The Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (Conaie), the country’s largest organization of indigenous peoples, has said the movement will continue until its demands are heard.
After demonstrations enamelled with violencethe President of Ecuador, Guillermo Lasso, declared a state of emergency Friday evening in three provinces, including that of the capital. ” I pledge to defend our capital and defend the country. This forces me to declare a state of emergency in Pichincha, Imbabura and Cotopaxi “, he said in a televised address. Thus, the president has the power to mobilize the army to ensure the maintenance of order, to restrict the rights of citizens or to set up a curfew.
For nearly a week now, people across the country have been mobilizing against the Conservative government’s economic policy. Since Monday, many roads are blocked in more than half of the country and clashes with security forces left at least 43 injured. 37 people were arrested.
” We ratify the fight at the national level, indefinitely »
However, the establishment of the state of emergency did not dampen the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador. She still demands, in particular, a drop in the price of fuels or the control of food prices.
” We ratify the fight at the national level, indefinitely “, launched Leonidas Iza, the head of this organization. And to add while calling for an end to violence and vandalism: ” From now on, we are preparing the mobilization from natives in Quito to keep the protests going. For his part, the Head of State deplored the lack of discussions. ” I called for dialogue and the response was more violence. There is no intention to look for solutions “, according to him.
In this country, hit hard by inflation, unemployment and poverty, the price of fuel has exploded in recent months, thus crystallizing the anger of the population. Since 2020, the liter of diesel has gone from 1 to 1.90 dollars and gasoline from 1.75 to 2.55 dollars.
(With AFP)