QUITO, Aug 10 (NNN-PRENSA LATINA) — Ecuador’s President Daniel Noboa, decreed the establishment of a curfew focused on 20 cantons in the provinces of Azuay, Guayas, Los Rios and Orellana due to insecurity in those territories.
The measure forbids mobility between 22:00 and 05:00 (local time) and came into force on Thursday evening.
To make his decision official, the president modified Executive Decree 318, provided on July 2, which established a state of exception in the provinces, although it did not stipulate a curfew.
The regulation comes into force as a provision for today’s national holiday commemorating the First Cry of Independence when hundreds of Ecuadorians are commuting across the country.
According to data from the Ministry of the Interior, from January to July 2024 there were 3,612 intentional homicides throughout the country, about 17 murders per day.
In Ecuador, in addition to the mentioned provinces, two others (Manabí and Santa Elena) are under a state of emergency, and in addition, since January, the declaration of internal armed conflict is in force, a provision with which Noboa seeks to curb insecurity and organized crime.
The Executive assures that the number of violent deaths decreased with those measures, but crimes persist and evidence of this is the new declaration of curfew in certain areas.
Meanwhile, the persistence of the security crisis is the main reason why the Interior Minister Monica Palencia will be impeached in the National Assembly – Parliament.
However, on Thursday morning Noboa posted on his social networks a video in which he defends Palencia and accuses the legislature of trying to censure “the woman who leads the fight against terrorism.” — NNN-PRENSA LATINA
