Ecuador’s President Says “Drug Mafias” Seek to Control Prisons

President EcuadorianGuillermo Lasso, assured this Monday that his country is under attack by drug trafficking mafias, which are supposedly trying to take control of the prisons, where several massacres of inmates have been registered for months.

“Ecuador is under a serious external threat due to the attack by drug trafficking mafias, the same ones that seek to take control of the country’s detention centers and take away our freedom in the streets and cities.Lasso said in a statement to the press in Guayaquil, after concluding a high-level meeting to discuss the prison situation.

The meeting, which brought together high authorities from the Executive, Legislative and Judicial functions, as well as the commands of the Armed Forces and the Police, analyzed the latest massacre of inmates in a jail in the port city of Guayaquil, which left more of 60 murdered prisoners, according to a preliminary balance of the Prosecutor’s Office.

The president called for the unity of Ecuadorians to face this “global problem “ and what is qualified as “One of the greatest crises” that have plagued Ecuador in recent decades.

During the meeting, the authorities together with representatives of civil society organized a “National agreement”To address the prison crisis.

Lasso assured that a “Pacification process” in prisons through dialogue and respect for human rights with the support of civil society and international organizations.

Likewise, he said that the Ministry of Government (Interior) and the Attorney General’s Office (State Defense) will prepare a proposal for “Law of citizen defense” that will be presented to the National Assembly (Parliament).

The National Court of Justice and the Council of the Judiciary will also expedite the processing of applications for “Prison benefits” requested by the inmates.

In addition, he stressed that coordination between the Armed Forces and the Police will be maintained to maintain security inside and outside the detention centers. “Indefinitely.”

The Council for Citizen Participation and Social Control (Cpccs) will lead the promotion of “Dialogue tables”To address the humanitarian situation and comprehensive reparation to the families of inmates who have been victims of violence inside prisons.

In parallel, the authorities will process the pardon of citizens who are in prisons and suffer from catastrophic illnesses.

The Office of the Prosecutor will contribute to the acceleration of the investigation processes on prison events, to provide greater security to citizens.

“The only way to defeat this enemy is with the unity of Ecuadorians and with the lawLasso remarked.

The massacre last Saturday occurred in the same Guayaquil jail where in September of this year a massacre was recorded in which 118 prisoners died; The cause, apparently, are clashes that the authorities attribute to the dispute over territories between gangs allegedly linked to drug trafficking.

After that massacre, the president of Ecuador, Guillermo Lasso, declared a state of exception in the prison system.

This year, about 300 inmates have died from violent brawls between gangs of inmates in Ecuador’s prisons, according to journalistic estimates.

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