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| Caribbean-Latin America |
| Demonstrators Fill Ecuador Capital |
| 2005-02-17 |
| Tens of thousands of protesters gathered near Quito's presidential palace Wednesday to demand President Lucio Gutierrez's resignation, accusing him of authoritarian rule and with packing the supreme court with his own judges. Gutierrez responded with a rally of his own, addressing thousands of supporters from his palace balcony. He decried his opponents as "arrogant" and portrayed himself as a crusader against corrupt oligarchs. "Over there is the march of the arrogant," he said, referring to the protest a few blocks away. Officials didn't provide estimate of the size of the crowds. But government protesters filled several streets near the palace and reporters on the scene estimated they numbered about 70,000. They said about half that many gathered for Gutierrez's speech in front of the palace. About 6,000 riot police provided a buffer between the two rallies and arrests or violence were reported. Many of the protesters carried placards declaring "Down with the Dictatorship," and chanted, "Lucio, out!" Paco Moncayo — Quito's popular mayor and a possible presidential candidate in next year's elections — called Gutierrez a "dictator." Gutierrez, whose term runs until January 2007, has faced a political backlash since early December after a pro-government congressional bloc replaced 27 of Ecuador's 31 Supreme Court judges. Gutierrez justified the purge by saying the judges were in the pocket of the rightist Social Christian Party, which has long been associated with the country's financial and banking sector. Last month, Gutierrez proposed a national referendum to reduce congressional powers, restructure the Supreme Court and increase his executive authority — moves that have fueled accusations that he is becoming increasingly authoritarian. Still, Gutierrez has seen his approval rating increase, with polls earlier this month showing support by nearly 35 percent of the country compared to just 16 percent over much of 2004. Gutierrez joined with Indian leaders in January 2000 to drive then-President Jamil Mahuad from power. He was elected president in November 2002. The more things change,... |
| Posted by:Anonymoose |
| #7 That's some real intelecshual stuff Shipman. |
| Posted by: 11A5S 2005-02-17 6:19:36 PM |
| #6 I'm hope that this blog is updated soon. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2005-02-17 5:37:39 PM |
| #5 Chavez has been holding power for over 4 (he has been in office for 6) years now with 35% support. After Castro's clones get a hold of a country's institutions, the support (or lack of) of the people does not matter anymore. |
| Posted by: TMH 2005-02-17 4:42:54 PM |
| #4 ..portrayed himself as a crusader against.. Offensive! OFFENSIVE!!! JIHAD!!!!!!! |
| Posted by: Bomb-a-rama 2005-02-17 12:40:27 PM |
| #3 He's up to 35% support.. color me impressed. |
| Posted by: Dishman 2005-02-17 11:47:27 AM |
| #2 Lucio has learned well the lessons given to him by the master of how-to-turn-a-democracy-into-a- dictatorship-without-anybody-realizing-it-until- is-too-late Hugo Chavez! |
| Posted by: TMH 2005-02-17 11:07:24 AM |
| #1 Demonstrators Fill Ecuador Capital Oh geez, I though they were complaining about the lack of Christina Aguilera (Ecuadoran Ancestry) CDs... The more things change,... |
| Posted by: BigEd 2005-02-17 11:05:32 AM |