1 of 1 Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso — Photo: AP Marco Ugarte Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso — Photo: AP Marco Ugarte
During a program on national television, the President of Ecuador, Guillermo Lasso, announced authorizing the possession and carrying of weapons for personal defense as one of the measures taken to combat the wave of insecurity in the country.
Amid a political crisis that has led to the opening of impeachment proceedings, the Ecuadorian President decided to go on TV Saturday night (1st) to present three urgent measures to combat insecurity, which he has described as a “common enemy” by organized crime and drug trafficking groups in the country.
“We have amended the decree that allows the possession and carrying of weapons,” he said, specifying that their use for “personal defense in accordance with the requirements of laws and regulations” is allowed.
The use of pepper spray for personal defense was also approved.
“I’m as concerned as you are about the insecurity,” he said, pointing to the creation of a joint operation by the armed forces, national police and intelligence for the country’s security.
State of emergency for drug trafficking
Ecuador declared states of emergency as of this Sunday (2) in three regions of the country plagued by drug trafficking and crime, such as the southwestern port city of Guayaquil.
The measure allows the military to take to the streets and has already been used three times in the past year.
“We are declaring a state of emergency in Zone 8, which includes (the cities of) Guayaquil, Durán and Samborondón, as well as the (coastal) provinces of Santa Elena and Los Ríos,” the president said.
There is a curfew in these cities between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. for 60 days. In addition, the right of assembly in these places will be suspended.
“We have a common enemy: crime, drug trafficking and organized crime,” said Lasso, who has been in power since May 2021.
cocaine violence
Lasso announced the new measures after several violent incidents over the past few days, including murders, leaving a human head in a park and robbing a bank at a busy mall in broad daylight in the coastal city of Guayaquil.
In the same city this week, criminals kidnapped a man and left him hours later with an explosive device on his body on a street in Guayaquil, one of the most crimehit streets. It took more than three hours to disarm the device attached to the man’s vest and left leg, a scene never before seen in Ecuador.
Between Colombia and Peru the world’s top cocaine producers Ecuador seized a record 210 tons of drugs, most of it cocaine, bound for European ports in 2021.
In 2022, more than 200 tons of drugs were seized in clashes between drug gangs fighting on the streets and in prisons over drug trafficking routes.
Violent deaths increased during this period. According to the authorities, the murder rate almost doubled between 2021 and 2022 from 14 to 25 per 100,000 inhabitants.
Guayaquil, the country’s commercial hub and where most drugs are shipped, is among the places hardest hit by crime. Zone 8 recorded 434 violent deaths between January and midMarch, compared to a total of 1,151 homicides nationwide.
political crisis
The public safety announcements came at a time of great political instability in Lasso’s government. After the approval of the judiciary, the examination of the president’s impeachment proceedings in the National Assembly began last Friday (31). Lasso and his brotherinlaw are suspects in a corruption case involving the distribution of public office.
Lasso, who took office in May 2021, denies the allegations. The president, representative of the right, has 45 days to avoid his ouster in a congress in which the opposition has a majority.
To make matters worse, the body of businessman Rubén Cherres, who is said to be involved in the state corruption case, was found on Friday. Cherres’ body was found with that of three other people, two men and one woman, in Punta Blanca, Santa Elena province. All had bullet holes and were handcuffed.