The prisoners without a final sentence in Ecuador were this Thursday, April 18, the first to vote in the referendum called for Sunday by President Daniel Noboa on security reforms – including the extradition of Ecuadorians -, justice and employment. Noboa is measured at the polls in the midst of an unprecedented crisis of violence, in which, precisely, prisons have been protagonists.
On Sunday, April 21, more than 13 million people in Ecuador will have to vote in a referendum promoted by the Government of President Daniel Noboa, in which 11 fundamental guidelines are proposed on various aspects of government management, with a particular emphasis on issues such as security, justice, investments and employment.
The first five proposals address possible reforms to the 2008 Constitution, approved during the presidential term of Rafael Correa (2007-2017). The other six questions are related to legislative changes that do not entail modifications to the Magna Carta.
On Thursday, April 18, prisoners without a final sentence were the first to vote in the referendum since, as is usual in electoral processes in Ecuador, the prison population votes early within the prisons themselves, three days before the vote. do the rest of the country in general.
For this process, 5,338 inmates are authorized to vote, which represents 16.2% of the more than 32,700 people who are deprived of their liberty in 35 prisons that make up the national penitentiary system of Ecuador.
But, the main victims are those who are already convicted; the referendum seeks to ensure that they fully serve their prison sentence. Other prison benefits could also be eliminated.
The Ecuadorian president, Daniel Noboa, decreed a state of emergency on January 8, after violent prison riots, the escape of Adolfo Macías, alias 'Fito', and the taking of hostages on a live television channel.
The Ecuadorian government also declared “serious commotion” and “internal armed conflict.”
Read alsoNoboa decrees “internal armed conflict” in Ecuador after breaking into a television channel and escalating violence
One by one, the 11 approaches of the referendum
The referendum aims to obtain citizen support to confront insecurity, one of the country's main challenges. President Noboa has declared an “internal armed conflict” against twenty criminal gangs, which his government now considers “terrorists” and “belligerent non-state actors.”
Among the issues that will be put to a vote is the possibility of the Armed Forces providing support to the Police in the fight against organized crime, the extradition of Ecuadorians, the creation of courts in constitutional matters, the recognition of international arbitrations and the flexibility of the labor market with temporary and hourly contracts.
1. Role of the Armed Forces: The Government seeks to grant a permanent role to the Armed Forces in the fight against organized crime, eliminating the need for temporary states of exception.
2. Extradition: The proposal is to enable the extradition of Ecuadorians claimed by the Justice of other countries, except in cases where the death penalty or cruel punishments are applied, as well as for political crimes, except terrorism and crimes against humanity. The current Constitution indicates that “In no case will the extradition of an Ecuadorian be granted and that his trial is subject to the laws of Ecuador”.
3. International arbitrations: It is proposed to expand the recognition of international arbitrations at a global level to provide greater legal security and attract foreign investments.
4. Hourly contracts: The aim is to introduce temporary and hourly labor contracts to generate employment and stop irregular migration.
5. Constitutional courts: The president proposed the creation of courts specialized in constitutional matters to avoid judicial corruption and guarantee a better legal process.
6. Hardening of penalties: the increase and toughening of penalties for various crimes, including terrorism, drug trafficking, murder, human trafficking and others, is one of the proposals for this referendum
7. Elimination of prison benefits: Another question is about the possibility of depriving certain convicts of benefits so that they can fully serve their prison sentence.
8. Military in prisons: The possibility is also foreseen for the Armed Forces to control access to prisons to prevent the introduction of weapons and explosives.
9. Crime of possession of exclusive weapons: The Government proposes establishing the crime of possession or carrying of weapons, ammunition or components that are for the exclusive use of the Armed Forces and the Police, to prevent them from ending up in the hands of criminal gangs.
10. Weapons seized for state forceses: the Ecuadorian Government will seek to allocate the seized weapons to criminal gangs and delinquents to equip state forces.
11. Express expropriation: One of the proposals is to simplify the procedures for the expropriation of assets of illicit or unjustified origin.
Read also“What it is and what is allowed in Ecuador's 'internal armed conflict'”: 'Firsts'
Viability of the referendum and popular consultation
Noboa, who took office in November, has asked voters to approve those 11 issues.
The Reuters news agency reports a study carried out by the pollster Click Research, in which Almost 66% of the 4,560 people consulted between March 29 and April 1 said they would vote “yes”, while 34% would opt for “no.”
The support for Noboa occurs despite the fact that 85.5% of those surveyed claim to be totally or partially unaware of the content of the questions, according to the survey.
Security crisis
After the extreme violence in January, a new wave has arrived. The most recent event was the murder of José Sánchez, mayor of the mining town Camilo Ponce Enríquez, in the southern province of Azuay.
Sánchez is the fourth Ecuadorian mayor murdered in a year and the second in less than a month. In March, Brigitte García, the mayor of San Vicente, in the southwestern province of Manabí, was murdered under military circumstances.
The security crisis is the main argument of the Ecuadorian Government to defend the reforms proposed in the referendum.
President Daniel Noboa maintains that since the “internal armed conflict” was declared, the authorities have detained almost 2,000 people and more than 150 of them have been accused of terrorism. In the official balance, they also affirm that they killed five leaders of some of the 22 gangs that the Government classified as terrorist groups.
Uptick in violence on the eve of a key referendum
In recent weeks, the Ecuadorian president has linked several acts of violence, including a new prison riot and three massacres, to the holding of the referendum.
For the president, “they are not isolated events,” since they occurred on the eve of the consultation promoted by the government, and he blamed “narco-terrorists” and their “political allies” for the riot at the end of March.
In the same sense, the Vice Minister of Security, Lyonel Calderón, assured on March 28 that the most recent prison riot, which occurred in the midst of a state of exception and within the framework of an “internal armed conflict” against criminal gangs, has “destabilizing” dyes.
“They are attempts to destabilize the rule of law, of democracy, because we are on the eve of a popular consultation that aims to resolve security problems: extradition, increased penalties for serious crimes,” among others, he said.
He added that, in the midst of an internal armed conflict and “a historic fight against the organized crime of narcoterrorism,” the actions deployed by the State “have as a consequence destabilizing acts.”
With EFE, Reuters and local media
#Ecuador #opens #voting #prisons #key #referendum #face #wave #violence