Ecuador accuses Mexico before the OAS of promoting “impunity” by giving asylum to Glas

Ecuador defended this Tuesday the break into the Mexican embassy in Quito as an act of “compliance with the sentences” against the former Ecuadorian vice president Jorge Glas.

At a meeting of the permanent council of the Organization of American States (OAS), the South American country accused Mexico of promoting “impunity” by granting diplomatic asylum to Glas.

“Although Mr. Glas was subject to executory sentences for common crimes, the Mexican embassy received him as a guest and he was subsequently considered an asylum seeker…. thus managing to evade justice,” said Alejandro Dávalos, Vice Minister of Human Mobility of Ecuador, before the Latin American representatives at the OAS headquarters in Washington.

Mexico's ambassador to the OAS, Luz Elena Baños, was not present at the session. However, her government has been clear in its rejection of Quito's actions and the “authoritarian and vile” way in which the Ecuadorian police stormed the diplomatic mission.

By presenting unpublished images of the raid, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador announced this Tuesday that his government will present a legal action against Ecuador before the International Court of Justice. “Mexico is respected!” She stated bluntly.

Dávalos accused the Mexican embassy of “disregarding” the judicial aspects against Glas by allowing him to remain in the embassy, ​​“impeding the functioning of the Ecuadorian judicial system.”

“Mexico has emphasized the importance and respect it gives to the institution of asylum. However, his attitude undermines and denatures the figure of diplomatic asylum… by granting it to a convicted fugitive from Ecuadorian justice,” Dávalos added.

The Ecuadorian official said that Glas represented an “imminent flight risk,” even inside the Mexican embassy in Quito.

The ambassadors of Bolivia, Peru, Panama and Costa Rica were some of the representatives to the OAS who reiterated their condemnation in “stronger terms” of Ecuador's actions and rejecting the “use of force.”

“It is unacceptable to justify actions that violate basic principles,” María Roquebert León, Panama's representative at the OAS.

The Secretary General of the OAS, Luis Almagro, reiterated his rejection of the actions undertaken by the Ecuadorian authorities, ensuring that “they seriously affect the fundamental principles of the international legal order.” Furthermore, he called for a return to “international legality.”

The Permanent Council of the OAS will meet again on Wednesday, this time convened by the permanent missions of Colombia and Bolivia, and which, as anticipated, will also discuss the “injuries suffered by Mexican diplomatic personnel in Ecuador.”

The diplomatic crisis began last Friday, April 5, when the Ecuadorian police raided the Mexican embassy in Quito in order to capture former Vice President Glas, who had received asylum at the diplomatic headquarters.

The governments of Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Chile, Venezuela, Peru, Paraguay, Uruguay and Cuba showed their solidarity with Mexico and rejected Ecuador's attitude as representing a violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.

After reviewing the unpublished images published by Mexico, the US reiterated this Tuesday its rejection of what described as “erroneous actions” of the government of Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa. White House national security advisor Jake Sullivan called for understanding and welcomed the OAS meetings in Washington to address the issue.

While the conversations were taking place in the organization, former vice president Glas spent the last few hours hospitalized after suffering a “possible decompensation due to his refusal to consume food,” according to the National Service of Comprehensive Care for Adults of Ecuador.

The agency reported that Glas was discharged this Tuesday after finding that “he presents acceptable health parameters” and will be returned to the penitentiary in Guayaquil.

What happens after the breaking of diplomatic relations?

After the breaking of diplomatic relations between Mexico and Ecuador, the Mexican government announced that consular procedures for its nationals in Ecuador will be handled from Colombia, Peru or Chile. Around 1,600 Mexican citizens and businessmen are based in Ecuador.

The Mexican embassy in Quito will remain closed indefinitely.

In the case of Ecuador, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the rupture “does not imply a closure of consular services” in Mexico, and that those consulted in Mexico City and Monterrey “will continue to function normally to serve the Ecuadorian community.” .

Other intergovernmental mechanisms, such as the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), established meetings this week to discuss the issue between Ecuador and Mexico.

Vice Minister Dávalos assured the OAS that Ecuador has the “intention” of recovering bilateral relations with Mexico and “overcoming the current situation.”

Honduran President Xiomara Castro, who serves as pro tempore president of CELAC, announced that on Friday, April 12, a Summit of Presidents will be held to “define actions” that require the government of Ecuador to “rectify the events that occurred in the flagrant violation of the Vienna Convention.

[La periodista de la Voz de América, Yeny García, contribuyó a este informe]

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