Trouble On the Coast and Mafia Carnage

Flash!

El Presidente decrees that citizens

have the right to carry guns for

self-defense.

In the wake of murders and mail bombings

in Ecuador's coastal areas and the need

to protect residents from cartel violence,

Sr. Lasso has repealed the provision of a

12-year-old Correa Era decree that made it

nearly impossible for citizens to bear arms.

El presidente -- citing an increase in crime

in Ecuador -- has authorized citizens to

carry and use firearms for self-defense.

While the gun ownership decree is applicable

throughout Ecuador, it is worth noting that

most of the increasing gang violence is

attributable to the port cities of

Guayaquil, Manta, Esmeraldas and Machala.

Presidente Lasso affirmed the rights of citizens

to own, carry and use in self-defense

both pepper spray and electric tasers.

Source... www.cuencahighlife.com

New curfews.

Additionally, Presidente Lasso has announced

new curfews of 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. in the city of

Guayaquil, its suburbs of Durán and

Samborondón .. and the provinces of

Santa Elena and Los Ríos.

The curfews will continue indefinitely and

until further notice.

News source... www.cuencahighlife.com

U.S. Coast Guard versus Chinese

fishing fleets west of Ecuador mainland.

The United States Coast Guard has been

patrolling the sealife-rich waters around

Ecuador's Galápagos Islands under the

flag of a regional fisheries organization.

The plan just announced is to add more

Coast Guard vessels to the effort to

ward off poaching by Chinese ships,

considered illegal.

Massive Chinese fleets that fish marlin

and squid are the main culprits, according

to U.S. officials.

The Guard's Admiral Linda Fagan said

this week that maintaining a strong presence

is essential to sovereignty. Fagan, who was

promoted to Coast Guard commandant

last year, is the first woman appointed to

the top leadership post of a U.S.

military branch.

Source... Semafor, reprinted at

www.cuencahighlife.com

Suspects in custody in Esmeraldas.

Three alleged gang members have been

arrested for a massacre that took nine lives

last week at a fishing port in Esmeraldas

on the Pacific Coast.

The arrested men were in a group of

alleged gang members who arrived quayside

at the port and opened fire on individuals

there.

Source...  InSight Crime

El Presidente hospitalized once again.

Ecuador's president was expected in Esmeraldas

this weekend for a meeting about the recent

massacre there (see above) and the gang violence

that has taken hundreds of lives during the

past two years.

However, Sr. Lasso has been hospitalized at a

military facility in Quito for a urinary tract infection.

His official activities have been canceled until

at least this coming Tuesday.

El presidente came down with covid last month

and had surgery for a leg fracture the month before.

Since the start of 2023 Sr. Lasso's health problems

have periodically limited him in his duties.  He is

the target of the National Assembly, many of whose

members voted to begin an impeachment  process

against him.  Waiting in the wings are indigenous,

labor and ethnic groups who are 'holding their

powder' for a strike and roadblocks in case the

impeachment process fails to oust Ecuador's leader.

Credit: Noti Merica, European Press,

                  washingtonprism.org

Military troops by the thousands

patrol Ecuadorian cities' streets.

2,400 army troops are patrolling

Quito and Guayaquil streets, according

to El Presidente, to keep a lid on

drug traffickers' activities. A smaller

contingent of military are on patrol in

Cuenca as part of the effort, at least

several hundred troops.

At a meeting with his ministers this

week, Sr. Lasso and his people

discussed broadening law enforcement

powers versus the traffickers by

possibly declaring them to be terrorists.

Source... www.cuencahighlife.com

@cccmedia

Military troops by the thousands

patrol Ecuadorian cities' streets.

Source...  www.cuencahighlife.com

So, where is the article?

@topper4499

The article is currently atop the

Cuenca Highlife lineup on the

site's welcome page among

several items grouped together.

Look for the headline words...

Lasso convenes crime meeting.

Quotes about this crisis.

"A process of urban terrorism has been unleashed.,,,

The government has lost control of the crisis,"

says Col. Mario Pazmiño, a former director of

military intelligence in an interview with

The Guardian.

Ecuador's defense minister, Juan Zapata, is quoted

by the same newspaper as saying, "We are at the

worst moment of violence in the country."

Drug traffickers in Ecuador are being schooled

in their dark trade by cocaine cartels in Mexico,

leading to the increases in violence that has

plagued Ecuador's neighbors, Colombia and Peru,

the world's top cocaine producers, for many years.

The violence in Ecuador is driven by competition

amongst organized criminal gangs vying for

control of coastal drug-smuggling routes.

Source... The Guardian, in an article titled

Ecuador's criminal gangs bring death and mayhem

amid political gridlock

Lasso Administration gets green light to

fight fire with fire, to put down "terrorist" traffickers.

Cosepe, Ecuador's Public Security Council, agrees

with Presidente Lasso that the violence perpetrated

in recent years by coastal drug traffickers is

terrorism and a threat to public safety.

The council has authorized the designation of

the traffickers as terrorists and Sr. Lasso will

issue a decree allowing the government to

employ lethal force against this threat against

the Ecuadorian people.

The Cosepe meeting in Quito heard from

Wagner Bravo, El Presidente's new

chief of Public Security.

"Assaults on the public must be met with

extraordinary force," Bravo told Cosepe.

"We are seeing an unprecedented increase

in crime involving illegal drugs, extortion,

kidnapping and human trafficing, and

these cannot be left unchecked."

Source... www.cuencahighlife.com

Military to participate in anti-terrorism campaign.

Reuters reports that the Ecuadorian military, including

special forces, is being called up nationally to patrol

city streets and participate in anti-terrorist activity

versus drug trafficker operatives.

A triggering event earlier this month involved a

boat of armed men who disembarked at a

fishermen's pier in Esmeraldas and

proceeded to kill nine people.

Source... Reuters

Ten dead in metro Guayaquil shoot-out.

A Saturday night (April 29) attack in a

Western suburb of the big port of Guayaquil

has resulted in ten deaths ..

after a truckload of armed men initiated

a shootout.

Guayaquil police say that once again

the incident involved gangs fighting over

drug-related territorial rights.

Source... Reuters

A bad day for two guys in Durán.

In the town of Durán in Guayas Province, two men

were pursuing an individual who had just taken cash

out of a local bank.

The man with the cash started his van,

then swerved into his pursuers,

knocking them to the ground.

The police showed up and a shootout ensued.

Twenty shots were fired. The suspects missed their

targets on every shot. The police shot them both dead.

The police are under investigation for not covering

the dead bodies for 20 minutes after the shootout,

allowing a crowd to form and applaud the police

for taking out the putative bad guys.

Source... video from the scene as reported

at Cuenca HighLife

El Presidente's Decree vs. Terrorism now in effect.

Presidente Lasso has issued a terrorism decree for

the purpose of providing the Ecuadorian military

expanded powers in the fight against drug trafficking

and related criminal activity that have been plaguing

Coastal areas.

CONAIE, the indigenous federation, has put out a

statement in opposition to the decree.

The complex controversies over the decree and whether

the military should have powers for which it may not

have been trained .. are beyond the scope of this post.

For more on such matters, consult the source of

this post, in Jeanne's Periódico column at

www.cuencahighlife.com

The Periódico column often inclludes articles

that translate Cuenca newspaper reporting from

the original español.

Two men on a moto?

It's well known that many thefts in

Ecuadorian cities are committed by

a motorcycle driver and his accomplice.

One year ago, Ecuador passed a law against

two men riding the same moto.

However, Cuenca HighLife reports that

based on the fact that Agencia Nacional

de Tránsito has stated that two persons

on a moto is within legal capacity,

that ordinance has never been enforced

in Cuenca.

A mass murder in Manta targeted

innocent mourners.

The mayor of the oceanside community

is mystified by what he learned in the

aftermath of what five hit-men did at a

funeral home in Manta.

While it is believed this was a gang-related

revenge hit, it's unusual in that the

perpetrators allegedly shot indiscriminately

during the funeral of a transit worker,

targeting friends and family of the deceased,

killing four people and injuring 16.

Police say there have been 85 murders

in Manta so far this year, about eight times

the equivalent number from five years ago,

before violent crime exploded in the coastal city.

Source... www.cuencahighife.com

USA, E.U. Post Travel Warnings for the Coast.

The European Union in Brussels has posted

a message calling the coastal areas of

Ecuador "deadly" due to recent mass-shootings

and warning tourists "in the strongest

possible terms" to avoid the area.

Last weekend, three innocent customers were

killed along with three suspected criminals

when gunmen descended on a restaurant

in Montañita and opened fire. At least

seven other people were injured in the

attack.

Police consider the shootings a

revenge attack involving gang members.

The U.S. State Department issued a

warning similiar to the EU office's,

telling visitors to avoid the coastal areas.

The Andean cities, including the Quito and

Cuenca areas, and the off-shore

Galápagos Islands remain safe for travelers,

according to the authorities.

Source for Montañita shooting details...

Santa Elena Province police command,

as reported at www.cuencahighlife.com

@prospector911 - the drug smuggling business in Ecuador is so bad that the collateral crimes associated with these operations (8 murdered and 20 wounded in a two day period in Manta and Montanita) require the government to put this problem higher on the list that attracting investors because investors will shy away from (or leave) areas and countries if the violent crimes continue to be on the uptick! So your comments regarding "over reach" is not appropriate here! We live in Manta (almost 1 year) and have seen a very troubling uptick in assassinations and robberies! We totally understand the government's intention!

Esmeraldas under water.

The coastal city of Esmeraldas and

the province of the same name are

largely submerged as six rivers have been

overflowing their banks.

Ecuador officials said at least 3,700 homes

were under water from the effects of

huge amounts of rain and floodwaters.

El Presidente did a fly-over and pronounced

the situation "almost unimaginable,"

promising to send massive aid to the area.

A thousand people have been rescued by

boats and helicopters, most of them from

Esmeraldas rooftops.

Source... www.cuencahighlife.com

State Department weighs in.

Violent assaults, robberies and murders have gotten so common

in Ecuador's Coastal provinces that the U.S. State Department

has issued an "extreme caution" warning for travel in multiple

provinces.

State has now warned travelers to avoid Huaquillas in El Oro province

and Quevedo in Los Ríos province.

After earlier warning travelers away from Guayas Province

(Guayaquil), State has now placed seven additional provinces

into the "extreme caution" category, among them Manabí.

Santo Domingo, Santa Elena, Cañar and Carchi.

---

The high-elevation Andes areas remain on State's list of

safer areas for Expats and travelers.

Coastal kingpin "Fat Louie" faces justice again.

A notorious crime figure has been arrested

in Pasto, Colombia, and extradited to Ecuador.

Fat Louie Arboleda was arrested last December

in Ecuador and charged with murder and other

serious crimes. However, he was released by a

judge in Manabí province and managed to

travel to Pasto.

Now Louie has been re-captured and turned over

to Ecuadorian authorities at the Rumichaca

international crossing.

Louie is leader of the notorious gang Los Lobos

(The Wolves), which gang has been involved in

drug trafficking and deadly prison violence.

Source... www. cuencahighlife.com

Violence at a courthouse and a prison.

A hand grenade was detonated at the

Portoviejo judicial center last week, injuring

three people.

As a result, all Manabí province employees

of the court system have been ordered to

telecommute until July 27.

Two men were arrested for the grenade violence.

Both men were killed on Saturday in what the

authorities consider to be gang-related violence

in a prison.

Per www.cuencahighlife.com.

Weekend carnage in Guayaquil.

In the big port city of Guayaquil, ten people

were shot and killed in suspected

gang-related violence on Sunday night.

That brought to 29 the number of

individuals murdered in the Big G

during the weekend.

Source... www.cuencahighlife.com

Oil spill and cover-up at Esmeraldas.

There has been a nasty oil spill at an

oil terminal operated by state-run

PetroEcuador. 

The company is not disclosing the

volume of the spill, according to Reuters.

The spill has polluted the waters off

Esmeraldas in northwestern Ecuador near

the Colombia border .. and reached

a popular beach.

Human error caused the spill, according

to PetroEcuador .. and an investigation

has been initiated.

Source... Reuters

PetroEcuador releases Esmeraldas spill details.

The company has stated that 1,200 barrels

of oil were spilled in this week's incident.

Not all the oil entered Pacific waters or

Las Palmas Beach, some being contained

within the company terminal.

The beach was soiled over a four-mile

stretch. The cleanup is expected to

take about a week.

Source.... aljazeera.com

Esmeraldas spill update.

A military helicopter survey shows

blackened waves and shoreline from

the PetroEcuador spill along a stretch of

ten kitometers of shoreline

South of Esmeraldas. The spill zone

includes the popular Las Palmas beach.

As of yesterday, PetroEcuador said the

spill was 90 percent contained.

Source... www.cuencahighlife.com

Manta mayor assassinated.

Mayor Augustín Intriago was gunned down

Sunday by a hitman whose driver was

operating a stolen truck.  A female associate

of the mayor was also shot and killed.

Manta is a port city of well over 200,000

people.

The driver was shot and captured.

The shooter escaped.

The motive for killing Intriago, 38 -- who was

elected to his second term as Manta's mayor

this year -- is being investigated.

Source... NBC News, Cuenca Highlife

Coastal curfews.

El presidente has declared a state of emergency

in Manabí and Los Ríos provinces, following the

Manta assassination and fresh outbreaks of

gang violence in multiple prisons.

This means dusk-to-dawn curfews in Manta

and Durán, a hotbed of gang violence.

Dozens of prison guards were being held hostage

as of Monday night, mostly at the Turi prison

in Cuenca.  Negotiations had not yet begun.

Source... www.cuencahighlife.com

The storming of Ecuador's largest prison.

Waves of soldiers and police stormed

Litoral Penitentiary near Guayaquil today

to retake control for the authorities

of the largest prison in the country.

Presidente Lasso has ordered the deployment

of 2,700 military and police to deal with

the gang violence in the prisons.

Eighteen prisoners are reported to have died

in the latest prison violence.

Source... aljazeera

State of emergency in Ecuador prison system

nationwide.

Presidente Lasso has issued an emergency

declaration giving police and the military control

over Ecuador's entire prison population.

This is his second emergency declaration

in two days.  The first one covered two provinces and

the cities of Manta and Durán.

In addition to their usual badassery, Ecuador's

prisoners are seeking better food and living conditions.

Sources... aljazeera, Cuenca Highlife

Prison retaken, hostages freed.

Ecuador's interior minister announced

this afternoon that order has been restored

at the country's largest prison,

Litoral Penitentiary near Guayaquil.

The retaking of the facility followed three

days of gang violence there. There were

31 inmate deaths, according to the

authorities.

Scores of prison guards and employees

who had been taken hostage by inmates

at Ecuadorian prisons in recent days

have been released unharmed,

officials said.

Source... www.cuencahighlife.com

Border city eclipses Guayaquil as

Ecuador's murder capital.

Esmeraldas, a coastal city near the

Colombian border, has been tagged

as the most murderous city in Ecuador

and number-ten in Latin America.

The murder rate is 87 per 100,000

residents.

Esmeraldas' location on the

Pacific coast near Colombia makes it

a crossroads of drug trafficking

and a murder capital.  In Latin America,

only some cities in Colombia and

Mexico have murder rates that surpass

Esmeraldas.

Source... The crime research group

InSightCrime, as reported

at www.cuencahighlife.com

Thank you, ccmedia for keeping us updated on the horrible incidents of drug fueled violence. Part of a trip planned for later this year included coastal exploring from Manta to Salinas, so it is so very disappointing, not only for tourists but I'm sure for all the coastal residents who probably loved living there until lately.  There really is no other place I want to retire and I was really hoping for some sunshine and a sea view, but no more. I'll trade cooler temps and cloudy skies to stay out of the cartels and gangs cross hairs.  What a terrible shame.

From the prisons to the streets.

Presidente Lasso has named five

different directors of the Ecuadorian

prison system in the two-and-a-half

years of his administration.

That is one of various facts and insights

stated in an online CNN article titled

"How gang warfare jumped from

Ecuador's prisons to the open street."

The article makes the point that while

cocaine is rarely fabricated in Ecuador,

the country's ports and its location

between cocaine super-producers

Peru and Colombia have made the

Ecuadorian coast a prime transportation

hub for the worldwide cocaine trade.

Source... CNN online

@cccmedia ... it will be interesting to see how effective the cooperation between the US and Ecuador (& other south and central American countries) to share intelligence information, police and army training, etc. will be to control crime. Especially given that financial aid proposed, and the push to label (Mexican) cartels as terrorist organizations, by the US government has faltered. Glad to see Ecuador's courts and opposition have not stymied ALL of the outgoing presidents decrees. It's a significant positive that they and the opposition have continued to approve curfews, state of national emergency declarations, and approved intervention by the military to assist local police.

Is there a case for taking a few steps in El Salvador's direction, without going to their extremes of absolute, extrajudicial emergency powers, and full suspension of constitutional rights? Given that Ecuador is hemmed in on two sides by cartel strong holds (Colombia and Peru), who have instigated not only prison wide riots between rival local gangs representing the cartels, but the violence has now spread into the streets, the government might not have any choice but to take further steps.  With the support of Ecuador citizens, and coastal communities in particular of course. Certainly want one wonders why anyone in prison is allowed a cell phone, which are clearly being used to coordinate drug sales and gang attacks in the communities surrounding prisons, and in Esmeralda's, Manta, etc.?

If Ecuadors populace, and indigenous organizations in particular, continue to make more effort to support the national police and military, organize citizen brigades in cooperation with local police (as they have in Cuenca), much can be done. If communities can also put a lid on unfounded cries of "oppression" rhetoric - as have been heard from smaller rural communities and indigenous communes - every time the police do their job to keep the peace (but also that the government stamps out corruption wherever it does exist), there is hope I believe.

Eliminating corrupt prison guards.

Ecuador's decision-makers are aware that

the presence of corrupted prison guards has

been part of the enabling of inmates who

have killed and wreaked havoc inside the

prison system in the past several years.

Guards have allowed gang members inside

the prisons to acquire weapons and

cell phones. The guards' incentive is to

augment their meager pay by accepting bribes

from the gangs.

The firing of 16 guards in the sprawling

prison system has not been enough to

solve the system's daunting problems

in the recent years.

The prison system has been ordering

surveillance equipment to better monitor

the behavior of guards.

That may not be sufficient. An expert at

the University of Cuenca quoted by

Cuenca HighLife said there needs to be

upgrades in the hiring and evaluating

of prison guards.

Source... www.cuencahighlife.com

CC

aside from being in the "game"

Arent tourists in Cuenca generally safe?

CC
aside from being in the "game"
Arent tourists in Cuenca generally safe?
-@lunamick

.

.

.

Historically, yes, they've been safe.

Relative to the Coast, I would consider them

safe now.

cccmedia

Gun permit system shoots a blank.

Four months after El Presidente signed an

executive order allowing residents to carry

guns for self-defense, no permits have been

issued to gun owners.

In fact, the psychological and competency

tests requried for permits have not been set up.

Nor are many of the folks needed to run the

tests actually ready and in place.

Fewer than 100 persons have applied for the

gun permits since April.

Ecuador abides as a country where gun culture

is not much of a thing.

Source... www.cuencahighlife.com