Ecuador Indians Protest for Resignation

[HuckleB]

Ecuador Indians Protest for Resignation

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040607/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/ecuador_indian_protest_3

"Small pamphlet bombs exploded in three cities and Ecuador's powerful Indian movement blocked the Pan American Highway on Monday as part of planned demonstrations to demand the resignation of President Lucio Gutierrez.

The violence came as the Organization of American States opened a meeting in Quito, the capital. Foreign ministers from 34 countries, including Secretary of State Colin Powell (news - web sites), gathered to discuss regional problems and to elect a new OAS secretary-general.

Three bombs exploded in Quito, one in Guayaquil, Ecuador's largest city, and three in Cuenca in southern Ecuador. No injuries were reported.

Police said the pamphlets in the bombs carried the name of the so-called Group of People's Combatants, or GCP by its initials in Spanish. The pamphlets criticized the OAS meeting and the government's economic policies."

Ecuador Indians Protest for Resignation

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040607/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/ecuador_indian_protest_3

[nodehopper]

1. The indigenous movement is extremely well-organized in Ecudor

One of the few countries where they have an actual voice in the government.

[HuckleB]

4. Yes.

For more on the main org: http://conaie.nativeweb.org/

[bemildred]

2. Can we recall Gutierrez?

Just wondering, is the NED on the job here?

[HuckleB]

3. Who is "we"?

[bemildred]

5. It's a rhetorical "we".

As in "what are we going to do about global warming".

[HuckleB]

6. Now I really have no idea what you are talking about.

Were you asking about the Ecuadorian constitution?

[bemildred]

7. It is a bit of a stretch.

There is a recall against Chavez in Venezuela, and the
National Endowment for Democracy (NED) is contributing
money to the recall campaign, to the Venezuelan opposition?

So this is a bit of Irony. Guiterrez was elected by and
with the support of the Indios and promptly reneged on his
promises to them. So the question is why are we not backing
a recall against Guiterrez with NED money? (One reason, of
course, might be that the Ecuadorian Constitution does not
allow for it.)

In case you are not aware, there are several Latin American
countries that are arguably a good deal more unstable than
Venezuela, including Ecuador, Bolivia, Colombia, and Peru,
but they are not governed by people the US is unhappy with,
so we hear little about them except when a crisis occurs.

[HuckleB]

9. I spend a great deal of time in South America.

And there is no way I would call Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia more unstable than Venezuela. Certainly, any smart traveler knows that one can go just about anywhere in those three nations without great concern for one's safety. One cannot say the same of Venezuela.

[bemildred]

10. You don't mind the occasional national strike and/or riot?

Bolivia's government recently fell, with lots of dead indians
occurring in the process? The Capital shut down for a week or
so and El Presidente flees in the night? Ecuador has had and
seems to be having again similar issues? Peru, I will admit,
has not been too noisy lately. You may be correct that they
are safe enough for foreigners between uprisings, and I notice
that you correctly left Colombia out of it.

[HuckleB]

11. All true, but that hardly makes them more unstable than Venezuela.

You are talking about a country whose border area with Columbia is completely unsafe for anyone who isn't a local, and for most who are locals. One can go out and about in Bolivia, Peru and Ecuador at all hours of the day. Even locals don't go out in many parts of Venezuela, including Caracas, after certain hours. And you are talking about a country that has had its own coups over the last 12 years. For all its resources, Venezuela remains as unstable as ever. Of course, there are many reasons for this, and it may overcome its current division in time. However, I don't see how one can say that Venezuela is more stable than Ecuador, Peru or Bolivia at this point in history.

[bemildred]

12. You seem to be confusing political stability with public safety.

They seem to be different issues to me. Venezuela, politically
speaking, is and historically has been one of the most stable
Latin American countries. There is a good deal of civil strife,
but that is a different issue.

[dArKeR]

8. Pamphlet bombs explode in Ecuador

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/world/archives/2004/06/09/2003174378

pic
http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/world/photo/2004/06/09/2003137831

So it's really true as Bush Junior told us that world terrorism is down? Or just more lying and cheating immoral GOP changing of the stats?