Duroyan Fertl, 16 March 2007
Green Left Weekly
The small Andean nation of Ecuador is facing a political crisis as the Congress and the courts turn on each other over new president Rafael Correa’s plans for a Constituent Assembly and a “citizens’ revolution” to build “21st century socialism” in the poverty-stricken country.
Correa, a self-described socialist and close ally of Venezuela’s President Hugo Chavez, was elected late last year promising to redirect Ecuador’s oil wealth into social spending, increase popular democracy and limit the power of the traditional political parties. Central to this platform is convoking a popular Constituent Assembly to rewrite Ecuador’s constitution.
In February the 100-member Congress, which is controlled by parties hostile to Correa and his policies, passed a bill allowing a referendum on the assembly after the opposition Patriotic Society Party (PSP) of former president Lucio Gutierrez voted in favour. However there was an immediate dispute over the power that the assembly will have, Correa arguing for a plenary power enabling it to dismiss not only the Congress and courts, but also the president.
While the Congress disagreed, the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE) endorsed Correa’s statements and announced on March 1 that the referendum would be held on April 15. In response, a majority of Congress, including the PSP, voted to sack the president of the TSE. The court immediately fired back, sacking the 57 members of Congress responsible and setting up a police cordon to prevent the sacked members from entering.
The Constitutional Tribunal has refused to rule on an appeal by the fired lawmakers until Congress endorses it. Congress, however, is unable to convene, as it can’t achieve the required quorum of 51 legislators.
On March 13, 20 legislators broke through police lines and entered the Congress before being removed by riot police using tear gas. Correa blamed the ousted members of Congress for the violence, saying, “These people want to create chaos because they know they’re already out”.
The ousted legislators, made up of members of parties with close ties to Ecuador’s financial oligarchy, have threatened to set up a rival congress in Guayaquil, the country’s second major city and base of the right-wing Social Christian Party.
The Constitutional Tribunal has also warned Correa to obey its forthcoming ruling on the validity of the referendum, but Correa disputes the court’s power to rule on the matter, and has threatened to call mass protests to ensure that the assembly goes ahead.
Humberto Cholango from ECUARUNARI, one of the organisations representing Ecuador’s approximately 40% indigenous population, has also called for a massive mobilisation of all the indigenous and social movements of the country to defend the assembly.
If the referendum is successful, it will allow the election of 130 people who will have four months to rewrite the constitution. A recent poll shows that only 17% of Ecuadorians are satisfied with the Congress, which is regarded as corrupt, while over 75% support the Constituent Assembly.
Showing posts with label ECUARUNARI. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ECUARUNARI. Show all posts
Monday, March 19, 2007
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
Ecuador Court Rules Deputies Stay Out
Quito, Mar 13 (Prensa Latina) In a surprise decision Tuesday, Ecuador s Constitutional Court refused to hear the petition for reinstatement by 57 deputies dismissed by the Supreme Electoral Court (TSE).
The request, presented by Congress leader Jorge Cevallos, enraged the right-wing legislators who had been dismissed by the TSE for attempting to obstruct the referendum on the Constituent Assembly.
According to judicial sources, the Assessment and Receipt Committee determined that, under the Constitution, Cevallos claim failed to fulfil the requisite of support by the majority in Congress.
Just before the decision, a group of dismissed legislators from PRIAN (Institutional Renovator) and Patriotic Society confronted the police and violently entered the congressional building, but Cevallos determined there was not a quorum and suspended today s session.
Meanwhile, hundreds of people have gathered outside the Legislature to guard it and demand expulsion of the dismissed legislators.
President of La Sierra Indigenous Nationalities Confederation, Humberto Cholango, warned that "if the dismissed deputies attempt to return to their seats, this movement and all the people will rise up," because the people are determined to have a Constituent Assembly, he concluded.
Ecuador Assembly, Tooth and Nail
Quito, Mar 12 (Prensa Latina) Ecuador will host this week national protests in defense of the Constituency Assembly and to stop conservative tactics to reinstate 57 legislators removed from office for obstructing a referendum to give that assemblage full power.
The protests will be held at several cities after President Rafael Correa called on the weekend to start a "peaceful resistance" to contend those opposing the Constituency Assembly.
The conservative parties in Congress are Renovador Institucional, Social Cristiano and Christian Democrat.
Movimiento Popular Democratico (MPD), along workers, students, Indigenous people and members of the government Alianza PAIS, announced protests in Guayaquil, south east the capital.
Cesar Rodriguez, regional coordinator for Alianza PAIS, said the protests start the campaign in favor of the referendum slated for April 15 in demand of an Assembly with full power.
Like Rodriguez, Humberto Cholango, leader of the Confederacion de Nacionalidades Indigenas de la Sierra (Ecuarunari), stressed the need to defend the Assembly to change the future of Ecuador.
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Ecuadorian Native movements turn up the heat
From Indian Country, February 19, 2007.
By Lisa Garrigues
LA PAZ, Bolivia - On Jan. 15, Native leaders handed the ceremonial ''staff of power'' to Ecuador's new president, Rafael Correa. Now indigenous movements in Ecuador are putting the pressure on the Ecuadorian government to meet their demands, which include the convocation of a Constitutional Assembly and increased territorial rights in the Ecuadorian Amazon.
During the ceremony of Tantarimuy, held in Cotopaxi province, Correa said his government would be ''a government of the indigenous.''
His leftist views align him with Bolivia's Evo Morales and Hugo Chavez of Venezuela, who attended the ceremony wearing Andean ponchos given to them by Native authorities.
''Latin America will keep changing, because what we are living is not an era of change, it is the change of an era,'' Correa said.
He has promised to build an Ecuador with ''Ecuadorians in charge,'' opposing the free market economic policies of the United States and the International Monetary Fund, and taking back the country's oil wealth from multinational corporations.
Like Morales, he has also promised to convoke a constitutional assembly that will write a new constitution, a move that has the approval of 75 percent of the population of urban centers Quito and Guayaquil, according to recent surveys.
The Constitutional Assembly would have the power ''to limit, restructure (or) dissolve'' any branch of government.
But he faces stiff opposition from Congress and the TSE Supreme Electoral Court, whose members say a constitutional assembly is illegal and fear Correa would use it to consolidate his own power.
''We want the established order to prevail,'' Congressman Federico Perez, of the opposition party, told the radio station Democracy.
Correa has blamed ''mafias'' within the current government who want to hold on to their privilege and power for blocking the constitutional assembly.
CONAIE, the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador, supported its own candidate in the 2005 elections: Luis Macas, Quichua.
But Macas and other indigenous leaders support Correa's efforts to create a new constitution, and have already begun meeting to discuss what should be included in it - like the nationalization of Ecuador's natural resources, agrarian reform, the defense of biodiversity and sovereignty of indigenous lands.
Humberto Cholango, president of ECUARUNARI, the Confederation of Quichuan Peoples of Ecuador, called on indigenous and social movements to take to the streets of Quito to pressure Congress to approve the Constitutional Assembly.
''If they try to stop it, and an indigenous rebellion is necessary, we'll do it,'' he told one reporter.
Five thousand supporters of the Constitutional Assembly clashed with police when they surrounded the congressional building on Jan. 30.
Cholango said CONAIE, ECUARUNARI and dozens of other organizations have banded together to form the National Front for the Plurinational Constituent Assembly.
Meanwhile, Ecuadorian indigenous groups from the Amazon met in Quito the last week of January in what they called an ''extraordinary'' event, bringing together 304 delegates from the Shuar, Kichwa, Shiwar, Andoa, Zapara, Huaorani and Achuar nations to reconstruct the indigenous organization CONFENIAE.
CONFENIAE, the Confederation of Indigenous Nations of the Ecuadorian Amazon Confederation of the Nationalities Indigenous to the Amazon of Ecuador, is associated with CONAIE and COICA, the Coordinator of the Indigenous Organizations of the Amazon Basin: two groups that have been working for indigenous rights for the past 20 years.
Delegates said the organization ''was able to put back together its organizational structure, which was damaged by various economic and oil interests that had brought it to the brink of profound division.''
In their statement following the meeting, delegates affirmed their support for Correa and reminded him of the importance of including representatives of indigenous nations and organizations in the new constitutional assembly.
They also asked that CONFENAIE be given more power over administration of Ecuadorian Amazonian indigenous territory and regional development, as well as a budget of $11 million.
Other demands included the withdrawal and/or renegotiation of mining, logging and oil contracts, reparations for damages sustained by oil development, government intervention in the lawsuit brought by indigenous people against Texaco and the strengthening of education, health and cultural services.
Ecuador's indigenous population is about 25 percent, less than that of neighboring Peru or Bolivia, and clustered in 12 different nations throughout the country's diverse terrain, which include high Andes, Amazon and coastal lands.
But Ecuadorian indigenous movements have wielded enormous power in shaping the political, social and economic history of the country in the last 20 years.
By successfully creating alliances with other dispossessed groups, they were instrumental in bringing populist President Lucio Gutierrez to power in 2003, then in bringing him down again when he didn't fulfill campaign promises.
Repeated protests by indigenous organizations against California-based Occidental Petroleum caused the Ecuadorian government to revoke its contract with the oil company in 2006.
Massive demonstrations by Ecuadorian Native groups have also managed to stall a free trade agreement between the United States and Ecuador, which many indigenous people say will harm local agriculturists with an influx of U.S. products.
By Lisa Garrigues
LA PAZ, Bolivia - On Jan. 15, Native leaders handed the ceremonial ''staff of power'' to Ecuador's new president, Rafael Correa. Now indigenous movements in Ecuador are putting the pressure on the Ecuadorian government to meet their demands, which include the convocation of a Constitutional Assembly and increased territorial rights in the Ecuadorian Amazon.
During the ceremony of Tantarimuy, held in Cotopaxi province, Correa said his government would be ''a government of the indigenous.''
His leftist views align him with Bolivia's Evo Morales and Hugo Chavez of Venezuela, who attended the ceremony wearing Andean ponchos given to them by Native authorities.
''Latin America will keep changing, because what we are living is not an era of change, it is the change of an era,'' Correa said.
He has promised to build an Ecuador with ''Ecuadorians in charge,'' opposing the free market economic policies of the United States and the International Monetary Fund, and taking back the country's oil wealth from multinational corporations.
Like Morales, he has also promised to convoke a constitutional assembly that will write a new constitution, a move that has the approval of 75 percent of the population of urban centers Quito and Guayaquil, according to recent surveys.
The Constitutional Assembly would have the power ''to limit, restructure (or) dissolve'' any branch of government.
But he faces stiff opposition from Congress and the TSE Supreme Electoral Court, whose members say a constitutional assembly is illegal and fear Correa would use it to consolidate his own power.
''We want the established order to prevail,'' Congressman Federico Perez, of the opposition party, told the radio station Democracy.
Correa has blamed ''mafias'' within the current government who want to hold on to their privilege and power for blocking the constitutional assembly.
CONAIE, the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador, supported its own candidate in the 2005 elections: Luis Macas, Quichua.
But Macas and other indigenous leaders support Correa's efforts to create a new constitution, and have already begun meeting to discuss what should be included in it - like the nationalization of Ecuador's natural resources, agrarian reform, the defense of biodiversity and sovereignty of indigenous lands.
Humberto Cholango, president of ECUARUNARI, the Confederation of Quichuan Peoples of Ecuador, called on indigenous and social movements to take to the streets of Quito to pressure Congress to approve the Constitutional Assembly.
''If they try to stop it, and an indigenous rebellion is necessary, we'll do it,'' he told one reporter.
Five thousand supporters of the Constitutional Assembly clashed with police when they surrounded the congressional building on Jan. 30.
Cholango said CONAIE, ECUARUNARI and dozens of other organizations have banded together to form the National Front for the Plurinational Constituent Assembly.
Meanwhile, Ecuadorian indigenous groups from the Amazon met in Quito the last week of January in what they called an ''extraordinary'' event, bringing together 304 delegates from the Shuar, Kichwa, Shiwar, Andoa, Zapara, Huaorani and Achuar nations to reconstruct the indigenous organization CONFENIAE.
CONFENIAE, the Confederation of Indigenous Nations of the Ecuadorian Amazon Confederation of the Nationalities Indigenous to the Amazon of Ecuador, is associated with CONAIE and COICA, the Coordinator of the Indigenous Organizations of the Amazon Basin: two groups that have been working for indigenous rights for the past 20 years.
Delegates said the organization ''was able to put back together its organizational structure, which was damaged by various economic and oil interests that had brought it to the brink of profound division.''
In their statement following the meeting, delegates affirmed their support for Correa and reminded him of the importance of including representatives of indigenous nations and organizations in the new constitutional assembly.
They also asked that CONFENAIE be given more power over administration of Ecuadorian Amazonian indigenous territory and regional development, as well as a budget of $11 million.
Other demands included the withdrawal and/or renegotiation of mining, logging and oil contracts, reparations for damages sustained by oil development, government intervention in the lawsuit brought by indigenous people against Texaco and the strengthening of education, health and cultural services.
Ecuador's indigenous population is about 25 percent, less than that of neighboring Peru or Bolivia, and clustered in 12 different nations throughout the country's diverse terrain, which include high Andes, Amazon and coastal lands.
But Ecuadorian indigenous movements have wielded enormous power in shaping the political, social and economic history of the country in the last 20 years.
By successfully creating alliances with other dispossessed groups, they were instrumental in bringing populist President Lucio Gutierrez to power in 2003, then in bringing him down again when he didn't fulfill campaign promises.
Repeated protests by indigenous organizations against California-based Occidental Petroleum caused the Ecuadorian government to revoke its contract with the oil company in 2006.
Massive demonstrations by Ecuadorian Native groups have also managed to stall a free trade agreement between the United States and Ecuador, which many indigenous people say will harm local agriculturists with an influx of U.S. products.
Wednesday, February 14, 2007
Ecuador Roars for Popular Assembly
Quito, Feb 13 (Prensa Latina) Social, political and indigenous movements are protesting again to the Ecuadorian Congress for an immediate vote on a Constituent Assembly.
Group leaders blame the Parliament for the political crisis and encouraging destabilization of the country, since it has blocked any attempt to give way to the assembly referendum.
President of the Indigenous Nationalities Confederation of Sierra Ecuarunari, Humberto Cholango, denounced the right wing parliamentary majority for kidnapping the plebiscite with an absence to force a limited Assembly.
It was announced later that they did not attend the meeting because of an agreement between the minority bloc and the Patriotic Society (PSP) to approve the consultation.
In this context Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa ratified the call for consultations this week with or without Congress.
During his visit to Puyo city in the Amazonian province of Pastaza, Correa said the people will have a full-powered Assembly to build a new country.
Monday, February 12, 2007
Ecuador's 'citizens' revolution'
Duroyan Fertl,
Green Left Weekly, 8 February 2007
Since his January 15 inauguration, President Rafael Correa has set about implementing his plan for changing Ecuadorian society, centred on a “citizens’ revolution” to refound the country and begin the construction of a “socialism of the 21st century” by investing economic wealth in social spending on health, education, housing and the environment.
Green Left Weekly, 8 February 2007
Since his January 15 inauguration, President Rafael Correa has set about implementing his plan for changing Ecuadorian society, centred on a “citizens’ revolution” to refound the country and begin the construction of a “socialism of the 21st century” by investing economic wealth in social spending on health, education, housing and the environment.
In an effort to curb pollution, on February 3 Correa declared that Ecuador would suspend the contracts of oil companies who needlessly damage the environment. The decision follows the recent announcement that the Ecuadorian government had made US$1 billion from the oilfields of Oxy Petroleum, whose concessions were revoked a year ago for breach of contract. Correa has announced his intention to renegotiate contracts with other oil companies to give the government a larger share of the profits, to use for social spending.
Already under investigation is Brazil’s Petrobras, which holds the right to explore Oil Block 31, located in one of the world’s most biologically diverse regions. Another target of the government’s ire is a mine planned by Ascendant Copper in Junin. Ascendant’s environmental impact statement was rejected in late 2006, and the company is also accused of using paramilitary groups to intimidate and assault local opponents of the mine.
On February 5, Ecuador announced that it will take Colombia to the International Court of Justice over the spraying of glyphosate near the border and over parts of Ecuador. In December last year, Ecuador temporarily withdrew its ambassador from Colombia over the issue. The spraying is part of the US-funded “war on drugs” and is designed to kill coca plants, the source of the raw material for cocaine. However, it also leads to massive environmental damage, birth defects and the poisoning of the watertable.
The government’s new budget, delivered on January 31, promised a $1 billion reduction in foreign debt payments and repeated the government’s intention to renegotiate much of the debt. The government also outlined a plan to reform the tax system, lowering the value-added tax from 12% to 10% while increasing company taxes. On February 1, Correa announced the doubling of social benefits to more than a million of the poorest and most vulnerable, including the sick and single mothers.
Correa has already suffered some setbacks, however. Banana-growers have protested his choice of agriculture minister, Carlos Vallejo — a former associate of Correa’s rival in last year’s presidential election, Alvaro Noboa. Noboa is Ecuador’s richest man and owns numerous banana plantations. He is accused of using child labour and violently breaking strikes. Another associate of Noboa’s, Francisco Cucalon, recently appointed attorney-general, resigned on January 31 amid protests by Correa and others that his appointment was unconstitutional.
Another setback for Correa was the death on January 24, after only nine days in office, of Guadalupe Larriva, Ecuador’s first ever female defence minister. Larriva died in a collision of two military helicopters near Manta air base. She was a former president of the Socialist Party of Ecuador and head of the teachers’ union, and had been planning to renovate the armed forces, including increasing wages for low-ranking soldiers.
An independent investigation initiated by the government found nothing suspicious about the death. Nevertheless, Correa has replaced the head of the army. He has appointed another woman, Lorena Escudero, as defence minister. Since coming to power, Correa has also replaced three police chiefs, the latest on January 27, as he attempts to reform an institution rife with corruption.
The most important part of Correa’s reform program, the convoking of an assembly to rewrite the constitution, similar to efforts in Venezuela and Bolivia, has set the scene for a major showdown with the political forces traditionally dominant in Ecuador. The Constituent Assembly, which is supported by upwards of 75% of Ecuadorians, has been hindered by the traditional parties that dominate the Congress and Supreme Electoral Court (TSE), which fear it will reduce their power.
The TSE deliberately dragged its heels on declaring the legality of a planned March 18 referendum on the Constituent Assembly, before handballing the decision to the Congress after hundreds of pro-assembly protesters broke into the courtroom on January 23. Congress, also hostile to Correa, has since been stalling on the bill, as the parties debate the exact powers that the assembly will have and attempt to water it down to ensure their continuing control.
On January 30, thousands of protesters stormed the Congress, demanding it pass the bill, chanting “Death to the rats!” and “Down with the Congress, yes to the assembly!” Authorities evacuated the building and dispersed protesters with tear-gas. Protesters were also incensed that members of Congress, regarded by most Ecuadorians as corrupt, had also just voted to increase their salaries.
On February 6, the Congress blocked a vote on the assembly. The Patriotic Society Party of former president Lucio Gutierrez, who was overthrown in a popular uprising in 2005, had previously promised to support the bill but refused to vote for it. The PSP is the second largest party in Congress with 24 out of 100 seats, giving it the balance of power. It is widely believed that the PSP’s support for the bill will be conditional on them gaining key positions in the assembly and in the government.
Correa, who described Gutierrez as a “viper”, has threatened that if the Congress continues to stall or doesn’t pass the bill, it will be bypassed. Vice-President Lenin Moreno has suggested that an “ad hoc” committee could be convoked to set the parameters for the Constituent Assembly. Correa has also threatened to call further mass demonstrations to force the Congress to pass the bill, saying “The fight here is between the Congress and 13 million Ecuadorians”.
The social movements are feeling similarly frustrated. Humberto Cholango, of the indigenous organisation ECUARUNARI, has threatened that an indigenous uprising could be organised to force the issue. Similar uprisings have led to the overthrow of three presidents in the last decade. ECUARUNARI, the main indigenous federation CONAIE and dozens of other social movements and organisations have united to form the National Front for the Plurinational Constituent Assembly. A massive march on Quito is planned for March 13 to demand the Congress obey the popular mandate.
Already under investigation is Brazil’s Petrobras, which holds the right to explore Oil Block 31, located in one of the world’s most biologically diverse regions. Another target of the government’s ire is a mine planned by Ascendant Copper in Junin. Ascendant’s environmental impact statement was rejected in late 2006, and the company is also accused of using paramilitary groups to intimidate and assault local opponents of the mine.
On February 5, Ecuador announced that it will take Colombia to the International Court of Justice over the spraying of glyphosate near the border and over parts of Ecuador. In December last year, Ecuador temporarily withdrew its ambassador from Colombia over the issue. The spraying is part of the US-funded “war on drugs” and is designed to kill coca plants, the source of the raw material for cocaine. However, it also leads to massive environmental damage, birth defects and the poisoning of the watertable.
The government’s new budget, delivered on January 31, promised a $1 billion reduction in foreign debt payments and repeated the government’s intention to renegotiate much of the debt. The government also outlined a plan to reform the tax system, lowering the value-added tax from 12% to 10% while increasing company taxes. On February 1, Correa announced the doubling of social benefits to more than a million of the poorest and most vulnerable, including the sick and single mothers.
Correa has already suffered some setbacks, however. Banana-growers have protested his choice of agriculture minister, Carlos Vallejo — a former associate of Correa’s rival in last year’s presidential election, Alvaro Noboa. Noboa is Ecuador’s richest man and owns numerous banana plantations. He is accused of using child labour and violently breaking strikes. Another associate of Noboa’s, Francisco Cucalon, recently appointed attorney-general, resigned on January 31 amid protests by Correa and others that his appointment was unconstitutional.
Another setback for Correa was the death on January 24, after only nine days in office, of Guadalupe Larriva, Ecuador’s first ever female defence minister. Larriva died in a collision of two military helicopters near Manta air base. She was a former president of the Socialist Party of Ecuador and head of the teachers’ union, and had been planning to renovate the armed forces, including increasing wages for low-ranking soldiers.
An independent investigation initiated by the government found nothing suspicious about the death. Nevertheless, Correa has replaced the head of the army. He has appointed another woman, Lorena Escudero, as defence minister. Since coming to power, Correa has also replaced three police chiefs, the latest on January 27, as he attempts to reform an institution rife with corruption.
The most important part of Correa’s reform program, the convoking of an assembly to rewrite the constitution, similar to efforts in Venezuela and Bolivia, has set the scene for a major showdown with the political forces traditionally dominant in Ecuador. The Constituent Assembly, which is supported by upwards of 75% of Ecuadorians, has been hindered by the traditional parties that dominate the Congress and Supreme Electoral Court (TSE), which fear it will reduce their power.
The TSE deliberately dragged its heels on declaring the legality of a planned March 18 referendum on the Constituent Assembly, before handballing the decision to the Congress after hundreds of pro-assembly protesters broke into the courtroom on January 23. Congress, also hostile to Correa, has since been stalling on the bill, as the parties debate the exact powers that the assembly will have and attempt to water it down to ensure their continuing control.
On January 30, thousands of protesters stormed the Congress, demanding it pass the bill, chanting “Death to the rats!” and “Down with the Congress, yes to the assembly!” Authorities evacuated the building and dispersed protesters with tear-gas. Protesters were also incensed that members of Congress, regarded by most Ecuadorians as corrupt, had also just voted to increase their salaries.
On February 6, the Congress blocked a vote on the assembly. The Patriotic Society Party of former president Lucio Gutierrez, who was overthrown in a popular uprising in 2005, had previously promised to support the bill but refused to vote for it. The PSP is the second largest party in Congress with 24 out of 100 seats, giving it the balance of power. It is widely believed that the PSP’s support for the bill will be conditional on them gaining key positions in the assembly and in the government.
Correa, who described Gutierrez as a “viper”, has threatened that if the Congress continues to stall or doesn’t pass the bill, it will be bypassed. Vice-President Lenin Moreno has suggested that an “ad hoc” committee could be convoked to set the parameters for the Constituent Assembly. Correa has also threatened to call further mass demonstrations to force the Congress to pass the bill, saying “The fight here is between the Congress and 13 million Ecuadorians”.
The social movements are feeling similarly frustrated. Humberto Cholango, of the indigenous organisation ECUARUNARI, has threatened that an indigenous uprising could be organised to force the issue. Similar uprisings have led to the overthrow of three presidents in the last decade. ECUARUNARI, the main indigenous federation CONAIE and dozens of other social movements and organisations have united to form the National Front for the Plurinational Constituent Assembly. A massive march on Quito is planned for March 13 to demand the Congress obey the popular mandate.
Friday, February 02, 2007
Ecuadorians March for Participatory Democracy
Written by Cyril Mychalejko
Thousands of Ecuadorians marched in Quito on Tuesday, some storming Congress, to demand that the widely unpopular legislative body vote to hold a referendum for a constitutional assembly to rewrite the country’s constitution.
The situation turned violent when police fired tear gas at the protestors making their way into the Congressional session.
Press reports have tried to manipulate the nature of the protests by suggesting that it was being orchestrated only by "supporters" and "backers" of the country’s newly elected leftist president Rafael Correa without qualifying that Correa’s "supporters" and "backers" consists of a majority of Ecuadorians. Correa was elected into office with close to 60 percent of the vote and a recent poll by Cedatos/Gallup shows that he enjoys the support of 73 percent of Ecuadorians.
Although the referendum seems to have a majority of support in Congress, which according to the same poll enjoys only 13 percent approval, Correa had to cut a deal with disgraced former president Lucio Gutiérrez (who was ousted in a popular uprising in 2005) and his Patriotic Society Party (PSP). One of the stipulations is to lift a ban on political activity for Gutiérrez, thus allowing him to run for the constituent assembly.
But if for some reason the process gets stalled in Congress social movements are ready to act.
The Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (CONAIE) stated that Congress could expect country-wide mobilizations if steps to hold the referendum are not taken immediately.
The president of the Confederation of Kichwa Peoples of Ecuador (ECUARUNARI), a powerful CONAIE member organization, told Inter Press Service that an "indigenous uprising" could be organized.
"The constituent assembly cannot be blocked by a few legislators. It is a demand by the people, and will become reality. If they try to stop it and an indigenous uprising is required (to make it happen), then that's what we'll do," said ECUARUNARI president Humberto Cholango.
Thursday, February 01, 2007
ECUADOR: The Complicated Road to a Constituent Assembly
Kintto Lucas
QUITO, Jan 31 (IPS) - One of the key campaign pledges of Ecuador's new left-leaning president, Rafael Correa, was to hold a referendum for the creation of a constituent assembly to rewrite the constitution, in order to bring about radical political and economic reforms.
While the popular pressure and a political pact between the government and former president Lucio Gutiérrez (2003-2005) would seem to guarantee that the referendum will take place, a decision by the electoral court to put the question in the hands of Congress has angered many of the social organisations that back Correa.
The groups, worried that Gutiérrez will not live up to his part of the agreement, decided to hold protests outside of the single-chamber Congress in order to pressure the legislators to approve the referendum.
When some 5,000 demonstrators gathered outside the legislature Tuesday, the congressional session was suspended, and lawmakers were escorted out of the building by police.
A smaller group of protesters then shoved their way through the police cordon and into the legislature, which they occupied briefly until they were dispersed with tear gas by the police.
Although Congress was getting ready to vote on the referendum for a constituent assembly, which, if approved, would be organised by the electoral court, the protest reflected the social movements' distrust of the legislature, to which Correa himself referred during the campaign as a "sewer of corruption."
Correa's Alianza País party did not field congressional candidates of its own, which means the president depends on allies, such as Gutiérrez's Patriotic Society Party (PSP), to push through reforms like the constituent assembly.
The demonstrators were also protesting a decision by the legislators to increase their salaries by 1,000 dollars, just three weeks after they reduced them and pledged that the current legislative period would be marked by austerity.
Luis Villacís, the leader of the Popular Democratic Movement (MPD), told IPS that the demonstration "expressed the people's demand for a referendum to establish a constituent assembly."
The MPD, whose members made up the bulk of Tuesday's protesters, is comprised of teachers' unions and associations of students and small businesses.
Trade unionist Mesías Tatamuez, who has links to the Socialist Party, said the demonstrations would not only continue, but would expand throughout the country.
The labour activist said that the mobilisation is also aimed at getting the government to "open up to a broader dialogue" with the country's civil society organisations, whose views -- he complained -- are not being taken into account.
The government "is acting on its own," and "if we want to defeat the right, we must open ourselves up to dialogue" and create a large unified front, he argued.
"We have launched a process of mobilisation until Congress respects the Ecuadorian people's demand for change and decides to call a referendum," said César Rodríguez, who coordinated the supporters of the ruling Alianza País party during the demonstration.
The Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (CONAIE), which did not take part in Tuesday's demonstration, announced protests of its own and a possible "uprising" -- along the lines of past nationwide indigenous mobilisations -- unless clear steps were taken to call a referendum.
ECUARUNARI (Confederation of Kichwa Peoples of Ecuador), the most powerful CONAIE member organisation, held a special assembly on Monday and Tuesday to draw up a schedule of activities to press for the referendum.
"The constituent assembly cannot be blocked by a few legislators. It is a demand by the people, and will become reality. If they try to stop it and an indigenous uprising is required (to make it happen), then that's what we'll do," said ECUARUNARI president Humberto Cholango.
Cholango said CONAIE, ECUARUNARI and dozens of other social organisations and movements have joined together in a National Front for the Plurinational Constituent Assembly, which plans to participate in the assembly as a unified body.
"Only by means of unity among the social organisations of the countryside and the cities can we defeat the rightwing power groups which, since they won't be able to block the constituent assembly, will try to take it over, in order to impose their own interests," said the activist.
The head of CONAIE, Luis Macas, reported that indigenous communities and organisations are beginning to discuss aspects to be included in the foundations of the new, overhauled political, legal and economic structures in Ecuador.
"It is essential to discuss issues that must be considered by the constituent assembly and must be in the new constitution, like the defence of sovereignty, the nationalisation of natural resources, the defence of biodiversity, and the agrarian revolution," said Macas.
In surveys by the Datanálisis and Cedatos polling firms, 85 and 80 percent of respondents, respectively, said they backed the creation of a constituent assembly.
The intricate political pact between Correa and Gutiérrez to convene the assembly includes several steps or conditions. The first was the government's support last week for the designation of a PSP representative as president of the electoral court.
The Correa administration also appointed one of the former president's associates as head of the Banco Nacional de Fomento (national development bank).
But instead of deciding on Correa's request for a referendum, the electoral court sent the proposal to Congress to determine whether or not it is "constitutional."
Another point in the agreement was for the electoral court to lift the ban on political activity that hangs over Gutiérrez, to allow him to run for a seat on the constituent assembly.
In addition, Correa is to choose the new comptroller-general from a list of names sent to him by Congress, which is made up of people with links to Gutiérrez.
Correa said he backed the idea of Gutiérrez running for a seat on the constituent assembly, so that he can be "defeated at the polls."
Some sectors that support Correa have criticised his pact with Gutiérrez, who the president has publicly described as a "snake."
The demonstrations began a week after the electoral court left the decision on the referendum up to Congress, although the government downplayed the importance of that move. "The final resolution will be a call for a popular consultation (referendum)," said Interior Minister Gustavo Larrea.
"We have made it clear that we support the consultation, and we will vote in Congress to give the question fast-track treatment," said the head of the PSP, Gilmar Gutiérrez, Lucio's brother and the party's presidential candidate in the elections.
The referendum apparently has majority support in the 100-member legislature, with the backing of 53 lawmakers: 24 from the PSP, 11 from the Democratic Left and Ethical Network, six from the indigenous Pachakutik Movement, three from the Popular Democratic Movement, one from the Socialist Party, one from the New Country Movement, six from the populist Ecuadorian Roldosista Party, and one independent. (END/2007)
QUITO, Jan 31 (IPS) - One of the key campaign pledges of Ecuador's new left-leaning president, Rafael Correa, was to hold a referendum for the creation of a constituent assembly to rewrite the constitution, in order to bring about radical political and economic reforms.
While the popular pressure and a political pact between the government and former president Lucio Gutiérrez (2003-2005) would seem to guarantee that the referendum will take place, a decision by the electoral court to put the question in the hands of Congress has angered many of the social organisations that back Correa.
The groups, worried that Gutiérrez will not live up to his part of the agreement, decided to hold protests outside of the single-chamber Congress in order to pressure the legislators to approve the referendum.
When some 5,000 demonstrators gathered outside the legislature Tuesday, the congressional session was suspended, and lawmakers were escorted out of the building by police.
A smaller group of protesters then shoved their way through the police cordon and into the legislature, which they occupied briefly until they were dispersed with tear gas by the police.
Although Congress was getting ready to vote on the referendum for a constituent assembly, which, if approved, would be organised by the electoral court, the protest reflected the social movements' distrust of the legislature, to which Correa himself referred during the campaign as a "sewer of corruption."
Correa's Alianza País party did not field congressional candidates of its own, which means the president depends on allies, such as Gutiérrez's Patriotic Society Party (PSP), to push through reforms like the constituent assembly.
The demonstrators were also protesting a decision by the legislators to increase their salaries by 1,000 dollars, just three weeks after they reduced them and pledged that the current legislative period would be marked by austerity.
Luis Villacís, the leader of the Popular Democratic Movement (MPD), told IPS that the demonstration "expressed the people's demand for a referendum to establish a constituent assembly."
The MPD, whose members made up the bulk of Tuesday's protesters, is comprised of teachers' unions and associations of students and small businesses.
Trade unionist Mesías Tatamuez, who has links to the Socialist Party, said the demonstrations would not only continue, but would expand throughout the country.
The labour activist said that the mobilisation is also aimed at getting the government to "open up to a broader dialogue" with the country's civil society organisations, whose views -- he complained -- are not being taken into account.
The government "is acting on its own," and "if we want to defeat the right, we must open ourselves up to dialogue" and create a large unified front, he argued.
"We have launched a process of mobilisation until Congress respects the Ecuadorian people's demand for change and decides to call a referendum," said César Rodríguez, who coordinated the supporters of the ruling Alianza País party during the demonstration.
The Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (CONAIE), which did not take part in Tuesday's demonstration, announced protests of its own and a possible "uprising" -- along the lines of past nationwide indigenous mobilisations -- unless clear steps were taken to call a referendum.
ECUARUNARI (Confederation of Kichwa Peoples of Ecuador), the most powerful CONAIE member organisation, held a special assembly on Monday and Tuesday to draw up a schedule of activities to press for the referendum.
"The constituent assembly cannot be blocked by a few legislators. It is a demand by the people, and will become reality. If they try to stop it and an indigenous uprising is required (to make it happen), then that's what we'll do," said ECUARUNARI president Humberto Cholango.
Cholango said CONAIE, ECUARUNARI and dozens of other social organisations and movements have joined together in a National Front for the Plurinational Constituent Assembly, which plans to participate in the assembly as a unified body.
"Only by means of unity among the social organisations of the countryside and the cities can we defeat the rightwing power groups which, since they won't be able to block the constituent assembly, will try to take it over, in order to impose their own interests," said the activist.
The head of CONAIE, Luis Macas, reported that indigenous communities and organisations are beginning to discuss aspects to be included in the foundations of the new, overhauled political, legal and economic structures in Ecuador.
"It is essential to discuss issues that must be considered by the constituent assembly and must be in the new constitution, like the defence of sovereignty, the nationalisation of natural resources, the defence of biodiversity, and the agrarian revolution," said Macas.
In surveys by the Datanálisis and Cedatos polling firms, 85 and 80 percent of respondents, respectively, said they backed the creation of a constituent assembly.
The intricate political pact between Correa and Gutiérrez to convene the assembly includes several steps or conditions. The first was the government's support last week for the designation of a PSP representative as president of the electoral court.
The Correa administration also appointed one of the former president's associates as head of the Banco Nacional de Fomento (national development bank).
But instead of deciding on Correa's request for a referendum, the electoral court sent the proposal to Congress to determine whether or not it is "constitutional."
Another point in the agreement was for the electoral court to lift the ban on political activity that hangs over Gutiérrez, to allow him to run for a seat on the constituent assembly.
In addition, Correa is to choose the new comptroller-general from a list of names sent to him by Congress, which is made up of people with links to Gutiérrez.
Correa said he backed the idea of Gutiérrez running for a seat on the constituent assembly, so that he can be "defeated at the polls."
Some sectors that support Correa have criticised his pact with Gutiérrez, who the president has publicly described as a "snake."
The demonstrations began a week after the electoral court left the decision on the referendum up to Congress, although the government downplayed the importance of that move. "The final resolution will be a call for a popular consultation (referendum)," said Interior Minister Gustavo Larrea.
"We have made it clear that we support the consultation, and we will vote in Congress to give the question fast-track treatment," said the head of the PSP, Gilmar Gutiérrez, Lucio's brother and the party's presidential candidate in the elections.
The referendum apparently has majority support in the 100-member legislature, with the backing of 53 lawmakers: 24 from the PSP, 11 from the Democratic Left and Ethical Network, six from the indigenous Pachakutik Movement, three from the Popular Democratic Movement, one from the Socialist Party, one from the New Country Movement, six from the populist Ecuadorian Roldosista Party, and one independent. (END/2007)
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