2015 Ecuadorian protests
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The 2015 Ecuadorian protests were a series of protests against the government of President
Rafael Correa Rafael Vicente Correa Delgado (; born 6 April 1963), known as Rafael Correa, is an Ecuadorian politician and economist who served as President of Ecuador from 2007 to 2017. The leader of the PAIS Alliance political movement from its foundation ...
. Protests began in the first week of June, triggered by legislation increasing inheritance and
capital gains taxes A capital gains tax (CGT) is the tax on profits realized on the sale of a non-inventory asset. The most common capital gains are realized from the sale of stocks, bonds, precious metals, real estate, and property. Not all countries impose a c ...
. By August, an alliance of rural farmworkers, Indigenous federations such as
CONAIE The Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador ( es, Confederación de Nacionalidades Indígenas del Ecuador) or, more commonly, CONAIE, is Ecuador's largest indigenous rights organization. The Ecuadorian Indian movement under the le ...
, student groups, and labor unions had organised protests involving hundreds of thousands of people with a wide range of grievances, including the controversial tax laws; constitutional amendments removing presidential term limits; expanding oil and mining projects; water, education, and labour policies; a proposed
free trade agreement A free-trade agreement (FTA) or treaty is an agreement according to international law to form a free-trade area between the cooperating states. There are two types of trade agreements: bilateral and multilateral. Bilateral trade agreements occur ...
with the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
; and increasing repression of freedom of speech. On August 15, the government declared a
state of exception A state of exception (german: Ausnahmezustand) is a concept introduced in the 1920s by the German philosopher and jurist Carl Schmitt, similar to a state of emergency (martial law) but based in the sovereign's ability to transcend the rule of law ...
that allowed the military to crackdown on protests. Protestors blocked roads and declared a general strike in August. Violence and human rights violations were reported in clashes between militarised police and protestors. Protestors stated that Correa wanted to follow "the same path as Venezuela’s government," creating a "criminal war of classes," while President Correa stated that the protests were aimed at destabilizing the government, and the proposed measures were for combatting inequality.


Background

Throughout his presidency, Correa has been a controversial figure. Correa describes himself as an advocate of "
socialism of the 21st century Socialism of the 21st century ( es, Socialismo del siglo XXI; pt, Socialismo do século XXI; german: Sozialismus des 21. Jahrhunderts) is an interpretation of socialist principles first advocated by German sociologist and political analyst ...
", a term referring to a form of
democratic socialism Democratic socialism is a Left-wing politics, left-wing political philosophy that supports political democracy and some form of a socially owned economy, with a particular emphasis on economic democracy, workplace democracy, and workers' self- ...
previously used by Venezuela's Hugo Chávez. though he has also been described Correa as "a
left-wing Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...
populist Populism refers to a range of political stances that emphasize the idea of "the people" and often juxtapose this group against " the elite". It is frequently associated with anti-establishment and anti-political sentiment. The term developed ...
". Political science scholars George Philip and Francisco Panizza also claimed that like his allies Morales and Chávez, Correa should be categorized as a populist, because he appealed "directly to the people against their countries' political and economic order, divided the social field into antagonistic camps and promised redistribution and recognition in a newly founded political order." ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
'' characterized Correa's ideological approach as having contradictions however, and compared him to other
pink tide The pink tide ( es, marea rosa, pt, onda rosa, french: marée rose), or the turn to the left ( es, giro a la izquierda, link=no, pt, volta à esquerda, link=no, french: tournant à gauche, link=no), is a political wave and perception of a tur ...
presidents such as Bolivia's
Evo Morales Juan Evo Morales Ayma (; born 26 October 1959) is a Bolivian politician, trade union organizer, and former cocalero activist who served as the 65th president of Bolivia from 2006 to 2019. Widely regarded as the country's first president to co ...
and Venezuela's
Hugo Chávez Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías (; 28 July 1954 – 5 March 2013) was a Venezuelan politician who was president of Venezuela from 1999 until his death in 2013, except for a brief period in 2002. Chávez was also leader of the Fifth Republ ...
. Though Correa, an economist, did not attack Ecuador's private sector like Chávez and Ecuador's socioeconomic environment flourished with decreased poverty, he did follow Chávez's example of filling the Supreme Court of Ecuador with his allies and attempted to silence critics. Such actions have resulted in Correa being accused of
authoritarianism Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the rejection of political plurality, the use of strong central power to preserve the political '' status quo'', and reductions in the rule of law, separation of powers, and democratic vot ...
,
nepotism Nepotism is an advantage, privilege, or position that is granted to relatives and friends in an occupation or field. These fields may include but are not limited to, business, politics, academia, entertainment, sports, fitness, religion, an ...
, attacking dissidents and curtailing freedom of speech. Though Correa had brought stability to the poor who supported him, he combatted with other social groups such as the media, the Catholic Church, bankers and indigenous groups, saying that those who protested against him were part of "a wealthy oligarchy", a similar approach to what his ally
Nicolás Maduro Nicolás Maduro Moros (; born 23 November 1962) is a Venezuelan politician and president of Venezuela since 2013, with his presidency under dispute since 2019. Beginning his working life as a bus driver, Maduro rose to become a trade unio ...
did to those who opposed him.


Economic policies

Following years of heavy revenues from high oil prices that Correa experienced during his eight years as president, Ecuador experienced a 50% reduction in oil revenues. The government then cut its 2015 fiscal budget by 4% and initiated controversial economic measures that affected most Ecuadorians; both the middle class and the poor. In March 2015 when constitutional changes were proposed to allow the re-election of the president and government officials indefinitely while other labor and land ownership rules were submitted, protests numbered in thousands occurred in Quito that were organized by
indigenous communities Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...
, unions and students. In June 2015, when the government proposed bills to tax inheritances up to 77.5% and a 75% tax on real estate capital gains to counter loss in oil revenue, protests in Ecuador became widespread, with protesters demanding Correa out and compared actions by the government to that of the Venezuelan government. According to economists, the proposed policies would damage Ecuador's economy and population since 95% of businesses are family owned.


Timeline of events

Protests began on 8 June 2015 and continued after President Correa temporarily withdrew the proposed tax bills on 15 June, The protests expanded in July through September to include a broader range of issues including constitutional amendments removing presidential term limits; expanding oil and mining projects; water, education, and labour policies; a proposed
free trade agreement A free-trade agreement (FTA) or treaty is an agreement according to international law to form a free-trade area between the cooperating states. There are two types of trade agreements: bilateral and multilateral. Bilateral trade agreements occur ...
with the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
; and increasing repression of freedom of speech.


June

Near the headquarters of Correa's party, Alianza País, about 1,000 people gathered on June 8, including opposition, pro-government demonstrators, and 100 police on standby. On June 10, thousands of protesters wearing black in "mourning" demonstrated in the capital city of
Quito Quito (; qu, Kitu), formally San Francisco de Quito, is the capital and largest city of Ecuador, with an estimated population of 2.8 million in its urban area. It is also the capital of the province of Pichincha. Quito is located in a valley o ...
for the second time in a week. Government supporters confronted the protesters leading their own chants under an Alianza País banner. In other parts of the city, opposition and pro-government groups clashed. On June 24, Guillermo Lasso led a march to the National Assembly of Ecuador to demand the permanent withdrawal of the proposed tax bills. Workers and trade unionists, mainly from the Frente Unitario de los Trabajadores (FUT), demonstrated in Quito denouncing Correa's policies, calling them "anti-popular" and were planning a national strike. Mesías Tatamuez, leader of FUT stated that the protests weren't related to taxes and weren't intended to destabilize of the Ecuadorian government as President Correa had stated. The workers' protests involved the sweeping of streets to represent the "cleansing" of corruption from Ecuador and the burning of an Alianza País flag. On June 25 in Guayaquil, Mayor
Jaime Nebot Jaime José Nebot Saadi (born October 22, 1946) is an Ecuadorian lawyer and politician. He formerly served as mayor of Guayaquil, which is Ecuador's largest city. He is affiliated with the Social Christian Party (PSC) and the . Nebot ran twice f ...
led a demonstration of about 400,000 people, or about 20% of the city's population. The demonstrators gathered in light blue and white colors of Guayaquil's flag, and Nebot stated that he was not protesting against Correa but the "totalitarian system" he said Correa wanted to impose. Public buildings near the march were decorated by the Ecuadorian government, including a banner denouncing the accumulation of wealth. In Quito, demonstrators congregated on Shyris Avenue and Mayor
Mauricio Rodas Mauricio Esteban Rodas Espinel (born 15 April 1975) is an Ecuadorian lawyer, social policy consultant, and politician who served as the Metropolitan Mayor of Quito between May 2014 and May 2019. After working in other Latin American cities, incl ...
denounced the new taxes.


July

In Quito, Guayaquil, Cuenca and other cities, thousands protested against Correa on July 2, days before
Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...
' visit to the country. The Ecuadorian government held a countering rally at the president's palace. Hundreds also protested on July 9 outside of the Alianza País headquarters denouncing the proposed taxes and alleged autocratic and corrupt actions. The protesters waited for Pope Francis to complete his visit to Ecuador before protesting again.


August

In early August, workers, union leaders and Indigenous leaders blocked roads to Quito and other cities in opposition to the taxes and the proposed constitutional amendment allowing unlimited terms for re-election. They also called for a general strike. Tens of thousands of people demonstrated in Quito, and thousands of Indigenous people marched hundreds of miles to Quito in protests of oil and mining projects. CONAIE and other social movements joining the march called on the government to end police brutality against protestors and release detainees. On August 15, the government declared a
state of exception A state of exception (german: Ausnahmezustand) is a concept introduced in the 1920s by the German philosopher and jurist Carl Schmitt, similar to a state of emergency (martial law) but based in the sovereign's ability to transcend the rule of law ...
allowing the military to crackdown on protests. The measure was officially a response to increasing activity of the Cotopaxi volcano, but it applied to the entire country. CONAIE and other groups critised the measure for its broad application outside the area of the volcano. Additional marches protesting the constitutional amendments and resource extraction projects took place in September.


Public opinion

According to Cedatos-Gallup International polls from six major cities in Ecuador between 10 and 11 June, 70% of Ecuadorians disapproved of the real estate tax and 72% disapproved of the inheritance tax. Cedatos also observed President Correa's popularity drop from around 60% in recent years to 42% in 2015. Polls also showed that a clear majority of people favored a popular referendum on the constitutional amendment permitting indefinite re-elections.


Internet outages

While protesters were demonstrating in Quito and Guayaquil, some internet users were unable to connect to a network with explanations ranging from network over-saturation to the use of signal jammers by the Ecuadorian government. The use of
peer-to-peer Peer-to-peer (P2P) computing or networking is a distributed application architecture that partitions tasks or workloads between peers. Peers are equally privileged, equipotent participants in the network. They are said to form a peer-to-peer n ...
applications increased during the protests due to the network problems with Opposition Senator Andres Paez recommending the use of the
FireChat FireChat was a proprietary mobile app, developed by Open Garden, which used wireless mesh networking to enable smartphones to pass messages to each other peer-to-peer via Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, or Apple's Multipeer, without an internet connection. T ...
app. The media also reported
Denial-of-service attack In computing, a denial-of-service attack (DoS attack) is a cyber-attack in which the perpetrator seeks to make a machine or network resource unavailable to its intended users by temporarily or indefinitely disrupting services of a host connect ...
s and the creation of fake media accounts to falsify reports. It has also been reported that the Ecuadorian government uses " troll centers" to attack their opposition.


See also

* 2012 Ecuadorian protests * 2019 Ecuadorian protests * 2020 Ecuadorian protests *
2022 Ecuadorian protests A series of protests against the economic policies of Ecuadorian president Guillermo Lasso, triggered by increasing fuel and food prices, began on 13 June 2022. Initiated by and primarily attended by Indigenous activists, in particular the Confed ...
* 2014–15 Venezuelan protests * 2015 protests in Brazil *
List of protests in the 21st century This is a list of protests in the 21st century. Revolutions and uprisings Plants (Colour) revolutions * Rose Revolution (Georgia, 2003) * Tulip Revolution (Kyrgyzstan, 2005) * Cedar Revolution (Lebanon, 2005) * Orange Revolution (Ukraine, 2 ...


References


Sources

* * {{Contemporary Ecuadorian protest movement Political history of Ecuador
Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ''Eku ...
Protests in Ecuador 2015 in Ecuador June 2015 events in South America July 2015 events in South America August 2015 events in South America September 2015 events in South America