The Empire's "Yes Man" in Ecuador

Neither the petty traitor Moreno nor the ambitious Lasso can compete with Noboa in the total surrender of Ecuador's resources and their exploitation by North American imperialism.

These are not mere words or empty arguments, as we can point to an important example: the increase in the diesel tax, along with the elimination of the subsidy, could not advance under either Moreno or Lasso, who were forced to backtrack in the face of massive popular protest.

This situation, now highlighted with Daniel Noboa, has found its primary resistance in the indigenous movement, which as of this Monday has been engaged in eight days of resistance against the Executive's order, which has stated and emphasized that it will not back down from applying a measure that harms a highly vulnerable and low-income population.

As is the case with oppressive regimes that mock the disadvantaged, the repression of the demonstrations has already resulted in fatalities, many injured, and hundreds detained, as well as injuries to journalists covering the protests—a practice that has become common in Peru and Argentina, not to mention the more than 200 killed during the Israeli genocide of the Palestinian population in Gaza.

The strongest resistance to this elimination of the subsidy comes from the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (Conaie), the most powerful social organization in the nation. For the group, "the elimination of the diesel subsidy will affect millions of families, peasant production, and community transportation, driving up the cost of the basic food basket and further impoverishing the lives of the popular sectors."

It has therefore declared that it will activate "all its legitimate organizational mechanisms to confront this new package of measures from Daniel Noboa."

ACCOMMODATING THE IMF

At the same time, other unions point out that the president, rather than focusing on the welfare of the people, seeks to comply with the dictates of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Noboa set out to reduce the state deficit—which reached almost 5% of the Gross Domestic Product when he came to power in 2023—and to meet the targets of the IMF credit program, which amounts to 5 billion dollars between 2024 and 2028. But this official "effort" is muddied by the blood of the oppressed:

There are videos showing injured demonstrators and soldiers shooting and launching tear gas. The images show spent ammunition cartridges and citizens bleeding from the face.

"Our peoples are not war zones, we demand respect and dignity!" Conaie, which brings together 14 nationalities and 18 indigenous peoples of Ecuador, has condemned.

Along the same lines, the University of Cuenca denounced a "disproportionate police repression" against a group of students who held a peaceful sit-in in front of the Government of Azuay.

They denounce that the videos show that the officers used their motorcycles to disperse the crowd. "The audiovisual records clearly show these unjustifiable acts of violence," the educational institution lamented, before asking the local government to sanction the officers involved.

The president of Conaie, Marlon Vargas, released a video in the early hours of Friday speaking directly to the demonstrators. "The strike continues progressively. We invite all peoples and sectors of Ecuador. We condemn the arrogance of the national government. Today our brothers are imprisoned and have been transferred to other provinces," while Noboa accuses them of being terrorists and many of them members of the so-called Tren de Aragua, trying to implicate the Bolivarian Government of Venezuela.

At the same time, an as-yet undetermined number of inmates from 13 of Ecuador's 35 prisons have declared a hunger strike, and in five of them, the prisoners are holding penitentiary agents captive, according to the National Comprehensive Service for Persons Deprived of Liberty (SNAI), in charge of the Andean country's prison system.

The network of indigenous peoples demanded the government release those detained during the protests and denounced that a dozen of them have been transferred and confined to "dangerous" prisons, such as the Esmeraldas prison, where a prison riot between three criminal gangs ended in the massacre of 17 people, some dismembered and shot.

NOBOA SLIPPERS AWAY

Noboa disassociates the protests from the end of the fuel subsidy. For the president, they are a mechanism used by the opposition to undermine his government. "The violent ones seek to destabilize with insecurity and violence," he stated.

"They hide behind protests, but they fear the popular will. They reject the popular consultation because we seek to give power to the people so they can choose their future," the president added.

The current leader follows the pattern initiated with the betrayal of Lenin Moreno, with Ecuador signing three military treaties with the U.S. (SOFA or Status of Forces Agreement, Air Interdiction, Operations against illicit transnational maritime activities); Lasso installed a Bilateral Defense Working Group in 2023 that involves a U.S. investment of about 3.1 billion dollars in the Ecuadorian armed forces, and now Noboa is promoting a reform to the constitutional prohibition on foreign bases and troops.

Thus, they project an increase in the degree of imperial interference, as the current rules have not prevented effective forms of U.S. intervention with daily military flights from the Galápagos, assistance, and judicial funding so that its troops enjoy legal immunity in the South American country.

As commented by Habana Radio, some speak of an "Ecuador Plan" which, like its nefarious predecessor—the Colombia Plan—has a regional geopolitical perspective, for which the "Yes Man" is imposing a popular consultation to ask citizens if they want a new Constitution, to replace the 2008 one, drafted under the administration of Rafael Correa.

Translated by Sergio A. Paneque Díaz / CubaSí Translation Staff