On the eleventh day, thousands of indigenous people take to the streets of Ecuador’s capital, Quito. The powerful indigenous organization CONAIE has mobilized the country’s poor for a major struggle and a national strike against the government. They demand that current fuel prices be frozen, price regulation on basic goods, social assistance, a halt in oil and mining operations and a better health service. A ten-point list has been presented to the elected representatives. But in response, Ecuador’s right-wing President Guillermo Lasso has declared a state of emergency and deployed armed security forces. Indigenous women demand social reform and that the government meet ten requirements in Ecuador. Protesters set fire to car tires in Quito on Wednesday. Photo: RODRIGO BUENDIA / AFP – The state has deployed the military and introduced a decree banning people from meeting and demonstrating, says Santos Villamar, former president of the indigenous organization Fenocin. Santos Villamar is a former president of the indigenous organization Fenocin and says that it has become incredibly expensive for most people in Ecuador lately. Photo: Private They are among the indigenous organizations behind the mass rally that has created a political crisis. – The situation in Quito is chaotic now. The indigenous community has concentrated in Quito in what we call the “takeover of the capital”, Villamar continues. Several killed Two protesters have died after clashes with police, who responded to the muster with tear gas. The demonstrators, for their part, blocked roads and set fire to car tires. On Wednesday, there have been 300 incidents around the country, according to Ecuador’s police director Fausto Salinas, who met with the press. – We have arrested 80 people so far. There are 80 injured police officers, 21 injured soldiers, 27 kidnapped police officers, all of whom have been released, and 23 cars that have been damaged. Two of the cars were completely destroyed by fire, says Salinas. Ecuadorian police director Fausto Salinas says the protesters are not peaceful, and says about 80 injured police officers in the country. Photo: JOHANNA ALARCON / Reuters The state of emergency has been introduced in six of Ecuador’s 24 provinces in connection with the unrest. – This is not a peaceful demonstration. This is not a peaceful event. We continue to ask for dialogue (..) We know there are organized groups that want to create chaos in the city, he says. There is great dissatisfaction with President Guillermo Lasso, a businessman with a background from the financial world, who came to power just over a year ago. Photo: Dolores Ochoa / AP – Must learn to listen to the demands of the people The former president of the indigenous organization Fenocin does not agree with the police director. It is an armed police who have met an unarmed people in the streets, he believes. According to Villamar, local police have tried to stop the influx to the capital by stopping cars along the roads. “Despite the restrictions that have been put in place to not allow the indigenous community to meet, spend the night and concentrate in Quito, the number of people who have come is enormous,” says Villamar. – People are tired of the government not seeing the population. Everything is expensive now. There are no jobs. The products that farmers have to buy are incredibly expensive. Their economy has collapsed, says the former president of the indigenous organization. “Lasso (the president’s editor) is killing us,” protesters in Quito wrote on posters on Wednesday. “As long as we are alive, we will fight for the south,” it is written on another. Photo: VERONICA LOMBEIDA / AFP – A lot of experience in replacing the president Last week, the president tried to calm the masses by increasing social support by around 50 kroner a month. The farmers will also be refused fertilizer, while the health service has been declared in crisis so that new resources can be deployed. Bilinguals with an indigenous background must receive instruction in their mother tongue. That is not enough, Villamar believes. – The state has deployed the military and introduced a decree banning people from meeting and demonstrating, says Santos Villamar, former president of the indigenous organization Fenocin. The photo was taken on another occasion. Photo: Private – This government must learn to listen to the demands of the people. There is a total lack of social policy for people, he says. There are not only indigenous peoples among the protesters, but also peasants, workers and dark-skinned people. It’s all the people, says Santos Villamar. – We have a lot of experience with replacing the president. When a government does not listen to the demands of the population, crises arise with the dead and injured. The way out is for the president to resign. Large security forces have been deployed in Ecuador’s capital Quito. Photo: RODRIGO BUENDIA / AFP Must initiate dialogue On Monday, the National Assembly adopted a resolution asking the government to initiate a “serious, clear and honest dialogue” with the help of mediators from the UN, the Red Cross, the universities and the Catholic Church. Indigenous leader Leonidas Iza is at the forefront with ten demands that he demands that the government deliver on in Ecuador. – This match we will definitely fight together until we achieve the result we want, said indigenous leader Leonidas Iza in a video to his followers on Twitter. Photo: CRISTINA VEGA RHOR / AFP The leader of the indigenous movement and Conaie, Leonidas Iza, has said that they have demands that must be met before they meet the government for dialogue. Among other things, the armed forces must be removed from certain places in the capital and the state of emergency lifted. Iza was arrested last week before being released. The country’s defense minister, Luis Lara, for his part, has said that the country’s democracy is seriously threatened, and that the armed forces will not allow attempts to break “the constitutional order”. The indigenous movement in Ecuador demands social change and that the government begins to see the people. Two people have died during the demonstrations which have lasted for ten days. Photo: RODRIGO BUENDIA / AFP
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