircraft, two frigates and Chinese radars.

Ecuador's Correa aims for "citizens revolution" in 2nd term

Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa raises his hand during his inauguration at the National Assembly in Quito August 10, 2009. Correa vowed on Sunday to favor Ecuador's poor and Indian people in deep social reforms he plans in his second term.(Xinhua/Reuters Photo) Photo Gallery>>>

QUITO, Aug. 10 (Xinhua) -- Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa, who took office on Monday for his second term, faces the challenges of strengthening the "citizens revolution" and addressing the ongoing international financial crisis.

Correa was the first Ecuadorian president re-elected in the past 30 years after serving two years and eight months in office since he lunched what he called a "new socialism" in 2007.

His first four-year term was to end in 2011, but after winning a constitutional reform earlier this year he gained re-election until 2013.

With his "citizens revolution," Correa plans to strengthen his economic and social policies aimed at achieving social inclusion and equality in the country.

Correa has announced he will strengthen the state's macroeconomic function so as to guarantee the social welfare and defend the country's sovereignty in all aspects.

His new administration vowed to improve the life of the most needed by "creating economic process to confront an economic model that monopolizes the wealth in hands of few."

During his first term, Correa reinforced the state, changed the Constitution and improved the living conditions of the poor by giving them subsidies.

Although the poor in Ecuador see Correa's policies an opportunity to improve their lives, the entrepreneurs do not agree with them as they said his anti-neo-liberalism vision scares away foreign investment in the country.

Correa had forged distant but cordial ties with the United States despite his refusal to renew a lease with Washington to use the Manta military base.

He won re-election amid a Colombian accusation linking him with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) by receiving "U.S. dollar support" from the Colombian largest rebel group during his presidential campaign in 2006.

Cuban President Raul Castro (R) addresses the audience as Ecuador President Rafael Correa looks on during a rally to celebrate Correa's new presidential term at Atahualpa Stadium in Quito August 10, 2009. Correa was sworn in for a second term on Monday vowing to deepen his socialist "revolution" but he did not spell out how he plans to jump-start the country's slow economy. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo) Photo Gallery>>>

Ecuador severed diplomatic ties with Colombia in 2008 after the Colombian army crossed the border to crack down on the FARC rebels. However he had close ties with the Venezuelan and Bolivian governments.

During his new term Correa has to decide if he will stop the payments of Ecuador's external debt or if he will re-negotiate the credits that multilateral organizations have given the country in the past.

Correa promised not to tolerate foreign companies and local private economic groups, including media, banks and entrepreneurs, who have "abused" the country.

Ecuador has a credit of some 2.5 billion dollars from different regional multilateral organizations. The crisis could prompt Correa to default on part of its debts because of falling oil revenues and remittances sent by the Ecuadorian migrants.

On Monday, Correa also received the rotating presidency of the Union of South American Nations (Unasur) from Chilean president Michelle Bachelet.

The 12 member countries of Unasur agreed to strengthen regional integration.

Ecuadorian ban cuts Colombian trade by 15.5%

BOGOTA, Aug. 11 (Xinhua) -- Colombia's exports to Ecuador fell 15.5 percent in the first seven months of this year due to restrictions imposed by the Ecuadorian government, the Colombian government said on Tuesday.

Trade Minister Luis Plata confirmed that exports to Ecuador in the first seven months fell to 616 million U.S. dollars from 729 million U.S. dollars in the same period last year.

"The restrictions on 1,346 Colombian products imposed by the Ecuadorian government have resulted in a 34 percent decrease in these products’ export to Ecuador,” Plata said.

"We are in contact with the Ecuadorian government in order to achieve an agreement through dialogue," he added.

Colombia had complained to the Andean Community over the restrictions, but received an ambiguous response last Saturday.

Ecuador's Correa vows socialism in a slow economy

By Eduardo Garcia and Walker Simon

QUITO, Aug 10 (Reuters) - Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa was sworn in for a second term on Monday vowing to deepen his socialist "revolution" but he did not spell out how he plans to jump-start the country's slow economy.

Mapping out his vision for a new term, Correa, 46, said he sought to fight inequality and invest in projects to help the poor, improve education and improve the lives of long-neglected Andean indigenous groups.

"It's a gigantic struggle ... but we have already started and no one is going to stop us," said Correa in a speech before a group of Latin American leaders, including leftist presidents Hugo Chavez of Venezuela and Raul Castro of Cuba.

"During the next four years we're going to continue our campaign ... it's not just about helping the poor, it's about stamping out the structural causes of poverty," he added.

Heavy social spending and his frequent outbursts against Ecuador's business elites have raised Correa's popularity but have rattled investors.

Although close aides describe Correa as impulsive and unpredictable, they also say he is a pragmatic socialist who is unlikely to press foreign investors hard enough to force them out of the Andean country.

"Shrinking the state was one of the most absurd mistakes of the long and sad neoliberal night, while boosting the state, was one of the worst mistakes of state socialism," he said. "We need a state that is efficient."

But dwindling oil revenues and the $900 million the government used to buy sovereign bonds it defaulted on last year, could force Correa to slash social spending.

The OPEC-member nation exported $2.69 billion worth of crude oil and refined oil products in the first half of the year, about 60 percent less than what it exported in the same period last year.

Correa acknowledged that export revenues and money sent home by Ecuadoreans working abroad have plummeted. He did not say how he plans to diversify the economy from its dependence on oil export revenues, as he has promised to do.

Multilateral lenders have offered up to $2.5 billion to Ecuador this year, and the country is set to receive a $1 billion down payment for a deal to export oil to China. But if crude prices fall again, Ecuador's economy could suffer.

Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa Takes Oath for Second Term

Quito, Aug 10, (RHC).- Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa was sworn into office for his second term on Monday. Shortly after taking the oath of office, the Ecuadorian president addressed the nation and the world, saying that “the Civic Revolution has arrived and now belongs to everyone."

At the legislative chambers of the National Assembly, Rafael Correa was accompanied by a number of his counterparts from around the region, including Cuban President Raúl Castro, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, the President of Bolivia, Evo Morales, Paraguayan President Fernando Lugo, Honduran President Manuel Zelaya, and the President of Chile, Michelle Bachelet.

In his speech, the Ecuadorian leader noted that in the past ten years, his country has seen seven presidents, referring to several of his predecessors who were thrown out by popular uprisings. Correa pointed out that Ecuador was "ungovernable" for long periods of time, but that thanks to the people's commitment to the struggle, the long road to change that situation in the country had begun.

President Rafael Correa, in another part of his speech, called on the bankers and media owners of the country to stop their attacks against the revolutionary movement and join with the people of Ecuador in building a new future.

Ecuador celebrates National Day

Jakarta Post, 11 August 2009

The tiny Ecuadorian community in Indonesia celebrated its 200th National Day on Monday evening with friends of Ecuador, the diplomatic corps and prominent Indonesian figures at the Gran Melia Hotel in Jakarta.

Ecuador declared independence from Spanish rule in 1809.

Along with a free flow of wines, chocolate martinis and sumptuous dishes from Ecuador, members of the diplomatic corps enjoyed a vibrant exhibition of images from the Galapagos Islands.

Galapagos Islands wildlife reserve is a UNESCO World Heritage site, and the site of Charles Darwin’s studies for the theory of evolution.

The Ecuadorian ambassador to Indonesia, Rodrigo Yepes Enriquez, was accompanied on stage by
his wife Maria Sol Yepes, the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, Purnomo Yusgiantoro and the foreign ministry’s secretary-general, Imron Cotan, to welcome the guests.

In his welcoming speech, Ambassador Enriquez praised the close relationship between Indonesia
and Ecuador.

“Relations between Ecuador and Indonesia have been developing for 30 to 40 years and we want not just political, but also economic, ties to bear real fruit in the future,” said Enriquez.

Foreign Ministry Director-General for American and European affairs, Retno L.P. Marsudi, also attending the colorful reception, elaborated on Indonesia’s bilateral relations with Ecuador.

“Last month we signed an iconic agreement on energy with Ecuador and soon we will open an embassy in Quito soon,” Retno said.

Ecuadorian and Indonesian state oil companies, Petroecuador and Pertamina, are working together to exploit oil reserves in southeast Ecuador, and the two countries hope to extend their economic ties to the fields of mining, and traditional and alternative means of producing energy.

Ecuador’s Correa Takes Oath for 2nd Term

QUITO – Rafael Correa, first elected in 2007, was sworn-in on Monday for a second term as Ecuador’s president after winning the fresh election mandated by the new constitution he convinced his compatriots to approve last year in a referendum.

Correa was sworn-in for the period from August 2009 to May 2013 at an official ceremony attended by a dozen heads of state among other international representatives.

Also present at the ceremony was the deposed president of Honduras, Mel Zelaya, who received the applause of those present when Ecuadorian congressional speaker Fernando Cordero again condemned the June 28 coup in Tegucigalpa in his speech before Correa took his oath of office.

Cordero said that in the “citizens’ revolution” that Correa is promoting, “loyalty goes to ideas and principles” and added that the people in whose name all the ruling party’s activities are carried out will not be betrayed.

After administering the oath of office and placing the presidential sash, he signed the decree by which Correa, a left-leaning, U.S.-educated economist, assumed the presidency of Ecuador for the second time.

Correa follows Chávez's example and charges against the press

Rafael Correa, who frequently claims the Ecuadorian press is "corrupt" and "lies" and considers it as part of the opposition of his government, dedicated a part of his speech to the press after swearing in as interim president of the Union of South American Nations (Unasur).

Correa said that the media "many times don't search for liberty of expression, but only liberty of extortion and manipulation."

Talking to his fellow leaders, he said "we should lose our fear and as countries we need to stand firm against the excesses of the press, we have to take action, we are the ones who win the elections, not the managers of those lucrative businesses that call themselves mass media."

"We propose to establish a centre for analyses and reflection of the information channels to which our co-nationals are exposed through information businesses," he expressed.

Correa said that in highly developed countries, the mass media "would never dare to do what they do here all the time: lie, lie, and lie."

"They (Ecuadorian journalists) manifest that we are against the critical press. They're wrong, we're against the mediocre and corrupt press. Before they denied that this type of press existed; they placed themselves above the good and the bad," he assured

He argued that the media businesses "have believed that simply due to the fact that they have the ability to do so they have a moral right to become censors of all the actions and intentions of democratic governments."

He firmly stated that "the biggest adversary that we've had in the last 30 months of government has been a press with a clear political role, although without any democratic legitimacy."

Ecuadorian president Correa sworn in second term

President Rafael Correa (L) accepts the scepter during a indigenous ritual as a symbol of good wishes for his new term of office in La Chimba, Ecuador, Aug. 9, 2009. Correa, who was reelected for a second-term in April this year, will take office on Aug. 10. (Xinhua/Wladimir Jativa) Photo Gallery>>>

QUITO, Aug. 10 (Xinhua) -- Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa on Monday was sworn in for his second four-year term in a ceremony held in the Ecuadorian National Assembly.

Some 10 out of the 12 presidents from the Union of South American Nations attended the ceremony. Peruvian President Alan Garcia did not attend due to a failure in his plane and Colombian President Alvaro Uribe did not attend since both countries severed ties in March 2008.

During the ceremony, Correa promised to strength his "citizen revolution" and added that it is "irreversible and nothing neither nobody will stop it."

Correa said that the citizens revolution is the one where the people are the "ones giving orders, the owners of our countries, the owners of our democracies."

Correa also said that he will not give up on achieving a new country despite the stereotypes that the power groups want to establish.

Correa promised to fight for a country with equity, equality on opportunities, without racism, free of illiteracy, a country with roads to transport equity and not regrets.

Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa (2nd L, front) attends a indigenous ritual for his re-inauguration in La Chimba, Ecuador, Aug. 9, 2009. Correa, who was reelected for a second-term in April this year, will take office on Aug. 10. (Xinhua/Wladimir Jativa) Photo Gallery>>>

"Precisely to achieve those goals, it is necessary to reach the political power to transform it into the people's power, the only one able to change the structures of disgrace still prevalent in our region," Correa added.

Correa said that before his first administration none of the last three presidents finished their term, because they were overthrown by the people, for betraying the people's demands.

"In then years we have had seven presidents, we were accused of being ungovernable, we were just being betrayed," Correa said.

Correa added that "on April 26, Ecuador voted by itself. Thanks God, they stolen us everything, expect the hope ... Ecuador is celebrating because the homeland is reviving from the merchandise chaos."

Correa won the presidential elections on April 26, this year, becoming the first Ecuadorian president being reelected in 30 years.

Profile: Ecuador's president Rafael Correa

Ecuador: The Cry for Independence 200 Years Ago

by Carlos Suasnavas

Global Voices Online, August 9, 2009

On August 9, 1809 a group of men in Quito, in what is now the Republic of Ecuador, participated in “Hispano-America's First Cry.” This act was a cry for independence from the rule for the Spanish King and was the first of many all across the region by those wanting the same independence. Even though Ecuador did not achieve full independence until 1822, the cry helped start the Ecuadorian War of Independence. This year, Ecuador is celebrating the Bicentennial in remembrance of the event that took place 200 years ago.

Photo of Quito, Ecuador by L. Marcio Ramalho and used under a Creative Commons license.

One of the men, who helped lead this movement was Eugenio Espejo, who used his influence to take this step for the future of Hispano-America, and whose dreams came true in the early hours of August 10, 1809. Belén Proaño of Temas Para Debatir [es] writes about Espejo's role in eventual independence:

Las ideas de Espejo, fueron el punto de partida de una nueva concepción de lo que hasta ese entonces se entendía por patria, afirma el historiador Jorge Núñez, autor del libro Eugenio Espejo y el pensamiento precursor de la independencia . “Se empieza a entender por patria a Quito, y ya no a España. Nace una toma de consciencia sobre lo que será después la nación ecuatoriana”.

Espejo's ideas were the launching point for a new concept of what was then understood as homeland, states historian Jorge Nuñez, author of the book Eugenio Espejo and the Thought for the Precursor to Independence. “There was a start to think of homeland towards Quito and no longer towards Spain. A consciousness was born for what would soon become the Ecuadorian nation.”

On the night of August 9, there was a great amount of activity throughout the city of Quito, and many went to the “Resistance Room” owned by Doña Manuela Cañizares. The next morning, many of the most important people in Quito at the time, assembled and created the Government Sovereignty Board and elected its officers. Later on August 16, 1809 a General Assembly was convened and the first document of the Independence of Quito was signed.

After the first uprising, the city of Quito was given the nickname “Luz de América” or (America's Light) and served as an inspiration to other peoples striving for independence. Quito sowed the seed and the rest of the Americas followed suit. The blog Brigada Quetzalcoalt [es] also provides a review of this date in Bolivia, which is also celebrating a Bicentennial for their own Cry for Independence.

Following the Quito’s example, Caracas launched it Cry for Independence on April 18, 1810, Buenos Aires on May 25, Bogotá on July 20, Mexico on September 16th, and Santiago de Chile on May 18. The American continent was on fire, and had been sparked by the people of Quito.

Why the World Should Pay Ecuador to Keep its Oil in the Ground

Jesse Fox, Treehugger, August 9 2009

A bridge in the Ecuadorian jungle. (photo by Jesse Fox)

A couple of years ago, the government of Ecuador made the world an offer. We will leave some of our oil in the ground, President Rafael Correa announced, if you make it worth our while. His proposal: instead of us extracting the oil (which, by the way, happens to sit under a fantastically biodiverse rainforest) and selling it to you, we'll leave it untouched - and sell you the right to emit the carbon dioxide that we save.

While the idea has generated significant interest, many have questioned its feasibility. This week, however, in a piece published in the Guardian, Kevin Gallagher of the Global Development and Environment Institute explained why Correa's proposal makes perfect economic sense.

The oil in question, representing around a fifth of Ecuador's reserves, sits under Yasuni National Park. Considered one the world's most biodiverse areas, one hectare of land in Yasuni contains more species of trees than in all of the US and Canada combined. Yasuni is also a UNESCO-designated Biosphere Reserve, and protected, like all of the country's natural systems, by an innovative clause in the country's constitution that grants nature the right to "maintenance and regeneration."

Yasuni sits on about 850 million barrels of oil, about enough to power the entire US economy for approximately a month and a half. Gallagher notes that exploiting Yasuni's oil would bring in net benefits of just under $6 billion - around 10% of Ecuador's GDP.

However, oil production in Ecuador's rainforests has left behind a toxic legacy, and odds are that Yasuni would face similar destruction if opened up for exploitation. In economic terms, this would mean the loss of income from tourism and other sectors, as well as the loss of potentially valuable species. Who knows what future wonder drugs could eventually be discovered there, adds Gallagher. The park is also home to some 20,000 Waorani, an indigenous people whose culture cannot be given a price tag.

But all of that is peanuts next to the economic value of the carbon emissions saved. Between the oil extraction and burning and the deforestation, this could add up to some $2.6 billion to $3.7 billion, estimates Gallagher. A Washington Post article on the subject quotes an even higher figure, up to $7 billion. President Correa, an economist, has vowed to invest these funds in social development and renewable energy projects, and has promised to pay the money back if the oil in Yasuni is ever exploited.

For Gallagher, this is a "rare win-win situation... economic efficiency at its finest." And indeed, if Ecuador's unorthodox proposal works, other tropical countries will probably follow suit.

Although several countries, notably Germany, have taken an interest in the proposal, there is still plenty of pressure from economic interests to abandon the plan and starting drilling. The legal framework for putting the plan into action does not yet exist - no such mechanism was included in the Kyoto Protocol, but Ecuador is hoping to have its plan recognized as a pilot project in climate talks later this year in Copenhagen.

Latin America on Its Way to Legalizing Drugs, Experts Say

BUENOS AIRES – Latin America is headed towards the decriminalization of drug possession for personal consumption, according to experts and officials who took part in a regional conference in Buenos Aires.

Those attending the 1st Latin American Conference on Drug Policy, which ended Friday, also said that legislative reforms are being designed to give smaller sentences “to small traffickers, and to create policies that minimize harm” by encouraging addicts who can’t quit to come into the health system.

They also warned that the war on drugs “did not achieve its goal,” since Bolivia, Peru and Colombia, which together produce all the cocaine in the world, “could not manage in 10 years to reduce the area under cultivation,” according to a communique released at the end of the meeting, sponsored by the Pan-American Health Organization.

Brazilian lawmaker Paulo Teixeira said that his country’s current anti-drug law “increases the harm to users, because once in jail they get involved with organized crime.”

The legislator, originator of Brazil’s first bill to “reduce the harm” of drug consumption, presented a study saying that 84 percent of those sentenced between 2006-2008 for drug possession in that country were not armed and 50 percent of those convicted for marijuana trafficking had less than 100 grams (1/2 ounce) of the substance.

Teixeira said that the ruling Workers Party will submit a bill next month that establishes “a democratic model” for drugs, with the legalization of consumption, alternative penalties for small-scale drug dealing, the inclusion of a strategy for harm reduction and authorization for growing and marketing marijuana in small quantities.

For her part, Ecuador’s deputy planning secretary, Michelle Artieda, said that her country is in the process of debating a drug bill that modifies the current legislation, which dates back to 1992 and “violates the principle of legality.”

During the meeting, organized by the Argentine association Intercambios, the Ecuadorian official said that many of those detained in her country on drug charges “were carrying less than 2 kilos (4 1/2 pounds)” of narcotics.

Artieda also spoke about Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa’s decision to pardon 2,221 people who were arrested for carrying small amounts of drugs and those known as “mules.”

Dionicio Nuñez Tangara, coordinador of the Bolivian Coca and Sovereignty organization, regretted that under his country’s existing legislation, “coca-leaf growers are the same as drug traffickers,” and went into detail about the Evo Morales government’s initiative to industrialize the growing of that plant.

Bolivian law permits the cultivation of 12,000 hectares (29,629 acres) of coca for legal traditional uses, and a similar arrangement prevails in neighboring Peru.

Bolivian President Evo Morales, an Aymara Indian who rose to prominence as the leader of a coca-growers union, came to office in January 2006 pledging to redirect anti-drug efforts from coca eradication to cocaine interdiction.

Meanwhile Peruvian expert Hugo Cabieses warned that “under the pretext of a war on drugs, the borders of the region’s countries are being militarized.”

“In 1992 the hectares (acres) of coca grown in Peru, Bolivia and Colombia were 11,500 (28,395), but by 2004 they had been reduced to 11,000 (27,160). These plans (to militarize borders) do not expand democracy, they restrict it,” he said.

The Argentine government defended Thursday the legalization of drug possession for personal consumption and said that it awaits “almost impatiently” a verdict by the Supreme Court that would make criminal punishment for a drug user unconstitutional.

Legislative reforms in the matter of drug use sparked controversy in several Latin American countries, the region that leads the world in cocaine production.

The conference, held at the seat of the Argentine Congress, was also sponsored by the British and Dutch Embassies in Buenos Aires, as well as by the Latin American Initiative on Drugs and Democracy.

Pondering Ecuador's Yasuni Proposal

by Robin Kraft, via the Ecosystem Marketplace
The government of Ecuador raised intriguing questions about Payments for Ecosystem Services a few years back when it offered to avoid drilling for oil in exchange for a carbon payment equal to just half the income the country would earn if it fired up the rigs at then-prevailing prices. EM checks in on this intriguing proposal and invites you to share your views.

7 August 2009 | What would you do if you discovered a lake of oil? And your small, fairly poor country depended heavily upon oil exports?

What if the oil were under a pristine rainforest? In territory controlled by indigenous peoples with almost no contact with the outside world?

Yasuni Guarantee Certificates

As we were wrapping up this story, the official English executive summary of the Yasuní-ITT proposal was released. It clearly presents the Yasuni proposal as an alternative pilot project for the new/alternative Kyoto Protocol, issuing what it calls "Yasuni Guarantee Certificates" (YGCs). You can download it here

Since the discovery of oil in the Ishpingo-Tambococha-Tiputini (ITT) concession in the Yasuni National Park in northeast Ecuador, the government has been grappling with these questions, trying to balance a desire to protect the forest against a desire to benefit from the valuable resource underneath.

In June, 2007, newly-elected President Rafael Correa offered to preserve the rainforest and forego drilling by instituting a ban on drilling in Yasuni – but only if the international community would compensate Ecuador for at least half the forgone oil revenue, or
an estimated

Share Your Thoughts

Any talk of the Yasuni proposal inevitably raises more questions than it answers. We'd like to hear yours. Is the Yasuni proposal viable, or is it just an intriguing idea? And even if it's an intriguing idea, what's so intriguing about it? Visit EKO-ECO.com to share your views.

$350 million a year for a decade. The details of Correa's proposal have evolved since then – the latest figure is an estimated $5.2 billion, funded by sales of carbon bonds – but the basic argument remains the same: by leaving the oil in the ground, he says, Ecuador will not only preserve a forest of unparalleled biodiversity, but also avoid the emission of nearly 400 million tons of CO2 that burning the oil would generate.

Promoters of the plan envision it catalyzing Ecuador's shift away from fossil fuel dependence toward a greener model of development by funding investments in conservation, renewable energy and energy efficiency programs. It also raises intriguing questions about the limits of today's carbon markets and Ecuador's ability to make good on the promise to keep Yasuni oil in the ground forever. Recent developments suggest that Correa and the Yasuni team were able to alleviate some of these concerns before a June deadline for action, with Germany committing to support the proposal politically and financially. Hard cash, however, is proving difficult to come by.

A Unique Corner of the World

The Yasuni National Park isn't just any forest. Besides its natural role as a carbon sink and part of the earth's "lungs" in the Amazon, it is a marvel of biodiversity – with 2.5 acres serving as home to more than 100,000 species of insects and nearly as many native tree species as are found in all of North America. It's believed to have been a refuge for animal and plant species during the last ice age, as tropical forest habitats disappeared from higher latitudes.

Yasuni is also home to several indigenous groups, some of which maintain voluntary isolation from the outside world and live in an "untouchable" zone that extends into the park. Indigenous groups have legal control over much of the park, and would have to sign off on any oil deal.

Underneath the park lies a lake of oil. An estimated 900 million barrels, the oil represents nearly a quarter of Ecuador's reserves and if burned would generate roughly 13 times the country's current annual CO2 emissions.

Ecuador's Resource Curse

But Ecuador is a poster child for the paradox known as the "resource curse", whereby countries rich in natural resources are often unable to dig or drill their way to broad-based prosperity.

Since the end of the 1970s oil boom, Ecuador's per capita GDP (currently $7500 PPP) has grown an average of just 0.75% per year – about half the rate of countries with similar levels of income. Much of that stagnation can be attributed to the 1999 economic crisis, when Ecuadoran income plunged more than 7%. What rebound there's been has come from oil and the sustained rise prices since 2001.

Today, crude oil accounts for 60% of Ecuador's export revenue and 40% of its government's budget. Giving up even a small portion of future oil revenue in the name of conservation would be a major sacrifice for Ecuador, even though decades of oil revenue mismanagement have left 40% of the population in poverty and most citizens leery of big oil and its slippery contracts. In late 2007, Correa decreed a 99% tax on foreign oil firms' windfall profits.

Yolanda Kakabadse, former environment minister and member of the presidential commission on Yasuni, emphasizes that the proposal doesn't eliminate all drilling in Ecuador, nor would drilling increase oil revenue in the short term.

"Over 80% of oil revenues will continue to flow," she says, and points out that there would be little revenue from Yasuni in the five years it would take to build drilling infrastructure and ramp up extraction.

A Greener Development Model

But Kakabadse believes Ecuador needs a development model that doesn't depend on fossil fuels. Instead, she wants one "based on ... sustainability, a changing energy matrix, and preparing for 20 years from now" when the oil is expected to start to running out. The Yasuni proposal would be the first step towards achieving that goal.

Revenue would be generated by annual sales in carbon markets of Yasuni Guarantee Certificates representing the avoided emissions. Germany has reportedly agreed to allow these certificates to be traded in its domestic carbon market like standard carbon certificates in the ETS system. The funds generated over 10-15 years by sales of certificates for 400 million tons of avoided emissions would be managed in a trust fund outside of Ecuador, with interest invested in renewable energy, conservation, energy efficiency and social programs for the peoples of the Amazon, laying the foundation for a low-carbon economy. But the plan has to get over several hurdles before it gets anywhere near funding its first renewable energy program.

Most fundamentally, it's not clear that avoided emissions from Yasuni would really be an overall reduction if consumers of oil get their fix from another source. This could hinder widespread acceptance of Yasuni certificates. The more concrete challenge, however, is that volatility in the price of oil reduces the immediate threat of drilling at the same time it undermines a long-term promise to preserve Yasuni.

Cheap Oil and Yasuni

David Bakter, director of Earth Economics, a firm that has helped Ecuador develop the Yasuni proposal, is concerned that the relatively low price of oil could actually undermine the proposal.

"When oil was $140 a barrel," he says, "those reserves under Yasuni had a lot higher value than they do today." Investors or donor countries might balk at paying hundreds of millions of dollars a year to keep Yasuni oil underground.

Indeed, the difficulty and cost of extracting and processing the poor-quality "heavy" oil under Yasuni makes it unattractive at today's relatively low prices. Correa's wish to keep the oil below ground may "not be granted by the environmentalists" says Roger Tissot, associate consultant with the firm Gas Energía Latin America. "It is going to be granted by market reality" if prices stay low.

National oil companies up to the challenge of working in Yasuni, such as Venezuela's PDVSA, Brazil's Petrobras or China's SINOPEC, may "have put it aside" in the last few months, concedes Kakabadse, "but they have not put it in the drawer." Given its nearly one billion barrels, Yasuni "is on the table."

Cheap Oil Won't Last – Will Yasuni?

Bakter says that the current price "does give us a little more breathing time" to hone the proposal, but notes that "there is nowhere for the price of oil to go but up." When that happens, any deal to protect Yasuni will become more and more expensive in terms of forgone oil revenue unless carbon prices also rise.

This may not be a problem for the Correa administration, according to Carlos Larrea, a professor of political economy at Ecuador's Universidad Andina and one of the architects of the Yasuni proposal. He points out that Correa announced the Yasuni project at a time of high and rising oil prices, suggesting that the "position of the government is independent of the price of oil." In addition, the revenue of bond sales will fluctuate with the price of a ton of carbon on world markets, and is expected to rise with recovery of the world economy and as carbon caps start to take hold.

Investors might need more convincing of the value of Correa's word, however. In an interview in April, Correa declared that, while Ecuador's new constitution bestows extensive protection to the natural environment, he is confident that he can successfully obtain permission to drill "from Congress as well as through popular vote" if credible funding commitments were not forthcoming. He assured listeners, though, that if forced to drill "the environmental impact will be minimized".

Backers of the Yasuni proposal think that this will be a moot point. Germany is on board, and other countries like the UK and Netherlands may follow after visits from the Yasuni commission - Kakabadse says that "there is a lot of enthusiasm" for the proposal "wherever we speak". In September, for example, the city of Madrid will hold a large concert in support of Yasuni that will be telecast around the world.

Wanted: a Political Magic Eight-Ball

Perhaps the greatest concern, however, is the policy of future administrations, which might not share a commitment to conservation, whether five or 50 years from now. If the price of oil gets high enough, it could be worth going back on a promise not to drill, even if it means liquidating the trust fund and giving up interest income.

"There aren't a lot of backstops to the promises of one administration, or even the promises of the constitution if circumstances change," says Jacob Werksman, director of the Institutions and Governance program at the Washington, DC think tank World Resources Institute. In a world of expensive oil, he says it would be difficull to close the gap between the market value of Yasuni's oil and any funding in place to leave it there. As a result, the permanence of any agreement to forgo drilling in Yasuni is far from clear.

The Carbon Market vs the Oil Market

Kakabadse is undeterred, and contends that tapping carbon markets to compensate the country for the avoided emissions would be as lucrative as the oil market, once environmental and infrastructure costs associated with drilling are considered.

"In every sense," she says, Ecuador would "win with the carbon market more than with the oil market."

Capital from carbon markets is the only serious alternative to oil revenue, according to Roque Sevilla, president of the Yasuni commission. Depending on future oil prices and the resulting fluctuation in forgone oil revenue, payments into a Yasuni trust fund could ultimately total $4 to $12 billion, and "such amounts cannot be obtained from donations or development aid from allies."

Launching Ecuador's Green Revolution

But what Ecuador truly needs, says Sevilla, is a "kickoff," a down-payment for future clean energy investments. In this sense it is unimportant how Ecuador starts down the road to a greener economy, and Yasuni is not the only potential vehicle. Still, along with the symbolic value of forgoing oil, the Yasuni proposal preserves incredible biodiversity, ensures that indigenous peoples are undisturbed, and locks away 400 million tons of CO2. What's not to love?

In the end, however the cost-benefit analyses work out, whatever the strength of German support, the price of carbon or oil, and the logistical and political hurdles – which are not insignificant – "this is a political decision that governments must make," says Sevilla. "If they decide in favor of Yasuni, it will work."

If they don't, without a principled stand against drilling like Costa Rica's, it is ironic that cheap oil may be the last bulwark against drilling in Yasuni – Cheap oil could sink the proposal, but cheap oil removes the short-term threat of extraction and thus the short-term need for a proposal in the first place.

Robin Kraft works on environment and energy issues at the Center for Global Development, a think tank in Washington, DC. He can be reached at robin.kraft2@gmail.com.

Paying to keep oil in the ground

Should the world pay Ecuador not to extract oil? President Rafael Correa's argument makes perfect economic sense

Kevin Gallagher, The Guardian, Friday 7 August 2009

Ecuador's President Rafael Correa is often dismissed as a radical leftist. Such has been the response to his proposal that the world pay him not to extract oil from Yasuni National Park in the western Amazon. Yasuni is home to almost 850 million barrels of oil, or 20% of Ecuador's reserves.

A closer look at Correa's proposal reveals that it comes straight out of an economics textbook, and makes perfect sense.

Ecuador has a national income of $7,500 in purchasing power terms, and the top 20% of Ecuadorans have more than half that income. More than half of Ecuador lives on less than $2 per day.

From where Ecuador sits on the global poverty and inequality ladder, the benefits outweigh the costs of extracting the oil. However, take into account the value of the park to the rest of the world, and the benefit-cost ratio shrinks. Its only rational then to ask the world to help pay for what it values.

In Ecuador's case, the net benefits of the project are projected oil revenues minus the costs of extraction. A conservative estimate is that exploiting the oil would bring in $5.7bn in present value terms, or 10% of Ecuador's GDP.

Cutting down the forest to extract oil could cost the country in terms of the other uses of the land that generated income, such as tourism, as well as in losses of biodiversity and carbon dioxide. Many of these benefits, however, may accrue to those outside Ecuador.

Ecuadoran economist Carlos Larrea has a model that tries to estimate some of the broader costs and benefits.

Yasuni is considered the most biodiverse park on the planet and has been named a Unesco Biosphere site. One hectare in the park has more species of trees than all of the United States and Canada combined. In addition to all sorts of flora, one can find ocelots, giant ant-eaters, white bellied spider monkeys, manatees and more.

People from across the world show they value this resource by travelling there – upwards of 20,000 per annum. However, Larrea estimates that those receipts amount to a mere $5m per year. Larrea also looked at losses to the use of other sectors due to degradation of the environment and estimated that to be small, at $56m.

The methodologies for analyses like these are in their infancy, as Frank Ackerman and Lisa Heinzerling show in their book Priceless: On Knowing the Price of Everything and the Value of Nothing. Indeed, the cost figures are gross underestimates. One thing that's missing from this calculation is what economists call the park's "option value". Many around the world derive utility from knowing there are white bellied spider monkeys out there and would be willing to pay to preserve them.

What is more, given that the park is one of the most diverse places in the world, there is a chance it could house the key to some future wonder drug and bring in even higher receipts than the oil. Finally, the park is home to the Waorini, an estimated 20,000 indigenous peoples who have a livelihood and culture that cannot be priced.

What ups the ante is climate change. The carbon dioxide emissions from extracting and burning the oil would be about 375 million tons, and emissions from deforestation would be 172 million – a total of 547 millions tons. The World Bank has estimated the abatement cost for carbon dioxide at $14 to $20 per ton (similar to the range in the pending Waxman-Markey legislation in the US Congress). The cost to the world to abate these emissions will be between $1.7bn and $2.4bn for the extraction and burning, and $909m for deforestation, for a total between $2.6bn and $3.7bn.

Correa proposes that Ecuador issue bonds for the value of the carbon dioxide emissions avoided by preserving the forest. He promises to park the funds at a neutral bank and only spend them on social development and alternative-energy projects in Ecuador. If a future government of Ecuador decides to exploit the oil, they have to repay the bondholders plus interest.

Preserving Yasuni is a rare win-win situation. The rich world (that created the climate problem) can help mitigate it in a relatively low-cost manner. Ecuador obtains the funds to help grow its relatively poor economy. Far from radical populism, this is economic efficiency at its finest.

Ecuador: Increased infrastructure support for communities on Ecuador's northern border

Source: International Organization for Migration (IOM)

Date: 07 Aug 2009

IOM, Italian Cooperation and UNHCR have joined forces to provide better water and sanitation facilities for homes in Barranca Bermeja, a village on the Ecuador-Colombia border that hosts a large number of Colombians in search of international protection and asylum.

Of the 70 families living in Barranca Bermeja, approximately 50 are from Colombia. Many of the children living in the community were born in Ecuador but their parents are Colombians who were forced to flee the violence in their communities of origin.

Following an agreement between IOM and UNHCR, a potable water system was recently completed in Barranca Bermeja providing clean drinking water to the community.

With financial support from Italian Cooperation, IOM and UNHCR also managed to build 35 fully equipped bathrooms for the community.

"Beforehand, Barranca Bermeja did not have access to any basic services. Clean water and increased hygiene have improved the lives of all residents," explain Alejandro Guidi, IOM Chief of Mission in Ecuador.

"But the successful integration of Colombians is a priority for IOM and UNHCR. It's vital for the stability and development of the region," adds Guidi.

Ecuador hosts the largest number of registered Colombian refugees. According to UNHCR figures, 20,000 Colombians have obtained refugee status, and an additional 68,544 have applied for asylum. However, UNHCR estimates that there are some 130,000 Colombians in Ecuador in need of international protection.

Since 2001, IOM has been implementing social and productive infrastructure projects in the provinces along Ecuador's northern border with funds from the United states Agency for International Development (USAID). Nearly 500,000 persons have directly benefited from these projects.

For more information please contact Ana Guzman at IOM-Ecuador, Tel: + (593-2) 225-3948 Email: aguzman@iom.int