government rejects abandonment of dialogue by indigenous people

The Ecuadorian government rejected on Saturday the abandonment of the dialogue tables announced by the main indigenous movement of the Andean country and described the measure as undemocratic.

The Minister of Government, Henry Cucalón, denied in statements to the press that the agreements signed with leaders of the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador —Conaie— arose from the social protests that put President Guillermo Lasso in trouble in the middle of the last year.

Cucalón said that the government does not break “any dialogue” with any sector, considering it a “fundamental instrument for stability and prosperity.”

The Conaie and its grassroots organizations, meeting on Friday in Quito, resolved to abandon the dialogue tables that they set up with the government in June 2022, after a strike of almost a month.

The movement called on the community guards to be vigilant in defending their territory against the advance of mining and asked the Legislature to impeach the president politically. He also called a large mobilization for the end of March, when they plan to deliver a bill for the defense of water resources.

Cucalón assured that all peaceful mobilization will be guaranteed by the government in respect of the Constitution, international agreements and human rights.

The dialogue tables addressed 10 issues related to the targeting of fuel prices, the cancellation of productive credits, the suspension of the delivery of mining licenses, attention to the social agenda of health and education, among others.

According to the government, so far the budget for intercultural bilingual education has been doubled, credits for 120 million dollars have been delivered, debts of up to 3,000 dollars have been restructured, and the segmentation of gasoline and diesel costs is being analyzed. .

But the indigenous leaders maintain that there is no political will from the government and that “it has continued advancing with its neoliberal policies, which violate” their rights.

The 2022 protests caused road closures, shortages and a balance of five deaths and several injuries, including protesters and police, according to the authorities. Sectors of the government and the private sector estimated the losses for 1,000 million dollars.

Connect with the Voice of America! Subscribe to our channel Youtube and activate notifications, or follow us on social networks: Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.