Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
05QUITO764
2005-04-06 23:14:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Quito
Cable title:  

ECUADOR: POLITICAL TEMPERATURE RISING

Tags:  PGOV ASEC EC 
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This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 QUITO 000764 

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/01/2015
TAGS: PGOV ASEC EC
SUBJECT: ECUADOR: POLITICAL TEMPERATURE RISING


Classified By: Ambassador Kristie A. Kenney. Reason 1.4 (b&d).

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 QUITO 000764

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/01/2015
TAGS: PGOV ASEC EC
SUBJECT: ECUADOR: POLITICAL TEMPERATURE RISING


Classified By: Ambassador Kristie A. Kenney. Reason 1.4 (b&d).


1. (C) Summary: Anti-government protests flared in Quito on
April 5, continued on April 6, and are likely to continue
April 7. Thus far the GOE has reacted with restraint, using
tear gas to disperse protesters attempting to forcibly enter
Congress. A national strike was convoked by the opposition
Assembly of Quito for April 12, but its scope is still
unclear. Guayaquil leaders have convoked an assembly to
consider whether to join the strike. The Ambassador is
publicly and privately counseling restraint and peaceful
dialogue on all sides, but the opposition seems intent on
exploiting national outrage over the return of former
president Bucaram, to bring down the government. The main
indigenous group has announced that it will support
anti-government protests, but its members are not yet visible
in the streets. The military and police remain loyal to
President Gutierrez, who has canceled his trip to Rome,
purportedly to preside over definitive resolution of the
festering court issue. End Summary.

Clashes Outside Court and Congress
--------------


2. (U) On April 5, hundreds of judicial workers protested
outside the Supreme Court, and were dispersed by tear gas.
Several protesters were reportedly injured and over 100
reportedly suffered from effects of the gas. Later in the
day, the Assembly of Quito, led by Quito Mayor Paco Moncayo,
declared a national strike for April 12, and led a march of
approximately 4,000 on Congress. There the protesters were
dispersed by tear gas after attempting to forcibly enter the
Congress building to pressure legislators to immediately
vacate the Supreme Court. President of Congress Omar
Quintana closed the session without discussing the court
issue. Inside the Congress building, several opposition
legislators temporarily detained and later released the
police official assigned to Congress.


3. (SBU) Moncayo later accused the government of talking
peace but using violence against protesters and publicly
called for the police and military to cease supporting the
Gutierrez government and respect the right to peaceful
protest. According to an unconfirmed account from
Presidential Legal Advisor Carlos Larrea, who called us in

alarm, Moncayo also claimed the USG had withdrawn support for
the Gutierrez government. We assured him that there had been
no change in US policy in support of Ecuadorian democracy.
Moncayo convoked another meeting for noon on April 6, to be
followed by another march on Congress. Mid-morning on April
6, approximately 4,000 students marched peacefully past the
Embassy toward Congress, according to media estimates, later
growing to 6,000 before being dispersed by police. Congress
held its session and began to debate the government's court
reform proposal. The PSC and Socialists reportedly offered
to support the bill, but the ID held out for other options.

Indigenous Will Join Protests
--------------


4. (U) Indigenous leader Luis Macas declared on April 6 that
the main indigenous organization (CONAIE) will mobilize to
support anti-government protests, demanding that President
Gutierrez leave office, vacate the Supreme Court, annul the
Manta FOL agreement and Plan Colombia, and reject pending
economic reforms and an FTA with the U.S. The timing of the
indigenous mobilization was unclear. On April 5, several
Pachakutik party leaders accompanied the march on Congress,
but CONAIE's broader membership was not in evidence.

Guayaquil Leaders More Restrained
--------------


5. (U) Guayaquil leaders and coastal PSC mayors met on April
5 and declared an assembly for April 11, when they will
determine next steps. Their focus is reportedly on the local
issues that featured in their "Marcha Blanca" protest in
December, in contrast with their counterparts in Quito.
Mayor Nebot publicly hedged on the date of any mobilization
in Guayaquil, saying only that he thought it should happen in
April, but not without sufficient preparation. In a nod to
local business interests, Nebot also said any protest should
seek only to bring people into the streets, but not paralyze
cities.

Embassy Supporting Dialogue, Stability
--------------


6. (C) The Ambassador met with a key indigenous leader,
Cotacachi mayor Auki Tituana while visiting Imbabura province
on April 6. Tituana told her that Bucaram's return was the
"last straw" for the indigenous movement, which resented
Gutierrez' attempts to divide and marginalize it. Gutierrez
had to go, he said, and should be replaced by the Vice
President Palacios. The Ambassador emphasized the
development costs of political instability and urged Tituana
to make another attempt at dialogue with the government. She
later told Imbabura press that peaceful dialogue is necessary
to strengthen democratic institutions and that the USG
continues to support Ecuadorian democracy and the
democratically-elected government. The Ambassador's op-ed
piece promoting dialogue and judicial strengthening will
appear in the paper of record on April 7.


7. (C) The Ambassador spoke with the Chief of National
Police Jorge Poveda to urge that the police behave
responsibly in handling street protests, which they did.
Poveda assured that the police would respect right of protest
and even try to encourage dialogue. We are conveying the
same message to the military. The DCM met with Minister of
Government Oscar Ayerve on April 5 to deliver the same
message, which was well received. The political and economic
sections and ConGen Guayaquil are reaching out to political
leaders across the spectrum to do the same.


8. (C) Ayerve told the DCM that dialogue with the opposition
continued, "under the table," but worried that the opposition
no longer sought resolution of the court issue. Instead,
they seek to destabilize the government by exploiting popular
discontent with the return of controversial former president
Bucaram. On April 6, Ayerve publicly announced that further
dialogue had nearly achieved consensus on a legal reform to
vacate the Supreme Court. He welcomed the offer of the
Episcopal Conference of Bishops to mediate. The President
had cancelled his planned trip to Pope John Paul II's funeral
to achieve this resolution.


9. (C) PRIAN congressional leader Sylka Sanchez told
PolChief that the PRIAN's working alliance with the
government was definitively over. The PRIAN felt tricked by
the government for permitting ex-president Bucaram to return.
PRIAN leader Alvaro Noboa had refused dialogue with Bucaram
since his return. The PRIAN continues to oppose changing the
Supreme Court through a congressional resolution, which would
be unconstitutional, she said. However, the PRIAN would not
support street protests and had no plans to impeach President
Gutierrez, according to Sanchez.

Comment
--------------


10. (C) Until now, street protests have mainly featured
students, judicial and municipal workers, and local leaders
of the Democratic Left (ID) and Pachakutik political parties.
Quito Mayor Moncayo is leading the attack, clearly seeking
to capitalize on outrage over Bucaram's return here in the
highlands. A former military leader himself, he crossed a
line of restraint by publicly calling on the military to side
with protesters. Though ostensibly to pressure Congress to
action to resolve the court issue, the protesters are also
calling for Gutierrez' resignation. There are no signs that
Gutierrez will comply, nor of shifts in the loyalty of the
military, the "traditional" arbiter of popular coup attempts
here. New involvement by the indigenous movement could
strengthen the opposition strike next week (the new CONAIE
leadership is untested in this respect).


11. (C) Though time is running out, the government could
still placate the forces gathering before the strike on April

12. Despite opposition efforts to convey a common front with
Guayaquil and other regions, the likely effectiveness of an
indefinite strike is unclear. In the interim, the GOE would
be wise to move to resolve the impasse over the court in
Congress and heed Guayaquil's local demands to prevent a
truly debilitating national strike. We continue to urge
dialogue and restraint on all sides, in support of democratic
stability.
KENNEY