Ecuador police arrest top indigenous leader amid protests over fuel prices
Ecuadoran police have arrested the leader of an Indigenous movement, pushing his organization to call Tuesday for a popular uprising a day after nationwide roadblocks to protest high fuel prices.
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Wednesday, June 15th 2022 - 22:38 UTC
Ecuadorian indigenist leader released from jail
Wednesday, June 15th 2022 - 22:38 UTCFull article0 comments
An Ecuadorian judge has ordered the release from custody of indigenist leader Leónidas Iza after spending almost 24 hours in a detention facility.
Iza, chairman of the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (Conaie), was released early Wednesday morning, following his arrest Tuesday in the province of Cotopaxi, where he joined a protest against neoliberal measures by the administration of President Guillermo Lasso.
The indigenist rebels were staging a road blockade when the arrests were made in flagrante delicto, since the authorities claimed the demonstrations were paralyzing public services. The Interior Ministry also accused Iza of calling for an upsurge in violence.
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After his release, Iza made it clear that they would continue with the mobilization in defense of the ten demands made by the people to the Government. “Nobody here has come out to defy the law,” Iza insisted. “We have only come out because hunger and injustice have taken over our homes.”
“We have been told that we are sabotaging and carrying out terrorism because poor people have come out to fight, but the law protects the rich who have their economic resources in tax havens,” he added.
More:
https://en.mercopress.com/2022/06/15/ecuadorian-indigenist-leader-released-from-jail
