Ecuador's Congress swears in 21 alternate lawmakers to achieve quorum amid political crisis

IHT, Mar 20, 2007
QUITO, Ecuador: Ecuador's constitutional crisis took a new twist as alternate lawmakers were escorted into Congress under the cover of darkness and sworn in to replace some of the legislators fired by the country's highest electoral court.

The 21 alternate lawmakers were shuttled to the congressional building before dawn Tuesday as hundreds of national police stood watch, allowing the 100-seat unicameral legislature to begin a session with a quorum of 55 lawmakers for the first time in two weeks.

The crisis deepened in early March when a majority of congressmen voted to oust the president of the Supreme Electoral Tribunal for approving President Rafael Correa's version of an April 15 referendum plan on the need for a new constitution. The tribunal responded by dismissing 57 lawmakers, accusing them of trying to block the referendum.

Correa, a leftist whose party holds no seats in the current Congress, is pushing for a new charter to limit the power of the country's traditional political parties, which he blames for the country's corruption and political instability. Ecuador has had eight presidents in the last decade.

Correa has acknowledged that administration officials met with groups of alternate congressmen to encourage them to take up the posts left by the dismissal of the regular legislators, but it is unclear what affect the alternate lawmakers will have on Correa's influence in Congress. The 21 alternate lawmakers installed Tuesday belonged to the three major opposition parties.

Congress president Jorge Cevallos said the installation of the lawmakers was intended to "overcome the political crisis."

The fired congressmen, however, immediately condemned the alternate congressmen as traitors.

"They have betrayed their political party," Alfonso Harb, an ousted Social Christian lawmaker said, referring to three alternates from his party who took the oath of office. "We don't recognize the legitimacy of today's session."

Although the 21 alternate lawmakers allow for a 51-member quorum in Congress, many congressional decisions need a two-thirds majority — or 67 votes — to pass. That means if the remaining 36 alternate lawmakers are not sworn in, Congress may not be able to pass important legislation.

Cevallos said he hopes to have those alternates installed by next week. If not, he said he will call on the second alternates.

The alternate lawmakers were elected at the same time as the regular congressmen, and are supposedly hand-picked by the lawmakers they stand in for and represent the same political parties.

Alvaro Noboa, the billionaire banana baron defeated in November's presidential election runoff, accused Correa of offering the alternate lawmakers money or other favors to get them to take up their posts in Congress, which the president has called "a sewer of corruption."

Noboa said it was an example of the "the system of the briefcase man" at work, Ecuadorean slang for political bribes.

Correa's administration has denied bribing the alternate lawmakers.

"This is not a good start," Cevallos said of the substitute lawmakers' sneaking into Congress before dawn. "They should come in through the front door. No one has any reason to hide."

Former President Lucio Gutierrez also criticized the alternate congressmen for entering the building with police protection.

"What kind of democracy is this?" said Gutierrez, who was forced from office in April 2005 by Congress amid street protests. "This is a de facto government that intimidates, that persecutes people."

Dozens of angry protesters gathered in front of the congressional building early Tuesday, most in support of an assembly to write a new constitution.

Ecuador's power struggle

The Economist, Mar 20, 2007

The president is battling with opposition lawmakers

President Rafael Correa seems to have the upper hand in a major conflict with opposition legislators, following the ouster earlier in March of 57 lawmakers who resisted his plans to hold a referendum on calling a constituent assembly. However, the institutional crisis is growing, along with risks to governance and stability.

Following a decision by Mr Correa, approved by the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE) on March 1st, to hold a national referendum on April 15th, opposition legislators attempted to block the poll with a series of political manoeuvres, including a vote to replace the head of the TSE. The TSE judges on March 7th ruled that vote invalid, and subsequently removed 57 lawmakers—more than half of the total of 100—who had backed it. They also stripped these legislators of their political rights for a year.

Not only did this leave parliamentary activity at a standstill. The showdown also triggered street protests involving indigenous groups, leftist political organisations, students and others who support the Correa administration’s reform plans. There has also been violence against some of the lawmakers who have resisted their dismissals and attempted to regain entry into the premises of the National Assembly.

The deposed lawmakers lost another legal battle on March 16th, when a higher court, the Constitutional Tribunal, rejected their request for an injunction against the firings. It is now uncertain whether they can continue to appeal their dismissals through legal means. While some sort of negotiated solution between the TSE and opposition parties is possible, the chances of that grow more remote as the days pass.

How much executive power?

The crux of the dispute lies in the specifics of the statute that sets out the rules for the referendum. Congress, which is dominated by opposition parties, voted to approve the measure in February as long as the constituent assembly would not have the power to dissolve the legislature. However, President Correa subsequently left intact a provision that would indeed give the constituent assembly full powers, including the authority to shut the National Assembly. It is this version that the electoral court approved.

Opposition political parties, although widely discredited among the population, are striving to retain their privileges and authority amid a power struggle with the executive branch. Yet Mr Correa, little more than two months in office but backed by strong popular support, seems to have the advantage in the conflict so far. He has put political reform at the top of his agenda, and has pursued it astutely.

However, the prospects of political instability, Ecuador’s chronic problem, are ever present and may be increasing with Mr Correa’s strategy. By encouraging his supporters to take the streets to pressure legislators and put his power on display, he is resorting to a political tool that may later escalate beyond his control.

Legislative gridlock is another growing risk, as Mr Correa’s party has no representation of its own in congress. He has called on the ousted lawmakers to be replaced with substitutes from their own parties, but thus far opposition party leaders have refused to seat replacements. The legislature, without a quorum, therefore remains suspended. To end the gridlock, the government will try to get a minimum of eight legislators replaced in the coming days. Given that this would restore a quorum (at least 51 out of 100 legislators), congress would re-open.

Mr Correa is also fuelling concerns among his opponents, the business sector and foreign investors that he is seeking to increase the power of the executive branch at the expense of other institutions, thereby undermining democracy in the country. He is being increasingly compared with Venezuela’s president, Hugo Chávez, who similarly rewrote the constitution and has concentrated authority in his own hands.

But the new president based his electoral campaign on a promise that he would amend the constitution and reduce the power of Ecuador’s traditional political parties, which are widely accused of being corrupt and are blamed for the country’s persistent instability. The legislature was responsible for the removal of Ecuador’s last three elected presidents. No president in the past decade has completed his full term.

Forging ahead

With his enormous popularity rating of more than 70%, Mr Correa can be expected to vigorously pursue his radical reform plans. The referendum is likely to take place as planned, probably with the support of at least one opposition party, the Partido Social Patriótico (PSP, of former President Lucio Gutiérrez), the second-largest party in congress. Moreover, the public is apt to vote overwhelmingly in favour of the constituent assembly and reform of the constitution, in a clear victory for the president.

Yet Mr Correa now is likely to find it difficult to achieve consensus on the specific responsibilities of the constituent assembly and the finer details of the reforms. Moreover, even if the PSP backs the process, this support will be fragile, as its leader, Mr Gutiérrez, seeks concessions that will increase his own political influence. Absent these, he could withdraw his support.

Finally, the main features of Ecuadorean politics—social and regional tensions, weak and divided institutions, and frequent popular protest—will keep the risk of instability, and the threats to Mr Correa’s ability to govern, very high.

The Economist, Mar 20, 2007

The president is battling with opposition lawmakers

President Rafael Correa seems to have the upper hand in a major conflict with opposition legislators, following the ouster earlier in March of 57 lawmakers who resisted his plans to hold a referendum on calling a constituent assembly. However, the institutional crisis is growing, along with risks to governance and stability.

Following a decision by Mr Correa, approved by the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE) on March 1st, to hold a national referendum on April 15th, opposition legislators attempted to block the poll with a series of political manoeuvres, including a vote to replace the head of the TSE. The TSE judges on March 7th ruled that vote invalid, and subsequently removed 57 lawmakers—more than half of the total of 100—who had backed it. They also stripped these legislators of their political rights for a year.

Not only did this leave parliamentary activity at a standstill. The showdown also triggered street protests involving indigenous groups, leftist political organisations, students and others who support the Correa administration’s reform plans. There has also been violence against some of the lawmakers who have resisted their dismissals and attempted to regain entry into the premises of the National Assembly.

The deposed lawmakers lost another legal battle on March 16th, when a higher court, the Constitutional Tribunal, rejected their request for an injunction against the firings. It is now uncertain whether they can continue to appeal their dismissals through legal means. While some sort of negotiated solution between the TSE and opposition parties is possible, the chances of that grow more remote as the days pass.

How much executive power?

The crux of the dispute lies in the specifics of the statute that sets out the rules for the referendum. Congress, which is dominated by opposition parties, voted to approve the measure in February as long as the constituent assembly would not have the power to dissolve the legislature. However, President Correa subsequently left intact a provision that would indeed give the constituent assembly full powers, including the authority to shut the National Assembly. It is this version that the electoral court approved.

Opposition political parties, although widely discredited among the population, are striving to retain their privileges and authority amid a power struggle with the executive branch. Yet Mr Correa, little more than two months in office but backed by strong popular support, seems to have the advantage in the conflict so far. He has put political reform at the top of his agenda, and has pursued it astutely.

However, the prospects of political instability, Ecuador’s chronic problem, are ever present and may be increasing with Mr Correa’s strategy. By encouraging his supporters to take the streets to pressure legislators and put his power on display, he is resorting to a political tool that may later escalate beyond his control.

Legislative gridlock is another growing risk, as Mr Correa’s party has no representation of its own in congress. He has called on the ousted lawmakers to be replaced with substitutes from their own parties, but thus far opposition party leaders have refused to seat replacements. The legislature, without a quorum, therefore remains suspended. To end the gridlock, the government will try to get a minimum of eight legislators replaced in the coming days. Given that this would restore a quorum (at least 51 out of 100 legislators), congress would re-open.

Mr Correa is also fuelling concerns among his opponents, the business sector and foreign investors that he is seeking to increase the power of the executive branch at the expense of other institutions, thereby undermining democracy in the country. He is being increasingly compared with Venezuela’s president, Hugo Chávez, who similarly rewrote the constitution and has concentrated authority in his own hands.

But the new president based his electoral campaign on a promise that he would amend the constitution and reduce the power of Ecuador’s traditional political parties, which are widely accused of being corrupt and are blamed for the country’s persistent instability. The legislature was responsible for the removal of Ecuador’s last three elected presidents. No president in the past decade has completed his full term.

Forging ahead

With his enormous popularity rating of more than 70%, Mr Correa can be expected to vigorously pursue his radical reform plans. The referendum is likely to take place as planned, probably with the support of at least one opposition party, the Partido Social Patriótico (PSP, of former President Lucio Gutiérrez), the second-largest party in congress. Moreover, the public is apt to vote overwhelmingly in favour of the constituent assembly and reform of the constitution, in a clear victory for the president.

Yet Mr Correa now is likely to find it difficult to achieve consensus on the specific responsibilities of the constituent assembly and the finer details of the reforms. Moreover, even if the PSP backs the process, this support will be fragile, as its leader, Mr Gutiérrez, seeks concessions that will increase his own political influence. Absent these, he could withdraw his support.

Finally, the main features of Ecuadorean politics—social and regional tensions, weak and divided institutions, and frequent popular protest—will keep the risk of instability, and the threats to Mr Correa’s ability to govern, very high.

Correa's radical plans spark battle in Ecuador

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.

Ecuadorean Opposition Plans Parallel Congress After Shooting

By Alex Kennedy and Bill Faries

March 14 (Bloomberg) -- Ecuador's suspended lawmakers, in a challenge to President Rafael Correa, plan to hold a parallel session outside Quito after police blocked their entry to the capitol and two supporters were wounded in a drive-by shooting.

Congresswoman Gloria Gallardo said opposition leaders now have backing from more than two-thirds of the 100-member congress to meet as an alternative assembly next week. Riot police used tear gas yesterday to stop the lawmakers from reaching their offices after the electoral court suspended the ``political rights'' of 57 opposition members last week.

``We're seeing a regime that's an authentic dictatorship,'' former President Lucio Gutierrez, a leader of the opposition Patriotic Society party, said in a telephone interview from Quito. ``Violence has been rising in a dangerous way, and it could at some point turn into a civil war in Ecuador.''

The shooting, which occurred outside the Marriott Hotel, where the lawmakers retreated, deepens a clash over Correa's plans to remake the country along what he calls socialist economic and political lines. Correa's proposal for a new constitution -- the trigger for the current showdown -- echoes steps taken by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Bolivian President Evo Morales to consolidate their control over the congress, courts and election authorities.

``They abused their power, they thought they were immune,'' Correa said in comments broadcast on the Cablenoticias television station after the legislators were shut out of their offices. ``Now they're getting a taste of their own medicine,'' he said.

`Quiet For Now'

Ecuador's congress voted March 6 to replace Supreme Electoral Tribunal President Jorge Acosta after the court backed Correa's plan for a national referendum on re-writing the constitution. The next day, the court suspended the lawmakers who sought to remove the judge, ruling their votes violated the constitution. Correa supported the court's decision and said the lawmakers would be replaced.

The top constitutional court yesterday rejected a request by the president of congress to rule on the legality of the suspension.

``With this situation, Correa's ability to govern will be reduced,'' said Claudio Loser, former director of Western Hemisphere affairs at the International Monetary Fund and a political analyst at the Inter-American Dialogue in Washington.

The U.S. Ambassador in Ecuador, Linda Jewell, said on Cablenoticias that the conflict among Correa, the congress and the courts is a domestic situation.

``We're going to be quiet for now,'' she said.

Correa, 43, a U.S.-trained economist who served a five- month stint as finance minister in 2005, won 57 percent of votes in a Nov. 26 run-off election in which he ran without the formal backing of any political party.

`Government Crisis'

During and after the campaign, Correa aligned himself with Chavez's socialist vision, vowing to boost spending on the poor, renegotiate foreign oil contracts and review Ecuador's approximately $10 billion in foreign debt obligations. Venezuela on Feb. 22 offered Ecuador as much as $500 million of ``financial cooperation.''

Correa took office in January as Ecuador's eighth president in about a decade. On Jan. 30, about 5,000 of his supporters tried to storm congress to demand lawmakers approve plans for a referendum on the constitution.

``Correa is forcing a government crisis,'' Loser said. ``This is going to get investors even more nervous.''

Ecuador has twice backed away from threats to default on debt payments since Correa took power. Finance Minister Ricardo Patino said March 8 that the country wouldn't ignore foreign debt obligations.

``Our creditors should know that we're very responsible,'' Patino said.

Congresswoman Sylka Sanchez said in an interview that the shots were fired from a passing motorcycle carrying two people. One of the opposition lawmakers' supporters outside the hotel was hit in the back, the other in the leg.

Ecuador's Congress fires election court chief

QUITO, March 6 (Reuters) - Ecuador's opposition-dominated Congress fired the head of the election court on Tuesday, which could delay President Rafael Correa's referendum in April aimed at cutting the influence of traditional political parties.

The move by Congress was sure to fuel tension between left-winger Correa and lawmakers trying to secure an opposition majority in the seven-member election court as they question the legality of the referendum, experts said.

Correa, a political outsider elected in November, plans to hold a public vote on April 15 on whether to call a special assembly to rewrite the constitution.

He says the overhaul is needed to curb political parties that many Ecuadoreans blame for instability in South America's No. 5 oil producer.

Opposition lawmakers fear Correa will use the assembly to weaken the legislature and bolster presidential powers, as his ally Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez did after his election.

"This was a political move to further delay the referendum and therefor weaken the government's popularity," said Simon Pachano, an analyst with the Latin American Faculty of Social Sciences.

"But this could turn into another scandal because the legality of the vote is not yet clear."

The dismissed Electoral Court president, Jorge Acosta, could try to challenge the ruling to remove him without an impeachment, analysts said.

After weeks of street protests by Correa supporters demanding a referendum, lawmakers in February approved the president's initial proposal.

But opposition lawmakers now say Correa made changes to the referendum text without their approval before handing it to election officials. They say the changed version grants the proposed assembly the power to dissolve Congress and they want the Constitutional Court to declare the referendum invalid.

Fifty-two of the 73 lawmakers at Tuesday's session voted to remove Acosta on the grounds he failed to fulfill his Patriotic Society party's political mandate. Court members are picked by the seven political parties with the most votes.

Acosta, a lawyer close to toppled president Lucio Gutierrez, was one of four court members who voted to approve the referendum last week. Congress said his replacement must be named by Gutierrez's party.

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.

Ecuador referendum on April 15

Gulf News, Feb 15, 2007

Quito, Ecuador: Ecuador's Congress approved holding a referendum on whether to create an assembly to rewrite the Constitution, bowing to demands by the new leftist president who is seeking to weaken the nation's traditional political parties.

Rafael Correa, an admirer of Venezuela's anti-US firebrand President Hugo Chavez, wants the assembly to rewrite the constitution to limit the power of the parties, which he blames for this small Andean nation's problems.

"The fight is just starting," Correa said in a statement. He called on Ecuadoreans "to fulfil their role in history, crushing the political mafias at the ballot boxes".

The referendum initiative was approved 57-1 in the 100-member Congress on Tuesday. Most opposition lawmakers abandoned the session before the vote in protest, calling the measure unconstitutional.

The Supreme Electoral Tribunal said later on Tuesday the referendum will be held on April 15. Ecuador has been marked by political instability, with seven presidents in the last decade. More than 60 per cent of the population lives in poverty. Correa, 43, who took office on January 15, won a November election run-off as a charismatic outsider who pledged to lead a "citizens' revolution" against a political establishment widely seen as corrupt and incompetent.

Opposition lawmakers said the referendum vote was illegal because the constitution says reforms must be made by Congress, not by a special assembly. "We're going to have generalised chaos throughout the country starting tomorrow," said Federico Perez, the only congressman who stayed to vote against the measure. Perez added that his many opposition lawmakers were intimidated by pro-government protesters.

Nearly 1,000 people gathered outside Congress, including hundreds of highland Indians in traditional clothing, to demand lawmakers approve the referendum. And last month Correa's backers stormed the building to pressure for the vote, forcing a suspension of the session.

"How is it possible that under pressure ... with the pretext that we need reforms that we all want, the constitution is violated?" Perez said. But Interior Minister Gustavo Larrea called the vote a "triumph of the citizenry". "The popular pressure led a bloc of lawmakers to understand that this is a popular demand," he said. The country's highest electoral court had ruled that lawmakers must decide on whether to call the referendum, which critics say is an attempt by Correa to consolidate power in the presidency.

The measure passed with the support of leftist and centre-left parties and legislators belonging to former President Lucio Gutierrez's populist party. Gutierrez was driven from power in 2005 by street protests, in which Correa participated. His party has 24 lawmakers, the second-largest bloc in Congress.

Ecuador's Congress approves national referendum on constitutional assembly

February 13, 2007. IHT

QUITO, Ecuador: Congress approved on Tuesday a national referendum on whether to call a constitutional assembly, bowing to demands by new leftist President Rafael Correa.

Correa, who took office Jan. 15, is calling for an assembly to rewrite Ecuador's Constitution in an effort to limit the power of traditional political parties, which he blames for this poverty wracked nation's problems. Ecuador has had seven presidents in the last decade.

The referendum initiative was approved 57-1 in the 100-member Congress. Most opposition lawmakers abandoned the session before the vote in protest, calling the measure unconstitutional.

The country's highest electoral court has ruled lawmakers must decide whether to hold the referendum, which critics say is an attempt by Correa to consolidate power in the presidency.

Nearly a thousand people gathered outside Congress, including hundreds of highland Indians in traditional clothing, to shout support for the referendum and pressure Congress to approve it.

The measure passed with the support of leftist and center-left parties and congressmen belonging to former President Lucio Gutierrez's populist party. Gutierrez was driven from power in 2005 by street protests, in which Correa participated. His party has 24 lawmakers, the second largest bloc in Congress.

"We're going to have generalized chaos throughout the country starting tomorrow," said Federico Perez, the only congressman who stayed to vote against the measure.

He said the referendum was illegal because the current constitution says reforms must be made by Congress, not by a special assembly. Perez said his fellow congressmen were intimidated by the protests outside Congress.

"How is it possible that under pressure ... with the pretext that we need reforms that we all want, the constitution is violated?" he asked.

Correa's backers stormed the building last month to pressure Congress to hold the vote, forcing a suspension of the session.

On Monday, 300 protesters who gathered outside Congress also demanded that the assembly be granted broad powers including the ability to dissolve Congress.

Earlier this month, Correa's government denied any plans to dissolve Congress, which the president has called a "sewer of corruption." He has rejected accusations of authoritarianism.

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.

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.

Correa's challenge

Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa has promised radical change but faces heavy opposition in Congress that will test the patience of his constituency.

Commentary by Sam Logan for ISN Security Watch (06/02/07)

Even though he has only been in office since 15 January, Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa - the country's ninth president in a decade - is feeling the pressure to make good on his election promises as his supporters and others clash with police.

Correa's supporters expect him to deliver results after listening to a number of promises made during his presidential campaign. At the top of the list is a popular referendum, which by his second day in office, Correa had announced his intention to call for 18 March. Ecuadorians would vote on a number of Correa's proposed reforms, including a Constitutional Assembly.

Defying Correa's order to move forward with the referendum, Ecuador's electoral court ruled that the request for a popular referendum must be passed by the Congress, where it will surely face crippling opposition.

On 30 January, students, workers and a mass of Correa's supporters forced their way in to Ecuador's congressional building, with sticks, rocks and bottles, chanting "death to the rats" and "down with Congress, yes to the popular assembly." Congressional leader Jorge Ceballos closed the legislature and accused the Correa administration of inciting the protesters. But such endorsement for the new president may be short-lived if he fails in his pledges.

Correa ran as an independent, standing on a platform that would rally the support of a number of smaller groups, from students and workers to indigenous rights groups. His political party, Alianza Pais (AP), has no representation in Congress, where his opponent, Alvaro Noboa, controls the largest block with 28 of 100 seats. The second largest block, with 24 seats, falls under the influence of former Ecuadorian president Lucio Gutierrez, who has presidential ambitions. Correa does not appear to have focused on building an alliance within Congress.

Instead, the president will likely circumvent congressional oversight through a Constituent Assembly. According to a 20 January Cedatos/Gallup poll, Correa's approval rating is currently above 70 percent, while that of Congress hovers just under 15 percent. With these numbers, Correa will have for a limited time the political capital necessary to push through a popular referendum. However, Congress is likely to dig in, knowing a Constitutional Assembly will likely call for early elections.

If Correa forces congressional elections by decision of an assembly, his popularity may hold long enough to gain backing in Congress. The rewards are great, but the risks are greater. Betting on popular support to outlast the legislatures' efforts to defend its position may result in a stalemate that would test Ecuadorians' patience. Correa knows how quickly popular support can turn into calls for his removal. Some of his predecessors lasted only three days.

But as Congress debates the popular referendum, Correa is already at work making good on smaller promises. He has begun cleaning out the top ranks of the national police, fulfilling his promise to root out corruption there.

In the aftermath of a helicopter crash on 24 January that killed Ecuadorian Defense Minister Guadalupe Larriva, investigations revealed sloppy planning and Correa quickly dismissed Army Chief Pedro Machado.

By signing oil deals with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez to improve Ecuador's refining process, Correa has sealed a geopolitical relationship between the two countries that for now will help Ecuador manage its oil assets. Deals with Venezuela will boost technical expertise and refining necessary to keep Ecuador's oil revenue flowing. Correa has taken the first steps toward the larger goal of placing more of Ecuador's oil assets under state control, and he will likely spend windfall oil revenue on social programs that will buoy approval ratings.

Correa has also said he would not sign a Free Trade Agreement with the US. He is also not likely to renew a US military lease to use the Ecuadorian airbase in Manta. Both are popular moves among his constituents.

Appeasing Ecuador's indigenous community, Correa announced on 5 February that his government would suspend contracts with any oil company that needlessly damaged the environment. His administration's first probe will be into the operations of a Brazilian company inside of one of Ecuador's natural preserves.

This list of measures and others scheduled to come in the next few weeks will keep Correa's approval ratings high for the foreseeable future. But the outcome of plans for a popular referendum will determine the end result of Correa's presidential term.

As Ecuador's Congress digs in, Correa is likely to stoke popular sentiment. But he must be careful. Correa's election shows that Ecuadorians demand radical change. And it is unclear how much time they are willing to give him to make good on his promises.

Ecuadorians March for Participatory Democracy

Written by Cyril Mychalejko Thursday, 01 February 2007

UpsideDownWorld

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.

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)

Ecuador's Correa calls for socialist Latin America

Duroyan Fertl, 19 January 2007

From GreenLeft.

On January 15, Ecuador’s new president, Rafael Correa Delgado, was sworn in, promising to build “socialism of the 21st century” to overcome the poverty and instability of the small Andean country.

The previous day, Correa attended an indigenous inauguration ceremony in Zumbahua, the small Andean town where he did volunteer social work in his twenties. The presidents of Venezuela and Bolivia — Hugo Chavez and Evo Morales — were present as special guests.

Correa, a 43-year-old economist, used his inauguration to call for a “citizens’ revolution”, using wealth to meet social and environmental needs, rather than maintaining the current “perverse system” that has led to over 60% of Ecuador’s 13 million people living in poverty and forced more than 3 million to emigrate in search of jobs.

“The long night of neoliberalism is coming to an end”, said Correa, “A sovereign, dignified, just and socialist Latin America is beginning to rise.”

In a speech laced with the indigenous language Quichua and references to revolutionary figures Simon Bolivar and Che Guevara, Correa called for Latin American integration on the basis of cooperation and complementarity, and called on governments to create regional legislation to protect workers’ rights.

Correa’s radical program for change has already begun. On January 16, Ecuador signed an energy agreement with Venezuela. Venezuela will refine Ecuadorian crude oil, and invest in developing new refineries there. Ecuador, despite being one of Latin America’s largest oil exporters, currently has to import fuel at unfavourable prices.

Correa has also promised to renegotiate contracts with foreign oil companies, in order to free up money for spending on health, education, the environment and housing. The potential benefits for Ecuador are enormous: the oil company Oxy had its contracts cancelled a year ago, and the government has since made US$1.1 billion from those oilfields alone.

Another priority for Correa is Ecuador’s foreign debt, estimated in November last year at over 25% of the country’s GDP. Correa has suggested that at least part of the debt may be illegal, and is planning to renegotiate, or possibly default on it. He has also called for an international debt tribunal to prevent the exploitation of debt-ridden countries and has threatened to cut ties with the World Bank and International Monetary Fund.

On January 17, agriculture minister Carlos Valejo declared the government’s intention to redistribute idle arable land. Ecuador’s vulnerable agricultural sector was a key issue in mass protests last year against a proposed free-trade agreement with the US. Correa is firmly opposed to such an FTA, preferring to focus on national development and Latin American integration.

The most important part of the new president’s platform for change is the promise to convoke a Constituent Assembly to rewrite the constitution to allow the recall of elected officials and greater participation by social movements and community sectors in government, weakening the traditional party system and making his reforms possible.

Correa, whose Alianza PAIS party ran no candidates for the Congress, faces a hostile legislature. His opponents in Congress, which is almost universally regarded to be run by a corrupt and inept “partyocracy”, formed a bloc of 76 out of 100 law-makers to oppose Correa’s reforms.

Correa threatened to call mass protests and to use his executive powers to bypass the Congress, but on January 12, the second largest party in Congress, the Patriotic Society Party (PSP), led by ex-president Lucio Gutierrez (who was overthrown in 2005), changed sides on the issue, giving Correa a temporary majority.

This was not before Gutierrez had expelled his own wife and another member of Congress from the PSP for supporting Correa’s proposal. Neither Correa nor many of the social movements, such as the indigenous federatation CONAIE, trust Gutierrez and the about-face is widely seen as proof of the corruption of the current political system.

Assuming it is approved, there will now be a referendum on March 18 to endorse the initiative, and a Constituent Assembly of 87 members will be elected soon after from provincial, national and immigrant sectors of the population. The assembly will have 180 days to rewrite the constitution.

The task facing Correa is a challenging one. Previous governments that have promised reforms along similar lines have been unable or unwilling to carry them out, making only small reforms in the hope of placating big business and the people alike. In response, mass popular mobilisations, especially by the indigenous movements, have led to the overthrow of the last three elected presidents.

The hope is that Correa has broken the mould. “We’re not talking about little reforms, about making things less bad”, he said during his inauguration. “Latin America isn’t living an era of changes”, he explained. “It’s living a change of eras.”

Ex- president Lucio Gutiérrez: “We do not support Rafael Correa but the Constituent Assembly”

Quito (CRE).
16/01/2007

The Patriotic Society Party (PSP), after more than three hours in session, resolved not to abandon the Constituent Assembly and the new majority that was created last week.

The maximum leader of the party, ex-president Lucio Gutiérrez, ratified the decision after arriving at a consensus with the party High Command and its 24 deputies, with those who met on Tuesday.

Nevertheless, Gutiérrez in his speech indicated that the party “does not support Rafael Correa, but the Constituent Assembly”.

He added that always he has been in favor of the Constituent [Assembly] and that he himself even proposed it at one time.

Additionally, the ex-president made assurances that the 24 votes of the PSP deputies will be used for approving the presidential proposal.

“We support the Constituent Assembly, but know that by itself it it will not generate jobs, economic stability, will not lower the costs of basic services, will not improve the wages of Ecuadorians, will not reduce poverty, unemployment and insecurity; that is what Correa must do”, said Gutiérrez.

Ecuador. - Ex-president Lucio Gutiérrez accuses Correa of being a puppet of Hugo Chavez

QUITO, 17-01-2007
DiarioDirecto
On Tuesday, ex-president of Ecuador, Lucio Gutiérrez, accused the head of state Rafael Correa of being a “puppet” of "those who think that they can buy Latin America with petrodollars", in an apparent reference Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez.

In a press conference, Gutiérrez, who governed the South American country from 2003 until April of 2005 said that “this Government is a puppet of a totalitarian international project”.

“Because of his power and his arrogance Correa has become a new version of puppet of the oligarchy, only this time of an international oligarchy that thinks that with petrodollars it can buy Latin America”, declared Gutiérrez.

The ex-president was responding to insults that had been directed towards him by President Correa on Sunday, who called him a viper, a traitor, and a wolf in sheeps clothing. Correa, who took power on Monday, added that he doesn't trust the recent support lent to him by Gutiérrez's Patriotic Society Party to fulfill the main initiative of the new president, to take the country to a Constituent Assembly.

Patriotic Society offered on Thursday to lend the endorsement of its 24 deputies in Congress to the Correa's initiative of convoing a Constituent Assembly, but this did not prevent Correa from making his accusations about the ex-president.

“Correa does not propose anything, only confrontation, violence, insults, chaos, he is the Insultor's Apprentice, who responds like a fool, with vulgarities and patriotic gestures to the caballero of our part”, said Gutiérrez.

"Correa will not rest until there are deaths in the streets, he wants violence, he wants confrontations, the blood of the country's poor spilled; we want deep, peaceful, reforms with political, economic and social stability with the greatest respect for my people”, added the ex-President.

"The reason for his treacherous attitude is that he has finished his speeches about the Constituent [Assembly], and now he will have to respond to the poor people of the country… he has to tell us how he is going to reactivate productivity, to reduce poverty and misery, how he is going to improve education, health and housing.”

Gutiérrez was dismissed in April of the 2005 by the Congress in the middle of generalized popular protests that accused him of interference in the legislative and judicial powers of the state.