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Ecuador's Era of Political Violence

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Ecuador's Era of Political Violence
Ecuador Ecuador is a beautiful and small country located in South America, between Colombia and Peru. Its total territory is of 256,370 sq. kilometers and has a total population of about 14 million of inhabitants. Ecuador has a democratic government. Its President is Rafael Correa who was constitutionally elected by popular vote on 2006. Ecuador is a country with 38.3% of the population below the poverty line (2006). The era of political violence in Ecuador has been around ever since it was a territory controlled by the Spaniards. Ecuador, as many developing countries, has strongly marked boundaries among its socio-economical classes; therefore a small and corrupted elite has always controlled it. The political power has been always bouncing from the right to left wings. Governmental candidates usually won by promising the people social wellbeing and offering small gifts for gaining their alliance. Campaign promises are rarely kept. The most recent act of political violence was an alleged coup attempt in Ecuador on September 30, 2010 when the current President Rafael Correa was kidnapped by some police members and military officers. Police and Military personnel were on strike due to salary issues and the crisis or so called “coup” started when the President went into a Police Headquarter trying to sooth the furious officers due to the law passed on the day before. The law stated that police officers would be cut down on bonuses and be extended the time period for when they can receive promotions. The time that was extended was from 5 years to 7 years. Although the law was not effective the people were already furious with what was coming (Llana). Things got out of control when President Correa said “Here I am, Kill me!” so as soon as he finished his intervention he was forced to run to the adjacent Police Hospital. When he entered the Hospital he had a severe case of asphyxia because of the tear gas used against him. The President of Ecuador is a


Cited: Llana, Sara. "Ecuador coup Attempt." The Christian Science Monitor. N.p., Sept 30, 2010. Web. 17 Nov 2011. Rudolph, James D. A Country Study: Ecuador. 2nd ed. Washington : Federal Research Division, 1991. eBook. .
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