As Ecuador reels from the assassination of a high-profile presidential candidate, experts say the event underscores growing violence driven by powerful criminal groups in the South American nation.
Fernando Villavicencio was killed at a political rally in the capital of Quito on Wednesday, sending shockwaves through Ecuador, which is set to hold a presidential election on August 20.
The candidate was as an outspoken critic of corruption and the drug-trafficking groups that have expanded their influence in Ecuador in recent years.
While details of the crime remain murky, Ecuador’s police have arrested six suspects, all of whom are Colombian, according to officials. A seventh suspect was killed in Wednesday’s gunfire.
In the hours following the shooting, President Guillermo Lasso blamed criminal networks for the violence.
“Organised crime has come a long way, but the full weight of the law is going to fall on them,” Lasso wrote on social media.
He declared a three-day state of emergency and appealed to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in the United States for assistance in his government’s investigation.
Crime rates, unemployment on the rise
Ecuador was once regarded as a source of relative calm in a region with a long history of violence and civil conflict. But over the last several years, the country has seen a surge in crime, with 2022 tallying record levels of homicides and drug seizures.
Given Ecuador’s location on the coast between cocaine-producing regions in Peru and Colombia, the country has become much sought-after territory for the drug trade. Ecuador’s gangs have increasingly joined forces with international drug-trafficking organisations, helping to drive the spike in violence.
The COVID-19 pandemic also had a devastating impact, particularly in poorer communities, with morgues overflowing in cities such as Guayaquil. The virus contributed to a severe economic downturn that Ecuador is still recovering from, and experts say a lack of employment opportunities has created a growing pool of potential recruits for criminal groups.
Government statistics indicate that less than four out of 10 Ecuadorians participating in the workforce were adequately employed, with the majority making less than the minimum wage of $450 a month. Since the beginning of the year, more than 822,000 people between the ages of 18 and 45 have left the country seeking opportunities elsewhere.
Juanita Goebertus, director of the Americas division for Human Rights Watch, tied Wednesday’s assassination to the ongoing instability in the country.
“This is a tragedy that was probably something people could expect, given the very serious deterioration of the security situation in Ecuador,” she told Al Jazeera. “If you compare the homicide rate between 2021 and 2022, there’s an increase of over 80 percent.”
Villavicencio’s death, for instance, comes just over two weeks after another high-profile assassination: that of Agustin Intriago, mayor of Manta, on July 23.
The increase in violence can be seen in other domains as well. Goebertus said the national police recorded 5,000 cases of extortion in 2022, a figure that is on track to double by the end of 2023.
Prisons, where gangs exercise substantial control, have been sites of especially grim violence. More than 30 people were killed in riots last month at a Guayaquil prison, leading the Lasso government to deploy armed forces to take back control of the facility.
Human Rights Watch said in a press release on Thursday that more than 600 people have been killed in prison massacres over the last several years. Poor conditions like overcrowding contributed to the violence, the nonprofit explained.
Calls for a ‘hard hand’
While the killing of Villavicencio has been met with condemnation across the political spectrum, it has already started to map onto familiar political divides.
“Within Ecuador, you’re seeing everyone condemn the assassination,” said Will Freeman, a fellow of Latin America studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, a US-based think tank. “Unfortunately, you’re also seeing people jumping to conclusions and to some extent trying to squeeze some political benefit out of this killing.”
Freeman said that critics have highlighted Villavicencio’s history of corruption allegations against former President Rafael Correa, seeming to imply — without evidence — that the assassination was a form of political payback.
Correa’s supporters have likewise accused President Lasso of mafia-like corruption in the wake of the shooting. Freeman said he expects Correa’s allies to leverage the killing to advance their own priorities as well.
Ecuadorean presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio speaks during a campaign rally in Quito, Ecuador, on August 9, shortly before he was fatally shot [Karen Toro/Reuters]
The proliferation of rumours underscores the necessity for a “rapid, transparent investigation” to provide the public with reliable information, Human Rights Watch’s Goebertus said.
Some figures have also used Villavincencio’s killing to bolster calls for a more heavy-handed response to crime in Ecuador.
Shortly after the shooting, for instance, presidential candidate Jan Topic posted a video on social media reiterating his call for a “mano dura” or “hard hand” against criminal groups.
He has previously expressed support for Ecuador to implement a “state of exception” similar to El Salvador’s, where certain civil liberties have been suspended in order to sweep tens of thousands of alleged gang members into prison.
Goebertus said that doing this would be a mistake. Her organisation has been outspoken against El Salvador’s gang crackdown, which has been tied to false arrests and torture.
No amount of force, Goebertus emphasised, can fill the void created by a state that lacks the capacity to function effectively and protect its people. She called instead for a more targeted approach.
“You need a security policy that can strategically persecute leaders of gangs, severing their links to access finance and corruption networks,” she said. “And that requires serious investigative and judicial capacity, as opposed to resorting to states of emergency or militarisation that have not proven effective.”
Quebec legislature member Youri Chassin has announced he’s leaving the Coalition Avenir Québec government to sit as an Independent.
He announced the decision shortly after writing an open letter criticizing Premier François Legault’s government for abandoning its principles of smaller government.
In the letter published in Le Journal de Montréal and Le Journal de Québec, Chassin accused the party of falling back on what he called the old formula of throwing money at problems instead of looking to do things differently.
Chassin says public services are more fragile than ever, despite rising spending that pushed the province to a record $11-billion deficit projected in the last budget.
He is the second CAQ member to leave the party in a little more than one week, after economy and energy minister Pierre Fitzgibbon announced Sept. 4 he would leave because he lost motivation to do his job.
Chassin says he has no intention of joining another party and will instead sit as an Independent until the end of his term.
He has represented the Saint-Jérôme riding since the CAQ rose to power in 2018, but has not served in cabinet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
MONTREAL – NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says he will not be taking advice from Pierre Poilievre after the Conservative leader challenged him to bring down government.
“I say directly to Pierre Poilievre: I’m not going to listen to you,” said Singh on Wednesday, accusing Poilievre of wanting to take away dental-care coverage from Canadians, among other things.
“I’m not going to listen to your advice. You want to destroy people’s lives, I want to build up a brighter future.”
Earlier in the day, Poilievre challenged Singh to commit to voting non-confidence in the government, saying his party will force a vote in the House of Commons “at the earliest possibly opportunity.”
“I’m asking Jagmeet Singh and the NDP to commit unequivocally before Monday’s byelections: will they vote non-confidence to bring down the costly coalition and trigger a carbon tax election, or will Jagmeet Singh sell out Canadians again?” Poilievre said.
“It’s put up or shut up time for the NDP.”
While Singh rejected the idea he would ever listen to Poilievre, he did not say how the NDP would vote on a non-confidence motion.
“I’ve said on any vote, we’re going to look at the vote and we’ll make our decision. I’m not going to say our decision ahead of time,” he said.
Singh’s top adviser said on Tuesday the NDP leader is not particularly eager to trigger an election, even as the Conservatives challenge him to do just that.
Anne McGrath, Singh’s principal secretary, says there will be more volatility in Parliament and the odds of an early election have risen.
“I don’t think he is anxious to launch one, or chomping at the bit to have one, but it can happen,” she said in an interview.
New Democrat MPs are in a second day of meetings in Montreal as they nail down a plan for how to navigate the minority Parliament this fall.
The caucus retreat comes one week after Singh announced the party has left the supply-and-confidence agreement with the governing Liberals.
It’s also taking place in the very city where New Democrats are hoping to pick up a seat on Monday, when voters go to the polls in Montreal’s LaSalle—Émard—Verdun. A second byelection is being held that day in the Winnipeg riding of Elmwood—Transcona, where the NDP is hoping to hold onto a seat the Conservatives are also vying for.
While New Democrats are seeking to distance themselves from the Liberals, they don’t appear ready to trigger a general election.
Singh signalled on Tuesday that he will have more to say Wednesday about the party’s strategy for the upcoming sitting.
He is hoping to convince Canadians that his party can defeat the federal Conservatives, who have been riding high in the polls over the last year.
Singh has attacked Poilievre as someone who would bring back Harper-style cuts to programs that Canadians rely on, including the national dental-care program that was part of the supply-and-confidence agreement.
The Canadian Press has asked Poilievre’s office whether the Conservative leader intends to keep the program in place, if he forms government after the next election.
With the return of Parliament just days away, the NDP is also keeping in mind how other parties will look to capitalize on the new makeup of the House of Commons.
The Bloc Québécois has already indicated that it’s written up a list of demands for the Liberals in exchange for support on votes.
The next federal election must take place by October 2025 at the latest.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante is defending her decision to turn off comments on her social media accounts — with an announcement on social media.
She posted screenshots to X this morning of vulgar names she’s been called on the platform, and says comments on her posts for months have been dominated by insults, to the point that she decided to block them.
Montreal’s Opposition leader and the Canadian Civil Liberties Association have criticized Plante for limiting freedom of expression by restricting comments on her X and Instagram accounts.
They say elected officials who use social media should be willing to hear from constituents on those platforms.
However, Plante says some people may believe there is a fundamental right to call someone offensive names and to normalize violence online, but she disagrees.
Her statement on X is closed to comments.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
