They are hundreds and they walk towards Quito. Ecuadorian natives and peasants rallied on Monday (October 7th) to protest against a massive increase in fuel prices decided by the government of President Lenin Moreno.
Some armed with sticks and masked face, these protesters from the Andean regions of the South had started Sunday, on foot or on board pick-up, to reach Quito where a large demonstration is scheduled Wednesday alongside the unions. Other groups of natives were heading from the north of the country to the capital.
On Monday afternoon in Quito, incidents broke out between protesters and law enforcement officers in the vicinity of the government headquarters, in the historic center area cordoned off by the police.
Emergency state
In a social movement unpublished since 2007, blockades of the transport sector and strikes paralyze the country. The violence pushed the government to declare Thursday the state of emergency.
Road blockages were reported in 19 of the country's 24 provinces, according to authorities, with one death, 73 injuries (including 59 among law enforcement officials) and 477 arrests during protests in recent days.
"We are going to be more than 20,000 natives," Jaime Vargas, president of the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (Conaie), said Monday in Quito. To respond to the government, the organization also announced Sunday "a state of emergency in all indigenous territories." Conaie said in a statement that soldiers and policemen approaching indigenous territories would be captured.
End of subsidies on fuel
In January 2000, President Jamil Mahuad was overthrown as a result of violent indigenous demonstrations in which Conaie had participated in a context of economic crisis.
President Moreno's decision to remove fuel subsidies totaling $ 1.3 billion came into effect on Thursday. In exchange, Ecuador can access $ 4.2 billion in loans from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). This has resulted in fuel price increases of up to 123%.
With AFP