Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso announced this Friday that he has declared a state of emergency in three provinces, one of which is Quito, amid violence amid indigenous protests. The law requires fuel prices to be lowered.
“I promise to defend our capital and country,” the president said in a televised speech. This forces me to declare a state of exception in Pichincha (the capital of Quito), Imbabura and Cotopaxi from midnight this Friday.”
Protests began Monday with the opposition Conaie (Confederation of Indigenous Nations) meeting demanding a reduction in the price of 3.78-liter gallon of diesel to $1.50 and 85-octane gasoline to $2.10.
Between May 2020 and October 2021, diesel value nearly doubled from $1 to $1.90, and gasoline with additives rose 46 percent from 1.75 to 2.55.
After three days of demonstrations, there is still no light at the end of the tunnel: Conaie leader Leonidas Iza says the Executive Committee does not guarantee speech and does not respond to indigenous peoples’ demands.
Lasso, a former right-wing banker who took office a year ago, received a group of indigenous people from the province of Cotopaxi (southern) residing in Quito.
“We don’t want bloodshed, no more vandalism, no more violence. Ecuador is a country of peace,” said César Pérez, secretary of the indigenous organization Unoric, after clashes between protesters and police in recent days.
Conaie said the government will continue the protests until it meets a list of 10 demands, which includes regulating the price of agricultural products and renegotiating bank debts for 4 million families.
source: Noticias
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