In recent news, the people of Ecuador have voted to grant the president, Daniel Noboa, more power considering the increasing conflicts. He plans to deploy soldiers to fight drug crimes and criminals out of state, and the other conflicts and gang-related crimes in the region have now influenced the once-peaceful country. During a referendum on Sunday, the proposal was approved to allow the government to deploy police and military, increase criminal sentencing and punishment, and extradite criminals convicted in another country. Last year, Ecuador reached a record high in homicide and crime rates, and the current president made a statement and announced that his government was in armed conflict with gangs and that the country would show no remorse.
The president had declared 22 gangs as terrorist organizations, as well as declared a state of emergency for the country while granting more powers to the military. Through his policy, Naboa takes after the El Salvador president Nayib Bukele, who previously cracked down on gang violence and decreased homicide and crime rates in the country. However, in Ecuador, if crime does not improve, the recent support of the president will disappear, and the people in the country will be subjected to gangs and violence. Noboa has an approval rating of 69%, although his administration has been under fire since Ecuadorian police stormed Mexico’s embassy in Quito to arrest the former vice president accused of corruption. Mexico, in response, cut all diplomatic ties with Ecuador, and other global influences criticized this as a breach of international law.
When the state of emergency was originally announced, homicide rates dropped initially but eventually went back to the rates they were before it was initiated. Approval of these crime-fighting measures will help the crime and murder rates in the country. However, experts say they expect the violence to continue because said measures do not address the corruption in police or government or address the lack of opportunity, which leads young people to turn to drugs and crime. There are different factors to ensure the security of the country, and if the government can address all of them, I think there is hope the country can become another El Salvador and not allow outside influences or different violent groups to affect internal affairs