Ecuador suffering triple whammy of violent crime, political tensions and natural disasters

Ecuador’s President Guillermo Lasso is dealing with a rising crime wave fueled by drug cartels and local gangs, along with natural disasters, just as he faces an impeachment that could end his presidency.

Over the weekend, in a controversial decision, Lasso authorized the possession and carrying of weapons by civilians for personal defense.

He also declared a state of emergency in three cantons of Guayas province and in the provinces of Santa Elena and Los Ríos, on the country's coast.

Lasso's decision came amid a wave of violent crime. Police had to defuse explosives that criminals tied to a man in Guayaquil; four people were murdered in an exclusive residential area of a resort in Santa Elena; a journalist had to be taken out of the country in a special operation due to threats to her life; several journalists received parcel bombs; a man’s head appeared on a park bench; and the administrative director of a hospital in Guayaquil and the manager of one in Esmeraldas were murdered.

Among those murdered in Santa Elena was businessman Rubén Cherres, mentioned by the media as a trusted man and friend of Danilo Carrera Drouet, Lasso's brother-in-law.

According to media investigations, Cherres was a political operator who arranged ministerial appointments for which he allegedly received commissions. He was also being investigated for allegedly being linked to Albanian drug traffickers who operated on the country's coast, sending narcotics to Europe and the US.

Added to the wave of violence are the effects of a severe winter, an earthquake that left at least 15 people dead and damaged roads and oil infrastructure on Puná island, and a major landslide in the Andean region that caused almost 30 deaths.

Against this backdrop, the process to impeach Lasso has begun in the national assembly, where 92 of the 137 votes are needed to remove the conservative leader from power 

The documentation is in the oversight committee, which has to analyze the evidence and Lasso’s defense and issue a report within 30 days recommending whether the case should proceed or be archived.

The legislators who presented the case accuse Lasso of embezzlement for not having taken action against corruption in Emco, the body that coordinates state companies, national oil company Petroecuador and maritime hydrocarbons transporter Flopec, in which Carrera Drouet is implicated.

However, the constitutional court admitted only the charge of embezzlement at Flopec, and the oversight committee’s chair, Fernando Villavicencio, said only evidence regarding that accusation will be received. (See the court's ruling in the Documents box on the top right of the screen.)

Lasso argues that the incidents occurred between 2018 and 2020, when he was not yet president.

On Monday, Villavicencio asked that both Lasso and the plaintiffs be notified of the start of the trial process.

Photo: Landslide in Alausí