To bring peace to Ecuador, now one of the most violent countries in Latin America, presidential candidate Luisa Gonzalez has her formula: the return to power of the socialist forces of former President Rafael Correa, his political godfather, who, in the event of victory, will be one of his “advisers”.
A 45-year-old lawyer, marathon runner, cyclist and tattoo lover, Ms. Gonzalez is running in Sunday’s presidential election primarily as the defender of the legacy of Rafael Correa (in power from 2007 to 2017), in exile in Belgium for six years and who was sentenced in 2020 by the Ecuadorian justice to eight years in prison for corruption.
The winner of this election, summoned by conservative President Guillermo Lasso, cornered by an impeachment trial, will govern until 2025.
Close to Mr. Correa, Ms. Gonzalez aspires to carry on the legacy of her mentor, at a time when Ecuador faces unprecedented violence from drug trafficking and gangs. The presidential election was marked by the assassination on August 9 of candidate Fernando Villavicencio, a fervent opponent of Correism.
In an interview with AFP in Quito, Ms. Gonzalez assures that her priority will be to combat the “very serious infiltration of drug trafficking” in Ecuador and to find the low rates of violent deaths recorded during the time of the government of Rafael Correa, accused by his opponents for having made a pact with criminal gangs.
In 2016, Ecuador had six homicides per 100,000 inhabitants. That rate hit a record high of 26 in 2022 and analysts estimate this year will end with a rate of up to 40 murders per 100,000 population.
Supporters of the slain candidate, one of the frontrunners along with Ms. Gonzalez, have denounced – without evidence so far – Mr. Correa’s alleged links to the attack.
“They wanted to attribute this death to our political party, people said it was Correa’s fault but those close to Mr. Villavicencio themselves accuse the government”, kicks the candidate.
Given until mid-July at the top of the polls, this displayed “Christian” claims not to fear for her life and refuses to wear a bulletproof vest.
Q: Is Ecuador today a country controlled by drug traffickers?
A: “Yes, there is a very serious infiltration of the government by drug traffickers. Ecuador has never been a cocaine exporting country. Today, 60% of the drugs that enter Europe go through the port of Antwerp (Belgium) from the port of Guayaquil (southwest). Why? Because no public force controls the border (with Colombia, the main producer of cocaine). President Rafael Correa has already met with Colombian (leftist) President (Gustavo) Petro to start working”.
Q: Why do you think this situation is?
A: “It’s unfortunate, but when you build a house, it takes you months or years (…) How long does it take you to destroy it? It can take an hour, two hours, it’s is what they did to us in Ecuador (…) they generated unemployment. And when unemployment increases, crime and violence increase”.
Q: How do you plan to curb the violence in just a year and a half of government?
A: “I said it clearly, there is very little time to solve the country’s problems (…) Everything we have done in ten years has been destroyed in two hours. I find a country on its knees , we will start to put it back on its feet, in a year and a half we will control the security in the country, the prisons, the borders, we will also start to generate health, employment, education and we will also reduce common violence”.
Q: Will you be independent of your mentor Rafael Correa?
A: “I said publicly that one of my advisers would be Rafael Correa (…) having a leader in a political party does not mean that this leader will impose everything. In (the party) Revolution citizen, Rafael Correa has never imposed anything”.
08/15/2023 17:51:01 – Quito (AFP) – © 2023 AFP
