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Thread: Turmoil in Ecuador

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    Default Re: Turmoil in Ecuador

    Oh no....Bill and Rosemarie. This is just awful. Is there any way you two could team up for security reasons, at least temporarily? I think it might be useful for Avalonians who know and trust one another to assist each other in a scenario like this. I am going to say a prayer, cross my fingers, meditate etc...for you both tonight. Maybe I should do it right now, huh? Best, best wishes to you both!

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    Default Re: Turmoil in Ecuador

    Quote Posted by Bill Ryan (here)
    Quote Posted by Rosemarie (here)

    No petroleum !
    Many are suffering who were never once any part of this problem.
    I guess it's interesting to look at some consequences caused by Saudi Oil fields attack

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    Default Re: Turmoil in Ecuador

    Thank you AutumnW ! If we lived closer I might invade Bill’s idilic house and views ! But we live 4 hours and a mountain range apart ! And all the indigenous people that are causing all the trouble are in the mayor ( and not so mayor ) roads going to the big cities. I think I am safer than Bill in my building in a suburb of Guayaquil than maybe Bill surrounded by the trouble makers ! I just came back from the supermarket. No vegetables or fruits and no meat. Still a lot of cans !
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Click image for larger version

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    Last edited by Rosemarie; 8th October 2019 at 21:13.
    "Be kind for everybody is fighting a great battle" Plato

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    Default Re: Turmoil in Ecuador

    Rosemarie and Bill,

    What does this bode for the future? Totally sympathize with indigenous people agitating on their own behalf but.....I don't live there and it's not threatening me so I can afford to be sympathetic. Are you able to take steps to leave the country or find a really safe place within the country if things go haywire again?

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    Default Re: Turmoil in Ecuador

    Quote taken from The Saker:

    Quote Then, there is also this shocking declaration, from the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (CONAIE):


    Quote From which there follows a translation into English (thanks to Peter Lenny):

    *******

    CONAIE declares a state of exception in indigenous lands

    1) In view of the public authorities’ brutality and their lack of the awareness necessary to understand the popular nature of the demands of the National Stoppage against the Package, which adversely affects Ecuadorean society as a whole and worsens the conditions of life and existence of the country’s most vulnerable popular sectors;

    2) In view of the government’s insistence on advancing on our territories to exploit mining, oil and goods of nature, destroying living environments and backing the corporations’ presence with military forces;

    3) Exercising our right to self-determination and our authority to administer justice in the jurisdiction of the peoples and nationalities, as recognized in the United Nations Declaration on [the Rights of] Indigenous Peoples, ILO Convention 169 on Indigenous and Tribal Peoples, and the Constitution of the Republic of Ecuador;

    The CONAIE hereby declares a state of exception in all indigenous territories.

    Military and police who approach indigenous territories will be detained and subject to indigenous justice.
    http://thesaker.is/sitrep-ecuador-on...-of-civil-war/

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  11. Link to Post #26
    UK Avalon Founder Bill Ryan's Avatar
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    Default Re: Turmoil in Ecuador

    Quote Posted by silvanelf (here)
    Quote taken from The Saker:

    Quote Then, there is also this shocking declaration, from the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (CONAIE):
    Yes, big trouble ahead. The indigenous people, with whom I totally empathize, are intending to march on Quito: 20,000 of them. They're tough and determined, and can be ruthless. They've brought down three governments before, and this one may be the fourth.

    So none of this is even close to being over. The country is in chaos. Cuenca, Ecuador's third city, is at a standstill, with all roads in and out blocked in all directions. The police are doing little. I've now seen many police cars drive up to roadblocks and just turn round and head away again.

    I tried to get through again this morning to the little local market town where I successfully picked up a huge quantity of fruit and veg on Sunday — but today that was closed off as well. Now I'm sandwiched between road blocks each way.

    I'm all fine here. I have enough food and fuel for a while. But the protests are increasing, not dying away, and all this will have a huge economic effect on the country. The 130% overnight diesel price hike will trigger inflation in every sector, and in the meantime schools are closed, and no-one's going to work: most people just can't.

    No buses are running. The roads are silent, and as Rosemarie reported, store shelves are emptying. We'll just continue reporting in every day.

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    Default Re: Turmoil in Ecuador

    Ecuador’s Great Betrayal


    For more than a decade, the Citizen’s Revolution that began under Rafael Correa made tremendous strides in reduction of poverty and inequality, including taking hundreds of thousands of children off the streets and into schools, while also significantly increasing Ecuador’s middle class.

    The country also achieved political and social stability after years of turmoil that followed the 1998 banking crisis.

    The Citizen’s Revolution was not without its detractors and contradictions however, including rows and protests over reproductive rights, extractive industries, and more recently, corruption scandals involving key government figures.

    Nonetheless, in the 2017 elections Ecuador was seen as having bucked the trend of right-wing victories across Latin America. The candidate from Correa’s Alianza PAIS, Lenin Moreno, was elected on a platform of continuity — but signs of a looming divergence began to emerge.

    Moreno and Correa are now bitter enemies, with Moreno’s government seeking to jail his former ally as they did with Correa’s last vice president, Jorge Glas. Alianza PAIS has split, and Correa’s allies have not yet been allowed to register a new party.

    The Moreno government has also allied with political forces on the right to pass significant austerity and liberalization measures, while shifting the country’s foreign policy to a more US-friendly disposition.

    The spectacular shift — which Correa has characterized as a “treason” or a “coup” — has baffled many.

    Guillaume Long served as Correa’s last foreign minister. He was also the head of international affairs for Alianza PAIS, and led efforts to create a broad space for Latin American left parties called the Latin American Progressives Summit (ELAP). Long spoke to Jacobin about what is happening in Ecuador and the state of the Left in the region.

    PV
    The political-economic reforms that were surprisingly ushered in by Lenin Moreno as well as the split that occurred in the ruling Alianza PAIS are examples of the tectonic shifts in the country’s politics. What explains the departure from the election platform and allegiances by Lenin and his supporters, many of whom had supported Correa and the Citizen’s Revolution?

    GL
    There are a number of internal factors, the first one of course being the choice of Correa’s successor, one might argue by Correa himself, so that’s a significant mistake. I mean it was born out of good intentions, with Correa deciding not to run again.

    This was supposed to be a very democratic move. It was likely that Correa would win, whereas Lenin struggled to win, but he won with Correa’s votes. If you do a rigorous analysis of the Moreno vote in 2017, it’s basically the bastions of popular support for Correismo.

    But the idea was to have someone who would be more to the center because we’ve had a lot polarizing policies, particularly in 2015 with a new windfall tax on land and inheritance that didn’t exist before. The right wing was highly mobilized and it was thought that someone like Lenin Moreno, a benign character that was all about dialogue, would institutionalize things. Maybe even Correa could come back four years later with a more radical agenda and continue the transformation.

    But also I think a number of mistakes were committed by the Correa administrations, particularly in the last years. These empowered Lenin, because there was a notion that Correa was too conflictive. The mistakes were more aesthetic than structural, and they made Lenin not just an heir of Correa, but a viable alternative for other sectors who were unsympathetic to Correa.

    When Moreno departed from Correa in the first few months, he was able to capitalize on people who were fed up with Correa’s polarizing style of rule. Particularly in the middle classes, there was a feeling that it was time for a much more ecumenical kind of government, one that would listen, that would be less conflictive. Of course, this was used as a platform for the recuperation of power and to put an end to all sorts of policies including redistributive policies that the elites disagreed with.

    Of course there are also exogenous factors. Correa’s last two years of rule were the most difficult. In 2014, the commodities crash affected the economy in a very serious way. This meant that instead of finishing on a high, Correa finished on a low. Now paradoxically, I would argue that his best governance was between 2014 and 2017, where he surfed the commodities decline in a very intelligent way. Ecuador is the only country of its kind that didn’t face a major crisis because of the commodity decline.

    There was also an earthquake which participated in a negative growth, so there were all sorts of factors. Ecuador did a lot right: it managed to get out of the recession through anti-austerity investment, beating neoliberalism, demonstrating that austerity doesn’t work when times are good, and it works even less when times are bad.

    But people saw that there was a slowing down on the back of the economy, things got tougher, things got difficult. This enabled Lenin to come in with an agenda of change, but change that turned away from reform, away from transformation, away from redistribution, and returned to a sort of conservative style of rule which implies much less polarization with the elites.

    In this process, Lenin got the backing of the media. Suddenly there was this massive hegemony rebuilt around his figure which enabled him to consolidate himself politically.

    So why did people from Correa’s political project accompany Lenin? Correa’s government was always very heterogeneous, I would say from the Communist Party to the center right, it was broad. There were business sectors, but there were also social movements, trade unions, the Communist Party, the Socialist Party, and Alianza PAIS which is like the mass party, and within PAIS there are a lot of factions.

    That meant the Left in its entirety was represented. Correa had certain aspects that were radical, and others that were less radical, including his deeply embedded Catholicism which was problematic for certain sectors in his government. Some of those sectors saw Moreno as somebody who was more secular.

    At the time there was a possibility that Moreno would open up on a few of those fronts, certain gender reforms, sexual and reproductive rights. Now we know that hasn’t happened. We could go back into some of these accusations against Correa, because I would say with the great exception of abortion, on the other fronts, Ecuador made huge leaps forward on gender and LGBT issues.

    But it was a perception of certain sectors of the left that Moreno would be more progressive on those issues. That maybe we would lose some radicalism on the economic front, but you would gain some on identity politics.

    It hasn’t happened, but this is the reason why they joined.

    PV
    It seems paradoxical that on the one hand, the current situation is a result of the weaknesses of Correa and his government; but on the other, he would have likely won the election. Given that, how would you describe the state of the Left and the Citizen’s Revolution in Ecuador today?

    GL
    I wish politics was less contradictory because both hold true. I think Correa would have won, but I also think that it was very easy to set up an anti-Correa platform. You got two broad sections of society — one that would have voted for Correa and one that wouldn’t have voted for Correa. I think Moreno managed to get elected with one half, but rule with the other.

    I would say that the Left within the government is now almost nonexistent. Those sectors that we were describing that joined Moreno’s government, little by little soon realized that Moreno had a fundamentally neoliberal agenda. We’re seeing now all these laws coming into force that are basically bringing a new kind of structural adjustment with moves away from the model of development that Correa and his government implemented.

    All the key ministries are now in the hands of not just the Right, but hardliners including the key advisers of Moreno’s opponent in the 2017 election. The new minister of finance was the financial adviser to Moreno’s opponent.

    So the Left that’s in government in Ecuador is in marginal places. We just had another resignation last week. It’s got its hands tied. There were some doubts during the first few months, including internationally as to whether Moreno could still be considered left. But I think consensus everywhere now, including outside of Ecuador, is that Moreno has not got a left-wing government in place and that in every possible way, economically, geopolitically, it terms of his foreign policy, it’s a conservative turn.

    So where is the Left at? In opposition. There are few small parties that are accompanying Moreno, but all the others are now in opposition.

    What is amazing is Alianza PAIS itself. It was founded by Correa then expropriated by Moreno and all of the key founding people were thrown out. Now, it’s an empty shell. PAIS was for years the biggest party in Ecuador, and yet it basically has crumbled because the party is divided both in its parliamentary expression, between those who remain loyal to Correa and those who sold out to Moreno, but also in its grassroots expression. In the grassroots, where there are less interests, less salaries involved, less power and less money to be thrown around, obviously a huge majority of PAIS supporters have remained loyal to Correa.

    This means that they are now partyless because Moreno’s government and all the institutions that he controls have prevented Correa from creating a new party.

    Moreno got control over the PAIS but the party is now insignificant. It’s lost its majority in Congress, not through votes, but through all these lawmakers leaving the party. And so Moreno has lost his majority and by losing his majority has also had to cuddle up to the Right because the only way he’s been able to govern is with this hotchpotch alliance that’s pressuring him to do neoliberal structural adjustment.

    So the Left is in opposition, obviously divided in a myriad of different expressions, but it is increasingly united against the neoliberal turn.

    There are diehard Correistas, there are Correistas that are critical. Some people that were very favorable to his socio-economic policies and his foreign policy, the kind of birth a sovereign nation state, were critical of other things, for example the issue of abortion. There’s all sorts of different types of Correismo, and there is also the Left that’s not Correista. It’s more marginal, it’s smaller, but it exists and we are now seeing people who are on the left-wing opposition to Correa, including people who were aggressively anti-Correa who are now aggressively anti-Moreno. So we are seeing the Left reconfiguring itself.

    PV
    You mention an anti-Correa left that is shifting against Moreno. Who are you referring to?

    GL
    The anti-Correa left was always small and elite. The only non-elite aspect was the fast-declining indigenous movement CONAIE which, since unfortunately co-governing with Lucio Gutierrez between 2003-5, has been going downhill. There is still some indigenous remnants there, but it’s never really been important electorally................. more

    https://jacobinmag.com/2018/08/ecuad...o-alianza-pais


    It doesn't cover the betrayal of Julian Assange

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    Default Re: Turmoil in Ecuador

    Too hungry for power, too inept to rule: Moreno & his neoliberalism are behind Ecuador’s turmoil, ex-president Correa tells RT

    RT
    8 Oct, 2019 20:34 /
    Updated 2 hours ago
    Get short URL


    Demonstrators clash with police officers during a protest against austerity measures in Quito, Ecuador on October 8, 2019. © Reuters / Carlos Garcia Rawlins

    Ecuadorian authorities are trying hard to shift the blame for ongoing protests on foreign influence, yet they are the ones who have mishandled the economy, and now refuse to give up power, ex-president Rafael Correa told RT.

    The anti-government protests were triggered by austerity cuts linked to a loan deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), approved back in March. The spending cuts, unveiled by President Lenin Moreno last week include elimination of state fuel subsidies – which has already resulted in fuel prices more than doubling. In an attempt to quell the unrest, Moreno issued a 60-day national emergency decree late last week, yet the crisis continued and the government was ultimately forced to move out of the capital city of Quito to the southern coastal city of Guayaquil on Monday.

    The country's government has blamed the unrest on foreign meddling. The president branded the protest a “coup attempt” backed by Venezuela's leader Nicolas Maduro and exiled former president of Ecuador – one-time ally and now an arch-enemy of Moreno – Rafael Correa.

    Foreign meddling or inept policy making to blame?
    Correa himself, however, denies any involvement, insisting that only the government and its inept policies are to blame for the turmoil in the country. Speaking exclusively to RT Spanish, the former president said that the protest is a result of Moreno's abrupt shift to neoliberal policies and his turning to the IMF for “help.”


    A police vehicle burns during a protest against austerity measures in Quito, Ecuador on October 7, 2019. © Reuters / Carlos Garcia Rawlins
    “[Moreno] thought he could create something new and better, but he only managed to destroy. We've left Ecuador's economy growing and the growth continued up to 2017-18. But this year, stagnation awaits us,” Correa said.
    The very decision to strike a loan deal with the IMF was based on lies, Correa argued, as the country's government tricked the public, painting the economic situation worse than it was in reality.

    “They've been juggling the facts and deceived the people, stating that Ecuador's debt reached 60 billions of dollars – 60 percent of the GDP,” he said, arguing that the debt has not reached this mark even now. The debt was actually around 40 percent of GDP back in 2017, when Correa left his post and rapidly grew to 55 percent under Moreno's rule.

    The government's austerity measures – required by the IMF – are not actually invoked by any real factors, except for bad decision making by the government, Correa added.
    There was no abrupt fall of oil prices… There was no earthquake. That's simply inept economy keeping.

    Demonstrators clash with police officers during a protest against austerity measures in Quito, Ecuador on October 8, 2019. © Reuters / Ivan Alvarado

    Moreno too power-hungry to fix the situation
    In fact, Ecuador has a mechanism in place to fix the situation, Correa said. There's a set of constitutional provisions, known as the “cross death” – it allows the country's National Assembly to dismiss the president in case of social unrest, while he can disband parliament at the same time, triggering a snap election. The said mechanism was established after a decade of political instability between 1996-2006, when the country went through a whole series of presidents.

    The current government, however, has seemingly opted for quelling unrest by force instead of invoking these provisions, fearful of losing their grip on power.
    “Why is no one talking about that? Because [Moreno] knows he will never win fair elections. Democracy is of no interest to him,” Correa said. “He takes no interest in the country, he's thinking only about the power and his own interests.”
    In front of the whole world, the whole Latin America [Moreno government] is painting us as putschists in his informational campaign, blames us for trying to destabilize the government. But in reality, they are the true putschists – it's them who violated the Constitution when it benefited them, it's them who destabilized the situation in the country, they deprived the people of democracy and stomped on the constitutional order.
    Moreno enjoys a cozy relationship with the country’s media, Correa added, accusing the press of being complicit in the deteriorating situation through silencing the anti-government protesters and “distorting facts.” The ex-president said the people have seen through these lies and are angry with the media and its selective coverage.

    Indeed, the protesters have been spotted carrying banners targeting not only the government, but the media as well.


    Demonstrators hold a banner that reads: "Lenin out, traitor, corrupt press" during an anti-austerity protest in Quito, Ecuador on October 8, 2019. © Reuters / Carlos Garcia Rawlins

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  17. Link to Post #29
    UK Avalon Founder Bill Ryan's Avatar
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    Default Re: Turmoil in Ecuador

    Photos of protests, just a few hours ago, from https://ww2.elmercurio.com.ec/2019/10/09/las-protestas

    The brief article concludes:
    Services have been gradually paralyzed. The shortage of gas canisters (for cooking and heating) continues and there are no buses or taxis.
    Bill's note: Re the gas canisters, it's not a 'shortage' — there were none at all. Some have just been airlifted in by military plane. This is the most serious impact to regular people at the moment.

















    Last edited by Bill Ryan; 25th September 2020 at 02:32.

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    Default Re: Turmoil in Ecuador

    IMF in the middle of this, their usual position.

    "The Economic hit man" has been to Ecuador .

    -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    President orders army onto streets of Ecuadorian capital


    By MICHAEL WEISSENSTEIN and GONZALO SOLANO2 hours ago

    https://www.apnews.com/3163699112084840882bcb603cb7aa2c



    Anti-government demonstrators takes cover behind a barricade during clashes with police in Quito, Ecuador, Saturday, Oct. 12, 2019. Protests, which began when President Lenin Moreno's decision to cut subsidies led to a sharp increase in fuel prices, have persisted for days. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)

    QUITO, Ecuador (AP) — Ecuador’s army took to the streets after President Lenín Moreno ordered the first 24-hour curfew in decades in response to a day of attacks on government buildings and media offices.

    By Saturday night, soldiers had retaken control of the park and streets leading to the National Assembly and the national comptroller’s office, which had been broken into by protesters who lit fires inside the building.

    Late Saturday night, Moreno announced some possible concessions in an economic package that was opposed by many Ecuadorians.

    For many in Ecuador, which had become one of the safest and most stable countries in the region, the day’s violence was a terrifying shock.

    Following hours of chaos, Moreno appeared on national television alongside his vice president and defense minister to announce that he was ordering people indoors and the army onto the streets.

    Moreno said the masked protesters had nothing to do with the thousands of indigenous Ecuadorians who have protested for more than a week over a sudden rise in fuel prices as part of an International Monetary Fund-backed austerity package.

    In an unexplained episode, opposition legislator Gabriela Rivadeneira, a close ally of Correa, entered the Mexican embassy, which said it had provided her “safety and protection.”

    Ecuadorian officials said she had no pending charges or reason to seek political asylum.

    Moreno is raising taxes, liberalizing labor laws and cutting public spending in order to win more than $4 billion in emergency financing from the International Monetary Fund.

    The standoff halted Ecuador’s oil production, blocked highways and caused hundreds of millions of dollars in loss to industries such as flower-growing to dairy farming
    Last edited by ramus; 14th October 2019 at 08:42.

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    Default Re: Turmoil in Ecuador

    Here is another article:

    Ecuador president orders curfew, military control in Quito
    [AFP]
    AFP•October 12, 2019

    https://news.yahoo.com/indigenous-pr...182233310.html

    Demonstrators break into the General Comptrollers Office building during protests over a fuel price hike ordered by the government to secure an IMF loan (AFP Photo/Martin BERNETTI )

    Quito (AFP) - Ecuador President Lenin Moreno on Saturday ordered the capital Quito and surrounding areas to be placed under curfew and military control, on the 11th day of deadly protests against government austerity measures.

    The order "will take effect" Saturday from 3 pm (2000 GMT) and "facilitate the work of public forces against intolerable outbreaks of violence," he announced on Twitter.

    This was in addition to the state of emergency Moreno had declared on October 3, deploying some 75,000 military and police, in addition to imposing an additional curfew in the vicinity of government buildings.

    This was in addition to the state of emergency Moreno had declared on October 3, deploying some 75,000 military and police, in addition to imposing an additional curfew in the vicinity of government buildings.

    More than a week of demonstrations in the capital Quito have left five people dead and nearly 2,000 injured or detained.

    The protests were triggered when fuel subsidies were eliminated as part of a deal with the IMF for a $4.2 billion loan. Instantly, fuel prices more than doubled.
    Last edited by ramus; 13th October 2019 at 08:58.

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    UK Avalon Founder Bill Ryan's Avatar
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    Default Re: Turmoil in Ecuador

    A personal update here, a brief one.

    I'm still under siege, and can't move (drive) in any direction. This is the main problem:



    That road block (and quite a few others like it) are what stops all traffic. A friend on a mountain bike told me that even with that, he had trouble getting through, even on the dirt roads. He's no shrinking violet, but could sense potential violence.

    I have enough food to last for 3 weeks (maybe more), and enough gas canisters for cooking and hot water for 3 months. Mara the might run out of food before I do! (And that'd be a little hard to explain to her.) But we'll cross that bridge if and when we come to it. She'll have nothing to eat if I can't make it to the market within a week, unless I start sharing my cans of tuna with her.

    I'm not worried, or in any form of discomfort: it's a little like being on a mountain in a storm, but with good equipment. So it's all under control. But how long this will last for, I have no idea, and I don't think anyone does.

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  25. Link to Post #33
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    Default Re: Turmoil in Ecuador

    The situation in the mountain areas are worst than in the coast cities like Guayaquil. In the suburb where I live life has returned to normal. Supermarkets are filled with food. There is a chain of supermarkets calle Supermaxi that have their distribution center in the outskirts of Quito.... and since friday they have been able to send trucks full of food from there and you know that is where the worst of this situation is taking place. I think there has been an understanding between governments and protestors to let the trucks safe passage thru the highway.

    Quito is around 5 hours away from Guayaquil by the Panamerican Highway.
    No shortage of gas either. But everytime my tank is 1/4 empty I fill it up !! Also have food for a month or more. My refrigerador or pantry has never been so full.

    Hope there is an understanding between the government and the CONAIE. The country, specially Quito have been vandalized. I fear for Cuenca also. Haven’t seen photos or news from anybody living in the city. I have a trip planned to go and visit my daughter and I do not feel like going. Feel like I should stay and be solidary ( correct word ? ) with my country. I hate seeing what is happening, brother against brother fighting. I also hate to see my country in the news for the wrong reasons.
    "Be kind for everybody is fighting a great battle" Plato

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    Default Re: Turmoil in Ecuador

    Ex-Central Bank official: US guided IMF austerity package shares guilt for chaos in Ecuador

    RT
    Sun, 13 Oct 2019 15:08 UTC


    A demonstrator throws a tear gas canister during a protest against Ecuador's President Lenin Moreno's austerity measures in Quito, Ecuador. October 12, 2019. © Reuters/Ivan Alvarado

    The protests that have engulfed Ecuador and nearly brought the country's oil industry to a halt are triggered by economic policies imposed by the IMF, guided by none other than US foreign interests, an expert told Boom Bust.

    "The IMF is heavily guided by the hand of [US] Department of State and Department of the Treasury. Basically, what the IMF does in Western hemisphere is US foreign policy," Andres Arauz, former official of the Ecuadorian Central Bank, has told RT's Boom Bust. The economist stated that while the IMF program endorsed by his country some time ago already significantly damaged Ecuadorian economy, the latest hikes in gas prices became the final drop and forced the people to mobilize.
    "The [IMF] austerity package is about 6 points of [Ecuador's] GDP. The package has implied weakening of the Ecuadorian economy and led to people suffering, [...] but with the most recent decision to hike the prices of diesel and gasoline by over 120 per cent people said this is enough and mobilized."
    Asked to shed light on how an initially leftist leader - Ecuador's president Lenin Moreno - ended up securing an IMF loan agreement in the first place, Arauz said he is simply a wrong kind of leftist.

    "Moreno is a 'charity' kind of leftist, one that supports giving charity to disabled or the poor, but not the 'transformative' kind of leftist that wants to overhaul the national economy, or the power structure and society," the economist stated. He added, that now Moreno is seen as "a person that likes to seek approval from the [...] hegemonic powers around the globe" [instead of defending his country's interests.]

    Related:
    "La réalité est un rêve que l'on fait atterrir" San Antonio AKA F. Dard

    Troll-hood motto: Never, ever, however, whatsoever, to anyone, a point concede.

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    Default Re: Turmoil in Ecuador

    Quote Posted by Rosemarie (here)
    I have a trip planned to go and visit my daughter and I do not feel like going. Feel like I should stay and be solidary ( correct word ? ) with my country.
    Mother-Bear to Mother-Bear:

    There are plenty of people to stand in solidarity for the country but only one Mom for her Daughter.

    Mom = Big Medicine ♡

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    Default Re: Turmoil in Ecuador

    Observe, orient, decide and ACT! That is basically the mini version hat when the shthefan.
    It is best to know your area far before such a thing occurs. Have some maps and Know some neighbors and have a zone of people you can trust.

    Take to the hills if you know them and know when to go when you have to. If you have a short wave radio, well done, and you now will have some comm when every one else doesn't.

    Probably a survival attitude without being in delusion as to the current scene is the most important. Btw this can happen anywhere and very fast. I got used to martial law in one day.

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    Default Re: Turmoil in Ecuador

    Maybe all these other protest, have caught an eye.
    ====================================================

    Ecuador reaches deal to cancel austerity measures, end mass protests

    https://www.marketwatch.com/story/ec...=mw_latestnews



    By
    Associated
    Press

    QUITO, Ecuador — President Lenín Moreno and leaders of Ecuador’s indigenous peoples struck a deal late Sunday to cancel a disputed austerity package and end nearly two weeks of protests that have paralyzed the economy and left seven dead.

    Under the agreement announced just before 10 p.m., Moreno will withdraw the International Monetary Fund-backed package known as Decree 883 that included a sharp rise in fuels. Indigenous leaders, in turn, will call on their followers to end protests and street blockades.

    The two sides will work together to develop a new package of measures to cut government spending, increase revenues and reduce Ecuador’s unsustainable budget deficits and public debt.

    “The moment of peace, of agreement, has come for Ecuador,” said Arnaud Peral, the United Nations’ resident coordinator in Ecuador and one of the mediators of the nationally televised talks, which started about 6 p.m. “This deal is an extraordinary step.”

    Michael Limaico, an unemployed sign-maker, stood on a corner in the Carcelen neighborhood Saturday near a line of burned tires that blocked one of the Quito’s main thoroughfares. Limaico said that he and his wife had struggled for years to feed and house their three children, ages 9 to 15, with their earnings of about $600 a month from odd jobs around northern Quito.

    Then, prices of food and other basic goods rose sharply after Moreno removed fuel subsidies Oct. 2. Limaico said it had become impossible to make ends meet, and he had been protesting for days with neighbors who have blocked Diego de Vazquez Avenue as it passes through Carcelen.

    “This isn’t a protest of thieves, of gangsters,” he said. “This is the people, and we’re fed up
    Last edited by ramus; 14th October 2019 at 04:27.

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    Default Re: Turmoil in Ecuador

    Hey Bill it's good news now .... go get that dog some more food . I guess this is not over, just a lull before the next I.M.F. bad call. Take advantage of this to restock if you can.

    Hope the stores are not all empty .

    Thinking of you!

    Sending some money hope you can retrieve it.

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  37. Link to Post #39
    UK Avalon Founder Bill Ryan's Avatar
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    Default Re: Turmoil in Ecuador

    @ramus, thanks for the updates! Yes, up early here, and reading the news. It all seems positive. (But yes, anything could still happen, so I need to stay alert.)

    Smart of the government to back down. It was really dumb what they did in the first place, imagining that they could somehow impose this massive price hike on poor people and there'd be no backlash.

    That just shows how much out of touch they were. A good lesson for governments everywhere, if they're watching. People power really can bring a country to its knees quite quickly. And social media helps even simple, indigenous people be well-organized.

    I have a problem that I'd not shared, that my very old 4x4 (a 1986 Isuzu Trooper that's done 235,000 miles) cracked a fuel line under the chassis when I crashed through one of the road blocks last week. I only noticed it the other day, and my full tank has been very slowly emptying itself with a little drip. I've not been able to repair it myself, and I calculated it'd be empty in maybe 10 days. (But I do have 2-3 gallons in reserve in cans.)

    So now I can
    1. Get that repaired.
    2. Get some more food for Mara the .
    Jim Newell suggested a short wave radio. I do have one! But I've never taught myself how to use it, though I have a comprehensive manual and it should all work perfectly. I've not got a license, though in an infrastructure collapse I doubt that would matter.

    And he also noted that "this can happen anywhere and very fast." That's really true. Here, it all turned very sour literally overnight.

    Do take note, wherever you live.... make sure you have what you need. Much of that costs very little, sometimes even pennies. There's a new thread about it here.

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  39. Link to Post #40
    United States Honored, Retired Member. Ron passed in October 2022.
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    Default Re: Turmoil in Ecuador

    Bill you can construct a simple antenna for a specific frequency band ahead of the time when you may need it.

    A small solar system with deep cycle batteries may also be required if the electric grid goes down.
    Listening to traffic on the airways can teach you how to use the amateur radio bands.
    Having a local friend who is a Ham would be of much benefit.
    What radio do you have?

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