GUAYAQUIL'S AUTONOMY MOVEMENT GAINS MOMENTUM

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 GUAYAQUIL 000257

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV ASEC EC
SUBJECT: GUAYAQUIL'S AUTONOMY MOVEMENT GAINS MOMENTUM

REF: GUAYAQUIL 00132


1. (U) Summary: Calls for greater autonomy and even
independence for Guayaquil during last month's "Marcha
Blanca," (reftel) while raising awareness about the
issue, are not galvanizing local leaders to take their
efforts national. Rather than an all-encompassing reform
that is sent down from Quito, Guayaquil civic leaders
and local government officials alike prefer a more
gradual approach, gaining increased municipal authority
one public service sector at a time. Ramiro Gonzalez,
the prefect from Pichincha, may be calling for a nation-
wide plan to enhance provincial autonomy, but here in
Guayaquil authorities are content to look after their
own. End Summary

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AUTONOMY'S SLOW BUT STEADY COURSE
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2. (U) Autonomy is not a new issue in Guayaquil. The
call for greater self-sufficiency in this independent-
minded city can be traced back to when Leon Febres-
Cordero served as mayor (1992-2000). Seeking mechanisms
to breathe life back into the dilapidated city he
inherited from the PRE party, his administration created
a series of foundations to carry out public works
projects and reforms, effectively bypassing central
government control of purse strings and bureaucratic
approval processes. Under Mayor Jaime Nebot (2000-
present),such actions continue with noteworthy success
and international recognition. At the national level,
Guayaquil congressman Juan Jose Illingworth, who served
from 1996 to 2000, made autonomy his number one
priority, drafting and ultimately getting passed a
decentralization law that designated 15% of the national
budget to the provinces (70% of which goes directly to
the municipal governments).


3. (U) In 2000, a national referendum included a
question as to whether municipalities should be afforded
greater independence from the central government. Five
large provinces voted for the change, including Guayas,
but the proposal never made it to Congress. Meanwhile,
Guayaquil continued to look for ways within existing
laws to exert more authority over public services and
works projects. The city's efforts were significantly
aided in September 2004 with Congress's amendment to the
Municipal Regimen Reform law. This amendment calls for
strengthening financial and administrative autonomy in
areas that would benefit from direct intervention at the
local level, as long as they do not conflict with clear
areas of responsibility of the central government.
Nebot referenced this amendment in his efforts to
utilize private security companies to help address the
city's critical crime problem. (reftel)

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WAVE OF POPULARITY WILL NOT CHANGE CITY'S COURSE
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4. (SBU) In a 22 February meeting with PolOff and
PolAsst, former Congressman and civic activist Juan Jose
Illingworth described how he and a group of like-minded
citizens have spent the last several years seeking low
profile ways to influence moves towards autonomy. He
stated that recently they have changed tactics to bring
greater public attention to the issue, by publishing a
manifesto in the city's most important newspapers, and
by carrying an autonomy banner in January's 'Marcha
Blanca' demonstration in Guayaquil. (reftel) He added
that they are also working with the Chambers of Commerce
and Production to bring speakers to Guayaquil, including
Bolivian autonomy leader Ruben Costas in early March,
and in April Jordi Pujol, who has worked on autonomy
issues in Spain. According to Illingworth, Nebot is
beginning to embrace this issue more completely, and
expects that considerable strides will be made in the
next six months in the direction of autonomy.


5. (U) Guayaquil's vice mayor, Luis Chiriboga, on 23
February confirmed that the mayor's office has been
working towards autonomy for many years. It began with
the city's regeneration projects and expanded to include
enterprises such as the airport and public security. In
the last month, the municipality sent requests to the
central government for the right to bring the local fire
department under their purview and for partial transfer
of the sewage system projects. The vice mayor mentioned
that they are also investigating a manner in which they
can gain control of social security services and the
civil registry.


6. (U) Overall, Chiriboga echoed other local officials
in stating that Guayaquil had taken a deliberate
approach to reform. However, he also emphasized that
city officials have no intention of ramping up efforts
to transform this into a national campaign or tackling
areas such as education and health. In a conversation
with Consul General, Guayas Prefect Nicolas Lapenti
reiterated this position, saying that he opposes the
Pichincha prefect's call for sweeping, accelerated
change, stressing that the country must first implement
existing decentralization plans.


7. (U) While the mayor's office recognizes the popular
swell that autonomy is riding after the city's
successful civic pride march, the vice mayor added that
Nebot will continue to focus his efforts locally and to
work within existing legislation. Chiriboga
acknowledged that Guayaquil has been approached by
authorities from other cities, who are interested in
utilizing similar methods to gain control over key
public services. However, he stated that Guayaquil is
not looking to join forces with their counterparts in
other provinces.


8. (SBU) Comment: While other mayors and prefects are
renewing calls for autonomy nation-wide, Guayaquil
leaders are not rising to the bait, at least for now.
Their success in turning Guayaquil from an eyesore into
an admirable example of urban renewal, both
administratively and physically, is born out of their
methodical approach to carry out their plans. As such,
they are not inclined to rock the boat by taking
autonomy national. Illingworth described Nebot as being
a separatist at heart, but at the same time it appears
the mayor is not going to risk what he has gained thus
far by publicly advocating radical reform on a national
scale. We are sure to hear more on the autonomy issue
as this movement gains more steam. End comment.

HERBERT