President Guillermo Lasso has declared a state of emergency in Ecuador and requested the help of the FBI in the investigation into the murder Wednesday of a presidential favorite, Fernando Villavicencio, in a country shaken by an unprecedented wave violence related to drug trafficking.
According to the Ecuadorian police, the six suspects arrested after the attack are of Colombian nationality, as well as a seventh assailant killed by the security forces. Interior Minister Juan Zapata confirmed the involvement of “organized criminal groups” in the assassination.
Mr. Lasso declared a state of emergency for a period of 60 days in order to guarantee the holding of the ballot, the first round of which, on August 20, was maintained by the National Electoral Council (CNE).
“The armed forces are currently mobilized throughout the national territory to guarantee the security of citizens, the tranquility of the country and free and democratic elections,” he said in a speech broadcast on YouTube.
Shortly after, he announced on X (ex-Twitter) to have “requested the support of the FBI” in the investigation into the murder of Mr. Villavicencio, assuring that the American federal police had accepted the request. “A delegation will arrive in the country in the next few hours,” he said.
He also decreed three days of national mourning “to honor the memory of a patriot”, that of the 59-year-old centrist candidate who was shot dead Wednesday evening at the end of a campaign rally in Quito.
The attack also left nine injured, according to the authorities, including a candidate for the Assembly and three police officers.
“Initial information confirms that those arrested belong to organized criminal groups,” Zapata said, without specifying which ones, during a press conference.
“Organized crime has gone very far,” denounced Mr. Lasso, saying he was “indignant and shocked”. “I assure you that this crime will not go unpunished,” he promised.
Mr. Villavicencio’s movement, Construye, has called for the creation of an international commission to investigate the murder of its “courageous” leader, a former journalist and fierce critic of corruption who was running for the country’s presidency for the first time.
On the gates of the sports hall in front of which he lost his life, posters show him smiling next to a banner that reads: “NARCOPOLITICS will pay. Forever. Fernando T.Q.M. (for Te Queremos Mucho, we t love very much)”. White roses were placed nearby.
Ruth Flores, a 65-year-old housewife, deplored to AFP the murder of a “candidate who denounced all the corruption of narco-politics, the narco-military”. The situation is “very worrying (…) there is no security”, she regrets.
A handful of supporters gathered during the day near the funeral home where Mr. Villavicencio’s body was transferred. Some were holding signs that read, “they killed my president.”
The international community strongly condemned the murder, with Washington calling it a “heinous act of violence”, the European Union an “attack on democracy” and France a “barbaric act”.
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk denounced an “appalling murder”, seeing in the violence against political leaders “a serious threat to the electoral process and the ability of the people to express their democratic will “.
Last week, the presidential candidate, who was under police protection, had twice reported threats against him and his team.
In recent years, Ecuador has been confronted with a wave of violence linked to drug trafficking which, in the midst of the electoral process, has already led to the death of a mayor and a candidate for Parliament.
Only days before being killed, Mr. Villavicencio had denounced irregularities in public contracts.
One of his main feats of arms remains to have sent former President Rafael Correa (2007-2017) to the dock thanks to one of his investigations. Mr. Correa, a refugee in Belgium, was sentenced in absentia to eight years in prison in this case.
Mr. Villavicencio was among eight declared candidates in the snap general elections prompted by the dissolution of the Assembly in May by Mr. Lasso.
The former journalist ranked second in voting intentions with around 13%, according to the latest polls from the Cedatos institute, behind lawyer Luisa Gonzalez (26.6%), close to former President Correa.
08/11/2023 21:34:21 – Quito (AFP) – © 2023 AFP
