Ecuador National Assembly has allowed giving special pardons to the Armed and Police Forces in their effort against organized crime groups. The government has been trying to use the Armed Forces against organized crime since 2022, as intentional homicides have spiked nationally.
The National Assembly of Ecuador met on the 9th of January, to discuss the state of exception declared by President Daniel Noboa on Monday. The public organization released a statement supporting the President’s measures, including the mobilization of the Armed Forces of Ecuador against violent crime, and the amnesties and pardons offered to them, in the case that these are necessary to “preserve public safety.”
On Monday, a state of exception was set off in Ecuador by the escape of the convict “Fito” from prison, and ensuing prison riots. On Tuesday, a television news broadcast was taken over by an organized crime group, where employees were held hostage.
It is unclear what kinds of allowances will be given to armed officers in the state of exception. The National Assembly also said that they will “not obstruct any public authority” during the state of exception. Over the last few years, Ecuador and the National Assembly have moved towards facing organized crime through military force, as public safety has declined.
Progressive militarization of Ecuador against organized crime
Noboa’s electoral campaign in 2023 directly proposed to mobilize the Armed Forces against organized crime, even though the institution is not intended to target internal threats, as per the Ecuadorian Constitution. However, on December 21st 2023, just a few weeks ago, the National Assembly approved a bill modifying the constitution, allowing the President or the National Police to use the Armed Forces to assist the Police against organized crime, under exceptional circumstances.
This bill was proposed by ex-president Guillermo Lasso in 2022, and the government has moved more aggressively against organized crime since. Noboa has commissioned the construction of two high-security prisons, which said they are the same as those built by President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador, serving under an exceptional regime. These prisons are known for jailing organized crime members, and for their strict rules against inmates, which have been criticized by Amnesty International for ignorance of human rights.
Noboa has also ordered that 1,500 foreign inmates in Ecuador be moved to prisons elsewhere in South America, to try to mitigate the drug trafficking problems. The Ministry of Justice said that they will study each inmate case by case in order to carry this out. In an official statement, Noboa said that acts of violence from gangs, including the armed takeover of a TV broadcast, are a result of the government’s strict measures against criminals.
The government measures against criminals came amidst the decline of Ecuador’s public safety.
According to the Ecuatorian Observatory of Organized Crime, an NGO dedicated to tracking crime statistics, intentional homicides in Ecuador have increased by 528% between the first semesters of 2019 and 2023. The year 2022 saw 25 intentional homicides for every hundred thousand inhabitants, with 4342 assassinations in total, as per the Ecuador Police. Of the assassinations, 86% were committed with a firearm.
State of exception, again
The nationwide state of exception has granted extraordinary powers to the government for 60 days. This declaration allows the President to mobilize the Police and Armed Forces to their will, throughout the whole country, with the added amnesties from the National Assembly. A mandatory curfew has been instituted within the terms of the declaration, from 23:00 to 5:00.
Noboa’s declaration of a state of exception included the official labeling of specific gangs as “terrorist groups,” which were chosen according to police reports of intentional homicides in Ecuador.
“We are not negotiating with terrorists, we will not rest until returning peace to all Ecuadorians,” said Noboa in his address on the 8th of January.
The Armed and Police Forces were given authority by Noboa in neutralizing these terrorist groups.
The Chief of Armed Forces, Jaime Vela Erazo, said that these terrorist groups, operating from within Ecuador, have become “military targets.” Erazo gave a message to the Ecuadorian population, saying that the fight against organized crime will be successful through “everybody’s effort,” in an official statement.
Throughout the last year, Ecuadorian citizens have suffered increased casualties and losses from the increase in violence.
Between January and November 2023, 7,271 intentional homicides have been registered across Ecuador as per the official government database. Using official census data, this amounts to nearly 43 intentional homicides per hundred thousand inhabitants, a 72% increase from 2022.
The ex-president of Ecuador, Guillermo Lasso, last declared a state of exception in August 2023, when a presidential candidate, Fernando Villavicencio, was assassinated. The state of exception was declared in order to ensure that the elections would take place, according to Lasso. The elections themselves were exceptional, as they were caused by a corruption scandal involving Lasso himself in drug trafficking, a phenomenon that has been tied to the increase in intentional homicides in Ecuador by the police.
